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Ultimate Anchorage and Turnagain Arm Private Full Day Tour

Anchorage, Anchorage, Alaska
Duration

8 hours 30 minutes (approx.)

Tour Type

Daily Tour

Group Size

10 people

Languages

English

Overview

Exploring Anchorage and its spectacular environs—like Turnagain Arm—is spectacularly easy with this full-day private tour. Starting in the city, your driver will show you Anchorage’s highlights before embarking out into Alaskan nature. You’ll take a scenic drive along one of the country’s most beautiful highways, ride the tram up Mt. Alyeska to a mountaintop meal, visit the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center, and more.

  • Travel in the safety and comfort of a private vehicle with a professional driver/guide
  • Lunch at The Roundhouse at Alyeska included
  • See Beluga Point, Girdwood, ride the Seward Highway, and more
  • Add stops as you like, customizing the trip to your preferences

What To Expect

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Anchorage



City Tour of Anchorage:

Starting downtown where the city began in the Ship Creek area and now also occupied by Alaska Railroad Depot. Take a quick look at the salmon in the creek and watch the fish running up the stream. Watch the locals trying to catch the salmon.

Next see the Earthquake Park, which now stands on the land liquefied – swallowing the coast line when the “Good Friday” earthquake rocked Anchorage in March of 1964.

Next you will get to see Lake Hood, which is the largest and busiest floatplane base in the world. Lake Hood is a great place to relax and watch the many landings and takeoffs of floatplanes. Then back to downtown where you get to see a whole downtown area. While enjoying the ride make sure to notice Anchorage’s famous flowers and great shopping areas! We will drop off anywhere in Anchorage after the tour ends.

2 hours • Admission Ticket Free

Turnagain Arm Drive



Just south of Anchorage, the Seward Highway hugs the dramatic shorelines of Turnagain Arm, arguably one of the most beautiful stretches of highway in America. Chugach State Park’s 3000-foot mountains jut up on your left.

On the right, the sprawling, sometimes four-mile-wide flats of Turnagain Arm seem to stretch like a plain to the opposite shores of Cook Inlet, where mammoth sloping mountains abruptly stop their flat expanse. Each turn reveals another scenic wonder.

2 hours • Admission Ticket Free

Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center



View Alaska’s most famous animals up close in a natural setting. During this visit you’ll get great pictures of real live Bears, Moose, Muskox, Caribou, Bison, and more.

1 hour • Admission Ticket Included

Potter Marsh Bird Sanctuary



Potter Marsh is a 0.5-mile wooden boardwalk trail that parallels the Seward Highway in Anchorage and is known for it’s incredible wildlife viewing, especially for bird watching.

It’s part of the 16-mile Anchorage Coastal Wildlife Refuge, and it makes a great addition to any Anchorage itinerary.

• Admission Ticket Included

Beluga Point



This is a popular stop as you travel the Seward Highway. Here you’ll find 180 degree views of Turnagain Arm. There’s an extensive viewing area with spotting scopes and interpretive signs. This is an excellent spot to watch the bore tide. The incoming tide stretched the entire width of Turnagain Arm and can be six feet high as it rushes in. Watch for kayakers and surfers riding the wave for several miles. Look for beluga whales rolling in the surf. Be sure to check tide schedules for the best times to view this natural phenomena.

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Bird Point



Here’s another great stop to take in the scenic beauty of the mountains and the Turnagain Arm.

And don’t forget to look for Beluga whales a few hours before high tide (as they come in with the tide to feed on the salmon). The best chance to see a Beluga is if the salmon or hooligan are running, but even if you miss them, the amazing views make Bird Point a perfect stop.

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Girdwood



Girdwood is “One of the 10 Most Beautiful Towns in Alaska” and located just 25 miles south of Anchorage. A very active community offering biking, skiing, rafting, fishing, hiking, gold panning and sightseeing in a beautiful, northern rainforest setting. Glacier Valley is home to Alaska’s only major ski resort, Alyeska Resort.

40 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Alyeska Ski Area



Take a three to seven-minute scenic ride from Alyeska Resort to the top of Mt. Alyeska. At an elevation of 2300 feet, witness frosty views of the Turnagain Arm, up to seven “hanging” glaciers and endless peaks deep into the Chugach Mountain range.

A hot lunch is included which you can order from the menu of the Boretide Deli.

1 hour 30 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

The Roundhouse at Alyeska



Only mountain top museum in the state of Alaska. The Roundhouse sits 2,280 feet above sea level. It’s distinctive octagonal shape first served as a warming hut, later as a popular gathering place. Over 50 years ago, 11 Girdwood residents passed the hat, raised enough money to purchase what became the land base for a major ski area. They formed the Alyeska Ski Corporation and developed a ski area that was small in assets but big in promise. They did it because they understood that the Valley’s future lay in its golden slopes. They found a French Baron who shared their dream. Francois de Gunzburg installed a poma lift, built ski trails, a day lodge and ordered Chair 1, a 5,700-foot double chairlift that rose 2,000 vertical feet. The upper terminus of the chairlift became known as the Roundhouse.

30 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

Portage Valley



This scenic road parallels the route that Native Alaskans and gold-rush prospectors once traveled between Prince William Sound and Turnagain Arm before the glacier retreated.

20 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Portage Lake



Deep enough to submerge an 80-story building, the lake was carved out over thousands of years of glacial advances. While Salmon make their way into the lake, you may not see them due to the immense deposits of glacial silt. The silt also protects them from predators such as birds and larger fish. However, they eventually make their way to clearer waters. Look for dense blue icebergs from Portage Glacier blown to shore.

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Highlights

  • Confirmation will be received within 48 hours of booking, subject to availability
  • Not wheelchair accessible
  • Stroller accessible
  • Service animals allowed
  • Near public transportation
  • Most travelers can participate
  • This is a private tour/activity. Only your group will participate

Included/Excluded

  • Lunch
  • Private transportation
  • Air-conditioned vehicle
  • Gratuities

Durations

8 hours 30 minutes (approx.)

Tour's Location

Anchorage, Anchorage, Alaska
from 1105 $

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