My Favorite Places in Alaska!

I’m starting 2026 off by recovering from Achilles Surgery, which means a lot of time sitting instead of getting outside, and doing what I love most about Alaska. What better time than to reminisce about all of my favorite places in Alaska?  Perhaps this post will help you plan your trip to Alaska.  Maybe it will inspire me to get out and explore more of Alaska once I recover?  Either way, here are some of my favorite places to see in Alaska!

I’ve spent the last 8 years living in Alaska and getting out as much as possible.  If you can get there in a car from Anchorage, I’ve probably been there.  Admittedly, I haven’t been off the road system, explored out of Juneau, or driven the Alcan… yet.  But I can assure you that you’ll enjoy stopping at each one of these best places in Alaska.

Best Places to See in Alaska

Kenai Fjords National Park

Kenai Fjords National Park is my absolute favorite national park, and with good reason.  You can find all varieties of stunning landscapes, widlife, calving glaciers, and you can explore by land or by sea.  I have three spots within the park that I always recommend: Aialik Bay, Northwestern Fjord, and the Harding Icefield.

I was fortunate enough to spend a week on a boat for a teacher training in KFNP.  We kayaked in both Aialik Bay and the Northwestern Fjord, and saw the full gamut of what Alaska has to offer.  But before that incredible experience, I’d been on over a dozen day trips to KFNP filled with whale watching,  calving glaciers, and spectacular wildlife.

One of my first trips into KFNP was a solo hike all the way to the top of the Harding Icefield Trail.  This trail remains an all-time favorite of mine even though I haven’t gone back yet.  I am very excited to one day camp at the top with my family, but we’ll need the girls to get a little older first.  You follow the lateral moraine of Exit Glacier with blue ice dazzling your eyes before reaching the snowy expanse of the Harding Icefield.

Drive to Seward (Google Maps)

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Denali State Park

Most people come to Alaska and want to see Denali, you know, the GREAT one!  The massive mountain, the largest peak in North America, and largest mountain from sea level to summit.  That’s right, Denali has a larger base-to-peak than Mount Everest!  While you can easily see Denali from all over Alaska most people book a trip to the national park, but the insider secret is to check out Denali State Park.

Sitting just south of the national park, the state park offers more actual Denali views than the national park does.  Plus, there are maintained trails perfect for hikers or backpackers who aren’t quite ready for the full Alaskan wilderness of Denali National Park.  My recommendation is to check out K’esugi Ken Campground and hike Curry Ridge and K’esugi Ridge.

Google Maps: Kesugi Ken Campground

Kesugi Ridge is my all-time favorite backpacking trip and can be easily accessed from Byer’s Lake, Ermine Hill, or Little Coal Creek.  You can head out for a day trip or do the whole traverse.  I recommend planning a few days to ensure the clouds clear, and you get a Denali view!

Google Maps: Byer’s Lake, Ermine Hill, Little Coal Creek

Denali State Park is also home to Broad Pass where you can spot Denali as you drive between mountains.  On a perfect spring day, you can crust ski for miles and miles in Broad Pass!

Hatcher Pass

A short 1-hour drive from Anchorage makes Hatcher Pass a local favorite for just about every outdoor activity.  Affectionately referred to as “Hatchers” but never “Hatchers Pass,” it is one of the most fun places to go in Alaska.  You can find cross-country skiing, backcountry skiing, mountaineering huts, hunting, gold panning, northern lights viewing, orienteering, ATV’ing, Snow Machining, and just about anything you could dream up in Hatcher Pass.

If you’re visiting in the summer months, I recommend driving up Hatcher Pass from Palmer over to Willow; you’ll need a dirt road-friendly vehicle (most SUV’s or 4WD cars work just fine).  You can stop for a hike to April Bowl at the top or anywhere along the way. If you’re just looking for a day trip, the Independence Mine area has great parking, is close to Hatcher Pass Lodge and tends to have the best activities for the season.

Google Maps; Independence Mine, April Bowl Trailhead

You’ll want to get ‘beta’ to plan a more adventurous excursion; trail conditions are highly variable, and this area is avalanche-prone.  Check the Hatcher Pass Avalanche Center for up-to-date info! Maybe one day I’ll write up a post about our 3-day Bomber Traverse in Hatcher Pass.

Comment here or on social media and I’m happy to offer what I know to help you plan your trip!

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Places to Go in Alaska

Kennecott & McCarthy Wrangell St. Elias National Park

If you want the TRUE Alaskan experience, then you need to visit McCarthy.  You might have heard some sourdough say that, and I’ll echo the sentiment.  I’ve been 4 times and still have a few things on my Alaska bucket list in McCarthy, but you will definitely want to explore Root Glacier!  Book a tour, unless you’re already an expert on glacier travel.

Kennecott is a historic landmark, and many of the trails take you to abandoned mines.  If you’re up for a lot of elevation and a gorgeous view,  head to the Bonanza Mine Trail.  It starts right in Kennecott.  If you want a flat, walk just above a glacier, then check out the Eerie Mine trail.

I’ve always wanted to cross the Root Glacier and camp out at the base of Donoho.  I hear you can summit without any technical climbing and imagine the views of the Stairway Icefall and Mount Blackburn are unparalleled from there.  Maybe one day I’ll book a bush plane and do a backcountry trip there too.

The thing with McCarthy is you can’t drive your car there unless you’re a local.  Bikes are a great way to get around and there is a shuttle.  I highly recommend driving the McCarthy road, but know it’s a highly variable dirt road!  You can park and camp out just before the bridge at Base Camp Kennecott then walk across the footbridge. A shuttle runs regularly and can take you where you need to go, the shuttle used to be $5 but I think prices have gone up since I was last there.

Google Maps: Base Camp Kennecott aka the end of the McCarthy Road

Check out one of my favorite Alaskan books, Cold Mountain Path:The Ghost Town Days of Kennecott and McCarthy and read some incredible true stories!

Denali National Park

Denali National Park is one of the most famous places in Alaska, USA.  Recently, there have been political scandals about the renaming of the mountain from Denali to McKinley.  While I have met a handful of old-timers who refer to the mountain as McKinley, I can tell you that the majority of Alaskans know her as Denali!

The truth about the national park is that you can’t see the mountain from the first 50-60 miles of the national park road.  Unfortunately, the road is still closed at mile 43 so I wouldn’t plan your trip to the national park, especially with a goal of seeing the mountain.   Statistically speaking, the park rangers will tell you that only 30% of visitors get to see the national park due to inclement weather and other factors, and only 30% of those who see her get to see an unobstructed view!

The good news is Denali NP has top notch mountain scenery and wildlife throughout the park!  The other good news is they are hoping to finish construction and reopen the road this summer, in 2026!  If the road is open again, then I would HIGHLY recommend putting your name in the lottery to drive the Denali Park Road next fall.  The Denali Park Road lottery is the only way to take a private vehicle past mile 29.  Normally you can’t go past mile 13 in a private vehicle, but if you book a Teklanika Campsite reservation they’ll let you drive out to mile 29.  But don’t worry, the big green buses are awesome for wildlife viewing and accessing the zones for wilderness recreation.

I highly recommend asking the park rangers to help you plan an overnight backpacking trip in Denali National Park.  Last summer I biked 70 miles along the gravel road to the landslide closure and back; some brave adventurers bypass the landslide section taking their bikes through the wilderness and traverse the untouched sections while the road is under repair.  However you plan your Denali National Park trip, I’m sure you’ll see it is among the best places to visit in Alaska!

Places in Alaska to see Northern Lights

Let’s face it.  Many people come to Alaska with a specific goal to see the northern lights!  The aurora borealis are an amazing natural phenomenon that is on just about everyone’s bucket list, and the good news is I am an avid aurora chaser.  Sure, I’m stuck on the couch while my Achilles heals up, but I’ve been out chasing the northern lights at least a hundred times and have mastered the art of photographing the aurora borealis.  Two of the best places in Alaska to see the northern lights are Fairbanks and Talkeetna.  The aforementioned Hatcher Pass is also an excellent spot, but isn’t as far north, but, really anywhere away from light pollution is good for aurora chasing.

  Click the link for aurora borealis information, locations, and camera tips.

Fairbanks, Alaska

Fairbanks is about as far north as you can get while driving your average rental car.  Some Alaskan visitors want to head further north to the Arctic Circle, but the best northern lights viewing is actually in Fairbanks.  If you look at the NOAA Aurora Forecast, you’ll notice the “oval” doesn’t actually go all the way up to the northernmost point on Earth. That means Fairbanks is perfectly situated to see aurora borealis on almost any clear night.

Google Maps: Murphy Dome (great spot for aurora viewing but make sure you have a solid car)

I planned a New Year’s Eve trip to Fairbanks with a specific goal of seeing the northern lights, and it was my first real good show.  I got hooked and have now gone out aurora chasing countless times.

Talkeetna, Alaska

I’m a little biased about Talkeetna because we spend a LOT of time there.  Elizabeth’s family has had a cabin in Talkeetna since she was little; we even got married there!  Regardless of my personal affection, Talkeetna is a great spot for the northern lights.  It’s about two hours straight north from Anchorage, making it reasonable to drive out and back for a night of aurora chasing.  Better yet, book a night at one of these lodges and check out the view of Denali from the Talkeetna Riverfront Park near downtown.

Google Maps: Talkeetna Riverfront Park

Okay, maybe downtown is really just a single street, but the Talkeetna charm combined with the train stop, great trail systems for biking and nordic skiing, delicious restaurants, a brewery, and northern lights viewing make it one of the best places in Alaska.

If you’ve gotten this far you probably want to know the best apps to find the aurora borealis!  Click the link to read how I plan my own aurora chases.

Best Places in Alaska

Prince William Sound

Prince William Sound is probably one of the best places I’ve been to, yet explored the least.  I’ve only been able to go out on the water a handful of times, and most of those were the ferry from Valdez to Whittier.  PWS offers incredible marine wildlife and glacier viewing.  The landscapes will leave your jaw on the floor.  It is great for everything from fishing to SCUBA diving, even though I have yet to try either one there.

My favorite trip into the Prince William Sound was when my sister-in-law got married, and the family chartered a small boat trip; we got to watch Beloit glacier calving!  One day I’ll explore more of Prince William Sound, but it’ll have to be after my Achilles heals up because I’m definitely not getting on a boat just yet.

Google Maps: Prince William Sound Road Access via Whittier or Valdez

Chugach State Park

Chugach State Park is the largest and most visited state park in Alaska.  The trail maintenance and parking access is unparralled.  According to AllTrails there are at least 142 trails to explore in Chugach State Park!  The best part is, most of them are close enough to Anchorage that you can do a quick hike, trail run, or ski in the morning and be home by lunchtime!  My personal favorite is the Glen Alps Trailhead, and I plan to write a larger post showcasing exactly why, but in short, there is a large parking lot 20-minutes from my house and dozens of hikes, bikes, or skis to pick from.  I really like the middle fork and south fork trails and Flattop is the most popular.
Google Maps: Glen Alps Trailhead

Chugach. National Forest

Chugach National Forest might be the last one I write about on this list but it is honestly one of my favorite places to play outside!  At roughly an hour drive from Anchorage and with easy trail access to the popular Portage Glacier and Byron Glacier, this forest offers way more than just easy access to beautiful Alaskan scenery.  Locals frequently don skis, skates, or jump aboard a snow machine to explore countless glacial valleys and mountain terrain in the winter.  Skiing to Skookum Glacier and crust skiing on Center Ridge are among my fondest memories with Elizabeth.

Emmalynn had her first two tent camping experiences last summer at one of the 14 roadside campgrounds in Chugach National Forest.  Summer brings kayaks, pack rafts, hikes, and untold outdoor regalia to the campgrounds, as well as backcountry opportunities abound.  You’ll have your pick of Alaskan adventure in Chugach National Forest making it one of the top places to go in Alaska!

When to visit Alaska?

Most people visit Alaska from June-August.  Roughly Memorial Day through Labor Day.  If you’re visiting Alaska for northern lights you’ll need to be opposite so you actually have daylight. Thinking about seeing the best places in Alaska on a budget?  Shoulder season is May and September, and offers the best deals on hotels and tours.

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Recommended Reading for more reasons to visit Alaska:

• Kayaking Northwestern Fjord in Kenai Fjords National Park
• Kayaking Aialik Glacier in Kenai Fjords National Park
• Hiking to Erie Mine and Bonanza Mine in Wrangell St Elias National Park
• Day Trips in Anchorage
• Kesugi Ridge in Denali State Park
• Day Trip in Prince William Sound 
• Hiking Pepper Peak – Summers at Eklutna Lake
• Amazing Denali Views while Hiking the Curry Ridge Trail
• Winning the Denali Park Road Lottery
• Backpack through Denali National Park
• Camp at Grewingk Glacier
• Cross a frozen lake to Portage Glacier
• Ski to Skookum Glacier
• Aurora Hunting in Fairbanks for New Years Eve
• Biking to Knik GlacierCrust Skiing Broad Pass – Denali State Park