Alaska is roughly six times the size of the UK, and driving it yourself means staring at the road instead of the scenery. The Alaska Railroad flips that equation: 805km of track where the journey is the point, served by glass-domed carriages, outdoor viewing platforms and — mercifully — no Wi-Fi.
The railway marked its centenary in 2023, though its roots go back to 1903, when the Alaska Central Railway started work in Seward. That town is still a rail hub, and it has just opened a brand-new 41,500-square-foot terminal, part of a $137 million upgrade that replaces a facility dating from 1966. The message is clear: this railway isn't a heritage curio, it's a working system with serious investment behind it.
The headline route for most visitors is the Coastal Classic, a four-hour run from Anchorage to Seward. It skirts Turnagain Arm, where whales sometimes show up offshore, before pushing into the green backcountry of the Kenai Peninsula. Book GoldStar Service and you get 360-degree views through a glass ceiling plus open-air platforms — the closest thing to a moving national park balcony.
The flagship, though, is the Denali Star: a 12-hour haul from Anchorage north to Fairbanks, stopping at Denali National Park and Preserve. On a clear day you get the big prize — a view of Denali, North America's tallest peak — and the park's six million acres are reason enough to hop off for a few days.
For something genuinely remote, look at Hurricane Turn, one of the last true flagstop trains in the United States. Running Talkeetna to Hurricane (with Anchorage and Wasilla stops added between October and May), it will halt anywhere along the line if a passenger asks. Hikers and off-grid residents use it as a lifeline; travellers can book it for a taste of rail travel at its most野生 — you literally wave the train down.
Onboard is deliberately low-key: spacious seating, a dining car cooking with local produce, and Alaska-brewed ales and Anchorage ciders on tap — a small pleasure if you're used to the designated-driver reality of a road trip. Crew commentary fills in the natural history and local colour along the way.
Why bother? Because the railroad solves Alaska's central problem — distance — without asking you to navigate, drive fatigue-inducing highways or miss the view. It links cities, Denali and cruise ports, works year-round, and doubles as both local transit and a slow-travel sightseeing experience. If you're cruising the Inside Passage, a rail segment slots neatly onto either end; if you're a hiker, Hurricane Turn drops you into country you'd otherwise need a floatplane to reach.