Denali National Park
Denali National Park
4.5
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This park, located 50 miles south of Denali National Park, offers hiking opportunities.
Meets animal welfare guidelines
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- KenLoveland, Colorado1,424 contributionsWish We Could Have Seen MoreDenali is huge - bigger than New Jersey, Hawaii, and Connecticut. There's only one road, of which more than half has been and will be closed for years. There's a good reason for the closure; google "Pretty Rocks Landslide". Most of the open section can only be travelled by bus. There's a good reason for that, too; google "overpopulation". Understanding the reason Denali's one road is so restricted didn't keep it from being frustrating that we only got to see a tiny fraction of this wild and wonderful place. There are other ways you can and should experience the park, but my group included an octogenarian whose spirit far exceeds her physical capabilities.Visited July 2023Travelled with familyWritten 7 January 2024
- Marie WPendleton, South Carolina116 contributionsAnother National Park Off Our List and Worth VisitingDenali was pretty much hidden under clouds but there are plenty of views in the park to make it worth the trip. I just wish we had had more time to do other things. You can visit the kennels were the sled dogs are kept and I think there are several other tours that you can take. The park is huge and you can only see a fraction from the roads but if you ever get a chance to go, I would recommend it.Visited May 2024Travelled as a coupleWritten 3 June 2024
- jerrys01Bel Air, Maryland637 contributionsBeautiful views, but so much rainRain, and more rain. The park is certainly beautiful, but the views are somewhat redundant. During our trip we didn't see any moose or bears. The best part of our tour was provided by a young native American guide who provided a little history of his people. Not only was his talk educational, but it was also very funny.Visited June 2024Travelled as a coupleWritten 3 July 2024
- Carol58aBlacktown, Australia700 contributionsThe fantastic Denali National Park - just simply amazing!We had a wonderful tour of Denali National Park in the park bus - an old school bus. Our driver was wonderful and very informative. He would slow down and stop if possible for some great photos, including seeing a mother & child Moose in a turnoff area. He pulled into the area and got us fairly close to them. Such an amazing sight. We had great views of Denali/Mt McKinley and he told us that it is rare to get such clear views of the top of Denali. You must take the time to go on one of the bus trips into the national park, it is well worth it.Visited May 2024Travelled as a coupleWritten 9 July 2024
- DutchTXThe Woodlands, Texas766 contributionsA must do NP, but rugged.Denali NP is worth 2+ days of your time. Great hikes, close to the visitor center varying from easy to hard (e.g. Mt Healy Overlook Trail). Or take the "cheap" bus ($33 pp) to Eastfork point (mile marker 43); the bus stops when they see wildlife and our driver did some great narration. You can also take the "expensive" bus ($144 pp), however you get almost the same. Try to get away from the visitor center, it's way too busy; also be there before 9 AM or after 4 PM, then the big crowded buses are not there.Visited July 2024Travelled as a coupleWritten 18 July 2024
- Miketrain732Lakewood, New Jersey22 contributionsNice experienceWe chose the green bus ride because our research told us that although this is not officially a tour, the drivers end up providing all the info you might want and they also stop for wildlife viewing. so it just made sense to do it the cheaper way for the same results. The park is beautiful although it maybe doesn't have that "pop out your eyes" spots like some other national parks. It does make up for it in the grandness and vastness of the park, surrounded by snow covered beautiful mountains. Tina, our driver, did provide us all the info and made plenty of wildlife stops. we only saw the big ones from a distance (grizzlies, moose, caribou) but they were still thrilling to observe, especially a grizzly mom with 2 cubs. We also saw porcupine right at the side of the road, golden eagle soaring above us, a family of ptarmigan & great horned owl as well right near us.Visited August 2024Travelled with familyWritten 30 August 2024
- jmch491Washington DC, District of Columbia117 contributionsWowThe National Park Service really outdid themselves with this venue. The Visitor Center had a great exhibit about the wildlife and plants in the park, and the staff are amazingly helpful. The short trails around the visitor center are well maintained and easy to walk. Plus, it is co-located with the train station, so you've got just the right amount of time to explore.Visited September 2024Travelled as a coupleWritten 8 September 2024
- Roving0775841237128 contributionsDenali National Park- Visited in Summer 2024Denali National Park: Visitors are allowed to drive time milepost 15 inside Denali National Park, after miles post 15 only park tour buses and permitted vehicles are permitted. Also, after milepost 15 it is unpaved. Also, if you are planning to book a bus tour, please book it in advance, stay informed till you visit the park. Park conditions can suddenly change and that may affect your plan. We traveled in July 2024 and did all the tour booking and hotel booking; however, when we reached Denali National Park, we realized the Park was closed due to fire activities and that forced us to change our plan, we ended up extending our stay. We got a bit lucky this time as the park returned to normal the next day. Thank you! travel-learn-repeat.blogspotVisited July 2024Travelled with familyWritten 12 September 2024
- Pana-X8Raleigh, North Carolina133 contributionsGreat scenery and hiking in this vast parkWhile the easily accessible area (once you're there, anyway) is a small fraction of the park, there is much to see and do. Great hiking, beautiful scenery, and charming, hard-working sled dogs. With more time and money, you can investigate other parts of the park by plane or by longer hikes with camping. You may not see the Denali peak, which generally is in the clouds, but no matter.Visited September 2024Travelled as a coupleWritten 24 September 2024
- egsladePortsmouth, New Hampshire122 contributionsBeautiful, short hikes are a great way to see the park!We were visiting the Denali Park area for two nights, staying at the Denali Bluffs, which was just a five minute drive from the entrance to the park. We arrived early afternoon after driving from Anchorage (a scenic 3.5 or 4 hour drive) and toured the visitor center and watched one of the movies showing how the park changes through the seasons. When you’re in the visiter center, don’t miss the screen with the live view of Denali from the park (Unfortunately Mt. Denali is frequently covered due to weather, but we were able to catch the view at a look out about nine miles in the park road on our last day). We also did the two mile Horseshoe Lake walk (an easy and beautiful hike with a moose viewing) that leaves from right near the visitor center and picked up the 3:20 pm bus from the visitor center to catch the 4 pm sled dog show, which was a lot of fun! The next day we had reservations for the East Fork Transit bus at 9:30 am. You can ride the transit bus until 9 pm at night and get on and off whenever you like. We liked our driver Darren so much that we stayed on the entire time which was about a 5 and a half hour ride. Darren does two tours a day and it was obvious that he loves looking for and finding the wild animals along the way. We saw fox kits, bear cubs, call sheep and caribou, most from a distance, except for the caribou which lept in front of our bus. When we spotted something, he would stop the bus, letting everyone get their fill of the sight. We didn’t want to get off the bus because Darren was such a great driver and we wanted to continue to benefit from his willingness to go slow and look for animals. As Darren told us, Denali is not a zoo so you can’t count on wildlife viewings. I think we were lucky! We did have Darren drop us at the Savage Canyon stop on the way back. There are two hikes from that spot: the Savage Canyon Trail, an easy two mile walk which was beautiful but crowded, and a more challenging hike with elevation which was closed due to bear sightings. Before heading back to Anchorage the next day, we made one last stop at Denali National Park, and did the ranger talk, which leaves from the visitor center at 10 am and 2 pm. This was a slow easy one and a half hour walk with frequent stops to explain the wildlife, the fauna, the ecology, and the history of the park. It was a great overview! Seeing that Denali was visible that day from the nine mile stop, we drove our car there and enjoyed the majestic site before heading back. Note: If you’re driving to or from Anchorage to Denali, be sure to stop at the Denali State Park, which has two opportunities to view the mountain: the North and South Views. I recommend that you visit the Denali National Park website before you go. The park service offers a lot of free, excellent programs and it’s helpful to plan around that!Visited August 2024Travelled as a coupleWritten 26 September 2024
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The_Travel_Family
Eindhoven, The Netherlands1,123 contributions
Jul 2021 • Family
We are a well travelled family of over 35 National Parks. This park from what we saw was beautiful and of course the wildlife amazing! This review is based on how poor this park is managed and the awful logistics bus system clearly only interested in one thing! Dollars!
Visitors to the park can only driver the first 15 miles of the road. To go further you can only book a bus tour through a completely separate company, the park offers “no” free shuttle beyond the 15 mile marker, unless you pay more money, you don’t get to see anymore of this park. For example, Zion NP
offers the free shuttle service so all visitors can enjoy it whist keeping traffic down in the park.
We tried to book the green bus before and during our visit and there was zero availability, this was extremely Disappointing for us. But why should guests pay to book a bus tour additional to the park entrance fees? Reduce traffic by using buses great idea, but also give everyone a chance to see the park and not just wealthy overseas visitors. I will let the reader guess where they were from…
Visitor center closed, they were still basking over Covid concerns “tut” but the gift shop can open, makes no sense, also they are happy to cram buses full of people for “money”. Rangers were generally boring and had no personality what so ever, they need to go back to training I think.
The park map is not up to date and does not show areas such as the husky kennels. It also says the kennels have no parking lot and to use the bus. We drove to the kennels to the left of the park headquarters and there is more than enough parking for private vehicles, don’t bother with the free bus shuttle.
To us it seemed this park was only interested in making money. Do not rush to come here you will be disappointed.
Additionally Denali Bluff was pants, half the shops closed and up for rent, restaurants in the area closed on random days for no reason, again blaming covid, resorts closed. Wait until covid is totally over before coming here.
Visitors to the park can only driver the first 15 miles of the road. To go further you can only book a bus tour through a completely separate company, the park offers “no” free shuttle beyond the 15 mile marker, unless you pay more money, you don’t get to see anymore of this park. For example, Zion NP
offers the free shuttle service so all visitors can enjoy it whist keeping traffic down in the park.
We tried to book the green bus before and during our visit and there was zero availability, this was extremely Disappointing for us. But why should guests pay to book a bus tour additional to the park entrance fees? Reduce traffic by using buses great idea, but also give everyone a chance to see the park and not just wealthy overseas visitors. I will let the reader guess where they were from…
Visitor center closed, they were still basking over Covid concerns “tut” but the gift shop can open, makes no sense, also they are happy to cram buses full of people for “money”. Rangers were generally boring and had no personality what so ever, they need to go back to training I think.
The park map is not up to date and does not show areas such as the husky kennels. It also says the kennels have no parking lot and to use the bus. We drove to the kennels to the left of the park headquarters and there is more than enough parking for private vehicles, don’t bother with the free bus shuttle.
To us it seemed this park was only interested in making money. Do not rush to come here you will be disappointed.
Additionally Denali Bluff was pants, half the shops closed and up for rent, restaurants in the area closed on random days for no reason, again blaming covid, resorts closed. Wait until covid is totally over before coming here.
Written 27 July 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
waldentenn
Signal Mountain, TN802 contributions
Aug 2021 • Couples
Frankly this is a disappointing National Park. It’s very crowded and unless you are backpacking into the bush there is no solitude and no wilderness vibe. The tour road is only open for 15 very crowded miles. To go any farther you must book an expensive school bus jammed with people and only get out at a hectic out house stop where you compete with passengers from 10 other buses for a place to pee. There are some decent hiking trails around the park entrance but they too are crowded and not really reflective of the essence of what makes Denali special.
You will probably get a glimpse of moose, caribou, dall sheep, and maybe a bear but from a long distance out the bus window. The mountain itself is almost always invisible due to clouds.
I guess that the more experience you have in visiting wild places the less thrilled you will be with Denali. By the way the Park Service has Covid closed everything even the dog sled demo. Also the tour road collapsed at about mile 45 so the longer tour bus trips are canceled.
You will probably get a glimpse of moose, caribou, dall sheep, and maybe a bear but from a long distance out the bus window. The mountain itself is almost always invisible due to clouds.
I guess that the more experience you have in visiting wild places the less thrilled you will be with Denali. By the way the Park Service has Covid closed everything even the dog sled demo. Also the tour road collapsed at about mile 45 so the longer tour bus trips are canceled.
Written 26 August 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Ryan B
18 contributions
Sept 2021
Place was beautiful and it was awesome seeing bears, moose, dall sheep, plus wolf tracks on one of our hikes. Only reason I'm rating this a 3/5 is because the contracted services by Aramark, especially the campground we stayed at (Savage River), was pretty terrible. Talking to the NPS Rangers there, you could tell there was quite a bit of tension between them and the hired Aramark staff, as I'm sure the Rangers have to deal with (or at least hear) complaints all the time. Looking at Aramark's site, seems they have (unfortunately) nine contracts with NPS for different locations.
As Denali is a huge mountain, this means there are a lot of clouds around it. I believe we read that each day there is only a ~40% of seeing the top, which we didn't while in the park, but luckily we did driving up the highway from Wasilla.
Definitely recommend seeing the sled dogs. There's approx. 20 of them, not including the puppies, that are all husky-type dogs, but still fun to hear how they are used in the winter time.
Lastly, we didn't have too many issues with bugs, but regardless we brought and used bug spray. Do bring binoculars as animals can be far away and often times phone cameras aren't the best to zoom in with. Also, the park is huge and the bus tour/rides can't go to mile 90, I believe they turn around at ~42, stemming from the landslide that occurred recently and will take (from what we heard), about two years to fix. Internet service is available at the main area, but as you go further in the park you'll lose it, and there is a dump/potable water station at the first campground you see upon entering (I don't believe any of the other campgrounds have these).
As Denali is a huge mountain, this means there are a lot of clouds around it. I believe we read that each day there is only a ~40% of seeing the top, which we didn't while in the park, but luckily we did driving up the highway from Wasilla.
Definitely recommend seeing the sled dogs. There's approx. 20 of them, not including the puppies, that are all husky-type dogs, but still fun to hear how they are used in the winter time.
Lastly, we didn't have too many issues with bugs, but regardless we brought and used bug spray. Do bring binoculars as animals can be far away and often times phone cameras aren't the best to zoom in with. Also, the park is huge and the bus tour/rides can't go to mile 90, I believe they turn around at ~42, stemming from the landslide that occurred recently and will take (from what we heard), about two years to fix. Internet service is available at the main area, but as you go further in the park you'll lose it, and there is a dump/potable water station at the first campground you see upon entering (I don't believe any of the other campgrounds have these).
Written 17 September 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Therese J
20 contributions
Aug 2020 • Friends
This review is for website information and poor logistics rather than the park itself, because we weren't able to see the vast majority of the park. We booked a campsite at igloo, which we did know required a shuttle to access. We also booked a camper shuttle, which is marketed as hop on, hop off, and listed a four hour window on the website when I booked it. We arrived at the park and were told that was the shuttle travel window and that we had to be there at the beginning of that time to get a seat, and that we should've booked the later one/that there were no more seats the entire weekend on the camper bus. This is absurd; if you book a campsite you should be able to get to it, and literally half the people at the bus stop had this issue and couldn't get in. I get that we're in covid times but the booking website is completely devoid of links to the actual schedule and does not clearly indicate the lack of flexibility at least in initial entrance to the park, and the fact that multiple other groups did the same thing indicates a real issue on their end. I didn't travel all this way to just go 15 miles into the park (from which you can't even see the Denali).
Written 22 August 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hendlschorsch
Essen, Germany7,857 contributions
Jun 2024 • Couples
The national park was founded in 1917 as Mount McKinley National Park after the name of the mountain at that time and was not renamed until 1980 to the current name (and in doing so expanded by almost 10,000 km2 of expansion areas to a total area of > 19,000 km2 - this corresponds approximately to the size of Rhineland Palatinate).
An approximately 92 mile long road leads into the interior of the park to Kantishna (which is currently only accessible up to mile 43 / Pretty Rocks, however, as massive landslides and subsidence in Aug. 2021 necessitated the start of massive construction work, which is not expected to be completed until 2026), of which only the first 15 miles of the road are paved and may be accessed by private vehicles.
Visitors can only enter the interior of the park with one of the three bus connections listed below (Transit Bus for USD 33.25 / Natural History Tour for USD 116.25 and Tundra Wilderness Tour for USD 144 - the latter two bus connections include admission fees to the park of USD 15).
Unfortunately, the closure from mile 43 leads to the fact that the wild animals have now also retreated to the "rear area" of the park - i.e. our "yield" during the about 4 hours (thanks to the bus driver "Bear" nevertheless entertaining) bus ride were 4 caribou, 2 elk and somewhere high up on the mountain two bighorn sheep.
I would still recommend the (transit) bus ride, because only on the first 15 km of freely accessible road, the vastness of the park can be guessed, but due to the topography and the forest not really well visible.
Conclusion: It's not a park where you "stroll through" loosely, but you are heavily dependent on a bus transfer - not an "Unbelievable" outcry, but rather "Lots of space, which is saved from too much human intervention thanks to your national park status."
An approximately 92 mile long road leads into the interior of the park to Kantishna (which is currently only accessible up to mile 43 / Pretty Rocks, however, as massive landslides and subsidence in Aug. 2021 necessitated the start of massive construction work, which is not expected to be completed until 2026), of which only the first 15 miles of the road are paved and may be accessed by private vehicles.
Visitors can only enter the interior of the park with one of the three bus connections listed below (Transit Bus for USD 33.25 / Natural History Tour for USD 116.25 and Tundra Wilderness Tour for USD 144 - the latter two bus connections include admission fees to the park of USD 15).
Unfortunately, the closure from mile 43 leads to the fact that the wild animals have now also retreated to the "rear area" of the park - i.e. our "yield" during the about 4 hours (thanks to the bus driver "Bear" nevertheless entertaining) bus ride were 4 caribou, 2 elk and somewhere high up on the mountain two bighorn sheep.
I would still recommend the (transit) bus ride, because only on the first 15 km of freely accessible road, the vastness of the park can be guessed, but due to the topography and the forest not really well visible.
Conclusion: It's not a park where you "stroll through" loosely, but you are heavily dependent on a bus transfer - not an "Unbelievable" outcry, but rather "Lots of space, which is saved from too much human intervention thanks to your national park status."
Automatically translated
Written 12 July 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Arthur M
Hamilton, Canada1,628 contributions
Jun 2023
Denali National Park clearly knows how to manage large crowds in a fragile ecosystem such as Denali's, located on permafrost. The visitor centre was large and informative. It plays two 20-minute films which rotate on schedule. The gift shop is separate from the visitor centre and it was large as well. There are multiple restrooms in the visitor centre complex, and the bus depot for bus tours deep in Denali are located away from the complex.
The Denali Park Road is only accessible up to Savage River for private vehicles, and driving through it requries some extra careful attention since we saw moose just outside the visitor centre, and one along the paved section of the Park Road.
The bus tour was very informative and we saw multiple wildlife such as caribou, mountain goats, and even birds such as ptarmigan!
The views are unparalleled everywhere you go, even if the buses can't go past Mile 43 for now. Maybe when the bridge is built, the view would be even more epic for sure, so if you can't wait to visit Alaska and Denali, it's worth visiting since you can still see Denali at Mile 8, but if you want a full experience, better wait until 2026 at the earliest.
The Denali Park Road is only accessible up to Savage River for private vehicles, and driving through it requries some extra careful attention since we saw moose just outside the visitor centre, and one along the paved section of the Park Road.
The bus tour was very informative and we saw multiple wildlife such as caribou, mountain goats, and even birds such as ptarmigan!
The views are unparalleled everywhere you go, even if the buses can't go past Mile 43 for now. Maybe when the bridge is built, the view would be even more epic for sure, so if you can't wait to visit Alaska and Denali, it's worth visiting since you can still see Denali at Mile 8, but if you want a full experience, better wait until 2026 at the earliest.
Written 2 July 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
egslade
Portsmouth, NH122 contributions
Aug 2024 • Couples
We were visiting the Denali Park area for two nights, staying at the Denali Bluffs, which was just a five minute drive from the entrance to the park. We arrived early afternoon after driving from Anchorage (a scenic 3.5 or 4 hour drive) and toured the visitor center and watched one of the movies showing how the park changes through the seasons. When you’re in the visiter center, don’t miss the screen with the live view of Denali from the park (Unfortunately Mt. Denali is frequently covered due to weather, but we were able to catch the view at a look out about nine miles in the park road on our last day). We also did the two mile Horseshoe Lake walk (an easy and beautiful hike with a moose viewing) that leaves from right near the visitor center and picked up the 3:20 pm bus from the visitor center to catch the 4 pm sled dog show, which was a lot of fun!
The next day we had reservations for the East Fork Transit bus at 9:30 am. You can ride the transit bus until 9 pm at night and get on and off whenever you like. We liked our driver Darren so much that we stayed on the entire time which was about a 5 and a half hour ride. Darren does two tours a day and it was obvious that he loves looking for and finding the wild animals along the way. We saw fox kits, bear cubs, call sheep and caribou, most from a distance, except for the caribou which lept in front of our bus. When we spotted something, he would stop the bus, letting everyone get their fill of the sight. We didn’t want to get off the bus because Darren was such a great driver and we wanted to continue to benefit from his willingness to go slow and look for animals. As Darren told us, Denali is not a zoo so you can’t count on wildlife viewings. I think we were lucky! We did have Darren drop us at the Savage Canyon stop on the way back. There are two hikes from that spot: the Savage Canyon Trail, an easy two mile walk which was beautiful but crowded, and a more challenging hike with elevation which was closed due to bear sightings.
Before heading back to Anchorage the next day, we made one last stop at Denali National Park, and did the ranger talk, which leaves from the visitor center at 10 am and 2 pm. This was a slow easy one and a half hour walk with frequent stops to explain the wildlife, the fauna, the ecology, and the history of the park. It was a great overview!
Seeing that Denali was visible that day from the nine mile stop, we drove our car there and enjoyed the majestic site before heading back. Note: If you’re driving to or from Anchorage to Denali, be sure to stop at the Denali State Park, which has two opportunities to view the mountain: the North and South Views.
I recommend that you visit the Denali National Park website before you go. The park service offers a lot of free, excellent programs and it’s helpful to plan around that!
The next day we had reservations for the East Fork Transit bus at 9:30 am. You can ride the transit bus until 9 pm at night and get on and off whenever you like. We liked our driver Darren so much that we stayed on the entire time which was about a 5 and a half hour ride. Darren does two tours a day and it was obvious that he loves looking for and finding the wild animals along the way. We saw fox kits, bear cubs, call sheep and caribou, most from a distance, except for the caribou which lept in front of our bus. When we spotted something, he would stop the bus, letting everyone get their fill of the sight. We didn’t want to get off the bus because Darren was such a great driver and we wanted to continue to benefit from his willingness to go slow and look for animals. As Darren told us, Denali is not a zoo so you can’t count on wildlife viewings. I think we were lucky! We did have Darren drop us at the Savage Canyon stop on the way back. There are two hikes from that spot: the Savage Canyon Trail, an easy two mile walk which was beautiful but crowded, and a more challenging hike with elevation which was closed due to bear sightings.
Before heading back to Anchorage the next day, we made one last stop at Denali National Park, and did the ranger talk, which leaves from the visitor center at 10 am and 2 pm. This was a slow easy one and a half hour walk with frequent stops to explain the wildlife, the fauna, the ecology, and the history of the park. It was a great overview!
Seeing that Denali was visible that day from the nine mile stop, we drove our car there and enjoyed the majestic site before heading back. Note: If you’re driving to or from Anchorage to Denali, be sure to stop at the Denali State Park, which has two opportunities to view the mountain: the North and South Views.
I recommend that you visit the Denali National Park website before you go. The park service offers a lot of free, excellent programs and it’s helpful to plan around that!
Written 26 September 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Beachwalker007
Austin, TX66 contributions
Aug 2023 • Couples
Denali National Park is best experienced for its vast scale, size, and wildlife. It is not a park with breathtaking moments, features, and vistas like Yosemite or Yellowstone. Compared to other parks, there are a limited number of marked hiking trails. The bus ride to the end of the park road (at least as far as you can go) and back takes at least five hours. We did not do that ride, but people we talked to who did said it was somewhat tedious and did not add that much to the park experience. When the park road re-opens past the landslide, that ride might be more dramatic. We were in the park for one full day plus most of another day. That allowed us time to do three nice hikes. We are very pleased that we visited the park and would have regretted not doing so, but we will probably choose to visit other national parks in the lower 48 states before returning here. A big plus is that the park did not feel crowded even during this peak season. There was no wait to enter and plenty of parking. (Note: With the park road closure, there are limited views of Mount Denali from within the park. The best views of Mount Denali are while driving Alaska 3 from the south before reaching the park.)
Written 8 August 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Heather K
Bolton, MA197 contributions
May 2022
Denali is everything I dreamed of and more - it did not disappoint. We took the Tundra Wilderness bus tour and drove into the park and hiked several other times on our own. We went in May and the wildlife viewing was outstanding, highly recommend going early in the season, it's less crowd and animals are abundant.
Written 29 June 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
poolboyal
Loudon, TN136 contributions
May 2022 • Couples
Extraordinary, beautiful, wild, .... We were blessed with perfect weather... Saw Mt Denali the whole time.
At the visitor center you can catch a free bus to the dog demonstration area where they keep their shed dogs. We were told you can ride the green buses all day thru park for$30 which is cheaper than the your we took. Once in a lifetime trip.
At the visitor center you can catch a free bus to the dog demonstration area where they keep their shed dogs. We were told you can ride the green buses all day thru park for$30 which is cheaper than the your we took. Once in a lifetime trip.
Written 1 June 2022
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Is the road open all the way to Katishna in Sept. or does it close due to weather? I wanted to go in Sept so I could also see the northern lights but am afraid I won’t be able to take the tour to the end. Thank you.
Written 28 October 2020
Did you just ride the bus? Or was your destination Wonderlake? I guess I’m asking if people just do the round trip on the bus ride for the day?
Written 23 September 2019
Yes we rode the bus and along the way saw lots of wildlife.
Written 23 September 2019
Our trip was May 24th to June 8th.
We had awesome weather. It was a little early to see bears. Although, people did see bears on different excursions. We were told that the bears were eating the dandelions, now, until the berries ripen.
We saw Mt. Denali.
NO mosquitoes.
Written 14 June 2018
Any Campground in particular which you would recommend?
Written 22 May 2018
What are the chances that we will see the mountain--what is the difference between the "10% club" and the "30% club"?
Written 23 August 2017
Eppingem - we saw Denali as we were taking the train to go down to Anchorage. We had already been to Fairbanks. Spent a day during the day tour in the park! Everything depends on the weather. If it is clear you will see it and since Denali creates its own clouds source the likely is not good. Lots of folks saw they see it from an airplane tour. We felt very lucky seeing it from the train. gorgeous!
Written 8 October 2017
Do you need to book the campsites inside the park in advance? I would be going in september, but I prefer some flexibility... Thanks!
Written 6 January 2017
mhuynh5
Houston, Texas
can I drive there from Anchorage and how long does it take?
Written 20 April 2016
It takes 4-5 hours to drive from Anchorage to Denali (and there's sometimes road construction and traffic on the highway). If you want to take a bus tour, you'll have to leave Anchorage very early in the morning. It's a tiresome drive! It's best to find accommodations in the vicinity of Denali after you're done touring.
Written 19 July 2016
Sorry, but I've read too many negative reviews and would not be interested in visiting Dinali National Park. Although every person's experience may vary, I personally would have to continue my research on what's best for me. As a fairly savvy traveler, I know my limitations and temperament and was not impressed with what I read of others' --not so great-- impressions/difficulties with their bus tours! Furthermore, I strongly recommend that travelers always check "Tripadvisor" reviews before planning a vacation!
Written 25 January 2016
Is there any hikes (day or multi day) in particular which are most notable or recommended in Denali?
Or is it totally just walk anywhere you want it's all good?
Thanks
Written 22 May 2015
Best way to get there from england
Written 4 February 2015
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