Discounts on Alaska Transportation for Alaska Uncovered Listeners

Jennie runs through the discounts and a couple of favorites to take advantage of planning your 2026 trip (part 1 of 3).

All the podcast discount codes

Park Connection Motorcoach - code: alaskauncovered (5% discount)

GoNorth Car and RV Rental - code: GONOA (mileage package)

Salmonberry Tours

InsureMyTrip (Jennie's affiliate link)

Transcript

 Welcome to the Alaska Uncovered Podcast with me, your host, Jennie Thwing Flaming, my occasional co-host and full-time husband, Jay, and I bring you accurate, helpful, and entertaining information about Alaska Travel and life in Alaska.



Hi everyone, it's Jennie. So today is the third episode of six daily episodes we're doing the last week of this year that are all about planning your 2026 trip and getting a jumpstart on it. So. Uh, just a reminder to get those reviews in this week by the 31st. For the podcast, email the screenshot to me and you'll be entered to win a Tour Saver.

Woo-hoo. Love it. Uh, such a cool prize and thanks again to Scott and Gary and the Alaska Tour Saver for making this giveaway possible. Okay, uh, today and the next two days. The episodes are going to be about discounts and favorites, um, in different parts of Alaska. Today we're starting with statewide things, which are mostly, in fact, they are all transportation related except for one, so I'm gonna talk about that.

But one thing I wanna mention about all three of these episodes and all of the discount codes that we have on the podcast. So not everyone who has been on the podcast or who operates a fantastic tour or lodge in Alaska is able to offer. A discount. So that doesn't mean they aren't awesome, doesn't mean they don't support the pod.

Every single guest that we have ever had or ever will have on this podcast is a company and a group of humans that Jay and I personally stand behind. Discount code or no? There are all kinds of reasons why some companies are and are not able to do this or why the codes and what they are offering you is a little bit different.

So for the most part, in these three episodes, I'm only going to talk about the ones that are offering you a discount code. But there will be a couple exceptions to that, uh, including today and I'll. Explain, uh, why I'm including them. So, of course, you know, going back and covering every company in Alaska that Jay and I believe in is not going to happen in these episodes, and I don't think anyone wants that.

Um, you know, you can certainly join the Patreon planning Club or do one of my planning sessions if you wanna talk about your. Specific situation. So with that, let's get into it. That's gonna be true for the episodes the next two days as well, where we will cover specific parts of the state. Today we're talking about, uh, statewide transportation options and travel insurance.

Um, some of them, like I said, today are not discounts and I'll explain, uh, why I'm including them anyway. Okay. So let's start with something that is so. The Park Connection Bus and. Uh, we had them on the podcast as guests, you know, on April 8th, 2025. That was episode one 18 and we talked about this as a really affordable car-free way to get around Alaska to certain places.

So between Anchorage and TNA and Denali National Park. And down to Seward and Whittier. So for more details about this, go back and listen to that episode. But what I would say for today is that this is a really great option for a lot of people and not enough people know about it. So. You can get a 5% discount on the Park Connection Motor Coach, uh, service.

So that's a bus service. They're really nice coaches. Um, they're awesome. And you're going to use the code Alaska uncovered for that. I am going to put in the show notes for all of these episodes, both my Roundup article on my website that covers all of these discounts, as well as links to the specific, um, companies that I talk about in the episode.

So this is a really, a really great option. The second one I wanted to talk about is Go North Car and RV Rental and Go North is a wonderful company. Um, I have rented vehicles from them several times in the past and both, uh, RVs and cars. So what. I think is important for you to know about Go North is number one.

In addition to RVs, they also let you do one-way rentals for cars and RVs, and they rent, uh, medium and large SUVs in addition to RVs. So even if you're not RVing, this could be a great, uh, way to. Um, get your vehicle. They also allow you to drive on gravel roads. Some of them, they have an additional charge for it, uh, which is very reasonable.

And this is just a great company to work with. They have four locations. They have Anchorage, Fairbanks, Whitehorse, which is in the Yukon Territory and Seattle. So check them out. We are going to have an episode with Go North in. March. So, uh, I wanted, I didn't wanna wait till March for you to know that you do get a deal with them as a podcast listener.

So, first of all, let me explain how it works to book with them, right? So you don't just go on and book a rental car, you fill out an online form, tell 'em what you're looking for, and they get back to you with a quote and kind of what your options are. So if you use the code, go. NOA, that's G-O-N-O-A. You will get a mileage package and basically the way it works is you, they have an unlimited miles option that usually isn't the right fit for most people, uh, for various reasons, but they also have different packages of a certain number of miles per day that you can buy in advance.

And you definitely wanna do that, and you can get one. Mileage package complimentary with that code G-O-N-O-A. So, um, definitely check them out if you're looking to rent a vehicle, and especially if you want to drive it on gravel roads or do a one-way rental. And they are a great place to rent RVs from as well.

Okay. Those are the two, um, discounts I wanted to tell you about, but there are a couple other things I wanted to mention. In this episode that don't have discounts for you but really benefit you in other ways that I want to talk about specifically. One of them is Salmonberry Tours and Mandy, who is one of the two owners of Salmonberry Tours, has been on the podcast twice.

Um. Most recently, she was on the podcast in May of 2025, episode 1 23, and we talked in that episode about getting back and forth to Whittier or Seward for a cruise using Salmonberry. And they are a wonderful, locally owned, woman owned company. They provide a really personal. Experience in a small group, a van or a mini bust, depending on, you know, how many people there are in the exact day.

Wonderful experience. Super local experience for getting back and forth to your crews. So that's what we talked about in the episode. Definitely use them for that. But also Salmonberry has lots of other wonderful tours that they do. Um, they do tours to Matt Nuka Glacier. They do winter tours. We're gonna do an another episode in the fall about winter tours.

So, uh, definitely look to this company. If you're looking for a locally owned company that will take you to some of these really cool places, uh, in South Central Alaska. So, um. They also have tours for around the, um, the Northern Lights. They have tours around. Um, dog mushing. They have an Iditarod tour. Um, and so yeah, check them out.

They are fabulous. And then the other company I wanted to, and let them know that you heard about them on the podcast too. So another, uh, company I wanted to talk to to you about is travel insurance. So you probably know that I never miss an opportunity to talk about travel insurance. Um, it doesn't. It doesn't matter a ton where you get your travel insurance.

Right. But I like to use Insure My Trip and it is a broker and you can compare plans. You can also just call them and explain your situation and get the right plan, which is what I really love about it. 'cause I'm often doing kind of weird things. So, um, they came on. Episode 60, which was in April of 2024.

So if you're unsure about travel insurance or you're like, do I really need that? Yes you do. You, everyone needs travel insurance for Alaska. Um, medical care is just too expensive, um, to not have it. And also many things are, uh, not refundable and or have very strict cancellation policies in Alaska. That's normal.

So make sure that you are. Uh, protecting yourself and your investment in your trip. So I'll put, um, my link to them in the show notes, but again, the company is called Ensure My Trip. Alright, I'm gonna wrap that up here for today. Tomorrow we'll talk about Southeast Alaska and then we'll talk about South Central and Denali.

Um, and a couple other things, um, on the third day.

I'll talk to you tomorrow.  📍 Bye for now.



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