It happens every year: the snow melts, the sun stays up late and early-season travel deals pop up in all corners of the state!
The seasonal resort hotels around Denali National Park are just opening this week, so they're offering some great deals. The Denali Princess is offering rooms for as little as $99 in May — going up to $134 in June.
But one of the best deals is to catch a combination rail/hotel deal up to Denali. Both Princess Tours and Gray Line of Alaska offer these packages.
Princess offers a 3-day/2-night package in June for as little as $449 per person, double. That includes roundtrip rail on their private rail cars and two nights accommodations. Gray Line offers a two-day/one-night package for as little as $239 per person, double. Both packages feature accommodations at the Denali Princess.
The Alaska Railroad and Denali Park Resorts offer a combination deal, including two nights at the McKinley Chalets for $329-$419 per person, double occupancy, depending on your date of travel. You can upgrade to Gold Star Service on the train for an extra $170 per person.
The big attraction at Denali National Park, of course, is the wildlife. And the best way to see the wildlife is to take the Tundra Wilderness Tour into the park. That's the long, 6-8 hour bus tour that leaves early in the morning. Be sure and make advance reservations with Denali Park Resorts.
For the million-dollar view of the Great One, visit Talkeetna. The Mt. McKinley Princess actually is closer to Trapper Creek, but you can take the train to Talkeetna and catch the Princess bus to the lodge. But this hotel is the closest one to the mountain itself — and Denali fills up the northwestern horizon when you're sitting out on the big deck!
Take advantage of rates as low as $69 per night in May, or $99 per night in June. I recommend a couple of activities in Talkeetna: flightseeing with a glacier landing with Talkeetna Air Taxi or K2 Aviation, a jetboat ride with Mahay's Riverboat Service or a float trip with Talkeetna River Guides. Oh — don't miss just hanging out in beautiful downtown Talkeetna. What a trip!
The rail/hotel package with Princess Tours is great: roundtrip rail from Anchorage to Talkeetna, a bus ride up to the lodge and overnight accommodations for $109.50 per person, double occupancy. Optional tours are additional, of course.
Gray Line of Alaska offers a three-day/two night package which includes overnight accommodations at both the Denali Princess and the Mt. McKinley Princess. The cost is $299 per person, double occupancy.
South of Anchorage, take advantage of early-season discounts at the Kenai Princess Lodge in Cooper Landing. Select dates are available May 22-31 for just $99 per night. Over Memorial Day Weekend, choose a Saturday or Sunday night stay for $129 per night.
East of Anchorage, between Glennallen and Valdez on the Richardson Highway, take advantage of early-season specials at the Copper River Princess. This is the perfect gateway to Wrangell-St. Elias National Park. Between June 3 and June 30, select dates are available for as little as $79 per night. There's free wi-fi and floor-to-ceiling windows in the Great Room with a view of the Wrangell Mountains. You can see the Copper River, the Klutina River and the Trans-Alaska Pipeline.
Further back in Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, take advantage of Kennicott Glacier Lodge's "bed and breakfast" package, from $79 per person, double.
The lodge is located in the old mining district of Kennicott, five miles uphill from the small town of McCarthy. You can fly back to McCarthy from Chitina with Wrangell Mountain Air if you don't want to drive on the gravel road for the last 60 miles. Or, go flightseeing once you get back to McCarthy.
The bed-and-breakfast package features accommodations in the "main lodge" with a shared bath/shower. Take your meals family-style in the main dining room. Don't miss the opportunity to go hiking on the Root Glacier, or to take a guided tour of the old 14-story Mill Building.
Watch for more deals all summer long. There are fewer travelers in the state this year, so operators are working hard to attract local residents to fill the space!
Scott McMurren is an Anchorage-based travel marketing consultant who has lived in Alaska for three decades, spending much of that time traveling the far-flung corners of the state. Visit his Web site at www.alaskatravelgram.com.