Maddie wrote:
Hi Janice,

I am a young spirit in an older body ;-) I am 40 (still can't believe
it myself). Yes, I have noticed as well that the organized tours are
targeted at an older and wealthier public. I have found 3
organisations which are geared towards younger people:
www.footloose.com and www.explore.co.uk (which has an enormous choice).
In Alaska itself I have found www.travelalaskaoutdoors.com (only
camping) which if I decide to go camping, would probably be the ones I
would go with (prices range from $995 to 2500 but nearly everything is
included).

Maddie

Maddie,

I did look at several of the travelalaskaoutdoors site and they aren't
bad, but..... now on to the included part. All of these packages sound
a little like "If it is Tuesday, it must be Belguim." Until you have
been there a couple of times, you won't be able to comprehend just how
large Alaska is. Getting from one place to another takes all day. You
may think 5 hours from Anchorage to Denali doesn't sound like much.
More likely it is 10 hours before there is always road work being done
in the summer (as it is the only time they can do road work) and you
are following motorhome after motorhome after motorhome, many stopped
in the middle of the road to take pictures of moose. The biggest
complaint of the Princess/Holland American tourists (after they get off
the ship) is that they are never in one place long enough to even catch
their breath.

I am not trying to discourage you from this trip because Alaska would
be right at the top of my travel destinations and some of the most
beautiful country I have ever seen.

Back to the add-ons. They do include the travel, and a day trip into
Denali (which costs about $85) and admission to Chena Hot Springs
(which is a waste for the hot springs, but not viewing the scenery).
They don't include 150-250 for whale watching, which is a must if you
are going to go to Prince William Sound. They don't include $150-250
for a day of sea kayaking or 250 to go fishing. Being on the water and
seeing the wildlife is a big part of Alaska. As far as I am concerned,
20 minutes in Anchorage and 45 minutes in Fairbanks (to see drunk
natives) is about all those two places have going for them. With the
time they have alloted for Denali, you will have no time to go river
rafting (if you are adventuresome $75-90), or taking any of the free
hikes. You won't even be in Valdez long enough to hike some of the
waterfalls. Matanuska (sp?) glacier is a camping site on your itinery,
but again, you aren't there long enough to hike the Sheep Mountains.
Also you are on such a tight schedule that you can't wait a day for
some activities until the weather might be better the next day.

I hope you are able to find someone to do this with you so that you are
able to more customize this to your wants. I am currently planning a
12-day hiking trip for the Inca Trail to Machu Pichu for next year.

Janice