| Season: January - March |
| Price: $2092+* |
| Starting City: Anchorage |
| Ending City: Fairbanks |
| Tour Length: 10 Days |
9-nights accommodation, meals as listed, Matanuska Glacier Walk, Turnagain Arm Tour, Aurora Train Anchorage to Fairbanks, Arctic Circle & Northern Lights Tour, Murphy Dome Tour, round trip transfers between Fairbanks and Chena Hot Springs. Daily pool passes included while at Chena Hot Springs.
At the Copper Whale Inn Bed & Breakfast, you can take in spectacular views across Cook Inlet while enjoying downtown Anchorage's vibrant urban scene, all from this delightful downtown inn. The friendly staff and personal service enhance the warm, relaxed atmosphere, creating a haven in the heart of the city.
The great location in the west end of downtown offers easy walking access to the city's business district, fine restaurants, museums, attractions and shopping. The 11-mile Tony Knowles Coastal Trail is just one block away. Many rooms offer stunning views across Cook Inlet to the Alaska Range. The friendly innkeepers are on hand to answer questions and offer suggestions.
More than 19 hours of daily sunlight attracts summer visitors to Anchorage, where museums and galleries, fine restaurants and a dynamic urban scene exist alongside outdoor activities, wildlife viewing and untamed wilderness.
The stylish and historic main house is one of the few structures that survived the great 1964 earthquake, and contrasts with neighboring office towers. The fifteen guest rooms are restful and inviting. A stone-trimmed fireplace warms the spacious living room where breakfast is served. Lush gardens grace the grounds, and an onsite bike rental concession is available during the summer season. Comfort, convenience and natural wonders come together to create a relaxing respite for visitors to the Copper Whale Inn.
Built in 1939 by local doctor Howard Romig, the main building is historic by Anchorage standards (the city was founded in 1915) and was the first architecturally designed home in the city. There are 15 unique guest rooms, and a lovely common area for everyone's enjoyment.
Rooms at the Copper Whale Inn are comfortable and have free WI-FI access, cable TV, hair dryer, clock radio and free local phone calls. Many rooms have great views of Cook Inlet, nearby mountains and the colorful gardens.
The complimentary continental breakfast buffet includes a wonderful variety of healthy and tasty options like yogurts and fresh fruit, bagels and pastries, cereals and granola, meats and cheeses, dried and fresh fruits, juice, tea and locally roasted coffee. For lunch or dinner, try downtown Anchorage's selection of fine eateries, most of which are an easy walk from the Inn.
Try a local favorite! Journey north of Anchorage and explore the Matanuska Glacier's many incredible features, such as moraine and glacial blue meltwater pools, in South central's beautiful Matanuska Valley. From downtown Anchorage your driver/guide will make the scenic drive north to the Matanuska Glacier: a frozen 27-mile long river of ancient ice. Thousands of years old, this massive glacier is tucked up into the head of the Matanuska Valley. You will spend 2 hours trekking with a glacier guide by your side, learning how the Matanuska Glacier was born and how it shaped the landscape in the Matanuska Susitna Valley. Explore blue meltwater pools and awesome ice formation.
Walking on ice is slippery fun, so you will be provided with helmets, a trekking pole (walking stick) and micro spikes that attach to your shoes.
Your all-inclusive tour allows you to warm up with hot beverages and a hearty lunch (provided) at a local lodge as well as complimentary snacks and water throughout your adventure! Conclude this adventure with transportation back to your Anchorage hotel!
Need additional outdoor winter gear for your tour? Salmon Berry provides snow-pants, boots, gloves, and more from our closet to our guests on this tour! Please notify them ahead of time of your needs.
Glaciers are an inherently dangerous environment, and Matanuska Glacier is no exception. Salmon Berry Tours has been in business since 2005, and we have been trekking on Matanuska Glacier since 2011. They are fully insured for glacier trekking. They never use novice guides for Their glacier trips, they take their training very seriously. They operate in small groups, for additional safety, with 1 glacier guide for every 6 guests. This 1:6 glacier guide to guest ratio guarantees two glacier guides per tour.
Overnight in Anchorage
This full day tour from Anchorage includes a local guide, an aerial tram ride up Mt. Alyeska, fresh lunch in Girdwood, a visit to the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center, and scenic photo-stops along the way!
Sit back in a comfortable and clean sprinter vans as your Alaskan driver guides you down Turnagain Arm, an All-American Road and National Scenic Byway. Look out for alpine scenery, hanging glaciers, and potential wildlife!
Visit the quaint town of Girdwood and a favorite local eatery for lunch (provided). After lunch ascend up the side of Mt. Alyeska on an aerial tram. From the top (weather permitting) take in views of several glaciers and the upper reaches of a temperate rainforest. Next, visit the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center, a 200-acre natural habitat that provides wildlife education and rehabilitation for some of Alaska's favorite animals! You will be driven and also walk approximately 2-miles through the Conservation Center's trails as you get close enough to observe some animals such as moose, reindeer, bison, wolves, and more! While seeing bears cannot be guaranteed due to the size of their habitat, it is common to see both brown and black bears at the Conservation Center! Make sure to take photos of the wildlife with amazing backdrops of the Chugach Mountains and Turnagain Arm! Before making the return drive to Anchorage, make sure to stop at the Conservation Center's Gift Shop.
Complimentary snacks and water are provided throughout the tour. Guide gratuity is not included.
To better the guest experience of everyone on tour, hotel pickups are limited three hotels per tour, based on a first come first service basis.
Overnight in Anchorage
The Aurora Winter train operates on Saturdays from mid-September to mid-May and provides flag stop service between Talkeetna and Hurricane before continuing on to Fairbanks or Anchorage. Due to the nature of this service, schedule varies depending on the number of stops.
In winter, the land you travel by train takes on a quiet, mystical character. The Alaska Railroad's Aurora Winter Train travels through the heart of Anchorage, past the Matanuska-Susitna Valley, and gracefully onward into the wilderness of Denali National Park passing by Mt. Denali (Mt. McKinley), North America's tallest peak before reaching its terminus in the Interior metropolis of Fairbanks. Travelers on this 11 ½ hour rail journey traverse the Alaska Range, and are showered with stunning views and panoramic vistas, wildlife, incredible river valleys and rocky gorges.
Depart Anchorage at 8:30am
Arrive Fairbanks at 8:00pm
Onboard dining is available on the Aurora Winter train and selections include hot and cold choices for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Cash is no longer accepted on trains. Onboard purchases may be made with any card bearing an American Express, Discover, MasterCard, or Visa brand logo. This includes debit and gift cards. If you would like to use cash, you may purchase vouchers at check-in at the Anchorage Depot to use onboard.
Check into Springhill Suites Fairbanks by Marriott.
Notes A Guided Round Trip Winter Journey by Land Across the Arctic Circle. Travel north by day to experience Alaska's Arctic and south by night to scan the northern skies for the amazing aurora.
Tour Summary: Ground tour north from Fairbanks in the personalized comfort of the tour vehicles. Learn the story of Alaska's Arctic both while traveling in the van and at the various stops along the way. View the remarkable Trans Alaska Pipeline. Travel the rugged Dalton Highway made famous by the construction of the Trans Alaska Pipeline. Witness firsthand the remarkable wilderness scenery blanketed in snow. Traverse the mighty Yukon River. Cross the Arctic Circle in ceremonious fashion and receive an official Arctic Circle Adventure Certificate. Stop in Joy Alaska at the Arctic Circle Trading Post which will become your stop for scanning the darkened skies for the Aurora. The location is 60 miles outside of Fairbanks away from the city lights. Stay out around Solar Midnight, the time the scientists have determined are the most active in Alaska's Arctic.
Itinerary:
9:45 AM - Depart Fairbanks on guided ground tour. Arctic Circle Trading Post. Outhouse restroom facilities available
2:30 PM - Arrive Yukon River. Restroom facilities available. Lunch available for purchase.
Approx. 5:30 PM - Arctic Circle. Outhouse restroom facilities available.
8:00 PM - Arrive Yukon River. Restroom facilities available. Dinner on your own, meals available for purchase.
Approx. 11:00 PM - Arctic Circle Trading Post for Aurora viewing. Outhouse restroom facilities available.
Approx. 3:30 AM to 4:30 AM - Arrive Fairbanks.
Note: The above is only intended to provide an approximate tour itinerary. Northern Alaska Tour Company
strives to make each tour a unique and personalized tour experience. The exact schedule of each tour
varies day-to-day and is dictated by the interests of the group and unique events of the day not by a rigid
pre-set itinerary.
Northern Lights viewing above the tree line! This location is one of the best northern lights viewing areas near Fairbanks and a favorite spot for many aurora photographers. With 2,890 feet altitude, the Murphy Dome is one of the highest peaks in the Fairbanks area. This 360-degree horizon sets the stage for a phenomenal northern lights show. Viewing the Aurora Borealis above tree line presents you with a wide horizon and an incredible view of the Alaska night sky.
Please Note: This preferred viewing area is right on top of Murphy Dome and does not have any restroom facilities. You will stay warm in a 12-15 passenger van while waiting. Hot beverages are included and complimentary.
Attention: The Aurora Borealis/Northern Lights is a natural phenomenon and cannot be guaranteed. There is no refund if the Aurora Borealis/Northern Lights do not appear.
Chena Hot Springs Resort offers convenient round-trip transportation for guests staying overnight in one of their lodge rooms. They can pick you up from the Fairbanks airport, any Fairbanks hotel or downtown location. Open year round the resort is located approximately 60 miles northeast of Fairbanks, Alaska at mile 56.6 of the Chena Hot Springs Road. Relax and enjoy this route which was voted in 2002 as one of the most scenic drives in the Interior. The drive takes only a little over an hour from downtown Fairbanks. It is common to see wildlife, especially moose, along the way.
We cannot pick up guests from 1:00 AM to 5:00 AM.
The Moose Lodge features 40 spacious rooms with two queen beds that have comfortable 14-inch mattresses. Each room includes a full bath, 8 channel TV, hair dryer, coffee maker, telephone and unlimited swim or soak pass during your stay.
Resort Hours of Operation:
Pool House 7:00 AM - 12 Midnight
Restaurant 7:00 AM - 10:00 PM
Lounge 10:00 AM - 12 Midnight Sunday -Thursday
and 10:00 AM - 2:00 AM Friday & Saturday
Activity Center 9:00 AM - 9:00 PM
Aurora Café 9:00 AM - 12 Midnight
Please Note: Check in time is after 4:00 PM, no earlier. Luggage handling is not included in room rate.
Experience the healing mineral waters by soaking in a natural outdoor hot springs rock lake (ages 18+ only) or indoor family pool. People have been going to hot springs for centuries; some in search of the eternal fountain of youth and others searching for cures for whatever ails them. The healing waters of Chena Hot Springs has been compared to mineral waters found in hot springs in Bohemia. The water is composed of a variety of different, identified minerals. Many people believe that by bathing in the water, skin conditions such as psoriasis, muscular pains, and arthritis may be relieved. The water may be beneficial for some circulatory disorders and attracts lots of people with bronchial disorders who claim the combination of steam and minerals provides breathing relief.
Chena Hot Springs Resort, founded over 100 years ago, is the most developed hot springs destination in Alaska. World famous for its legendary healing mineral waters, beautiful Aurora Borealis displays in the winter, renewable energy projects and the Aurora Ice Museum. Chena Hot Springs Resort is a great destination for any time of the year.
Return to Fairbanks and overnight at Springhill Suites Fairbanks by Marriott.
Next to the Chena River the Springhill Suites Fairbanks by Marriott is a different kind of hotel with style and space, featuring separate areas for sleeping, eating and working. Enjoy the indoor pool, whirlpool and exercise room. Lavelle's Bistro is conveniently located on the main level, open for dinner and offers great food, wine and service. Also, on site is a Sundry/Convenience store. Discover shops, restaurants, museums and other entertainment within walking distance of this property.
The Studio King is a spacious 300 square foot, air-conditioned studio to give you more room. Amenities include: an airy bed with fluffy pillows and soft linens, sink separate from the bathroom, hairdryer, alarm clock, iron/ironing board, living/sitting area with a pull-out sofa, windows that open, a full kitchenette with mini-fridge, wet bar and microwave, coffee maker/tea services, silverware, and a flexible workspace with ergonomic chair, high-speed, wired internet access and voicemail.
A complimentary continental Suite Seasons breakfast buffet is included in room rate. Breakfast is served from 6:30 AM to 9:30 AM, Monday through Friday and 7:00 AM to 10:00 AM on Saturdays and Sundays.
A complimentary shuttle service is available to/from the Fairbanks Airport and the Fairbanks Rail Depot.
| Season | January - March |
| Duration | 10 Days |
| Price |
|
| Notes |
Package includes: 9-nights accommodation, meals as listed, Matanuska Glacier Walk, Turnagain Arm Tour, Aurora Train Anchorage to Fairbanks, Arctic Circle & Northern Lights Tour, Murphy Dome Tour, round trip transfers between Fairbanks and Chena Hot Springs. Daily pool passes included while at Chena Hot Springs. Some portions of this itinerary may be subject to change. All guided tours included in this package require a minimum of 2 passengers! |
*Note: Prices subject to change without notice. Call us (907-277-4321) to confirm current rates.
