Things to do / Travel Guide
The Alaska Panhandle consists of a relatively thin strip of coastline, backed by glaciated peaks, along with many offshore islands, located west of the Canadian province of British Columbia. Local residents refer to the Panhandle region as “Southeast.” The area south of Glacier Bay is made up of thousands of islands and is known as the Alexander Archipelago. It is this group of islands that protect the inland coastal waterways from rough seas, and are called the Inside Passage.
The total land area of the Alaska Panhandle is approximately 10,000 square miles. There are few roads in the Panhandle; the cities and towns are not connected by roads, except for Haines, Skagway, and Hyder, which are connected by road to the mainland. The remainder of the Alaska Panhandle is “connected” to the mainland solely by means of ferry service, which, depending on the season, can range anywhere from a couple times a day to a few times a month. As such, most visitors arrive to the Panhandle via cruise ship.
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