Skagway Travel Guide

This is the BIG plane! Check out this Skagway Travel Guide if you’re afraid of flying.

Skagway is more than just a cruise ship destination, but it’s amazing how few people know how to get in and out of town. Many think that Skagway is not accessible by road, like Juneau, but you can actually drive all the way from Skagway to Key West if you wanna get crazy. If you ever want to travel to Skagway independently, you’re going to love our Skagway Travel Guide!

Skagway is remote but surprisingly accessible

Skagway is located at the northern terminus of the Upper Lynn Canal. This is important because it makes Skagway the “Gateway to the Klondike.” Our deep ports and well-maintained highway allow goods to be shipped back and forth from the Canadian interior. This constant supply of Tim Bits and poutine makes everyone happy, even if it does make your pants fit a little tighter.

Skagway Travel Guide – ocean travel

You can catch a boat in Juneau and travel to Alaska at least a few days a week throughout the year. When they aren’t broken down, the Alaska Marine Highway operates multiple ferries that can carry passengers and cars. These boats are far from luxury travel, but they do have a galley with some interesting food and an empty room where there used to be a bar. It takes about 8 and a half hours to get from Juneau to Skagway with a stop in Haines, so be sure to bring your own beer.

In the summer, the Fjordlands Express also takes passengers to and from Juneau, but you cannot bring your car unless it can fit in your pocket. This option is more expensive but also more intimate and they often see whales and sea lions on the trip. It’s also only 3 hours and you don’t have to stop in Haines, so they could charge even more money and it would still be the best option.

Skagway Travel Guide – air travel

Flying back and forth to Juneau by plane only takes 45 minutes and even less time if you have a tailwind. It costs more than the Alaska Marine Highway but about the same price as the Fjordlands Express. At the time of this writing, there is only one commercial carrier flying into Skagway, Alaska Seaplanes. They are a great company and the flights are nice unless it’s really windy and you wonder whether you’re going to die for the entire 45 minutes.

Alaska Seaplanes mostly uses 9 passenger caravans, but they have a small plane they use sometimes too. When you first fly on the smaller plane, you think someone is playing a joke on your on one of those candid camera shows, but then you take off and for the first time in your life truly understand fear.

Skagway Travel Guide – car travel

You can drive in and out of Skagway with your car on the South Klondike Highway, but it does require going through Canadian customs. If you have a criminal record of any sort, you need to check with Canadian customs to make sure they will let you into their country otherwise you’re not going to get very far. Traveling by automobile has a lot of advantages. You can take things at your own pace and don’t have to worry about dying in a tiny plane or the ferry being canceled.

We hope you enjoyed this informative Skagway Travel Guide from your friends at M&M Tours. No matter how you get here, we can’t wait to meet you, especially if you have a cute dog.