Tag: Alaska

Alaska in February – Alyeska Resort

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This is a beautiful resort.  Parking is limited so be prepared to walk from the overflow parking lot which is not so easy to locate so ask the parking attendant before you leave the drop-off area and be certain to drop off your luggage at the door, don’t try to carry it from the car.

The view from our Deluxe room is beautiful.

Food here is very good and the portions are huge, plenty to share.  Plan to spend about $15 per entree, breakfast or dinner, in the Aurora restaurant.

Most of the people we met are here to ski – several people here for a convention (great convention space).  

An avalanche had closed the roads to the North and to the South so our plans for the day were changed and we got to hang out at the resort.  We could hear them  blasting the snow to avoid additional avalanches, had some locals explaining everything to us – very interesting.

I am a bit (a lot) afraid of those trams that go up the mountain but I had heard so much about this one, we had to go.  We were stuffed (claustrophobic ?) into the tram with all the skiers and their equipment.   I didn’t see anything on the way up but did have to hold onto the overhead handle one time when we went over the tower area, not a fan of the big swing.

At the top, we headed up the stairs and went to see what all the fuss was about.  OH MY WORD, beautiful cannot even describe it.  We just stood in awe – then of course we took pictures.

Travel Tip 1: Get the Ride & Eat tram ticket – costs $10 more and you get a $20 meal voucher.

We split a meal and spent the rest on drinks.  The view is amazing so we sat and looked out as we enjoyed another delicious meal and some local brews.

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Alaska in February – Girdwood to Anchorage

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This is a beautiful drive – the train tracks are along the side of the road for much of the way so we are going to assume the ride on the train is also amazing.  Be sure to sit on the side next to the water, the right side when traveling south.

We had bad weather driving from Anchorage to Girdwood and good weather driving back.  Do NOT be afraid to drive slowly, there are passing lanes in several locations along the way.

Both drives were stunning.  There are several picture spots along the way so you can get out and take pictures.

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Alaska in February – Travel Day

We decided to drive to Orlando on the day of the flight instead of the night before – not recommended.  

Travel Tip 1:  Drive the night before, stay in the hotel – you will get more sleep in the hotel than in your own bed when you are concerned about waking up early and hitting traffic on the drive.

Travel Tip 2:  Alaska Air desk opens about 2 1/2 hours before the first flight and if you are checking a bag you must join the line, plan accordingly.

Travel Tip 3: TSA precheck, highly recommended.

This was our first time flying out of the Orlando Airport – nice airport.  Our credit card gives us access to a lounge so we went and had breakfast.  We did not participate in the Mimosas and Bloody Marys but perhaps we should have.

Travel Tip 4:  When in the Orlando Airport and visiting terminal B for the lounge – stay on the return tram to the right when returning so you do not have to return through the security check-point.  International flights arriving through that terminal require different security and you don’t really want to deal with that.

Alaska Air – we paid a bit extra for the seats with the additional leg room and were blessed to have 3 seats to ourselves.  Right now you must pre-order your meals or you don’t get them.  They aren’t charged to your credit card until you get the meal but they are delivered before anything else.  You also get a snack, like a cookie or trail mix and a beverage.  The upgraded seats include complementary alcohol.  Our layover in Seattle was short and we were hoping that the luggage would make it to the new flight and it DID!!  We were very happy to have the luggage when we arrived in Anchorage.

 

 

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February 2022

Why Cruise Alaska?

I have been on a lot of cruises. Most have been in the Caribbean but a few have been in other areas. I have cruised the Northeast coast of the USA and Canada and taken a Scandinavian cruise. But my family and I have cruised Alaska twice. Both times we chose Royal Caribbean International. The first time we were cruising with two small children and “Adventure Ocean,” RCI children’s program, was the deciding factor then. Our second cruise was a celebration of our younger daughter’s high school graduation and she picked the cruise and invited her Grandmother’s to join us. So our group totaled eight people ranging in age from 18 to 87 and everyone had a great cruise.  Take a look at the pictures below to see some of what we did and think about how much fun your family would have on their own Alaskan cruise. Then contact us about booking yours.

 

A Railroad ride into beautiful Alaska

A trip to Alaska is all about great scenery and wildlife. So far I have cruised Alaska twice and both times the focus on what we wanted to do has been see this beautiful land. So when you visit Alaska don’t miss the White Pass & Yukon Route Railroad. This historic narrow gauge railroad runs from Skagway, Alaska to Whitepass, the capital of the Canadian territory of Yukon. Built in 1899 in a project considered so impossible that it is now a International Historic Civil Engineering Landmark. When you ride this train you see why the project was so daunting. Most people spend their time staring out the windows or standing on the outside platforms between the cars taking pictures of the spectacular sites.

You board the train right at the pier and some of the cars are wheel chair accessible. Several different excursions are offered by most cruise companies. So based on how much time you want to spend on the train you can ride half way to White Pass where the train turns around and returns to Skagway, ride all the way to White Pass and back without stopping, or ride to White Pass for lunch and some shopping. You have to take your Passport for that one because White Pass is in Canada. Decide which one you want to take and book it before you leave home, as this is an excursion that fills up.

Living Intentionally

Vickie Travelz

I just finished a great book series.  The main character wants to build a community of people who LIVE INTENTIONALLY, what a great concept!

Living Intentionally — knowing what you want to do and then doing it.  I can certainly use more of this in my life.  Do I even know what I want to do? Sometimes I think that I do but then I spend lots of time reacting to life circumstances.

When we decided to become Travel Agents, Keith and I were dreaming about turning our hobby into our profession.  I never dreamed it would be so involved.  This is not easy!

My eyes have been opened to a whole new world of possibilities when traveling.  I am so excited to share some of the new things I am learning and I am even more excited to travel in new ways.  However, I am going to have to really be INTENTIONAL about where I want to go.  Just because it s a really good price and looks fun is not INTENTIONAL — I will be gone all the time and I won’t be earning any money for the next trip!  I will get tired of traveling very quickly if I do that.

My husband, Kevin, and I have wanted to take a cruise to Alaska for many years.  Wait until you see how many different ways there are to accomplish this trip!  It is going to be so much fun to choose!  Sign up for our email list so we can send you lots of great information on the different opportunities available.

The name of the series?  Hearthland by Chautona Havig.  I was able to get a special copy — the entire series for my kindle, I was so excited.  The only drawback was that there was no ending to one book and beginning of the next book.  It was hard to talk myself into putting the book down.  I am going to put an amazon link to the first book (which is currently a FREE digital ebook) at the bottom of this post so you can check it out for yourself.