2022-05-21: Anchorage, Alaska

We woke up around 7:30 this morning. We hopped through the shower and headed to the restaurant in the hotel for some breakfast. They provided a standard continental buffet breakfast with a couple of warm items such as bacon and sausage, but they made eggs and omelets to order if desired.

After breakfast, we returned to our room and repacked our suitcases. We headed down to the lobby and checked out of the hotel. We asked the front desk to call us a cab to the airport and headed outside to wait. As we stepped through the doors, we saw a taxi pull up and a couple that was waiting outside hopped in. A minute later, they hopped out of the taxi and the driver asked if we needed a ride. So, we hopped in. Apparently the couple had requested the taxi without realizing their destination was only about a block away.

We arrived at the airport shortly before 10:00am. Darrell had checked us in for the flight from the hotel the night before but the Alaska Airlines site wouldn’t give us the boarding passes because they needed to verify some documentation. We tried to use one of the check-in kiosks in the airport and it asked us to scan our passports but wouldn’t accept the passports for some reason. So, off to the check-in agents we went. Luckily, the airport was quiet so we only had to wait a minute in line. The agent got us checked in without issue and took our suitcases. We walked through security, found our gate, and settled in for the next hour and a half.

Our flight started to board shortly before noon and before long we were in the air. The flight was uneventful and we arrived in Seattle about three and a half hours later. Alaska Airlines messed with our flights a few weeks before we left which left us with a four and a half hour layover in Seattle. Yay….

The Seattle Airport is pretty easy to navigate. We had to take a train to the main terminal and found our next gate pretty easily. We walked around the airport checking out options for dinner. Due to supply chain issues, many of the restaurants were offering limited menus which disappointed us. We finally decided we’d try a place called Africa Lounge. The food was a little disappointing but it filled the stomach.

Our flight wasn’t scheduled to leave until 9:30pm, so we returned to our gate and waited for the flight to board. Around 8:30pm they started getting the gate ready and asked all passengers to show the gate agents their passports and ArriveCan receipt before boarding started. It amazed us how many people were unaware that they had to complete the ArriveCan information. They also informed everyone that it was a smaller plane and the roller suitcases many people like to bring as carryon luggage won’t fit. You would have to gate check those bags. We don’t have those bags, so it wasn’t an issue for us. When the time came, we boarded the plane. It was a small turboprop plane that was parked on the tarmac so we had to walk down a ramp and onto the tarmac to board. Again, we were amazed how many people hadn’t checked their roller suitcases at the gate and were surprised when they got turned away at the plane. We just shook our heads. We boarded the plane and the plane took off on time. An hour and half later, we landed back home in Calgary.

It was just after midnight when we landed. Customs was dead at that hour so we got processed through rather quickly. Waiting for our suitcases took quite a bit longer. They did finally show up and we made our way out of the airport. Darrell’s Dad was waiting in the airport’s cellphone lot. Once we were outside, he picked us up and drove us home. Our excursion to Alaska was officially over.