June 7, 2026 train journey Anchorage to Denali

We put our luggage in the hall just before 6 a.m. The luggage was trucked to Denali, not accompanying us on the train and was waiting in our room upon arrival at the hotel.

There were at least five trains passing through Anchorage during the night. The train whistles sound upon approaching a crossing, not just once but between two to eight times, alternating between long and short blares There were two crossings within hearing distance of the hotel. Between 11 p.m. and 4 a.m., there were at least four trains sounding their warning whistles. There were several trains yesterday during the afternoon and evening. The black engines had a broad horizontal yellow stripe with usually 10 or 12 matching railcars.

We opted to have breakfast on the train this morning but we enjoyed cups of coffee in our room. Mesh bags, like teabags, filled with ground coffee and cold water are added to the top of the coffee maker, press the ON button and you have a fresh cup of coffee in two minutes. While sipping the coffee another train announced its passing through the rail yard.

The 6 a.m. temperature was 10°C with a mostly cloudy sky, a slight north wind at 8 km per hour and humidity was 69%.

Both Holland America groups met in the hotel lobby at 7:45 a.m. We finally boarded the bus at 8:35 a.m. The train station is only a five minute downhill walk from the hotel, but the group was transferred by bus to the Alaska Railroad yard, about 300 metres from the actual station. The McKinley Explorer, an engine and three dome cars, awaited its passengers. The three dome cars carried the Princess Cruises logo. Holland America and Princess are part of the Carnival group.

The distance by road from Anchorage to Denali is 386 kilometres but with summer traffic and construction, it could take up to five hours to drive.

The train departed at 9:10 a.m. The two Holland America groups shared the dome car 7088, “Blackburn”, for the eight hour journey to Denali National Park. Our group of 36 is on the ten day land tour and the other group is on an eight day land tour having one less day in Denali and not overnighting in Whitehorse, Yukon. But flying into Whitehorse from Fairbanks then transferring to a bus for a two hour drive to Skagway, Alaska, where they will board a different Holland America ship to Vancouver.

The guide on the train was Peter who gave us commentary along the way, but also helped the serving staff of three. There were two dining room servers on the the lower deck and a bartender/barista/snack waitress on the upper dome level. The scenery was amazing. We travelled through boreal forest with occasional sightings of moose, bald eagles, trumpeter swans and several black bears.

During introductions, we were told that there was a separate open air car for people wanting to take pictures without the window glare. The dining room staff checked to see which passengers were interested in breakfast and chose groups of 16, the capacity of the dining room. We shared a table with John and Carol retirees from Florida. Three of us ordered the Rail Skillet Breakfast which included reindeer sausage and good coffee.

In places the train followed the gentle curve of the tracks snaking their way through the forest and meadows. The train passed through several small towns including Wasilla, the hometown of former vice presidential candidate, Sarah Palin. For the first few hours the highway ran parallel to the tracks, then the train followed a fast moving river. People living along the track east of where highway turns away depend on the regular train for supplies and can wave at it to stop.

We made a brief stop at Talkeetna. It’s forecast was a 20% chance of a morning shower and high temperature of 16°C. Denali was cloudy with a few sunny breaks and about 15°C and a gentle breeze. The stop here was to board passengers from a Princess Cruise line resort and others departed the train to go to the resort. Busses took the passengers on an hour long drive back to the resort.

The railroad runs along the Alaska Mountain range, which still had snow capped peaks.

There were many lakes along the route and fast flowing rivers that were crossed by bridges. The train stopped on sidings several times to let southbound trains pass. At Hurricane Creek, the train stopped for people to take pictures of the drop to the river bed. Kayla, the dome car server, mentioned that two weeks ago there were no leaves on the trees and in another two weeks the wild flowers will be blooming.

If you bought a 12 ounce souvenir mug, you could have unlimited tea or coffee for the journey. If you purchased a souvenir 16 ounce water bottle, you received unlimited, water, juices or soft drinks for the journey.

About an hour before the journey ended Zelzen, our tour director, brought each person an envelope with tomorrow’s schedule and our room cards for the next three nights in Denali National Park.

Peter alerted us to the highest point on the Alaska Railroad which was by a lake which was still half covered in ice. Mount Denali, looming 20,310 feet above sea level, was coming into view, but the peak was hidden by puffy white clouds. After becoming president Donald Trump issued an order to revert the name back to Mount McKinley.

The train coasted into the Denali National Park station where busses awaited to take us the 15 minute drive to the Holland America Denali Lodge. About 500 meters away was another Princess Cruises Lodge that we can explore too. The bus negotiated the narrow roads into the resort to take the passengers to their accommodation. We were in building “Y” which contained eight rustic one bedroom suites. Wi-Fi is available at the two service centres, Denali Square and the main lodge.

Our luggage was waiting in the bedroom when we arrived. We decided to walk the seven minutes to Denali Square and have dinner at Karstens Public House. The restaurant was half empty when we arrived. We were seated immediately. They stocked Alaska Alaska Ale which Larry had sampled in Anchorage. Since we did not have lunch, we decided to each order something. The portions were just the right size and the service was good.

We walked up to the main lodge after dinner. The gift shop had international stamps. We explored the independent shops across the highway. There are traffic lights at the lodge entrance with push buttons to activate the walk signs.

We found an ice cream store with about two dozen flavours and ordered one scoop of ice cream each. This was the most walking that we did all day.

Total steps 7,127