This Is the Most Magical Christmas Trip! Watch the Northern Lights on a Train Ride Across Alaska
If you want to give yourself the gift of adventure this holiday season, you can spend Christmas under the Northern Lights.
Beginning on Christmas Eve (Dec. 24), the Alaska Railroad is offering seven-night trips on which passengers can hop on board the Aurora Train and explore some of Alaska’s coolest winter destinations. The $1,479 trip begins in Anchorage, Alaska’s largest city, and then travels north to Talkeetna, where travelers can opt to add a “flight-seeing” excursion of Denali National Park and the Alaska Range.
Guests take a guided sled dog tour in Talkeetna with an Iditarod champion kennel before staying overnight in the charming town. The following day, passengers hop on board the Aurora Winter Train again to arrive in Fairbanks, where they will stay overnight for three nights and receive a guided aurora lodge tour while seeking views of the Northern Lights.
On the last night of the tour, guests will travel to the Chena Hot Springs and spend the evening watching for aurora borealis. Guests can book this travel itinerary through March 2019.
Alternatively, passengers can book a trip on the Borealis Train—which works its way backward from Fairbanks to Anchorage—with the first trip leaving on Dec. 22. This eight-night journey allows travelers to sleep overnight at Borealis Basecamp, which features geodesic domes “complete with clear, curved roofs to accommodate aurora viewing from the comfort of your warm bed.”
WATCH THIS: Timelapse of Aurora Borealis in Lapland, Sweden
Guests on this journey also have the option to add on photography sessions of the Northern Lights, fat tire biking excursions, or snowmobiling during their stay.
According to Travel Pulse, the trip is currently going for $1,639 per person, and the package is available through the end of March 2019.
RELATED: All the Ways You Can Win Free Flights and Upgrades This Holiday Season
For those more interested in seeing the Northern Lights on an expedited trip, guests can book shorter trips such as “Denali in a Day,” or a 2-day pie-making excursion to Talkeetna.
