Hard to believe that its almost three years since we went to Alaska!!!. First thing I would suggest is that you do the rail/cruise trip but fly into Fairbanks and work South on the rail. The trip we took with Princess had accommodations never on the train, the lodges were all well worth it. we went a day early and did a Glacier tour about 30 minutes outside of Anchorage, it was a full day and breath taking and just the start.On the bus ride back to the hotel we saw Beluga Whales!! The train ride North was just unbelievable and when we got to see Mt McKinley it was clear as a bell. We were lucky as we were told most people never get a day like that when they visit.In Denali National Park we took a bus ride about two hours into the Park and were still not 1/2 way thru. The ride was scary as the road was narrow and at times we didn't think the bus would make it, but we saw bear, Dall sheep, Elk and Eagles, the only thing we didn't see was moose. After about 5 days of train travel North , we headed back South to the boat, it was 10 hours on the train, so that is why we suggest the North>South train. On board there was a kids club for Ethan which he loved and made lots of friends. In Skagway we departed the boat to visit a Mushers camp and learn about the care of sled dogs, the next day in Juneau we did another excursion on a small boat that held about 12 and they drove out about 40 minutes on the lake to a fish hatchery where we were within 100 feet of Black Bear that were on the shore.
In terms of pure Nature this was the most beautiful trips we have ever been on and overall Alaska is a very close second to Egypt as far as family vacations.
