Alaska Scenic Drives & Lesser Known Destinations
The information you need to plan the affordable family trips that everyone can enjoy, and remember for a lifetime. Alaska has the scenic drives to make all your dreams a reality. Check out the off the beaten path destinations and attractions that will set your trip far apart from those canned tours the travel guides keep touting.
This is where you can find some of the our favorite Alaska Scenic Drives and read our take on where to go and when to stop. While this site is here to highlight, from our prospective's, the various scenic drives in Alaska; you retain the final say as to your destinations, times and to what you see and do during your Alaska vacation.
That being said, here are our favorite drives and a little about why we rank each in the orders that we do.
Alaska Scenic Highways
The Glacier Highway that leads to Hyder Alaska is one drive that everyone should experience and is one drive that you can afford to take during a one week vacation starting in Seattle. Wildlife viewing on this drive is excellent and possibly some of the best to be found.
If getting your photo in front of a glacier sounds interesting to you, stop at the Bear Glacier pullout along the highway and you can shoot all the poses you can think of. The Glacier Highway is our #1 pick for Scenic Alaska Drives.
The picturesque, Alaska Highway, is our #2 pick for scenic Alaska highways and very deservingly so. From Dawson Creek in beautiful British Columbia to Delta Junction Alaska, this is one drive that is still wooing travelers sense it was built in 1943. The original 1,390 miles of the Alaska Highway was something really crazy to endure in today's standards but with the recent straightening of the highway it's a real joy to explore.
The all to often overlooked, Richardson Highway, comes in as our #3 pick for most scenic drives for a number of reasons. What would Alaska be had it not been for the Alaska Pipeline? The Richardson Highway will afford you with great views of this marvel and take you to the terminus in the post city of Valdez Alaska.
The Denali Highway; Wander off the beaten path and discover
some of the most picturesque wilderness areas of Alaska. This road may
not be paved but that's part of what makes it so great, the
Denali Highway that stretches 135 miles between
the Richardson and George Parks Highway is one beautiful summers drive.
This page guides readers through the 135 miles of scenic
Alaskan beauty. This classic drive captures the memorable details
of those early days and gravel roads that can be enjoyed on the way to
Denali Park, on a weekend drive from Anchorage, or while sitting in a
comfortable armchair of your RV and soaking in the scenery.
Hatcher Pass and Independence Mine are just two of the points you can discover from a pleasant days drive from Anchorage.
Check out the new Weekend Guide for different regions of Alaska: What to do close to home: day trips; lesser-known attractions; camping and other outdoor activities; romantic getaways and affordable weekend vacations. Alaska Scenic Drives features practical tips and vacation ideas geared toward finding the best values on Alaska vacations while traveling in Alaska by automobile.
Scenic Drives in Alaska!
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Alaska Scenic Drives includes information on the best time to visit, the various travel seasons, interesting sites, recreational opportunities, camping locations, fishing opportunities and much more. Scenic Drives in Alaska is written by local residents about the best drives in Alaska.
Knowledge is essential when venturing off the beaten paths of Alaska, this series of articles covers many of the unique travel choices, outdoor adventures, and little-known destinations available to you and puts them into highway specific guides where the most intriguing Alaska vacations meet with unbelievable Alaskan adventures.
Question: When is the best time to drive to Alaska?
Answer: Mainly, this depends on where in Alaska you are heading
to. The southeast panhandle, including the capital city of Juneau, is only
accessible by plane or boat, with the exception of Skagway and Haines at
the northern tip of the panhandle. These areas can be accessed year round
via the Alaska Marine Ferry System. The Alaska highway on the other hand
can be driven year round through Canada to reach Anchorage, Fairbanks,
Valdez, Skagway, Haines and up to the arctic circle. Generally, the best
months for travel are May through September and driving in the months of
October through April should be limited to experienced winter drivers in
four wheel drive vehicles.
