What an Alaska Cruisetour Really Looks Like: Our Talkeetna Story

A firsthand account from Whispering Willow Travel

I am Karla Tugan, a travel advisor at Whispering Willow Travel who specializes in guided Europe vacations and Alaska cruises. I have already written about our Royal Princess cruise out of Whittier (read that post here: Our Alaskan Adventure: 7-Night Cruise and Train Ride). But I have not really talked about the part that came first, the land portion. That is honestly the part most people ask me about when deciding between a cruise alone and a full Alaska cruisetour.

Why the Land Portion Matters

The short answer to that question is: they are not the same trip. The cruise and the land portion do not overlap. They show you two completely different sides of the state, and if you only do one, you are missing half the picture. I knew that on paper before I went. I know it differently now that I have stood in both halves of it.

My son Aaron and I went up to Talkeetna together, just the two of us, a few days before the rest of the family arrived. My husband Jim had to stay back for work and could not get the extra days off. So Aaron and I headed out on our own. Aaron has been fascinated with trains since he was small. The Princess glass dome train up to Talkeetna felt like the perfect way to start the trip.

Night One: The Lake, the Seaplanes, and the Flying Machine

Before the train ride even started, Aaron and I spent our first night in Anchorage at The Lakefront Anchorage, which sits right on Lake Spenard next to Lake Hood, the busiest seaplane base in the world. I did not know that going in. I just knew the hotel was on a lake. What I was not expecting was to sit down for dinner and watch float planes coming and going right outside the window the entire time we ate.

We had dinner at the hotel’s restaurant, called the Flying Machine, and it was genuinely good. The setup is perfect for the location, tables with a direct view out over the water so you can watch the planes land and take off while your food is in front of you. After dinner we walked out to the edge of the lake and just stood there for a while. There is something about being right on the water with planes coming in low overhead that makes a regular Tuesday night feel like a real adventure.

The lobby of the hotel was charming with a lot of little touches that gave it real character. The room itself was nice but nothing especially notable, which is fine. One night in Anchorage is really just the starting point of an Alaska cruisetour, not the destination. We went to bed excited for the train.

The Alaska Cruisetour Train: Better Than I Expected It to Be

We upgraded our seats on the Princess train, and it was absolutely worth it. The dome car has two levels. The upper level is the viewing area, exactly what you are picturing. Glass curves overhead in both directions, so you are not just looking out a window on one side. You are surrounded by it. Mountains come at you from every angle, doing things a regular train window simply cannot show you.

The lower level is where dining happens. Breakfast is served as a real sit-down meal, not a buffet line. You choose from a small menu and a server brings it to your table. Picture windows run along the side, so you are still watching the scenery while you eat.

Reindeer Sausage and the View Worth Remembering

I ordered the reindeer sausage, mostly out of curiosity. It turned out to be one of the genuinely best breakfasts I had on the entire trip. I am still a little unclear on whether it was included with our upgraded seats or an add-on. Either way, it was worth whatever it cost. Aaron and I both ate well, then went back upstairs to watch the mountains for the rest of the ride.

I ordered the reindeer sausage, mostly out of curiosity, and it turned out to be one of the better breakfasts I had on the entire trip.

Aaron spent most of the ride with his face turned toward the glass. I spent most of it watching him watch it. There is a specific kind of parenting moment that happens when your child sees something bigger than anything you could have prepared them for. The scale of the mountains under that dome is one of those things. You cannot fully explain it until you are inside it.

Talkeetna: The Heart of an Alaska Cruisetour

Talkeetna is small. I mean genuinely small, a few blocks of downtown, a handful of shops, a museum, and a river. And I mean all of that as a compliment, because it works completely in its favor. You can see why it draws so many cruisetour travelers by checking out the official Talkeetna visitor guide at alaska.org, which covers the town beyond what I have room to cover here.

We walked down to the river first and just stood there for a while taking it all in. Then we wandered the downtown blocks, going in and out of the little shops along the way. There is a Talkeetna Historical Museum that I would have genuinely liked to visit, but Aaron gets bored quickly in museum settings, so we kept moving rather than push our luck.

We ended up at a little spot called Mountain High Pizza Pie for lunch, where we split a pepperoni pizza. Pepperoni is the one topping Aaron and I always agree on. It was an easy call. It was one of those meals where the setting makes everything taste better, sitting in a small pizza place at the base of the highest mountain in North America. Genuinely good pizza on top of that.

What genuinely surprised me about Talkeetna was how much activity is based right out of this little town. Helicopter flights over Denali, glacier landings, fishing trips, flightseeing tours, all of it departing from here. It is easy to assume a place this size is just a staging stop, something you pass through on the way to somewhere else. But Talkeetna has its own draw, and it is exactly why I think this stop is one of the best reasons to choose an Alaska cruisetour over a cruise alone.

Where to Stay on an Alaska Cruisetour: The Mt. McKinley Princess Wilderness Lodge

I want to give you a real review of this lodge rather than a brochure version. I think that is more useful when you are deciding whether to add a night here to your own Alaska cruisetour.

The property itself is beautiful. Walking the grounds, you are surrounded by trees, open sky, and the kind of quiet you do not get in a city. The lodge buildings are attractive and well maintained. First impression: great.

The room itself was decent and clean, but not quite what I expected given the price point. I would not call it a luxury stay. I would call it a comfortable, well-located place to sleep. If you want the experience of being near Denali rather than a resort-level room, you will be happy. If you expect five-star accommodations to match the five-star setting, you might be let down.

Dinner, Breakfast, and an Unexpected Mountain Climber Talk

Dinner at the lodge was simple. Aaron and I ate at the more casual on-property restaurant rather than the fancier dining option, since it was just the two of us and we are not big foodies. It was burger-and-chicken-fingers kind of food, exactly what we wanted after a long train day. Breakfast the next morning was a different story. The buffet was large and genuinely very good.

One evening they brought in a group of mountain climbers to give a talk. Hearing firsthand from people who actually climb Denali was one of the most unexpectedly fascinating things I did on the entire trip.

One evening they brought in a group of mountain climbers to give a talk, and Aaron and I went and listened. This was completely unplanned. We just happened to see it was happening and decided to go. Hearing firsthand from people who actually climb Denali, their preparation, what the mountain is like at altitude, was fascinating. You do not get access to that just anywhere, and it became one of my favorite memories from the whole trip.

The Denali Cabin Hike: Do Not Skip This

This is the part of the lodge property I want to make sure you do not miss, because it is easy to not know about it until you are already there.

Set apart from the main lodge buildings, about a 30 to 45 minute walk from the main area, there is a small structure, more of a tower than a cabin, that you can hike out to. The walk takes you through the property grounds and into a quieter stretch before you reach it. On a clear day, you can see Denali from up there, and the view is noticeably better than what you get from the lodge windows.

The lodge itself has large windows designed to frame Denali, and on a clear day you can see it from the main building. But there is a deck out back that puts you higher up, and the difference is real. From there, Denali feels closer and more present than it does from ground level inside the lodge.

We got lucky with weather and had a good clear view the day we hiked out. Aaron and I both stood there for a while just looking. It is one of those moments where you stop talking because there is not really anything to add to what you are already seeing.

If you stay at this lodge, put the hike to the cabin on your list before you even arrive. It is the highlight of the property.

Back in Anchorage: Where the Cruisetour Ends and the Cruise Begins

After Talkeetna, Aaron and I took the train back down to Anchorage. This is where Jim finally joined us. He had managed to get away from work and flew in to meet us, so the three of us were together for the first time since the trip started.

We stayed that night at the Hyatt Place Anchorage Midtown. This is a good, solid hotel with kind staff, a nice gym, and an indoor pool, which Aaron immediately wanted to use. We went swimming that evening, and then got into the hot tub afterward. I will always get into a hotel hot tub if one is available. That is just a personal policy.

A Late Dinner That Was Not Glamorous, and That Was Fine

By the time we got back to the hotel that evening, it was late and everyone was hungry. We did not have a rental car, so a proper restaurant dinner was not in the cards. We ended up ordering Wendy’s through DoorDash and eating in the room. Not glamorous, but exactly what we needed. Not every moment of a great trip needs to be a great meal.

The next morning, all three of us made our way to Whittier to board the Royal Princess and start the cruise side of the trip. If you want to read about that part, including Glacier Bay, Ketchikan, and what cabin category I actually recommend, that post is here: Our Alaskan Adventure: 7-Night Cruise and Train Ride.

What I Would Tell You Before Booking an Alaska Cruisetour

If you are considering adding the land portion to an Alaska cruisetour, here is what I know now that I did not fully know before I went.

First, the land and cruise portions genuinely do not overlap. The interior gives you Denali, the scale of the wilderness, the wildlife on land, the quieter rhythm of a small Alaska town. The cruise gives you glaciers, coastline, and ports. Both are part of a true Alaska cruisetour, and they just show you completely different faces of the state.

Second, upgrade your train seats. The dome car experience is the point, and the regular seating does not give you the same thing.

Third, leave room in Talkeetna for something spontaneous. We did not plan the mountaineer talk. We did not plan to spend as long as we did at the river. Some of the best parts of an Alaska cruisetour are the ones you cannot schedule.

And fourth, plan for at least one night in Anchorage before the train and one night after. Trying to rush either end of the land portion takes away from it.

Frequently Asked Questions About Alaska Cruisetours

Planning the Land Portion of an Alaska Cruisetour

Where to Go and Where to Stay

If Alaska has been sitting on your someday list, I would love to talk through what a trip like this could look like for you, the cruise, the land portion, or both put together.

Karla Tugan

Owner & Travel Designer | Whispering Willow Travel

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