Top of the World

September 10th, 2008 by A World Vacationer

From our Win a Trip Contest
A travel story by - Greg M.

One of the most memorable trips I’ve ever taken was to Alaska. I had been to the state once before, and seen the typical tourist things (Anchorage, Kenai Fjords, Homer). However, my new wife had not been and was urging me to return with her. I said that the only way that I would agree is if we could go somewhere that the typical tourist does not go. She agreed.

After flying into Anchorage, we traveled up state highway 3 to see Mt. McKinley up close (a remarkable sight - consider that its height from base to tip is greater than Everest). We stopped and/or spent the night at spots on the map like Healy, Nenana, and Anderson. Arriving in Fairbanks, we checked into bed & breakfast built from a decommissioned train (search the internet for Aurora-Express). We took a day trip to Chena Hot Springs (at the end of a 60 mile country road to the middle of nowhere). We also toured the small University of Alaska museum, Pioneer Park, and the Trans-Alaska pipeline viewing area just north of town.

Then we took a jet up to Barrow on the north coast of Alaska. This was the highlight of an already amazing trip. I only regret we only stayed for two nights. Seeing an ocean frozen over is quite a sight, as is wild polar bears. We toured the Inupiat Heritage Center museum, and watched the locals cutting up a whale just caught (don’t expect to eat any, Inupiats get a special exception in the law regarding catching and eating whale). We walked around town by ourselves (mid 30s Fahrenheit in May), eating at a sushi restaurant, pizza joint, and the Mexican restaurant attached to our hotel (Top of the World Hotel). I woke up at 3 am just to make sure the sun was still up (there is 24 hours of sunlight in the summer). Be sure to sign up for a tour around town. While the town is small (4000 folks), it is spread out enough that you won’t see everything on foot. Unless you are going to rent one of the pickup trucks, it is best for the hotel to pick you up from the airport. (Unless you stay at the Eider Inn, which is literally across the street from the airport.)

While not the cheapest vacation, it was remarkably affordable, especially since we both used WorldPerks miles to get to the state and back. The main cost was the hotels/B&Bs (which you’d pay for on most vacations) and the plane tickets to Barrow (which was $500 a piece at the time).

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