The opportunity to see glaciers is one reason that people travel to Alaska. There are several travel companies that offer different ways to view glaciers; railroad trips, cruises, day tours and glacier landings are all available. Trips last from just a few hours to six days and include a wide variety of other activities.
Alaska Railroad Vacations offer inland tours of Alaska by railroad and include walking tours and hotel accommodations. The Denali and Spencer Glacier tour lasts for five days and offers the opportunity to see the Spencer Glacier before traveling down the Placer River by boat. The Glacier Cruise and Interior Alaska gives travelers the opportunity to see 26 glaciers over six days and includes an air trip to the Arctic Circle.
Princess Tours offers a wide range of activities in Alaska, including day cruises, hiking tours and glacier landings. From the Copper River Lodge, guests may take the seven-hour Prince William Sound Columbia Glacier Cruise, which travels to Columbia Bay for a view of the Columbia Glacier. From the Denali Lodge, guests may land on the McKinley Glacier in a plane or on the Denali Glacier in a helicopter. These are day trips and allow travelers to walk on top of the glacier. The Mt. McKinley Lodge offers the Glacier Landing Explorer Tour, which lasts one hour 45 minutes and includes half an hour to explore the glacier.
Alaska Cruises offers cruise trips all along the coast of Alaska. Among the cruises offered are Alaska Glacier Cruises that travel through the Gulf of Alaska for prime glacier viewing. These are one-way cruises that either depart from Vancouver and head north to Seward or Whittier or depart from Seward or Whittier and travel south to Vancouver. The cruises visit ports along the way and may visit College Fjord and Valdez to view the glaciers located there.
Alaska Tour and Travel offers many different day tours that visit glaciers. One tour involves a landing on the Mt. McKinley Glacier with a fixed wing aircraft. This tour is offered three times daily. Helicopter landings on the Denali Glacier take about 75 minutes and are offered five times daily. For travelers interested in dog sleds, the Girdwood Glacier Dog Sled Helicopter Tour, offered twice daily, involves a helicopter ride to a glacier and the opportunity to drive a dog sled team. Other tours offer sights of glaciers in Kenai Fjords.
The Kenai Fjords Tours company offers travel experiences in the Kenai Fjords. The National Park Tours, lasting either six or eight and a half hours, cruise along the coast of Kenai Fjords National Park and offer the chance to view seaside glaciers. The Sea Kayaking tours, either full or half day tours, offer kayakers the opportunity to see glaciers up close and also include a cruise.
