Kenai Fjords National Park

Kenai Fjords is a park of ice and ocean, where the vast Harding Icefield spills down in dozens of glaciers, some crashing directly into the sea as tidewater glaciers, along a dramatic fjord-cut coastline on Alaska's Kenai Peninsula. It is one of the most accessible of Alaska's great wilderness parks, reached from the harbour town of Seward.

Glaciers, whales and a river of ice

At its heart lies the Harding Icefield, a colossal remnant of the last ice age that feeds nearly 40 glaciers. Exit Glacier is the one you can walk right up to; the rest are best seen from the water, on a boat tour into the fjords where glaciers calve into the sea with a thunderous crack. Those same waters teem with life: humpback and orca whales, sea otters, Steller sea lions, and cliffs crowded with puffins and seabirds.

For a UK family, Kenai Fjords delivers classic Alaska, glaciers, whales and wild coastline, without the extreme remoteness of the Arctic parks. A day cruise from Seward is the highlight, and it's an easy, spectacular introduction to the state's icy grandeur.

You come to Kenai Fjords for the thrill of watching a glacier calve into the sea while whales surface nearby, all in a single, spectacular day. For a family, the boat tour from Seward is the star: you glide past tidewater glaciers, hear the crack and boom of ice breaking loose, and spot humpbacks, orcas, sea otters and puffins along the way, wildlife and ice in one unforgettable outing. On land, Exit Glacier lets you walk right up to a river of ice, a rare, tangible encounter with a glacier that teens find genuinely awe-inspiring. What sets Kenai Fjords apart from Alaska's remoter parks is its accessibility: it's reachable by road from Anchorage, so a UK family gets the full Alaskan drama, glaciers, whales, wild fjords, without a floatplane or an expedition budget. It's arguably the best-value taste of wild Alaska going.

Kenai Fjords is unusual among Alaskan parks in that its highlights split cleanly between road and water. Exit Glacier, the only part reachable by car, sits a short drive from Seward via a paved road that's open in the warmer months but typically closed by snow in winter. Everything else, the tidewater glaciers, the wildlife-rich fjords, is accessed by boat, so the day-cruise operators effectively serve as your transport into the heart of the park. There are no roads or shuttles deep into the fjords, and no need for them. Within Seward, the town is compact and walkable, and cruise docks, shops and lodging are close together. For a family, the pattern is: drive or take the train to Seward, use the boat tours for the fjords, and drive the short road to Exit Glacier for a land-based glacier walk.

Kenai Fjords is one of the easier Alaskan parks to reach without your own car. A seasonal train runs between Anchorage and Seward, offering a scenic, car-free journey to the park's gateway, and various shuttle and coach services also link the two towns in summer. Once in Seward, the town is walkable and the boat tours handle access to the fjords themselves. That said, a hire car adds flexibility, especially for reaching Exit Glacier and exploring the wider Kenai Peninsula at your own pace. For a UK family, either works: take the train for a relaxed, sightseeing approach, or hire a car in Anchorage if you want the freedom to roam beyond Seward.

• Book a full-day fjords boat tour, not the short one, the longer cruises reach the tidewater glaciers and best whale grounds.
• Take seasickness precautions, the open water beyond the fjords can be rough, especially for those prone to it.
• Walk the Exit Glacier trails; the strenuous Harding Icefield Trail rewards fit teens with a jaw-dropping view over the ice.
• Base yourself in Seward for at least a night, it lets you catch an early cruise and avoid the long same-day drive.
• Pack for cold on the water even in summer, wind chill on deck is significant; bring warm, waterproof layers.
• Book cruises and Seward lodging ahead in peak summer, this is a popular stop on the Alaska circuit.

Kenai Fjords has a cool, wet maritime climate, and conditions on the water differ sharply from land. Even in summer, daytime temperatures typically sit in the low-to-mid teens Celsius, with frequent rain, cloud and fog rolling in off the Gulf of Alaska, blue-sky days are a bonus, not the norm. On a boat tour, wind chill makes it feel considerably colder, so dress for winter on deck: warm layers, hat, gloves and a proper waterproof, even in July. The short main season runs from late May to early September; outside that, boat services wind down and weather turns harsher. Pack much as you would for a cold, rainy day in the Scottish Highlands, then add an extra warm layer for time spent out on the fjords.

Kenai Fjords is refreshingly reachable by Alaskan standards. Almost everyone starts in Anchorage (ANC), Alaska's main airport and the natural connection point for UK families flying via a US hub such as Seattle. From Anchorage it's a scenic drive of around two and a half hours south along the Seward Highway, one of the most beautiful road trips in the state, hugging the coast and cutting through mountains, to the harbour town of Seward, the park's gateway. From Seward you pick up the boat tours into the fjords and access Exit Glacier just outside town. A seasonal train also runs between Anchorage and Seward, a spectacular and stress-free alternative to driving. For a UK family, the plan is simple: fly into Anchorage, then drive or take the train to Seward, no floatplanes or expedition logistics required.