Join Alaska's Guided Tours & Accommodations on this 7 Days in the Matanuska Susitna Valley Tour. This is a seven day, six night tour that features the Matanuska Susitna Valley, Palmer, Wasilla, Talkeetna, Denali National Park and Anchorage. Enjoy this smaller-sized Alaska tour that is led by local Alaskans. These are fun packed tours that feature flight seeing, glacier trekking, and incredible views all along the way. Sit back and enjoy as we take you on an escorted tour with your comfort and safety in mind.

Take in the majesty that is Alaska. This is a relaxing tour that will take you on flight seeing tours, rafting, wildlife viewing, river safaris, glacier hiking and more.

DETAILS:

Departure Dates June 1 - August 1, 2012
7 Days / 6 Nights
$ 2989.00 per person
Limited Availability - Vehicle accommodates 6 to 10 Guests

DAY ONE - Anchorage: When you arrive in Anchorage a 24 hour free shuttle will take you to
your Hotel. There is a full breakfast bar offered. The hotel is downtown so it is in great walking
distance of many attractions and quaint local shops. Explore the city at your leisure.

Schedule

Arrive at Anchorage
Shuttle Pick up from to your Hotel
Shopping in Historic Anchorage

Day One Links: Anchorage | Explore the city of Anchorage at your leisure. 

DAY TWO - Your guide will meet you and your other traveling companions and we will head
towards Seward.

The Alaska Sea Life Center offers an unrivaled, up-close and personal experience with Gulf of Alaska
marine wildlife. Witness a 2000+ pound Steller sea lion gliding past underwater viewing windows, puffins
diving in a carefully crafted naturalistic habitat, and harbor seals resting on rocky beaches. Alaskan king
crab, sea stars, and the Giant Pacific octopus also await you, as well as a whole variety of intertidal
creatures and deep sea fishes.

The Kenai Fjords Tour Ressurrection Bay Wildlife Tour, with an exclusive stop at Fox Island for an all you
can eat wild Alaskan salmon and prime rib, is always a great choice!  Learn about the rich history
of Resurrection Bay while viewing the jagged cliffs, seabirds, marine wildlife and alpine glaciers,
including magnificent Bear Glacier.

The Crow Creek Mine established in 1896, was one of the largtest producing hydraulic placer gold mines in South Central Alaska and today is Alaska’s most popular “recreational” gold panning area. No exact records are known that tell the true tale of exactly how much gold was taken from this mine, but estimates put it around 700 ounces a month during peak production. When the commercial mining operations came to a standstill during World War II, many believed that more gold remained in the creek than had ever been mined out of it. The Toohey Family, owners/operators since 1969, strive to preserve not only the rich history and beautiful natural scenery of Crow Creek Mine, but also the gold resources within its claims so that many for years to come can experience the same thrill that the prospectors enjoyed when they first arrived at Crow Creek. Nestled among the Chugach Mountains, Crow Creek Mine offers a unique blend of historical buildings, antiques, rare mining equipment, beautiful gardens, amazing wilderness scenery, hiking trails (including the Historic Iditarod Trail), and access to the explore the mines’ original claims. These claims are still producing gold to this very day and with a little work and a bit of luck, you might be quite surprised to find that you too can catch “gold fever”.

Schedule

Hearty Alaskan Breakfast
Crow Creek Mine
Sea Life Center 
Kenai Fjords Tour
Lunch
Dinner, Shopping, and Nights Accomodations in Seward




Day Two Links:      Alaska's Wild Life & Big Game | Sea Life Center | 26 Glacier Tour | Crow Creek Mine

DAY THREE  - Spend a day among the world's most spectacular glaciers and wildlife aboard the fastest, largest and most luxurious catamaran in Alaska, the Klondike Express.  You'll cruise through the calm, protected waters of Prince William Sound and come face to face with towering masses of ice, migratory whales and breathtaking Alaska scenery. Professional narration is provided by U.S. Forest Service Rangers on every cruise. The cruise operates daily May through September. 

Wild Alaska and Big Game is located on 140 acres of natural Alaska wilderness, Big Game Alaska Wildlife Center opened to the public in 1993.  Their mission is to provide care for injured and orphaned wildlife and to provide continued wildlife awareness and education to the public.  On the shores of Turnagain Arm, surrounded by mountains and hanging glaciers, Big Game Alaska Wildlife Center is the perfect place to learn about Alaska wildlife. Last year Big Game Alaska Wildlife Center received moose, deer, black and grizzly bears, owls, bison muskox and a variety of game birds to care for. Big Game Alaska is entirely self-supported and relies on customer support to continue its mission of wildlife rehabilitation. All of your purchases contribute to the animal care and rescue program.

Schedule

Hearty Alaskan Breakfast
Luxury Catamaran
    - The Famous 26 Glaciers
    - Prince William Sound
Lunch
Alaska Wildlife & Big Game Center
Barbecue Dinner at Alaska's Lake Lucille Bed & Breakfast
Overnight Accomodations at Alaska's Lake Lucille Bed & Breakfast

Day Three Links:  26 Glacier Tour | Alaska's Wild Life & Big Game

DAY FOUR - Of course, a visit to Alaska would be complete without a visit to the Iditarod Dog Sled Headquarters.  You will experience a short dog-sledd ride, it's a short trip but one that will help make this one of your most memorable vactions! Also, there are usually sled dog puppies in the displays for you to see and cuddle along with many great souvenirs to remember this visit. Warm your heart with the lure of the husky puppies. Next, take in the beauty of Talkeetna, a small frontier town on the way to the great Mountain Denali. This town is a great place to see the "old Alaska " and do some souvenier hunting as well. Stop in at the Road House for some great frontier food and drink. There's lots to see and do in Talkeetna in addition to seeing the town including flight seeing tour of the mountain, some of the greatest fishing in the world and a tour up one of the three rivers that converge on this town to see Alaska wild life, a trappers cache, and more.

1) Denali Flightseeing & Glacier Landing:  Among the most breath taking tours you will ever experience, this flight features glaciers, rugged mountains and wildlife viewing.

2)  River Boat Ride -  2-hour Riverboat Safari. On this trip you will take a 10 mile river ride that will give you a great chance to see beavers, bears, nesting bald eagles and moose. Take a hike to a real Trappers Cabin. See how they lived and what they had to do to survive in the Last Frontier. When all is back it is time to continue on to Denali National Park where you will dine at the famous Black Diamond Grill and check into your lodgings. Continue on to Denali National Park and a spectacular meal at the famed Black Dimond Grille. Your lodging will be in or near the Denali National Park. (Meals Provided: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner)

Schedule

Hearty Alaskan Breakfast
Iditarod Dog Sled Headquarters
Lunch
Historic Frontier Town of Talkeetna
    - Talkeetna Souvenir Shopping
    - Denali Flightseeing & Glacier Landing or
    - Mahay's River Boat Ride
Dinner at Black Diamond Grill
Overnight Accomodations near Denali National Park

Day Four Links:   Iditarod Dog Sled Headquarters  | Talkeetna |   Great Mountain Denali |    Mahays River Boat Ride   

DAY FIVE -  Denali National Park: Today you will get to enjoy the Denali Park tundra wildlife tour. While you are out be sure that you keep your eyes open so you don't miss all the wildlife that Alaska is so famous for. You will be provided a snack lunch while on the tour. When you are through with the tour consider one of the great restaurants or add the "Cabin Nite Dinner Theater". You will stay your last night in the Park. (Meals Provided: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner) 

Schedule

Hearty Alaskan Breakfast
 130 Mile River Boat Safari through Denali State Park
   - Mahey’s Safari site
   - Dena'ina Indian Encampment
   - Trapping Demonstrations
   - Box Lunch Provided
Alaska Cabin Night Dinner Theater
   Menu - Ribs and Salmon, potatoes, beans and corn, and blueberry cobbler.
Overnight Accomodations Near Denali National Park

Day Five Links: Talkeetna | Mahays River Ride | Denali National Park | Alaska Cabin Night Dinner Theater:

DAY SIX - Chickaloon-Glacier Trek: Today's adventure will take you aboard an airboat to the base of Knik Glacier and Lake George. "The largest glacier acessible by car in Alaska". The scenic two hour drive north east of Anchorage on the Glenn Highway makes it an easy day trip from Anchorage. The Matanuska is a beautiful valley glacier twenty four miles long and four miles wide decending twelve thousand feet to the terminus. Nestled in the breathtaking Chugach mountains. Our unique location gives us some of the best weather in the state of Alaska.

Unbelievable huge ice bergs float next to your boat, and offer a great photo opportunity. As you travel on today you will get to step back in time a view the glacier age. Take a walk to the Matanuska Glacier and view it up close and personal. As you travel to Chickaloon you will get to see the Knik Glacier and traveling along beside you is the Matanuska River. The Matanuska Glacier ... one of the great wonders easily accessable to Alaska visitors is at mile marker 102 on the glenn highway.

The trip to this glacieris one of the most panoramic of your visit and will provide a great venue for many pictures to remember your visit as you travel along side the Matanuska River. Once at the glacier you will be able to see and touch the blue ice, visit the 10 acre lake in the midst of the glacier, visit moulans that fall hundreds of feet to the bottom of the ice as well as visit the crevasses the cover the ice field. For an unforgettable visit, we'll arrange a tour through Mica Guides. You will overnight in your same lodgings at Lake Lucille Bed & Breakfast. (Meals Provided: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner)

Schedule

Hearty Alaskan Breakfast
Knik Glacier and Lake George
Matanuska Glacier
Dinner in Wasilla
Evening Campfire on Lake Lucille
Overnight at Alaska's Lake Lucille Bed & Breakfast

Day Six Links:  Mica Guides  | Matanuska Glacier

DAY SEVEN - As we travel north you will get to stop at the Village of Eklutna. Here you will get to see some of the native culture and see their spirit houses.  The Eklutna Historical Park and Village site has been inhabited by the Dena'ina Athabascan Indians since about 1650. Here you can learn about their traditional lifestyle and visit a number of attractions, including the Eklutna Village Heritage House, with historical exhibits and Native art; the St. Nicholas Russian Orthodox Church, originally built in the 1830s and reconstructed in the 1970s; the new St. Nicholas Church, completed in 1962; and the Eklutna Cemetery, known for its colorfully decorated "spirit houses." 

A short day hike to a river gorge and waterfall. A short, scenic trail through spruce and birch forest, this highly developed trail leads along the edge of a gorge on the Eklutna River to a crashing waterfall on Thunder Bird Creek, a tributary of the Eklutna. The trail is limited to foot traffic only, and no camping is allowed. It’s a good hike for kids, but keep an eye on them; the rushing creek and the cliffs and rock faces along the canyon are potentially dangerous. Special features: Thunder Bird Falls and a gorge on the Eklutna River.

It is time to bring this tour to an end. As we bring you back to Anchorage to connect with your flights we hope that you have enjoyed your tour of Alaska and have a safe return home. (Meals Provided: Breakfast & Lunch)

Hearty Alaskan Breakfast
Eklutna Historical Park and Village
 
Day Seven Links:  Anchorage  |  Chickloon | Matanuska Glacier  /  Eklutna Historial Park and village

Payment and Cancellation Policy
A deposit of 50% of the services reserved is due at the time of your booking. The balance of your tour is due thirty days prior to your first day of travel. Alaska's Guided Tours & Accommodations recommend and encourage you to purchase trsvel insurance. We cannot make exception to our cancellation or change policies for any reason, this includes family and medical emergencies. Alaska's Guided Tours will do our very best to help make your visit to Alaska a good one. We cannot be liable for inclement weather or acts of God.

Reservations: To request this package, or to receive a quote at no obligation, please email or call 907-357-0352.

Not included is Airfare from your home to Anchorage, and some of your meals.

Included in your Tour
*All lodging
*All transportation including 
rail, flight seeing, van & boat
*All park and entrance fees
*National & State Park fees
*All activities exceept those stated as optional
*Complimentary beverages
*Breakfasts & lunches where listed.