Anchorage Travel Forum

Hi there,

My girlfriend and I are heading to Anchorage for a couple of weeks in the middle of July. We have planned a few excursions around the area, in fact I think we'll be taking most modes aof transport whilst we're there..train, plane, coach, boat etc.

My question is about Anchorage itself. Is it a walkable place or will we need to hire a car or plan to the public transport carefully if we are to see all the delights of the town.

Thanks for looking

Vic

You'll be making a big mistake if you plan to spend your entire trip in Anchorage. Anchorage is just a service city. It services the industries... it has about 15 minutes of charm, not two weeks worth. If you are looking for a base city, go to either Valdez or Seward. You can take a train to Seward.

We stayed in Anchorage last summer twice - as stopping points on the way to other locations. Like you, we used bus, train, boat to get around Alaska. We did not have a rental car in Anchorage and managed just fine. The downtown area is very walkable. It is also possible to rent bicycles and get a little further out. That's what I would do if I were there for 2 days. Forget the car, but rent a bike.

Karen

From all the modes of transport, it sounds like you're using Anchorage as your hub and taking trips all over by train, etc. Whether you should get a car or not probably depends most on where you're staying and what you want to do. If downtown, then walking to stores and restaurants is an option. If you are in midtown or by the airport then a car would be a good idea.

Thanks for all you replies. Maybe hiring some bikes would be a good idea, just to stretch our legs a bit.

If you are definitely going to rent a bike, you should do what we did not have time to do. Go bicycling along the Coastal Trail. If we had one more day there (or 2 days together), that is what we would have done. Anchorage is a great place for bicycles. Here's a link to an article. There are also a number of bike rental places in downtown Anchorage.

http://www.alaska.com/plan/visitors_guide/2006/anchorage/story/7645697p-7550180c.html

Karen

Thanks Karen. The bike trail looks like a good idea. Especially the part about seeing some moose on the trail.

We did the Coastal trail and it was excellent...we even bumped into some moose on the way.

Glad to hear the bike ride was worth it, also glad to hear you survived the close encounters with the moose kind! Now I really do with we had done it. Maybe next time....

I only heard and read about it, but please i will want you to write me on my private email address, i want to discuss something of interest to you.
jenetcamara@yahoo.com
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Jenet