Alaska Family Adventure Ideas
Alaska means nature. So appropriately enough, the state that's twice the size of Texas offers perfect opportunities to have an unrivaled family adventure vacation. Kayaking, fishing, hiking, glacier viewing, and dog sledding are just a few examples of the many breathtaking activities available for a family adventure. If you're looking for a unique and nature-filled family adventure vacation, Alaska just may be the ticket. No matter how hectic life gets in the contiguous 48 states, life in Alaska remains the world of the great outdoors. Alaska is still very much America's final frontier.
There are many different family adventure vacation opportunities in Alaska. Here are just a few:
Bear Family Adventure
In most places, bears are considered an endangered species. In Alaska, they're everywhere. Bus tours and boat rips allow you to get really close to grizzlies, black bears and polar bears.
Family Dog Sledding
It's hard to get a more thrilling family vacation adventure than dog sledding, or mushing as it's officially called. Though sledding is more common in the winter when Alaska is covered in snow, helicopter excursions to glaciers are available in the summer. You and your family can partake in a mode of transport that is millenniums old.
There are many companies and guides that offer dog sledding family vacation packages. Well-experienced sledders provide everything including appropriate clothing for what is sure to be an amazing family adventure.
Alaska Kayaking Adventure
Alaska has the country's longest coastline and a kayaking family adventure is the perfect way to explore its coves and islands. Popular destinations include South Central Alaska's Prince William Sound, Kachemak Bay, and Resurrection Bay. The Inside Passage and Kenai Fjords National Park are popular too.
A Northern Lights Vacation
A winter family adventure vacation could include a sighting of the northern lights, or the aurora borealis, as the scientists say. The phenomenon is a great multicolored ribbon of light created by distant stars and novas.
It is a sight unlike any other in the world, and thousands of family adventure tourists make the pilgrimage to see the lights every year.
Family Glacier Adventure
Alaska has the most majestic glaciers in the world. On your vacation, you and your family can visit them by car, by boat or by air. In some cases you can even walk on the glaciers. Glacier viewing in Alaska is an experience that can't be matched anywhere.
Family Fishing Vacation
Fishing in Alaska is an angler's dream. Altogether the state has 21 recognized species of sport fish in its streams, lakes and oceans.
A fishing adventure can be as simple as buying a license and heading for a stream or lake - or it can be a daylong boat charter in Prince William Sound. You and your family can even fly to remote backcountry where nature remains untouched by humans - the truest family vacation adventure of all.
About the Author
Alex Russel is a freelance writer living in Brooklyn, NY. Lucky enough to grow up in Europe with family all over the world, he has been a consummate traveler his whole life. Since graduating from Syracuse University he has worked at many different media companies in fields as diverse as film, TV, advertising, and journalism. He holds a dual bachelor's degree in English and History.
