As many of you know or have seen through Instagram, MJ and I have been traveling the world this summer! Our first adventure was Alaska. MJ’s parents took us and my sister in law’s family on an Alaskan cruise, and it was incredible.

Yeah, let’s start there. Incredible. From the moment MJ’s mom told us about the trip, we both have been so excited! During the trip, we saw so many different things: glaciers, otters, bald eagles, whales (in the far distance), mountains, beautiful clear blue waters, goats, etc. The best part of the trip for me was how relaxing and laid back the entire cruise was. I wore yoga pants, athletic wear, and hoodies the entire time! DREAM. (I did have to wear a dress, but it was worth the meal that I got in return!)

Being the Type A planner that I am though, I needed to know everything there was to do, pack, and eat before we left for Alaska. And I’m pretty proud to say, we had everything we needed and then some! Along with pictures, I’m going to include my packing list, must need items, and everything in between, so if you are going to Alaska anytime soon, I hope this will be a helpful guide!

To give you an idea of what/how much we were bringing on the plane, MJ and I both only had one personal item and one carry on suitcase. We didn’t check any bags! It can be done!! Also, MJ and I both had to bring heavy, winter jackets for our one excursion, and MJ had to bring a suit jacket for the fancy dinner (which also means fancy shoes)! We made it work!

Packing List (this also depends on the escurions you decide to do as well):

Clothes

• Gloves
• Baseball Cap
• Beanie
• Scarf
• Bathing Suit
• Belt
• Thick Socks (this is important)

Outerwear

• Rain Coat
• Winter Coat
• Hoodie
• Vest

Layers

• Sweater
• Cardigan
• Flannel
• Tshirts (Short and Long)
• Shorts (Gym and Jean)
• Lined Athletic Pants
• Jeans

Shoes

• Nude Heels
• Sneakers
• Hiking Boots (I didn’t end up bringing these, but they probably wouldn’t have fit, if I tried!)
• Nice Shoes (MJ)

Fancy Outfits

• 2 Dresses
• Khakis
• Button Down
• Blazer

Extra Things

• Backpack (I bought MJ this backpack before we left for the cruise and it was perfect for both Alaska and our trip to Europe! It’s a great size for hiking and walking around, and holds exactly what you need!)
• Water bottles (Bring a reusable water bottle! Especially if you decide to hike like we did!)
• Surge Protector
• Binoculars (This is a MUST! You are truly missing out if you don’t bring these!)
• Sun Glasses
• Alarm Clock (The time changes often and we found out that our phones we not reliable!)
• Motion Sickness Pills (YES. YES. YES. You need this.)
• Tums
• Ibuprofen
• Sunscreen (If you forget sunscreen, you will get burnt!)
• Bug Repellent (The bugs in Alaska are like small animals. You will be thankful that you brought this!)
• Games to play on the cruise (You will have a lot of down time, and we were really glad everyone brought games to play!)

Camera Equipment

• One Camera Body
• 2 lenses (50mm and 70-200mm)
• Camera Batteries
• Memory Cards

Other Electronics

• Laptop
• Laptop Charger
• Phone Charger
• Portable Charger (x2)
• Switch
• Headphones (x2)

Skagway, Alaska

Things to Do:

• Red Onion Saloon (tour)
• Brewing Company

We did an excusion at this port and it was so cool! We flew in a helicopter onto a glacier! We were only on the glacier for 45 minutes, but it was definitely pretty amazing!

Little Miss Ivy was a CHAMP. She slept most of the excursion! For being less than a year old, she was such a trooper!

Glacier Ice Melted! MJ enjoyed it!

Juneau, Alaska

• Goldbelt Mount Rogers Beltway
• Gold Mine (AJ Mine)- Gold Creek
• Alaskan Brewing Company (Shuttle from depot)
• Eat: Tracy’s Crab Shack, Red Dog Saloon

We started our day early in Juneau, and I highly recommend doing the same, especially if you want to go on the Goldbelt Mount Rogers Beltway. There was no line that early in the morning, and if we wanted to go on it again later in the day, we could. You only get charged once!

We hiked a lot because I wanted to see more and more, but since we didn’t prepare to hike, we didn’t make it to the top! Still very impressed with the amount we hiked during our trip to Alaska in general!

After that, we went down to the main city because there was a 4th of July parade! We also stopped into the Red Dog Saloon- definitely recommend stopping in there just to look around!

We didn’t get to the Alaskan Brewing Company, but I really wish we would have! I loved one of the beers I had called the Husky IPA! Highly recommend making time for that!

Ketchikan, Alaska

• Deer Mountain Trail (Ask taxi driver for business card!) or Rainbird Trail (easier)
• Creek Street (get gifts here)
• Totem Poles
• Skybridge
• Eat: The Alaska Fish House (Crispy Salmon Tacos or Fish n Chips)

Mind you, I wrote those bullet points before the trip…

If you haven’t gotten the gist, MJ and I were focusing on spending as little money as possible while in Alaska because we had Italy and Ireland right after! So we ended up hiking way more than we planned, and somehow we ended up hiking Deer Mountain Trail… They were not lying when they said it was a hard hike and to take a taxi.

The walk to the hike was a hike itself. It was all uphill, and when we got there it was the same way! We didn’t pack water or snacks, which was a huge mistake!! Once we got to the mid section (3 miles up), it was an amazing view!

Before the hike, we got coffee at this awesome coffee shop (it was mermaid themed)! (The cruise’s coffee was the worst, so having good coffee was essential!) After coffee, we went down Creek Street, and it was so cute! Purchase your gifts here! Very cute area, but make sure you find something to do after, it’s not a long street! (That’s where the hike comes in.)

After the hike, we went to the Lumberjack show, and I didn’t even consider doing this, but I actually liked it a lot! Very entertaining!

Vancouver, Canada

I don’t have any recommendations for this location because we were only here for a day! The boat dropped us off, we went to the hotel, and then explored! This suspension bridge/park in Vancouver is definitely worth your time though! SO cool! There is also this huge park in Vancouver that you can visit.

(As you will notice, I’m obsessed with my niece, Ivy! She is the cutest thing!)