How to Plan a Trip to Alaska in 2024
(and Beyond)Alaska is one of those places that's hard to describe – and trust me, I've tried many, many times on this blog! It's a huge and wild, breath-taking and memory-making destination that most people can visit more easily than they realize. Yes, planning a trip to Alaska is complicated because of how big the state is and many of the logistics involved, but you can certainly plan a trip to Alaska by yourself if you choose...
Where to Stay Near Glacier National Park:
7 Options in Montana’s Rocky MountainsMaybe I'm just getting old, but I feel like some things about travel just completely confuse me. One of those things? Glacier National Park. Now I've visited a lot of parks – almost half of them! – but Glacier is one of the most mystifying to me. There are tons of different areas of the park with seasonally changing access between them, a variety of reservations you might need, and no clear "gateway" community or single part of the park where you base yourself to explore the park...
10 Essentials You Need to Pack for Alaska in the Winter
The aurora dancing above a snowy field. Hearing the snowflakes fall on a quiet, dark night. That amazing feeling when you step inside, peel off your layers, and the warmth seeps back into your bones. There's something magical about Alaska in the winter...
How to Drive the Klondike-Kluane Loop: Road Trip the Best of the Yukon
Spanning vast, untouched wilderness and steeped in Gold Rush history, the Klondike-Kluane Loop is one of the Yukon Territory's most iconic drives. Starting and ending in the capital city of Whitehorse, the loop not only offers a glimpse into the Yukon's storied past, where dreams of gold lured many a hopeful prospector, but also showcases the raw beauty and majestic wilderness for which the region is famed and a chance to learn about the First Nations people who steward this region...
Where to Stay in the Yukon: 9 Best Hotels, Motels, Cabins and B&Bs
I'm the first one to admit: I've got an unreasonably soft spot for the Yukon Territory in northwest Canada. It's remote, it's undeveloped, and there's not much to do there – if you believe some travelers anyway. I know better though; my family used to take summer vacations in the Yukon when I was growing up in Alaska, and I've been back since (June 2023) to retrace some of those steps and forge new trails of my own...
The 13 Best Things to Do in Whitehorse, Yukon Territory
For some travelers, that place is Disneyland. For others, it's a lakeside cabin where the family always used to converge during the summer holidays. For me – a kid raised in Alaska – the place I think of fondly when remembering summer vacations is Canada's Yukon Territory. Maybe it was from our seminal drive from Maryland – where I was born – to Alaska when we moved there...
How to Plan the Perfect Alaska Winter Itinerary
Green lights dancing in the sky. Ice crystals on eyelashes. A steaming bowl of soup and a cold pint of craft beer. Now sing it with me: "these are a few of my favorite things." That's how the song goes, right? Well, it will be for you, once you make your first trip to Alaska during the winter...
Where to Eat in Dawson City: 9 Spots to Nosh in the Northern Yukon
If you look on a map, it's pretty obvious: Dawson City is far from, well, everything. There are only two roads that reach Dawson, the Top of the World Highway (which connects to Alaska) and the Klondike Highway from Whitehorse. You might well assume then that the food in Dawson City is lacking, and restaurant options are few and far between...
Alaska in December: A Complete Guide to Visiting in Winter
When people learn that I grew up in Alaska, one of the most common questions I receive is: how was it living in the dark for half the year?! Actually, it's not dark half the year in Alaska, but there are certain times of the year when it's darker than others and the days are much shorter. December is one of those times, and in fact, the shortest day of the year occurs on December 21st, so it's arguably the darkest time to visit Alaska among any of the winter months...
