Alaska Inside Passage

United States · Alaska

Updated May 20, 2026

The Alaska Inside Passage is a spectacular coastal route running through Southeast Alaska’s forested islands and fjords, sheltered from the open Pacific by the Alexander Archipelago. It’s known for dramatic mountain scenery, tidewater glaciers, abundant wildlife, and small coastal communities that are often accessible only by boat or plane.

Best time to visit

The main season for visiting the Alaska Inside Passage is late May through early September, when cruise and ferry schedules are fullest, days are long, and temperatures are milder. July and August offer the warmest weather and most wildlife-viewing opportunities but are also the busiest and often rainiest months.

Language

English, indigenous languages (including Tlingit, Haida, Tsimshian) in local communities

Currency

USD

Interesting facts

The Inside Passage is part of a larger coastal waterway that stretches from Washington State through British Columbia to Alaska, but the Alaska portion alone runs roughly 500 miles (800 km) north–south and about 100 miles (160 km) east–west, encompassing more than 1,000 islands and thousands of coves and bays. This protected maze of channels allows vessels to avoid much of the rougher open-ocean swell.
Southeast Alaska, often synonymous with the Alaska Inside Passage or Panhandle, is dominated by the Tongass National Forest, the largest national forest in the United States. This temperate rainforest of towering spruce and hemlock, glacier-carved valleys, and salmon-rich streams forms the lush backdrop for many cruises, ferries, and kayaking trips.
The route is one of the world’s busiest cruise corridors in summer, with over 2 million people a year exploring it by ship according to tourism statistics cited in public sources. Despite the number of visitors, many communities along the passage are small, remote, and reachable only by boat or plane, so cruise tourism plays an outsized role in their economies.
The northernmost towns commonly considered endpoints of the Inside Passage in Alaska are Haines and Skagway at the head of Lynn Canal, the northernmost fjord on the route. Skagway in particular became famous during the Klondike Gold Rush of the late 1890s and remains a major cruise port today, with historic streets and access to the White Pass & Yukon Route railway.
The Alaska Marine Highway System, a state-run ferry network, operates along the Inside Passage and connects many roadless communities, carrying around 350,000 passengers and 100,000 vehicles annually. Ferries link towns like Ketchikan, Wrangell, Petersburg, Sitka, Juneau, Haines, and Skagway, and even extend south to Bellingham, Washington, integrating the passage into a broader coastal transport system.
Misty Fjords National Monument, located about 40 miles (64 km) east of Ketchikan along the Inside Passage, protects over 2.2 million acres of wilderness within the Tongass National Forest. Its sheer granite walls rising thousands of feet from the sea, hanging valleys, and mist-shrouded waterfalls are often explored by small boat, kayak, or floatplane from Ketchikan.

Local tips

If you want flexibility and a more local feel, consider traveling part of the route on the Alaska Marine Highway ferries rather than only on large cruise ships; you can bring a car, camp on deck under a tent, or book a cabin, and stop in smaller communities that big ships sometimes skip.
Weather in the Inside Passage is famously variable and often wet, even in midsummer; pack layers, a fully waterproof shell, and quick-drying clothing rather than relying on umbrellas, which can be awkward on windy decks and on small boats.
Wildlife viewing (whales, bears, sea otters, eagles) is often best from open decks or the bow of ferries and boats—bring binoculars and a camera with a telephoto lens, and be prepared to move quickly when announcements are made about sightings.
Ports like Juneau, Ketchikan, Sitka, Haines, and Skagway can be crowded when multiple cruise ships are docked; if you prefer quieter explorations, plan shore excursions early in the morning or later in the afternoon, or look for trails and local neighborhoods a bit away from the main docks.
Many Inside Passage communities are only connected by sea and air, so services can be limited and expensive; book accommodations and key excursions well in advance in peak season, and keep some flexibility in your itinerary in case of weather-related delays.
For independent travelers, combining a one-way cruise or ferry trip with flights into or out of Juneau, Ketchikan, or Sitka can maximize time in smaller towns and on hiking trails, rather than simply cruising through without extended onshore stays.