Like many, after being locked down for over a year, my itch to travel was intense. So when my London (study abroad) friend mentioned that she and her husband planned to sell their home and move away from Alaska, like a mad scientist, I said, “THAT’S IT!”. And just like that we were heading to the uncharted territories of Alaska.
Ok, not really. You see we visited them in Alaska once before, 7 years ago, sans kids. The hardest part then was arranging childcare for a week. This trip, oh this trip, is going to be very different. And there is no “just like that”, especially in this COVID world.
Alaska sans kids 2014
So much planning. Truth be told, I hate planning. My whole existence as a mother is based on schedules and routines. Vacation to me usually means going somewhere and winging it as much as possible. I don’t want to be locked down to a schedule, or know where I have to be eating a meal in 3 days. That is my daily life.
But I knew that this Alaska trip for the 5 of us was going to take some planning in order to be successful. We started booking things back in January and February for our June/July trip. We knew roughly when we wanted to go, we planned to start with our friends in Fairbanks, we knew we wanted to see the Anchorage area, the rest was to be determined.
Start with the priority. We started with the highlight for us, Denali National Park. Hubs and I sat down after dinner one night with a glass of wine and started researching. This, by the way, is when our budget was born. Seeing the cost of the Denali portion set our expectations for expenses. Alaska is not cheap. Two glasses in, he was on the phone with Denali cabins booking THE LAST CABIN they had available for around the time we were looking to go. We were also able to book the Denali train from Anchorage at that point. ~phew~
Alaska 2014
Now work around that. We tweaked the dates we originally planned in order to get the Denali experience we wanted. Fortunately, we had that flexibility. We then spent time talking to our friends in North Pole figuring out what else we wanted to and could do. They really emphasized the beauty of the Kenai peninsula and encouraged us to explore there. I took notes on our conversation like a freshly minted college freshman. We looked at towns, got their opinions, decided on how much time Hubs could take off of work and made a plan.
Lock down locations and dates. Since we are not going to stay in one place for the entirety of the trip, we needed to figure out when we would be where. The whole “last cabin” situation REALLY worried me about finding available places to stay. I’m all for winging it, but when my kids are in tow getting adequate sleep is key. For them. And they need a decent bed to do that. I learned quickly that many, if not most, of the places we wanted to stay in small towns did not have online booking. Calling and chatting with them was the way to go. I always received a call back, and often it was by an owner. I honestly loved the conversations, and found them very helpful in considering activities in the immediate areas.
Fairbanks 2014
Book the flights and rental cars. Maybe I did this all backwards, but flights came last. Or nearly last. At the time I booked, I wasn’t sure what the COVID restrictions would be on travel. I was downright scared, but had faith that things were trending towards re-opening and lifted restrictions. Now, 3 of the 5 of us will be vaccinated by the time we leave in June and many restrictions have been lifted. Flights from Boston to/from Fairbanks booked. Flights from Fairbanks to Anchorage booked. We chose to fly to Anchorage to save time and to allow us to return to Fairbanks via the train.
Add the activities. This, to me, is the best part. The other stuff is a necessity, it’s almost stressful lining it all up, but this part is just fun. What do we want to do? We, ok I, I spent countless hours exploring the options. Sea kayaking, tours, fishing, bear viewing, hiking, dog sledding, glaciers, ocean, rain forest, GAH! So much adventure, I could just burst!!
True to my early words, I have not booked a ton of activities. I don’t want to be scheduled to death. I want to be able to add things where wanted. I want the kids to be able to rest in the middle of an afternoon if needed. I want to be able to sit around a campfire and take in the fact that WE ARE IN ALASKA. (I’m squealing with delight in case you can’t hear it.)
Alaska 2014
Our itinerary: The kids and I leave one week ahead of Hubs and spend the week in Fairbanks/North Pole. Hubs joins us and we fly to Anchorage, rent an SUV, and drive down to Soldotna for 3 nights, then Homer for 3 nights, then Seward for 4 nights. Then back to Anchorage for one night, where we ditch the rental SUV and hop on the train for Denali. Denali for 3 nights and then back to Fairbanks. One night with our friends and then fly home. All in, 23 DAYS IN ALASKA. (I’m still squealing!)
