Self-Launched Best of Yukon & Alaska: Anchorage Loop

Land at Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport and take the cheap public bus (People Mover route 7 or 40, ~£1.80) into downtown rather than a £20 taxi. Check into a downtown hostel or budget motel near 4th Avenue. Spend the afternoon walking the Tony Knowles Coastal Trail (free, moose sightings likely) and stock up on groceries at Fred Meyer or Carrs for the road days ahead. Get a US eSIM or prepaid SIM (~£20) — you'll need data for park shuttles and ferry bookings.

🚌People Mover bus from airport to downtown (~£1.80)

🛏Downtown Anchorage hostel dorm or budget motel (~£30-45)

• →Tony Knowles Coastal Trail walk
• →Grocery stock-up
• →US SIM/eSIM purchase

Two options: the Alaska Railroad Denali Star (Anchorage to Denali, ~8 hrs, from around £130 booked direct on alaskarailroad.com) which is spectacular but pricey, or a shared shuttle/coach on the Park Connection or a rideshare with other travellers you meet in the hostel (~£55-70). Either way you arrive early evening at the Denali park entrance. Book a bunkhouse or the Riley Creek Mercantile campground area / hostel dorms near the park gate (Glitter Gulch has budget lodges). Optional splurge: a one-hour glacier flightseeing trip (~£280) — book via a local operator in Talkeetna or at the park entrance if weather allows.

🚌Alaska Railroad Denali Star or shared shuttle (~£55-130)

🛏Denali park entrance hostel/cabin (~£35-55)

• →Scenic rail/shuttle transfer
• →Optional glacier flightseeing

Book the park-owned Transit Bus (formerly the shuttle system) on recreation.gov up to 60 days ahead — the East Fork or Eielson Visitor Center route costs roughly £25-35 return for a full day into the park, with wildlife stops for grizzlies, caribou, Dall sheep and possibly Denali itself on a clear day. Pack lunch and water. This replaces the operator's included scenic loop shuttle exactly, at public-park prices.

🚌Denali Park Transit Bus (recreation.gov, ~£30)

🛏Denali park entrance hostel/cabin (~£35-55)

• →Full-day Denali transit bus to Eielson Visitor Center
• →Wildlife watching
• →Ranger-led walk at Eielson

Continue north on the Alaska Railroad Denali Star to Fairbanks (~4 hrs, from ~£75) or a shared shuttle (~£40). In Fairbanks, check into a hostel or budget motel near downtown. In the afternoon, walk to the Morris Thompson Cultural Center and Pioneer Park (free entry to the park). Optional: the Riverboat Discovery or Sternwheeler Chena River cruise (~£50-65) which was an optional add-on on the tour — book directly with the operator on the day.

🚌Alaska Railroad or shuttle Denali to Fairbanks (~£40-75)

🛏Fairbanks budget motel or hostel (~£40-55)

• →Morris Thompson Cultural Center
• →Pioneer Park
• →Optional Chena River sternwheeler cruise

This is the trickiest leg without a tour. There's no public bus, so the practical options are (a) hire a car in Fairbanks one-way and drive the Top of the World Highway via Chicken and the Little Gold Creek border crossing (~£120-160/day plus one-way fee, split between travellers), or (b) fly Fairbanks–Dawson City with a small regional carrier such as Air North via a connection (~£200-280). Driving is far better value if you can share. Stop at the Alaska Highway/Top of the World visitor points along the way. Border crossing requires your passport and a Canadian eTA if flying (Canadians and US citizens exempt). Arrive Dawson City in the evening — a genuinely atmospheric gold-rush town of dirt streets and wooden boardwalks.

🚌Rental car split / regional flight (~£100-280)

🛏Dawson City hostel or guesthouse (~£35-55)

• →Top of the World Highway drive
• →Chicken, Alaska stop
• →Little Gold Creek border crossing

Do it yourself: the Dawson City Museum entry is about £7, the Jack London Cabin and Robert Service Cabin are small local entry fees (~£4-6 each), and Diamond Tooth Gertie's Gambling Hall charges a modest entry (~£8) with its can-can shows at night. Gold panning can be done with a self-guided pan at Claim 33 or a local creek tour (~£25). Walk the boardwalks, see the SS Keno sternwheeler, and take the free ferry across the Yukon River to the old townsite.

🚌Walking / local shuttle

🛏Dawson City hostel or guesthouse (~£35-55)

• →Dawson City Museum
• →Jack London & Robert Service cabins
• →Diamond Tooth Gertie's evening show
• →Self-guided gold panning

Hire a car for the day (or join a shared day tour from Dawson, ~£90-120) and drive the Dempster Highway ~1.5-2 hrs to Tombstone Territorial Park — the granite spires are the highlight of the whole Yukon. Hike the Goldensides trail (about 2 hrs return, easy-moderate) or the longer Grizzly Lake trail if you're fit. Back in Dawson, drive or walk up Midnight Dome for the classic view over the confluence of the Yukon and Klondike rivers at sunset. Bring bear spray and food — there's nothing on the highway.

🚌Rental car day (~£50 split) or shared tour (~£100)

🛏Dawson City hostel or guesthouse (~£35-55)

• →Dempster Highway drive
• →Goldensides hike in Tombstone Territorial Park
• →Midnight Dome sunset viewpoint

The Klondike Highway south to Whitehorse is served by the Husky Bus / Klondike Highway shuttle (~£70-85, 6-7 hrs) — book ahead, it runs a few times weekly in summer. Stop-offs at Five Finger Rapids (short free trail) and, if you're driving, Miles Canyon just outside Whitehorse. Arrive Whitehorse, check into a hostel or the affordable downtown motels, and visit the SS Klondike sternwheeler (free) and the MacBride Museum (~£10).

🚌Klondike Highway shuttle bus (~£75)

🛏Whitehorse hostel or budget motel (~£35-55)

• →Five Finger Rapids viewpoint
• →SS Klondike sternwheeler
• →MacBride Museum

Take the White Pass & Yukon Route railway's excursion train from Whitehorse to Carcross / Fraser and onward, or the more practical option: the scheduled bus/shuttle between Whitehorse and Skagway (~£60-75, 3.5 hrs) which stops at Emerald Lake and the Carcross Desert. The WHP&R narrow-gauge summit excursion from Skagway (~£120) is the classic rail experience — book direct on wpyr.com. Skagway itself is a walkable national historical park town with free ranger walks. Note this crosses back into the US, so bring your passport.

🚌Whitehorse–Skagway shuttle (~£70) + optional rail excursion (~£120)

🛏Skagway hostel or budget lodge (~£45-65)

• →Emerald Lake & Carcross Desert stops
• →White Pass & Yukon Route railway
• →Skagway historic district walk

Shuttle back over the White Pass to Whitehorse (~£70) then onward to Haines Junction (~1.5 hrs, ~£30 on the same or a connecting service, or hitch with other travellers — a well-used route). Base yourself in a guesthouse or motel in Haines Junction. In the afternoon, self-hike the easy Auriol Trail or the short walk at the Kluane National Park visitor centre (free) with its excellent glacier exhibits.

🚌Shuttle buses (~£100 total)

🛏Haines Junction guesthouse/motel (~£40-60)

• →Kluane National Park visitor centre
• →Auriol Trail or Sheep Creek Trail hike

Morning: hike in Kluane — the King's Throne trail (3-4 hrs, moderate) gives huge views over Kathleen Lake, or take a bush plane glacier flight from Haines Junction (~£250, optional). Then cross back into Alaska via the Haines Highway/Alaska Highway and continue to Tok (~4-5 hrs drive). Without a car, this leg realistically needs a hired vehicle or a rideshare arranged in Whitehorse; the Alaska Direct / Interior Alaska Bus Line services cover the Alaska Highway corridor on limited days (~£55-70). Stop at Sheep Mountain Visitor Center for Dall sheep and Soldier Summit viewpoint en route.

🚌Alaska Highway coach or rental car (~£60-100)

🛏Tok budget motel (~£45-60)

• →King's Throne hike or Kathleen Lake walk
• →Sheep Mountain Visitor Center
• →Soldier Summit viewpoint

Drive the Glenn and Richardson Highways to Valdez (~5 hrs) with stops at the Wrangell-St. Elias National Park visitor centre in Copper Center (free) and the Trans-Alaska Pipeline viewpoint at Thompson Pass. This is one of the great road-trip drives in North America, with Worthington Glacier right by the road. There's no meaningful public transport on this stretch so a rental car (or a shared ride arranged in Tok/Fairbanks) is essential — budget one-way/split costs. Valdez is a small harbour town; budget lodgings are limited so book early.

🚌Rental car or shared ride (~£60 split)

🛏Valdez budget motel/hostel (~£50-70)

• →Wrangell-St. Elias visitor centre
• →Worthington Glacier
• →Thompson Pass & pipeline viewpoint

This is the day the guided tour charges for as an included ferry crossing; you can book the same thing direct on the Alaska Marine Highway (dot.alaska.gov/amhs). The Valdez–Seward or Valdez–Whittier sailing runs weekly in summer with a walk-on fare of roughly £60-80 (plus a bus connection from Whittier to Seward, ~£40 on the Park Connection). Book weeks ahead — sailings are infrequent. Bring layers: Prince William Sound is cold and often showery but the glacier and waterfall scenery from the deck is superb. Arrive Seward in the evening.

🚌Alaska Marine Highway ferry (~£70) + Whittier–Seward bus (~£40)

🛏Seward hostel or budget motel (~£45-65)

• →Prince William Sound ferry crossing
• →Glacier & wildlife spotting from deck

Book a Kenai Fjords National Park wildlife cruise direct with one of the Seward operators (Major Marine, Kenai Fjords Tours) — a 6-hour tour is around £130-160 and delivers glaciers, puffins, sea otters and often orcas and humpbacks. Alternatively hike to Exit Glacier (free, 1-2 hrs) and visit the Alaska SeaLife Center (~£20). Late afternoon, take the Park Connection bus or Alaska Railroad back to Anchorage (~£40-65, 2.5-4 hrs). Final night in Anchorage — dinner on 4th Avenue.

🚌Park Connection bus / Alaska Railroad Seward–Anchorage (~£40-65)

🛏Downtown Anchorage hostel or budget motel (~£30-45)

• →Kenai Fjords wildlife cruise or Exit Glacier hike
• →Alaska SeaLife Center
• →Anchorage dinner

Free morning — the Anchorage Museum (~£12) or a last walk along Ship Creek. Take the People Mover bus back to Ted Stevens International Airport (~£1.80) for your flight home. If you flew into Canada at any point, remember your US entry was via ESTA — check remaining validity if you plan to return soon.

🚌People Mover bus to airport (~£1.80)

🛏None (departure day)

• →Anchorage Museum (optional)
• →Ship Creek walk
• →Airport transfer