Day 1 Sat. ANCHORAGE.
Your Tour Director is on hand this afternoon at your hotel to assist with check-in and offer suggestions for your free time in Anchorage. The rest of the day is at leisure.

Day 2 Sun. ANCHORAGE.
Journey down the beautiful Turnagain Arm where the mountains rise out of the sea. Keep an eye out for Dall sheep, bald eagles and beluga whales. Travel into the Chugach National Forest and board your boat for a cruise to the face of Portage Glacier. A National Forest Service interpreter will be on board to explain the wonder of the glaciers. This afternoon and evening are free in Anchorage for independent activities such as walking on the Coastal Trail, shopping downtown, visiting the art museum and the Alaska Native Heritage Center, or taking a float plane ride over a glacier.

Day 3 Mon. ANCHORAGE-FAIRBANKS.
Travel northeast through Palmer in the Matanuska Valley, a lush farming region where cabbages can grow to weigh more than 70 pounds in the 24-hour daylight. Up over scenic Tahnita Pass with spectacular vistas of Matanuska Glacier. Travel along Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve, the largest park in the United States, and the Trans-Alaskan Pipeline, which runs 800 miles from Prudhoe Bay to Valdez. The area boasts glaciers larger than the island of Manhattan and is home to nine of the 16 highest peaks in North America. Along the way, see spectacular scenery, visit a rustic Alaska roadhouse, and hear tales of Alaska long ago. Overnight in Fairbanks.

Day 4 Tue. FAIRBANKS.
The morning is free to shop downtown, sleep in, or take an optional visit to the Oil Pipeline visitors center, stop at the El Dorado Gold Mine to ride on a narrow gauge railroad and try your hand at panning for gold. This afternoon take the included cruise down the Chena and Tanana Rivers aboard the sternwheeler riverboat Discovery III. Stop at a recreated Athabascan Indian village and learn about their historical way of life in Alaska. This evening is open for activities such as a visit to historic Alaskaland with its Aviation, Rail and Riverboat Museums. Tonight try a salmon bake.

Arctic Circle Adventure
An alternative available from Fairbanks on day 4 of your tour. Reservations for this option should be made with your travel agent at the time you book your tour in order to ensure availability.

Day 5 Wed. FAIRBANKS-DENALI NATIONAL PARK.
Breakfast this morning is on board the world famous Alaska Railroad. Ride on the rails from Fairbanks to DENALI NATIONAL PARK. The afternoon and evening are free in Denali for independent activities such as a walk in the park, attending one of the free national park programs, whitewater rafting, Mt. McKinley flightseeing, helicopter landing on the glacier, or the Denali Dinner Theatre.

Day 6 Thu. DENALI NATIONAL PARK.
A free day in Denali National Park. Your Tour Director will recommend an array of optional activities including river rafting, helicopter or fixed-wing flightseeing, and hiking.

Day 7 Fri. DENALI-ANCHORAGE.
Journey south this morning and stop at the IDITAROD DOGSLED VISITOR CENTER to learn more about this epic race. Continue on into Anchorage where the tour ends at the Anchorage airport. Please schedule homebound flights after 3:30 p.m.

We can add an Alaska Cruise or

TOUR CAN BE EXTENDED (Ask for details)
Day 8 Sat. ANCHORAGE-KENAI FJORDS CRUISE-ANCHORAGE. Depart this morning on one of the most beautiful train journeys in the world to Seward where you embark on a cruise of KENAI FJORDS NATIONAL PARK. Wildlife is abundant and may include puffins, sea otters, sea lions, bald eagles, dolphins, and whales. You may even experience the crashing thunder of glacial calving. Late in the afternoon, return to Anchorage via the Alaska Railroad.

Day 9 Sun. ANCHORAGE. The trip ends this morning with guests departing on individual schedules. Transfers are provided to the Anchorage airport.

Map & Picture Highlights

Included:
Matanuska Valley, Matanuska Glacier, Tahnita Pass, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve, Denali National Park; on tour 8425: Kenai Fjords National Park.
Inside visits are shown in

Services of a professional Tour Director;: host service in Anchorage, information provided for your independent exploration and dining
Portage Glacier cruise, Chena River cruise aboard the sternwheeler Discovery III, journey on the Alaska Railroad from Fairbanks to Denali; on tour 8425: journey roundtrip on the Alaska Railroad from Anchorage to Seward, scenic cruise on Kenai Fjords; private, deluxe air-conditioned motorcoach while touring
Twin-bedded rooms with private bath or shower, hotel taxes, service charges, and tips for baggage handling. Listed hotels or equivalent:

ANCHORAGE Ramada (ST); FAIRBANKS Bridgewater Hotel (F); DENALI N.P. Denali River Cabins (ST/NP)

OPTIONALS
Choice of optional excursions at reasonable prices to customize your own experience. Please find a detailed list in your travel documents.

NOTE
Alaska is blessed with exquisite scenery, fascinating attractions, and an extraordinary amount of daylight in the summer months. We take advantage of these extended daylight hours in this vast territory, and therefore some of the traveling days can be long. However, rest assured there are frequent photo and comfort stops.
While wildlife in Alaska is plentiful and frequently seen, early season (May) and late season (September) departures offer even greater opportunities for viewing a variety of wildlife. Fall foliage in Alaska is also spectacular, and departures after mid-August will enjoy blazing colors.

Map & Picture Highlights