Alaska cruises with trains, known as cruisetours (or cruise tours), let you see more variety of this magnificent land than by sea or land alone, and there is much to see. Just for starters, Alaska has more active glaciers and more wildlife viewing opportunities than anywhere else, as well some of North America's highest mountain peaks, including the tallest, Mount McKinley.
Three cruise lines offering boat and train cruise tours that come up again and again on travel websites and that are cited by Frommer's as the leaders in such tours are: Holland America Line, Princess and Royal Caribbean/Royal Celebrity Tours.
Holland America's boat and train tours offer award-winning ship accommodations, luxury rail cars with glass domed ceilings for optimal sightseeing and overnight stays at a charming lodge. Of the cruise line's 30 Alaskan cruise tours, 18 of them combine cruises with rail travel on their McKinley Explorer.
The cruise portion of your journey takes you into Glacier Bay National Park and College Fjord and its icy blue glaciers. You'll go ashore for one day where you can steep yourself in the Native Alaskan culture of Ketchikan. You also cruise into Alaska's Inside Passage with its fjords and gold rush towns and Native Alaskan culture.
The land portion of the journey, depending on the tour, lasts up to 12 days and takes you through Alaska's wild Interior to the towering Mt. McKinley and Denali National Park and Preserve where you are sure to see wildlife, including bears and where you can spend at least one night in a lodge.
Selected "Best Cruisetour Program" by the readers of "TravelAge West," Princess cruisetours all take you into Glacier Bay and College Fjord. After being thrilled by the ice palace glaciers you cruise into the Inside Passage and see gold rush towns, Juneau and marine wildlife.
Then it's all aboard for a train ride through Alaska's Interior to Denali National Park where a room at the Princess Lodges just outside the Park's entrance awaits. Princess claims to get you to Denali faster than any other cruisetour on one of their express lines. Or take the Princess Exclusive, a new luxury rail with an open-air viewing platform. All lines provide glass dome ceilings.
At the Lodge, relax in your private room, explore nature trails, dine on Alaskan cuisine, attend a musical comedy dinner theater and cozy up by the fire in the lodge's great room. You may also choose to schedule in some fly fishing, kayaking, dog-sledding, ATV rides, or whatever suits you.
Of Royal Celebrity Tours' 21 Alaska cruisetours, 19 include travel on its Wilderness Express train with glass dome rail cars for better viewing of the moose, grizzlies, caribou and eagles they say you will see up close. For an even closer view, you can step up to the open-air observation platform. There's also a wheelchair lift for this platform.
These tour packages range from 10 to 14 nights, with all including a 7-night Alaska cruise through the Inside Passage. Their "Adventure Specialists" escort guests on all tours, providing information about the nature, culture and history of places visited.
As with Holland America and Princess, the train leg of a Royal Celebrity Tour takes you into Alaska's Interior and Denali National Park. On the cruise end of the tour, shore excursions are made into Seward, Alyeska, both coastal towns, and into the Fairbanks, a town rich in Gold Rush history.
Many travel agencies and tour companies will arrange for you a cruise preceded or followed by a tour by rail (and/or other land tours).
The Official Tourism site of Alaska offers a list of these companies with contact information and descriptions of services. Tours include Alaska travel highlights such as Denali National Park, wildlife viewing, Alaska's neighboring Yukon, luxury lodges, campgrounds, and a myriad of activities from dog sledding and fly fishing to bush plane and hiking adventures.
