By The Backseat View
updated 2026
Alaska Road Trip to Seward
The Seward Highway is a beautiful 125-mile road (Route 1) from Anchorage to Seward.
It’s the day’s main event, and there’s no way to do it all. We made six stops in 8 hours.
Mileposts aren’t available, so driving past stops happens. The Seward Highway runs through the scenic Kenai Peninsula, Chugach National Forest, Turnagain Arm, and Kenai Mountains, meaning LOTS OF STOPS for photos, turquoise lakes, roadside bakeries, and hikes to waterfalls.
The Seward Highway
The Seward Highway is Alaska’s version of the road to Hanna in Hawaii.
Let’s depart Anchorage with a full gas tank and plenty of snacks.
- Potter Marsh is a boardwalk Bird Sanctuary. People love it!
- McHugh Creek Day area has views over Turnagain Arm and a waterfall hike. Plan 30 minutes to see the waterfall and walk to the upper parking lot for the views.
Beluga Point
3. Beluga Point has panoramic views of Turnagain Arm with mountains and the train running by the road. There were several viewpoints to pull over. The beaches along Turnagain Arm are similar to quicksand, so stay on the shoreline. Turnagain Arm is a tidal bore with a breaking wave at up to six feet. Watching this twice-daily natural phenomenon takes planning with the tides. This stop is about a mile and a half past McHugh Creek, and we stayed for 30 minutes.
4. The town of Girdwood has Glacier Creek Bridge views, Virgin Creek half-mile round trip waterfall hike, and a cable car ride up to Mt. Alyeska. This is more of a couple of hours stop.
5. Wildlife Conservation is a sanctuary helping bears, bison, moose, reindeer, wolves, and elk heal. The magical 1.5-mile loop is filled with wild creatures. This is a must-stop and took two hours. You can walk fast or sit and watch the animals. I would book a bear or moose encounter tour, depending on what time you are traveling through.
6. Portage Lake overlook is an amazing turquoise lake with a mountain backdrop.
Whittier
7. Whittier and the Anton Anderson Memorial Tunnel are hard to fit into a day’s drive. I wished I could add a day here to explore the wilderness of Prince William Sound. The tunnel is open for departing and incoming traffic at different times, so you must know the tunnel schedule.
8. Next is the Lake area part of the drive, which includes Summit Lake, Tern Lake, Trail Lakes, Kenai Lake, Lily Pad, and Bear Lake. We pulled over at Tern Lake, a beautiful lake with mountain backdrops.
9. Moose Pass is a small, quirky town, and we stopped for fudge.
10. Everyone hikes to Exit Glacier on the Glacier View 2.2-mile easy loop trail at the Exit Glacier Nature Center. Beware, it’s been a long day, and this might get bumped to another day.
Exit Glacier
The top 10 Stops on the Seward Highway provides additional information. It complements The 5 Best Stops on an Alaska Road Trip and Travel Guide.
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