Alaska Hwy lodging

Starting to plan a trip up the Alaska Hwy for next year & have a 2 yr.
old copy of the Milepost. First time back since '68--still have the
'68 edition of the Milepost, too.

Found lodging to be fairly primitive in most places back then. We
want better lodging this time.

1. Can we reasonably expect to find modern motels in most bergs along
the highway these days or would we be better off driving some kind of
RV? Made it up to Dawson Creek a few yrs. ago and was disappointed
with the motel we found there, which makes me suspicious of what we
might find along the highway.

2. If we decide to take an RV, would a 5th wheel or a motorhome be
more appropriate for the highway, given the liklihood of encountering
primitive road conditions in construction zones? Never owned an RV,
but we are thingking about it.

Any other suggestions?

Thanks.

Richard Scott

Richard Scott wrote:
Starting to plan a trip up the Alaska Hwy for next year & have a 2 yr.
old copy of the Milepost. First time back since '68--still have the
'68 edition of the Milepost, too.

Found lodging to be fairly primitive in most places back then. We
want better lodging this time.

1. Can we reasonably expect to find modern motels in most bergs along
the highway these days or would we be better off driving some kind of
RV? Made it up to Dawson Creek a few yrs. ago and was disappointed
with the motel we found there, which makes me suspicious of what we
might find along the highway.

2. If we decide to take an RV, would a 5th wheel or a motorhome be
more appropriate for the highway, given the liklihood of encountering
primitive road conditions in construction zones? Never owned an RV,
but we are thingking about it.

Any other suggestions?

Thanks.

Richard Scott

We just go back from a trip to Alaska. We used milepost and a AAA book.
You need another travel book besides milepost, since milepost has places
that advertise with them.

We found a wide variety of places to stay. Some very nice, some not so
nice. It depended upon the popularity of the place we were in.

We were not in an RV. Feel free to ask questions.

Arlene

"arlene" wrote in message
...


Richard Scott wrote:
Starting to plan a trip up the Alaska Hwy for next year & have a 2 yr.
old copy of the Milepost. First time back since '68--still have the
'68 edition of the Milepost, too.

Found lodging to be fairly primitive in most places back then. We
want better lodging this time.

1. Can we reasonably expect to find modern motels in most bergs along
the highway these days or would we be better off driving some kind of
RV? Made it up to Dawson Creek a few yrs. ago and was disappointed
with the motel we found there, which makes me suspicious of what we
might find along the highway.

2. If we decide to take an RV, would a 5th wheel or a motorhome be
more appropriate for the highway, given the liklihood of encountering
primitive road conditions in construction zones? Never owned an RV,
but we are thingking about it.

Any other suggestions?

Thanks.

Richard Scott



We are in our 70's and did a 5 week - 2977 mile - tour of Alaska 2 years
ago in a rented 26 foot 'Class C' RV picked up in Whitehorse. It was our
first experience with an RV.

We found that the convenience and comfort in the RV was excellent.
Alaska has very few rules and restrictions as to where you can park your RV
whether for a lunch break or for overnite. Being able to pull off the road
into a gravel pit or down a side road to a stream whenever you need a break
or feel like lunch or even for an overnite stop takes a lot of the stress
out of travelling. We paid for overnite RV parking only at Denali and
Dawson City. The rest were in Wal-Mart and Fred Meyer parking lots or
wherever we felt we had gone far enough for that day.

Motel accomodations seemed few and far between outside of the cities (and
they are few and even further between).

The furthest we got away from paved hi-ways was going up to Chicken and
Eagle on a very well maintained gravel road. The Holland America buses make
that a regular route. The only other unpaved sections we encountered were
short stretches where they were straightening out some curves.

We found that groceries were a bit higher as expected but restaurant meals
were atrociously priced. The RV facilities were well used and appreciated.
The convenience, comfort and savings realized by having the RV soon
justified the rental cost.

We live in Vancouver B.C. and drove our car up to Whitehorse. Our return
was via the Cassiar Hiway. The Alaska portion of the trip also included a 12
day Alaska Marine Highway System tour out of Skagway to visit the Southeast
Peninsula with stays at Juneau, Sitka and Ketchican. Total time for the
vacation was May 10 to July 15 with the RV rented from June 1 to July 6.
Total travel - car plus RV - 7067 miles.

Enjoyed it all and highly recommend an RV tour in Alaska!

Don

"arlene" wrote in message
...


Richard Scott wrote:
Starting to plan a trip up the Alaska Hwy for next year & have a 2 yr.
old copy of the Milepost. First time back since '68--still have the
'68 edition of the Milepost, too.

Found lodging to be fairly primitive in most places back then. We
want better lodging this time.

1. Can we reasonably expect to find modern motels in most bergs along
the highway these days or would we be better off driving some kind of
RV? Made it up to Dawson Creek a few yrs. ago and was disappointed
with the motel we found there, which makes me suspicious of what we
might find along the highway.

2. If we decide to take an RV, would a 5th wheel or a motorhome be
more appropriate for the highway, given the liklihood of encountering
primitive road conditions in construction zones? Never owned an RV,
but we are thingking about it.

Any other suggestions?

Thanks.

Richard Scott



We are in our 70's and did a 5 week - 2977 mile - tour of Alaska 2 years
ago in a rented 26 foot 'Class C' RV picked up in Whitehorse. It was our
first experience with an RV.

We found that the convenience and comfort in the RV was excellent.
Alaska has very few rules and restrictions as to where you can park your RV
whether for a lunch break or for overnite. Being able to pull off the road
into a gravel pit or down a side road to a stream whenever you need a break
or feel like lunch or even for an overnite stop takes a lot of the stress
out of travelling. We paid for overnite RV parking only at Denali and
Dawson City. The rest were in Wal-Mart and Fred Meyer parking lots or
wherever we felt we had gone far enough for that day.

Motel accomodations seemed few and far between outside of the cities (and
they are few and even further between).

The furthest we got away from paved hi-ways was going up to Chicken and
Eagle on a very well maintained gravel road. The Holland America buses make
that a regular route. The only other unpaved sections we encountered were
short stretches where they were straightening out some curves.

We found that groceries were a bit higher as expected but restaurant meals
were atrociously priced. The RV facilities were well used and appreciated.
The convenience, comfort and savings realized by having the RV soon
justified the rental cost.

We live in Vancouver B.C. and drove our car up to Whitehorse. Our return
was via the Cassiar Hiway. The Alaska portion of the trip also included a 12
day Alaska Marine Highway System tour out of Skagway to visit the Southeast
Peninsula with stays at Juneau, Sitka and Ketchican. Total time for the
vacation was May 10 to July 15 with the RV rented from June 1 to July 6.
Total travel - car plus RV - 7067 miles.

Enjoyed it all and highly recommend an RV tour in Alaska!

Don

Don wrote:

Enjoyed it all and highly recommend an RV tour in Alaska!

What should one expect to pay, say by the week, for renting an RV in
Alaska?

Don wrote:

Enjoyed it all and highly recommend an RV tour in Alaska!

What should one expect to pay, say by the week, for renting an RV in
Alaska?

"Nile" wrote in message
...
Don wrote:

Enjoyed it all and highly recommend an RV tour in Alaska!

What should one expect to pay, say by the week, for renting an RV in
Alaska?


My figures are 2 years old. A call to reputable RV Rental offices will give
you a range of options available and todays rental rates. The vehicle size,
features, age, length of the rental contract and insurance coverage plus the
location of the rental office are all major factors in the final rate.

"Nile" wrote in message
...
Don wrote:

Enjoyed it all and highly recommend an RV tour in Alaska!

What should one expect to pay, say by the week, for renting an RV in
Alaska?


My figures are 2 years old. A call to reputable RV Rental offices will give
you a range of options available and todays rental rates. The vehicle size,
features, age, length of the rental contract and insurance coverage plus the
location of the rental office are all major factors in the final rate.

If you are interested in driving one-way up the Alcan, you may want to
consider the early-season discounts that some of the Anchorage-based
RV rental companies offer. Often they have new RVs that need to be
brought up from Outside for the summer season, and they offer
attractive rates for people willing to drive up from Montana or
Washington.

You'll see all types and manner of RVs on the Alcan and in Alaska. I
don't know that one is better than the other; it depends on how you
like to travel. Personally, I'd go for a smaller van-type
self-contained RV, or a pickup truck with a slide-in camper (although
these can be top heavy). I like mobility and being able to explore
small roads, as well as being able to camp wherever I want. A big RV
or trailer combo limits your options somewhat.

I've stayed in a few motels in the Yukon and Alaska, and they range
widely in quality. If you are used to deluxe hotels or motels, you are
not likely to find them in the north (even the "deluxe" hotels in
Anchorage aren't anything to write home about). If you want a basic,
clean room, you shouldn't have too many problems.

Don wrote:

Enjoyed it all and highly recommend an RV tour in Alaska!

What should one expect to pay, say by the week, for renting an RV in
Alaska?

If you are interested in driving one-way up the Alcan, you may want to
consider the early-season discounts that some of the Anchorage-based
RV rental companies offer. Often they have new RVs that need to be
brought up from Outside for the summer season, and they offer
attractive rates for people willing to drive up from Montana or
Washington.

You'll see all types and manner of RVs on the Alcan and in Alaska. I
don't know that one is better than the other; it depends on how you
like to travel. Personally, I'd go for a smaller van-type
self-contained RV, or a pickup truck with a slide-in camper (although
these can be top heavy). I like mobility and being able to explore
small roads, as well as being able to camp wherever I want. A big RV
or trailer combo limits your options somewhat.

I've stayed in a few motels in the Yukon and Alaska, and they range
widely in quality. If you are used to deluxe hotels or motels, you are
not likely to find them in the north (even the "deluxe" hotels in
Anchorage aren't anything to write home about). If you want a basic,
clean room, you shouldn't have too many problems.

Don wrote:

Enjoyed it all and highly recommend an RV tour in Alaska!

What should one expect to pay, say by the week, for renting an RV in
Alaska?