I would give Haines quadruple smiley faces! It is unspoiled by kitschy gift stores. Go to the brewery!

Visited: May 15, 2016

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This was my favorite port. This quaint town is exactly how I imagine most of Alaska. We took the Chilkat River Adventure and saw moose and eagles. They suit you up in gear to keep you warm and as dry as possible. it was raining but we expected that and had a wonderful time.

Haines was beautiful. What I liked most was how small it was. The views were gorgeous and I appreciated the lack of commercialism. No strings of jewelry stores with souvenir after souvenir shop in this quaint place. It was like looking a bit back in time. We booked a small bus tour through the Grand Princess. The guide shared some interesting stories as we drove a short circuit through Fort Seward and then we stopped at a scenic area for about 15 minutes to take pictures. After that we visited the American Bald Eagle Foundation. They had 3 presentations, one about their 2 resident bald eagles, another that featured their owl in flight and the last about the Alaskan ecosystem that took place in one of the most amazing animal display rooms I have ever seen in a museum. The care they took at the facility was evident and I thought the staff was very informative. Haines may have been a small port but I really enjoyed our time there. In a way it felt unspoiled and how I like to think of Alaska.

This town was absolutely adorable. Exactly how I pictured Alaska to be. We took an excursion through princess that allowed us to go to an animal refuge 45 minutes outside of port. Overall great experience even though princess completely oversold the "intimate" tour. It had rained a lot that morning so we actually drove along side a mud slide, the driver was blown away by it. Lots of eagles along the drive. On the way back, the sun was shining so we got to see the mountain peaks and all the glaciers tucked in the mountains. The guide said it was extremely rare for that part of the rainforest. Ended the day watching a beautiful sunset.

Had a great time. From Skagway we took a forty five minute ride on the Haines Fast Ferry to Haines. It was a nice and interesting trip. In Haines we took a short bus ride to Takshanuk Mountain, where we grabbed our excursion Kawasaki 4 Wheel Drive Mule and proceeded to climb the mountain. It was a fantastic trip highlighted by a great meal halfway up the mountain. I will definitely do the same excursion if we ever get back.