Explora Journeys in Skagway

Skagway is a four-block gold-rush boomtown at the head of the Lynn Canal, frozen at its 1898 peak as the gateway to the Klondike. The whole historic core is a National Historical Park, and the White Pass railway that carried stampeders north still climbs the gorge above town. It earns the day on density: almost everything worth seeing is on foot from the pier.

What to do on a day in Skagway

• White Pass and Yukon Route Railway: the narrated narrow-gauge climb to the 2,888-foot White Pass summit, past trestles, tunnels and the old Trail of '98, boarding from tracks between the docks and downtown
• Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park Visitor Center at 2nd and Broadway, in the restored 1898 White Pass depot, with the free ranger-led walking tour of the historic district
• Broadway's restored 1898 buildings: the Mascot Saloon at 3rd Avenue and the false-front storefronts the Park Service leases to keep the street working
• Moore Homestead, the cabin built by Skagway's founder Captain William Moore, furnished to its 1904 appearance
• Arctic Brotherhood Hall on Broadway, its facade clad in roughly 8,800 pieces of driftwood, one of the most photographed buildings in Alaska

Getting ashore

Ships tie up at the Railroad, Ore or Broadway docks, all a 5 to 10 minute walk from the foot of Broadway, so no shuttle or tender is needed. One day is enough for the town itself; the railway or a Yukon drive will fill the rest.

When to book the ship's excursion vs your own →

Weather and when to visit

• May to June (early season). Typical highs in the upper 50s to low 60s Fahrenheit, among the driest months in Southeast Alaska, with around 17 hours of daylight. Skagway sits in a rain shadow and is reliably drier than Juneau or Ketchikan.
• July to August (peak). Warmest of the season, typical highs in the low to mid 60s Fahrenheit. Showers are possible any day but often light, more mist than downpour.
• September (late season). Cooling to typical highs in the mid 50s Fahrenheit and the wettest stretch of the cruise season, averaging close to 8 inches of rain for the month, with first dustings of snow on the peaks.