Alaska-Yukon-BC vacation

[Maladict]

Me and the gf are thinking of taking 3 or 4 weeks to travel, still a bit clueless but I know we have some knowledgeable people in the area 
We don't drive, which may be a problem, especially as we're not too keen on package tours either.

First rough itinerary: Anchorage, train to Denali, train to Fairbanks, bus to Dawson, bus to Whitehorse, bus and train to White Pass and Skagway, boat to Inside Passage, Sitka and Pr.Rupert, train to Jasper, bus to Banff, bus to Vancouver (+Island if there's time left).
Other places up for consideration: Kodiak, Aleutian islands, Nome, Tuktoyaktuk, these are probably not all that realistic.

[Barrister]

My first comment is - the bus?  You sure about that?

Yukon and area does not have great tourist-grade bus transportation.  Thats going to be a fairly rough means of travel.  I wouldn't recommend it.

The trains however are geared towards tourists.

You might be better looking at going on more of a package tour.  That will also be travelling by bus, but one oriented towards tourists.

More later...

[Jacob]

IIRC Greyhound has a pretty reasonably priced pass. Don't know what the connections are like between those specific cities, but the Greyhound is actually not a bad way to travel in North America if you are backpacking.

In any case Mal, let me know when you're headed for Vancouver and we can grab some beer and/or dinner or something

[Maladict]

My first comment is - the bus?  You sure about that?

Yukon and area does not have great tourist-grade bus transportation.  Thats going to be a fairly rough means of travel.  I wouldn't recommend it.

The trains however are geared towards tourists.

You might be better looking at going on more of a package tour.  That will also be travelling by bus, but one oriented towards tourists.

More later...

I'd prefer trains over buses any time but as far as I can tell there aren't any in the Yukon... 
I'm looking at some shuttle-type buses in Alaska, they seem to be geared to tourists, and the upside is that it's just single journeys so you're not stuck in a group for days.

[Barrister]

My first comment is - the bus?  You sure about that?

Yukon and area does not have great tourist-grade bus transportation.  Thats going to be a fairly rough means of travel.  I wouldn't recommend it.

The trains however are geared towards tourists.

You might be better looking at going on more of a package tour.  That will also be travelling by bus, but one oriented towards tourists.

More later...

I'd prefer trains over buses any time but as far as I can tell there aren't any in the Yukon... 
I'm looking at some shuttle-type buses in Alaska, they seem to be geared to tourists, and the upside is that it's just single journeys so you're not stuck in a group for days.

No, there aren't.

The general problem with your plan is I think you're not realizing just how huge and empty that part of the world is.  Especially when you talk about going down to Banff and Jasper - that's like going from Spain through to Moscow.

If I may, your itinerary leaves out the absolute Crown Jewel of a Yukon visit - Dawson City and the Klondike.  You must go there.

I'm going to throw out a few alternative itineraries:

1. Fly into Edmonton.  Rent a car and buy a tent, or rent an RV.  Drive up the Alaska Highway.  The Highway itself is worth the trip itself - there's a lot of charm, beauty and history to it.  Go up to Whitehorse, take a side trip to Skagway, then continue up the Highway to Beaver Creek, and Tok.  Turn at Delta Junction heading south.  Go to Anchorage, and spend a few days in Homer / Seward.  Then leave Anchorage and head north (which is a different highway than you came in on).  See Mt McKinley, go to Fairbanks if you want (though not much to see there).

Start heading back down the highway, but just past Tok take the Top of the World Highway to Dawson (very rough highway, but absolutely stunning views).  Visit Dawson City.  Travel back down to Whitehorse and head back down the highway.  Depending on your time, to avoid too much backtracking, take Highway 37 through Dease Lake, then Highway 16 back to Edmonton going through Jasper.  This route is much longer, so you could just drive back down the Alaska Highway.

This route gives you the romance of the Alaska Highway.  Having your own vehicle will help tremendously - most of these towns do not have any sort of public transportation or taxis.

2. Fly into Anchorage (Condor Air does a direct flight Frankfurt - Whitehorse - Anchorage twice per week).  Again rent a car or RV.  Again visit Homer, Seward, Mt McKinley.  Go to Dawson City.  Depending on time, drive the Dempster Highway to Inuvik (never done it, wish I had) and ross the Arctic circle.  drive down to Whitehorse.  Go to Skagway, take ferry to Juneau and/or Ketchikan.  Then again take the ferry back to Anchorage.

This is less driving, gives you time in the Alaska Panhandle.  You don't get the Alaska Highway.  The Ferry with a car is pretty darn expensive (think $500-$1000).  As an alternative you can simply drive back to Anchorage.

3. This is perhaps the simplesst.  Fly into Vancouver.  Take an Alaskan cruise - stops in all the ports in SE Alaska.  I believe through your cruise company you can also get off the boat and do a multi-day bus tour of Yukon / Alaska.  You'll hit most of the stops you'll want to see, everything will be taken care of for you - just sit back and enjoy the ride.

Unless you're really looking forward to "backpacking" holiday, I would recommend against taking the bus all over the place.

Hmm.  I only just now noticed the "we don't drive".  Seriously though, my advice remains unchanged.  If you have to, learn.  It's a useful life skill in any event.  Driving up there is nothing like driving in Europe - the lack of traffic makes it much, much easier.  You just have to watch for wildlife at night, but then again in the summer there isn't much night. 

And if you absolutely can not drive, then take a package tour.

[Maladict]

Thanks for that, I appreciate it. I'm afraid driving really is out, don't have a license and not really planning on getting one. The costs would cancel the North America trip in any case.
I've taken a bus from Toronto to Calgary before so I'm sure I can handle the distances
Also, I didn't leave out Dawson 

[Barrister]

Thanks for that, I appreciate it. I'm afraid driving really is out, don't have a license and not really planning on getting one. The costs would cancel the North America trip in any case.
I've taken a bus from Toronto to Calgary before so I'm sure I can handle the distances
Also, I didn't leave out Dawson 

  Now I'm not in Europe, but in my experience the cost of getting a drivers license is trivial compared to the costs of the trip you are proposing.

Now I've never taken a bus up north, but I'm guessing they'd be a whole different level of "rough" than a Toronto-Calgary bus trip would be.  But like I said if you're looking for a "backpacking"-type holiday then go for it.  I don't know how old you are Mal or what you're looking for in terms of amenities.  But if you don't mind sleeping on a bus for a night here or there it is doable.

[Admiral Yi]

I think most Yuro countries require a driving course that costs a trillion yuros before you get a license.

[Maladict]

  Now I'm not in Europe, but in my experience the cost of getting a drivers license is trivial compared to the costs of the trip you are proposing.

Now I've never taken a bus up north, but I'm guessing they'd be a whole different level of "rough" than a Toronto-Calgary bus trip would be.  But like I said if you're looking for a "backpacking"-type holiday then go for it.  I don't know how old you are Mal or what you're looking for in terms of amenities.  But if you don't mind sleeping on a bus for a night here or there it is doable.

Provided I fail the test once or twice (likely), I'll be looking at around 2000 euros. Also, I believe most rental companies require foreigners to have had a license for at least a year. Or maybe that's just a euro thing.

I'll have a look at package stuff for Alaska and the Yukon, could indeed be more comfortable.
Roughing it on the greyhound might just be a tad different when you're not 18 anymore, but 33.   
I'm pretty sure we'll be fine moving south from Skagway, the ferries seem pretty straightforward, as does the Prince Rupert to Jasper train service.

Something else, does it make sense to go out of summer?

[Barrister]

Depends how much out of summer you're talking about.  Late May and early September are the tail ends of the season and prices might be a bit cheaper, while temperatures are still comfortable enough.

Beyond that though - no, it does not.  Tourist season is over, and a lot of those amenities are closed for the season.

[citizen k]

What possessed you to want to go to Alaska-Yukon?

You should take the train from Vancouver to Seattle. Then the Empire Builder from Seattle through Spokane to Chicago. 

[garbon]

Provided I fail the test once or twice (likely), I'll be looking at around 2000 euros. Also, I believe most rental companies require foreigners to have had a license for at least a year. Or maybe that's just a euro thing.

Europe is a horrible place.

[Maladict]

What possessed you to want to go to Alaska-Yukon?

You should take the train from Vancouver to Seattle. Then the Empire Builder from Seattle through Spokane to Chicago.

It's really beautiful up there?
I've been looking at the Amtrak routes and the Empire Builder is tempting, it's a hassle making stops along the way though.
But yes, it's a backup plan in case the northern plans fall apart.

[katmai]

Me and the gf are thinking of taking 3 or 4 weeks to travel, still a bit clueless but I know we have some knowledgeable people in the area 
We don't drive, which may be a problem, especially as we're not too keen on package tours either.

First rough itinerary: Anchorage, train to Denali, train to Fairbanks, bus to Dawson, bus to Whitehorse, bus and train to White Pass and Skagway, boat to Inside Passage, Sitka and Pr.Rupert, train to Jasper, bus to Banff, bus to Vancouver (+Island if there's time left).
Other places up for consideration: Kodiak, Aleutian islands, Nome, Tuktoyaktuk, these are probably not all that realistic.

The Anchorage to Fairbanks part is reasonable, i know there is some kind of bus to Whitehorse and Haines if want to take ferry down to Skagway, Sitka, Ketchikan, Juneau.

There is also ferry out to Aleutians that stops in Kodiak.
Only way to and back from Nome is flight.

[alfred russel]

  Now I'm not in Europe, but in my experience the cost of getting a drivers license is trivial compared to the costs of the trip you are proposing.

Now I've never taken a bus up north, but I'm guessing they'd be a whole different level of "rough" than a Toronto-Calgary bus trip would be.  But like I said if you're looking for a "backpacking"-type holiday then go for it.  I don't know how old you are Mal or what you're looking for in terms of amenities.  But if you don't mind sleeping on a bus for a night here or there it is doable.

Provided I fail the test once or twice (likely), I'll be looking at around 2000 euros. Also, I believe most rental companies require foreigners to have had a license for at least a year. Or maybe that's just a euro thing.

I'll have a look at package stuff for Alaska and the Yukon, could indeed be more comfortable.
Roughing it on the greyhound might just be a tad different when you're not 18 anymore, but 33.   
I'm pretty sure we'll be fine moving south from Skagway, the ferries seem pretty straightforward, as does the Prince Rupert to Jasper train service.

Something else, does it make sense to go out of summer?

Is there a way around this? Unless you are in some very specific areas, you really need a car in the US/Canada. Maybe there is another US state/ Canadian province / other European country you could get a license from? Maybe you could just get a learners permit in Denmark and figure not every rental company will be able to tell the difference of a Danish language document (that seems risky)? Or maybe you could just find someone to rent a car under the table before you leave?