Motorhoming in Alaska
It’s time to begin the second leg of our adventure. A & M RV Center picks us up from the Anchorage Airport and we proceed to their facility. We’re renting a 22 foot Class B Motorhome for the next two weeks. We selected A & M based on price, floor plan of motorhomes available, and quality of service when we contacted various companies.
We compared potential expense of travelling by motorhome vs. renting a car combined with motel stays. Motorhome rental exceeds car rental rates, but car rental in Anchorage does tend to be expensive so there's less of a differential than may be the case in other areas in the United States. Travelling by motorhome gives us the flexibility to decide how long to stay in any area, allows us to cook for ourselves when we choose to, and eliminates motel costs. It’s likely that we’ll stay in campgrounds most nights, but in Alaska, unless a location is specifically posted with ‘no camping’ notices, motorhomes are welcome to park for the night. We’ll enjoy having our own little ‘home’, where we can settle in and not haul suitcases into motels each night, and in past travel, we’ve enjoyed the camaraderie that naturally occurs among campers.
Our package includes most items we’ll need, but we will need groceries and a few other items. We’re not coffee drinkers, so we leave the large coffeemaker with the rental company. This saves important cupboard space for us. We’ll need a converter for use in charging our cell phones and other electronics. We’ve forgotten to bring one, so we’ll spring for the $30 to pick one up. We enjoy testing local restaurants, but want basic groceries so we’re prepared for anywhere we might end up, which, in Alaska, could include some remote areas.
Picking up and stocking the motorhome takes longer than planned, but we’re on the road by 3:00, heading out of Anchorage. Our destination for tonight is Homer, about 4.5-5 hours drive time IF we drive straight through, which we won’t. It’s very convenient that the little bit of darkness we get each night doesn’t arrive til well after midnight. Then again, we're driving our bedroom, so if we get tired or simply choose to stop earlier, we can just stop. We're loving the flexibility.
Here’s our home for the next two weeks:
We compared potential expense of travelling by motorhome vs. renting a car combined with motel stays. Motorhome rental exceeds car rental rates, but car rental in Anchorage does tend to be expensive so there's less of a differential than may be the case in other areas in the United States. Travelling by motorhome gives us the flexibility to decide how long to stay in any area, allows us to cook for ourselves when we choose to, and eliminates motel costs. It’s likely that we’ll stay in campgrounds most nights, but in Alaska, unless a location is specifically posted with ‘no camping’ notices, motorhomes are welcome to park for the night. We’ll enjoy having our own little ‘home’, where we can settle in and not haul suitcases into motels each night, and in past travel, we’ve enjoyed the camaraderie that naturally occurs among campers.
Our package includes most items we’ll need, but we will need groceries and a few other items. We’re not coffee drinkers, so we leave the large coffeemaker with the rental company. This saves important cupboard space for us. We’ll need a converter for use in charging our cell phones and other electronics. We’ve forgotten to bring one, so we’ll spring for the $30 to pick one up. We enjoy testing local restaurants, but want basic groceries so we’re prepared for anywhere we might end up, which, in Alaska, could include some remote areas.
Picking up and stocking the motorhome takes longer than planned, but we’re on the road by 3:00, heading out of Anchorage. Our destination for tonight is Homer, about 4.5-5 hours drive time IF we drive straight through, which we won’t. It’s very convenient that the little bit of darkness we get each night doesn’t arrive til well after midnight. Then again, we're driving our bedroom, so if we get tired or simply choose to stop earlier, we can just stop. We're loving the flexibility.
Here’s our home for the next two weeks:
Our planned route will take us from Anchorage down to Homer, then to Kenai, Seward, Whittier and back through Anchorage to Talkeetna and Denali. From Denali we will go east on the Denali Highway (a misnomer in several ways) over to the Richardson Highway, then down to Valdez where we will pick up the ferry to Whittier and back to Anchorage
IF YOU RENT:
Company Name: A & M RV Center
2225 E. 5th Ave.,
Anchorage, AK 99501-2924
To book or for more information:
Web page: www.gorv.com
Phone: (907)-279-5508 or (800)-478-4678
Company Name: A & M RV Center
2225 E. 5th Ave.,
Anchorage, AK 99501-2924
To book or for more information:
Web page: www.gorv.com
Phone: (907)-279-5508 or (800)-478-4678