Wednesday, March 4, 2026

Welcome to Alaska! Fly directly into Anchorage to start your adventures – take a taxi/uber/lyft to the Copper Whale Inn, one of our favorite accommodations. This boutique-style hotel is located right in downtown Anchorage, within walking distance of the Iditarod Starting Line! You will also have an easy walk to many of our favorite shops and eateries, as well as the Tony Knowles Coastal Trail and Fur Rendezvous Winter Festival.

Today Includes: Arrival into Anchorage, Overnight Anchorage

Thursday, March 5, 2026

Enjoy a welcome lunch to meet your fellow travelers and review your itinerary together before we begin our adventures in Anchorage! Today we will visit the Charlotte Jensen Native Arts Market and tonight, join us for the 2026 Musher’s Gala with admission to the meet & greet programming prior to dinner.

Today Includes: Fur Rondevous Winter Carnival signature events, Musher Meet & Greet, 2026 Mushers Gala, Overnight Anchorage (B, L, D)

Friday, March 6, 2026

Your professional Salmon Berry tour guide will pick you up and drive you south along the Turnagain Arm, looking for sheep, mountain goats, moose, eagles, and more. Included today is the Mt. Alyeska aerial tramway ride, lunch in Girdwood and a complete tour through the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center.

Today Includes: Today Includes: Alyeska Tramway, lunch at Girdwood Brewing Company, Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center, Overnight Anchorage (B, L)

Saturday, March 7, 2026

Today is the start of the 2026 Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race! You will be on your own to walk around downtown today to witness the ceremonial start on 4th Avenue. Marvel at the organized chaos, participate in the Running with the Reindeer or stop by our office for hot chocolate and some authentic Alaskan hospitality!

Today Includes: Ceremonial Start of the 2026 Iditarod, Overnight Anchorage (B)

Sunday, March 8, 2026

Now the real competition begins… Head north with Salmon Berry Tours today to the Official Start of the 2026 Iditarod! Your guides will serve fresh baked scones and hot chocolate on the way, telling stories of the race, information/details about the race rules and giving you Alaskan insight into the Last Great Race, a race of both survival and strategy. Once you arrive at Willow Lake, visit the Salmon Berry Tours tent for good company, hot food served all day, race information and friendly faces. Our private tents are there just for our group – warm up with some hula hooping or ask a guide to take you out snowshoes to get a look further down the race trail. Once all the mushers have gotten on their way, we head back into Anchorage after an exciting day on Willow Lake.

Today Includes: Official Start of the 2026 Iditarod at Willow Lake, Overnight Talkeetna (B, 2nd B, L, D)

Monday, March 9, 2026

Dog Sledding is Alaska’s official sport – we will meet the canine athletes of Dallas’s professional racing team at the kennel for a dog sledding tour! Dallas is the only six-time Iditarod champion of the race so you are sure to learn from his team while he is out on the trail. There will be a gear demonstration, Q&A with a genuine dog musher, a meet & greet with Iditarod racing dogs, and a chance to ride the runners of a dog sled behind the best team in Alaska! You will learn what it takes to train a team and compete in the “Last Great Race” from a professional racing kennel! This evening join your local guide for dinner & an aurora presentation on the Alaska sky.

Today Includes: Dallas Seavey Racing Iditarod Dog Sledding Program, Dinner & Aurora Presentation, Overnight Talkeetna. (B, L, D)

Tuesday, March 10, 2026

Join us for an adventure north to the Golden Heart City of Fairbanks via the iconic railroad journey from Talkeetna to Fairbanks. With views of Denali and the Alaska Range en route, this is a wonderfully scenic rail trip in the heart of Alaska’s interior! Lunch & Dinner vouchers will be provided on the train for you to enjoy meals in their dining car. By the time we reach Fairbanks, you will hopefully have picked a musher to cheer on! Your local guide will pick you up in Fairbanks and take you out aurora viewing this evening to escape the city lights. Plan to return to your hotel at 2am the following morning.

Today Includes: Aurora Winter Train to Fairbanks, Aurora Viewing, Overnight Fairbanks (B, L, D)

Wednesday, March 11, 2026

Visit the 2026 BP World Championship Ice Art on display at Ice Park. Your local guide in Fairbanks will pick you up from your hotel to bring you out to the Ice Park to enjoy an ice carving demonstration, a tour through the ice carvings, time on your own at the Ice Park, and complimentary warm beverages from your local guide. We go to the ice park in the evening so we can enjoy the beauty of the park with colorful lights accenting the details of the ice the artist worked tirelessly to create. The activities continue this evening as you set out with your local Fairbanks guide to a remote Aurora viewing location to marvel at the beauty of the aurora borealis. The northern lights can be seen from the coziness of the indoors or step outside to search for the aurora to photograph!

Today Includes: Evening Tour to the 2026 BP World Championships of Ice Art, Aurora Viewing Tour, Overnight Fairbanks (B, D)

Thursday, March 12, 2026

Farewell from Alaska today! Take the hotel courtesy shuttle to the Fairbanks International Airport in time for your departure flight home. Thank you for visiting the Alaska with us at Salmon Berry Tours – we hope you enjoyed the 2026 Iditarod and aurora viewing in Interior Alaska!

Today Includes: Hotel Shuttle to the Airport (B)