Skagway Alaska
A sense of history and adventure permeates this small portside town in Alaska’s Inside Passage.
Skagway Alaska
A sense of history and adventure permeates this small portside town in Alaska’s Inside Passage.
Skagway Alaska
A sense of history and adventure permeates this small portside town in Alaska’s Inside Passage.
Skagway
Skagway stands as the gateway to the Yukon. Named after the Tlingit word for "windy place," Skagway sits amid the imposing St. Elias Mountains about 90 miles north of Juneau at the top of the Inside Passage's deepest, longest canal. It was through this rugged place that gold rushers passed on their harrowing journey north to the Klondike.
From 1897 to 1898, Skagway exploded into a boomtown serving those thousands of stampeders. As a tribute to its iconic days, much of the town is now part of the Klondike Gold Rush National Historic Park. Park rangers offer guided tours through the historic district during the summer months. Film presentations and exhibits are available at the park's downtown visitor center.
A number of organized excursions are available for Alaska cruise passengers and other visitors, including motorcoach trips to the White Pass summit, city tours, hiking, flightseeing, gold panning, dog sled rides, rock climbing, and mountain biking. Skagway also offers an array of options for hikers. Enjoy a pleasant walking tour in town or trace the steps of stampeders on the Chilkoot or Dead Horse trails.
Completed near the end of the gold rush, the White Pass and Yukon Railroad connects Skagway with Whitehorse. Today the railroad makes for a fun day trip out of Skagway into mountainous terrain inaccessible by other means of transportation.
Although Skagway's colorful saloons, gambling, dancing girls, and gold seekers are in the past, the frontier atmosphere remains in the quaint accommodations that dot the community. These include a small selection of rustic lodges and cozy bed and breakfasts.
Unlike most other southeast port towns, Skagway is connected to the mainland by road. Passing through the gold rush towns of Carcross and Whitehorse, visitors can drive the scenic Klondike Highway route through the Yukon and into Alaska. That said, most visitors still reach Skagway by boat. It's a popular port of call for large cruise ships and a ferry stop for the Alaska State Marine Highway. Air taxi service is available to the small Skagway airport from nearby Juneau.
