Alaska

Many visitors cruise northwards through Inside Passage to Glacier Bay, one of Alaska’s most stunning national parks where mountains, temperate rainforest and tidewater glaciers reach deep sheltered fjords.

The towns of Inside Passage offer fascinating cultural experiences – from the totem poles of Ketchikan to the Russian heritage of Sitka and the indigenous art and Gold Rush trails of Haines and Skagway.

Inland, Alaska boasts two of the USA’s most spectacular national parks, including the biggest Wrangell-St Elias, a vast wilderness of icefields and glaciers, and the highest national park Denali, where bears and wolves prowl beneath North America’s highest mountain.

The Gulf of Alaska has countless mesmerising fjords and waters brimming with whales, orcas and seals. Prince William Sound and the Kenai Peninsula are two of the best areas to explore, while nearby Katmai National Park offers some of the best views of brown bears in North America, as they gather on waterfalls to catch salmon.
Alaska’s biggest city, Anchorage, has some fascinating museums on First Nations cultures, surrounded by spectacular glacial landscapes that can be explored on hiking and cycling trails.

Fairbanks is one of the most northerly large cities in the world, a top destination to experience the Midnight Sun in summer and the Northern Lights the rest of the year.