Whittier Tunnel (Anton Anderson Memorial Tunnel) // Whittier, Alaska

Happy Friday friends! Today I am excited to continue recap my Alaskan Road Trip Adventures from 2019. As I have shared, I wanted to do this because I hope that it encourages you to consider taking a road trip of your own this summer to this beautiful part of the world!

Today I am excited to share more with y'all more about our recent trip to Alaska, specifically talking about taking the tunnel over to Whittier, Alaska! 

Our trip started early Saturday morning and after a yummy breakfast at Snow City Cafe (a favorite restaurant I discovered last year!), we headed south to the Kenai Peninsula to spend time at several different locations, including Beluga Point (which I shared about HERE if you missed it!) on the beautiful and scenic Seward Highway. If you read about the Alaskan road trip that I did last year than you may have read about the beautiful Seward Highway, but if you missed the post you can find and read it HERE!

Heading over to Whittier and spending a few hours in the beautiful town is a stop that I wanted to make for several reasons, and I am so excited to share with y'all more about the town in the next couple of days! Today though I wanted to share about getting there. 

If you are driving from Anchorage it is approximately 60 miles away. If you are doing a road trip like we did then you will just take the beautiful and scenic Seward Highway south and look for signs for Whittier as you are driving it. If you are not driving you can also get to Whittier by train and it is also a cruise port for some cruise lines. 

The trip takes approximately an hour and a 1/2 to get to Whittier, and does include a 2.5 mile trip through a mountain tunnel (more about this in a minute!) which is the only way to access Whittier by land. I believe that the train takes a bit longer so definitely check that out if you are interested in taking the train. 

Because we made some stops along the Seward Highway (like the one I shared about at Beluga Point) we ended up missing the original tunnel opening we had planned on and had a bit of time to just take in the views and explore a bit at the waiting area. 

The waterfalls on the snow and glacier capped mountains are some of my favorite things to see in Alaska. I was once again just stunned by the incredible beauty that we were surrounded by. 

Pretty soon we were ready to get back in the car to drive through the tunnel. The tunnel costs $13 (one way but is for a round trip ticket) for the car. The passengers are included in this so there is no additional costs for passengers. 

The Whittier Tunnel, also known as the Anton Anderson Memorial Tunnel is the longest highway tunnel in North America at 2.5 miles long (and one place said it was the longest in the world?). It was originally designed to even withstand 150mph winds which is simply incredible. Another neat thing is that it allows cars and trains to travel in both directions which is a unique thing and saved tens of millions of dollars by not constructing another tunnel.

Driving to Whittier in the summer cars leave on the 1/2 hour mark, driving from Whittier cars leave on the hour mark. So if you miss the tunnel at one of those times you will have to wait an hour before the next opening. 

 Driving through the Whittier Tunnel (also known as the Anton Anderson Memorial Tunnel) is a really cool thing. You are literally driving right through the mountain and it is just one of those experiences that is really neat. In many ways it reminded me of driving on the Ocean floor to Minister's Island in New Brunswick, Canada a couple of years ago!

Thank you for stopping by and reading about our Alaskan road trip! I am so excited to share more with y'all as it was truly an incredible trip with amazing and wonderful people! Let me know if y'all have any questions about the Whittier Tunnel! I hope y'all have a great day!

Want to step forward and plan your trip but not sure how? Check out all of the Alaska Road Trip posts from our trips in 2018 and 2019 which you can find them in the Alaska travel section on my blog by clicking HERE or you can click on the specific links below:

 // Alaska 4x4 Rentals Review// 
// A Trip To Remember: Our 9 Day Alaskan Road Trip Itinerary -2018//

//  Best Alaskan Books to Purchase for Your Road Trip //

// What to Pack for an Alaskan Summer Road Trip //
// Why You Should Dream About Visiting Alaska //

// 5 Reasons You Need to Take an Alaskan Road Trip//

Anchorage: // Hyatt Place Anchorage-Midtown Video // Beluga Point // 
// Hyatt Place Anchorage-Midtown// Room 209 Hyatt Place Anchorage-Midtown //
// Anchorage Travel Guide//

Chugach Mountains (Alaska 1-South Drive): // Seward Highway Drive (Turnagain Arm Drive)//
// Along the Matanuska River on Alaska 1-South// A Beautiful Lake Adventure Near Chickaloon//
// A Cloudy & Beautiful Drive on Alaska 1-South//

Chugach Mountains: // Eklutna Lake//

Cooper Landing (Kenai Peninsula): // Kenai Princess Wilderness Lodge Nature Hike// 
// Kenai Princess Wilderness Lodge //

Denali State Park Area: //Talkeetna Alaskan Lodge (Pursuit Collection)// Denali Highway Video// 
// One Last Adventure on the Denali Highway// The Denali Highway: Part Two //
// The Denali Highway: Part One// 
//The Drive to Cantwell// Mt. McKinley Princess Wilderness Lodge //

Girdwood:  // Winner Creek Trail Video// Winner Creek Trail //

Hatcher Pass Area: // Hatcher Pass Video// Hatcher Pass // Little Susitna River //

Homer (Kenai Peninsula) Area: // Homer Video// Homer Spit// Homer Lighthouse// Bishop's Beach//
// A Brief History of Homer //

Kennicott/McCarthy Area: //Root Glacier Hike //Kennicott // Kennicott Glacier // 
// Kennecott vs. Kennicott Spelling // The McCarthy Highway // 
// An Unfortunate Review of the Kennicott Glacier Lodge //

Seward: //Holgate Glacier// Kenai Fjords Whale Watching Tour//
//A Beautiful Morning Walk in Seward// An Evening Walk at Seward Windsong Lodge// 
//Resurrection Roadhouse Restaurant at Seward Windsong Lodge//
//Seward Windsong Lodge// Room 408 at Seward Windsong Lodge//

Seward Highway Area: //Beluga Point// Scenic Seward Highway Drive (Turnagain Arm Drive)//

Talkeetna: //Talkeetna Alaskan Lodge (Pursuit Collection)//

Thompson Pass Area: // Thompson Pass Area Video // Worthington Glacier Hike//
//Worthington Glacier//
// Among the Alaskan Fireweed on A4-S: A Beautiful Symbol of Hope in the Hard Seasons of Life //
// A Brief History of & Drive on Alaska 4-South of the Richardson Highway//Klutina River//
// The Beginning Drive to Thompson Pass// 

Whittier: // Whittier YouTube Video// The Town of Whittier // 
//Whittier Tunnel (Anton Anderson Memorial Tunnel) //

Wrangell-St. Elias Park Area: //The McCarthy Highway // Copper River Princess Lodge //