When you are looking for affordable Alaska vacation packages, it’s important to consider your travel budget. You can enjoy Alaska on a cruise, scheduling a week of an all inclusive package, or pick something like what we offer that takes care of all your logistics while maintaining the independent adventure feel. The way our trips are setup at Silvertip, our Alaska lodge and tour company, is one of the most fun and cost effective ways to do it. You get autonomy with decision making from building your trip to seeing the vacation out. Below you will see how Alaska travel budget planning works with a model like we offer.
Cost of Flights to Alaska: How Much It Costs to Fly to Anchorage & Save Money
The cost is between $250.00 – $500.00 on average per person. When looking at flights to Alaska it’s important to put a little time into looking at prices. Now while the average sweet spot for booking a US domestic flight is 1-3 months, We do recommend booking your flight more in advance for the best deals if you are coming to Alaska. I know people that sign up for the Alaska Airlines credit card and automatically get a 2 for 1 airline ticket. Plenty of travelers use miles/points from airline accounts as well, but those need to be done well in advance.
Alaska Rental Car Costs: What to Expect & How to Save on Transportation
Renting a car in Alaska will cost you in the range of $50.00 – $100.00 per day on average. Anchorage is typically the best place to rent and the further you get away from Anchorage the more it will cost. In the summer months you don’t need an SUV or truck w/ 4 wheel drive as most of where you are driving to is on a paved road. You may want something bigger for space though.
The most important factor is if you have enough room to get your group, your luggage, and any fish boxes you need to get back to the airport. With longer drive times between places you also want to be comfortable and not crammed like sardines with people and gear. We recommend the following places for finding a rental car: Turo, Travelocity, Orbitz, or if you have a company account with a particular agency.
Alaska Travel Package Costs: Lodging, Guided Tours & Custom Itinerary Pricing
Building a custom package can cost anywhere from $350.00 to $4,500.00 per person depending on length of stay and which guided tours you pick. This is the part of the trip that you can control the most with what you spend and what you get. If you know what you’re doing, it doesn’t need to cost an arm and a leg to see some of the hidden gems in Alaska, Thats where we come in.
Having a good conversation with someone is the best way to find what you are looking for. Some of our best conversations are with guests in the planning stages of their trip. It’s fun creating your trip with a seasoned local and you are going to be able to plan your travel budget easily for your Alaska trip.
Food Costs in Alaska: Daily Budget for Groceries, Dining & Meals
Depending on if you grocery shop and cook your own meals or go out to restaurants daily your food costs can fluctuate between $20.00 – $100.00 per person per day. When staying at a place like our lodge and doing meals on your own offers the freedom and flexibility to eat what you want when you want for the price you want.
Most people eat breakfast in the cabin, bring their lunch with them on the guided tour, and then for dinner they do a mix of cooking in their kitchen or going out to eat. A plan like this puts someone’s food cost in the $20.00 – $50.00 per person per day range while making most people happier about their food situation while on vacation.
Additional Alaska Travel Costs: Fishing Licenses, Tips, Gas & Hidden Expenses
There are going to be other additional costs, some of them mandatory and some optional but you should plan for some “other” expenses as well. There is some parking that requires a day pass ranging from $5.00 – $20.00 per day for the ticket.
If you are fishing then plan on purchasing a fishing license for $15.00 – $55.00 per person depending on which option you pick.
If you are going on guided trips then it’s customary to tip $15.00 – $100.00 per person per tour depending on which tours you do. Gas will average $100.00 – $300.00 total for your rental car but can vary depending on how much driving you are doing and what the mileage is for your vehicle.
When you plan your Alaska vacation with a model like what we offer you have more control over the final price of your entire trip. Plan to spend at least $1,800.00 – $5000.00 per person for a full 7 day trip to Alaska with everything I listed above.
You have to do a little work on your own with flights and rental cars but it will be worth it. Then someone like us can work all the trip planning and logistics for lodging, guided fishing trips, and sightseeing adventure tours. Finally add in food and other misc. costs and that is how you breakdown budget planning for your Alaska travel.
We are Andrea and Jeremy Anderson. The summer of 2026 marks our 23rd year in the tourism industry helping people plan the best fishing and sightseeing vacations on the Kenai Peninsula, and our 11th season operating Alaska Silvertip Lodge and Cabins. In the spring of 2016, we purchased Silvertip Lodge and Cabins from Dean and Mary Talley, who built the first cabin in 1999.
Andrea grew up in California but fell in love with Alaska after visiting her grandparents in Cooper Landing. After graduating college in 2004, she moved up to Cooper Landing and worked in nearby Moose Pass. Jeremy grew up in Wisconsin, and in 2001 he spent his first summer in Alaska working at the Russian River Campground. Jeremy spent the next few years working as a rafting guide on the Upper Kenai River. In July 2004, Andrea and Jeremy met and began a great adventure on the Kenai Peninsula.
Over the past 23 years, Andrea and Jeremy have developed a diverse set of skills in the Alaskan tourism industry and have spent countless hours recreating outdoors. Andrea has worked as a guide for several rafting companies, ran a fishing lodge, and currently manages reservations, logistics, and accounting for Alaska Drift Away Fishing. Jeremy is co-owner of Alaska Drift Away Fishing and guides on the river for trout and salmon.
