Southeast Alaska Holidays

Southeast Alaska - Inside Passage Holiday Packages

Cruise along this northern coastline to enjoy scenic views and learn about Alaska’s interesting history.

Travel through the Inside Passage of Southeast Alaska for views of some of North America’s most rugged and wild coastline. The sights include fjords, glaciers, forests, Native American villages and facilities created during the height of Alaska’s gold rush.

The area’s culture is influenced by long-ago Russian residents, as evidenced by churches with onion-shaped domes. Tall totem poles tell the stories of the native Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian people.

This part of Alaska has three subregions. The Northern Region offers access to 10 state and national parks, with wildlife viewing and historical sites. At Sitka National Historical Park, learn how Russians took possession of the lands from Native Americans in the early 1800s. Sitka has beautiful views of the Pacific Ocean and dormant volcano Mount Edgecumbe while maintaining its appearance from years as Russian America’s capital.

Visit the Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park in Skagway to see restorations of the buildings that served 40,000 eager miners during the peak of Alaska’s gold rush stampede from 1897 to 1898. Hike the 33-mile (53-kilometre) Chilkoot Trail, a popular backpacking route that follows the path of miners to the Yukon goldfields.

Look for wildlife in the wilderness areas near Ketchikan in the Southern Region. Black bears, bald eagles, sea lions and whales inhabit the 2.3 million acres (930,000 hectares) of land and shoreline of the vast Tongass National Forest. See vertical rock walls of the Misty Fjords National Monument rising 3,000 feet (900 metres) out of the ocean.

The Glacier Bay Area offers views of 16 impressive glaciers in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve. Take a flightseeing trip to look down on the spectacular icepacks, awake from an overnight cruise from Juneau to a magnificent glacier view or rent sea kayaks to enjoy a quiet opportunity to look at and listen to the slow-moving ice.

Fly to the region’s main cities and travel between parts of Southeast Alaska’s Inside Passage on the ocean. Many of the communities are on islands or have no connecting roads.