Whittier, Alaska: Complete Guide to the Gateway to Prince William Sound

Key facts

Population is around 260, and roughly 180 of them live in Begich Towers, a single 14-storey condominium that also holds the post office, a grocery, a laundromat and the police department.
The only road in is the Anton Anderson Memorial Tunnel, a single-lane, one-direction- at-a-time tunnel shared with the Alaska Railroad.
Whittier gets roughly 196 inches of precipitation a year — one of the wettest climates in the United States — but Passage Canal itself stays ice-free year-round.
Three of the five cruises on this site depart from Whittier: the 26 Glacier Cruise, Glacier Quest, and the small-group Blackstone Bay trip.

Why Whittier exists where it does

Whittier sits at the head of Passage Canal, a deep, sheltered fjord that the U.S. Army chose during World War II specifically because it stays ice-free and is hidden from the open Gulf of Alaska by mountains on every side. The military built the tunnel and a rail line to move fuel and troops without being seen from the sea, and two large concrete buildings — one of them, the Buckner Building, still standing — housed most of the garrison under one roof so nobody had to go outside in the winter.

That instinct never really left. When the town incorporated, most of the civilian population moved into Begich Towers, a 14-storey building put up in 1957 as military housing, and it is still where about 180 of Whittier’s roughly 260 residents live today. The building’s ground floor and basement hold a post office, a small grocery store, a laundromat, the police station, a clinic and a church — genuinely a town under one roof, not a tourist exaggeration. The Buckner Building itself, badly damaged in the 1964 Good Friday earthquake, still looms over the harbour; it is fenced off and unsafe to enter, but it is very much part of the view.

Getting there and the tunnel, in brief

Whittier is about 60 miles from Anchorage — an hour and a quarter of driving — except that the last stretch runs through the Anton Anderson Memorial Tunnel, 2.5 miles long, one lane, shared with the Alaska Railroad, and open to cars in only one direction at a time on a fixed half-hourly schedule. There is a toll of about $13 charged only on the way in, and parking in town runs roughly $15–20 for the day.

That single fact shapes almost every visitor’s day here, from what time you can leave Anchorage to when you have to head back. Our full breakdown of the tunnel schedule, tolls and transfer options covers it in detail — this guide assumes you’ve read that or are about to.

The glacier cruises

Whittier is a small harbour, but it is a working one, and cruise boats outnumber almost everything else tied up at the dock. Three sailings on this site leave from here:

The 26 Glacier Cruise is the flagship — a 5.5-hour run on a Phillips high-speed catamaran through Passage Canal and Esther Passage into College Fjord, the densest run of tidewater ice reachable in a day here, rated 4.8 from 195 guests. The shorter Glacier Quest covers Blackstone Bay in four hours with a Forest Service ranger narrating. The small-group Blackstone cruise works the same bay in a much smaller boat that actually lands on a beach — it is a new listing with no verified reviews yet, which is worth weighing against the two established options.

Our Whittier vs Valdez comparison goes through all five sailings on the Sound, not just the Whittier three, if you haven’t picked a port yet.

Things to do beyond the cruise dock

Most visitors are here for a matter of hours, but Whittier has a few things worth the extra half day if you have it.

Portage Pass Trail starts a short walk from the harbour and climbs about two miles over a low pass used historically by Alaska Natives and prospectors, ending at a gravel beach on Portage Lake with a direct view of Portage Glacier — a four-mile round trip with real elevation gain, and one of the only hikes in the area that doesn’t require a boat.

Horsetail Falls, reached from a trailhead behind the Buckner Building on Reservoir Road, is a shorter option with waterfall and fjord views.

Sea kayaking is a genuine local specialty — Whittier’s harbour is the standard launch point for trips into Blackstone Bay, home to two tidewater glaciers (Blackstone and Beloit), and outfitters here run everything from half-day paddles to multi-day guided camping trips.

The Prince William Sound Museum, inside the Anchor Inn building near the harbour, covers the town’s Cold War military history — the context for both Begich Towers and the Buckner Building — in more depth than a plaque ever could.

Where to eat and stay

Whittier’s food and lodging scene is small by design; most people who come for a cruise never spend a night. Swiftwater Seafood Cafe, open since 1997 on the harbour, is the long-standing local favourite — fish and chips, chowder and burgers, eaten on a covered deck looking at the boats. Lazy Otter Café and the Wild Catch Cafe cover breakfast and casual lunch closer to the small-boat harbour.

Lodging is limited and it shifts: the Inn at Whittier has been closed to overnight guests for renovations, so most visitors who do stay a night book a condo unit inside Begich Towers or one of the town’s small bed-and-breakfasts rather than a conventional hotel. Check current availability before assuming a room exists — Whittier has fewer beds than a town its size would usually have, because it wasn’t built to hold overnight tourists in the first place.

Weather and best time to visit

Whittier is genuinely one of the wetter places in the United States: roughly 196 inches of precipitation a year, spread fairly evenly across the seasons with December the wettest month and June the driest. None of that stops the cruises — every operator here sails rain or shine in an enclosed, heated boat — but it does mean packing for rain regardless of the forecast, and it explains why locals treat a sunny day as an event worth mentioning.

The cruise season runs roughly May to mid-September. Our guide to the best time for a Prince William Sound cruise covers what actually changes month to month — daylight, wildlife, crowds and price.

A one-day Whittier plan

For most visitors, a Whittier day looks like this: drive or transfer in through the tunnel, check in for your cruise an hour before departure, spend the sailing on the water, and use whatever time is left before the return tunnel window on one short activity — Portage Pass if you have three hours, Horsetail Falls or a walk through town if you have one. Eating on the harbour deck at Swiftwater before or after the cruise is the easiest way to use a spare thirty minutes well.

Practical planning checklist

Confirm your cruise’s exact check-in time and work backwards from the tunnel schedule, not the departure time.
Book lodging early if you’re staying a night — Begich Towers condo units and the town’s small B&Bs are limited and the Inn at Whittier is currently closed to guests.
Bring cash or a card for the tunnel toll (~~$13) and parking (~~$15–20); neither is included in any cruise fare.
Pack for rain regardless of the forecast — Whittier’s climate is genuinely one of the wettest in the country.
If you want a hike, decide between Portage Pass (half-day, real elevation, glacier view) and Horsetail Falls (shorter, closer to the harbour) before you arrive.
Treat the Buckner Building as a photograph, not a destination — it is fenced and unsafe to enter.

Who this guide is for

First-time visitors trying to understand what Whittier actually is, beyond “the town where the cruise leaves from”
Anyone curious about Begich Towers or the town’s Cold War military history
Travellers deciding whether to stay a night in Whittier or treat it as a pure day trip
Cruise passengers with a few spare hours before or after a sailing

Frequently asked questions

How many people live in Whittier, Alaska?

About 260, and roughly 180 of them live in a single 14-storey building, Begich Towers, which also houses the post office, a grocery store, a laundromat and the police department.

Why does almost everyone in Whittier live in one building?

Begich Towers was built in 1957 as military housing, when the U.S. Army ran Whittier as a fuel and supply port and kept most of the garrison indoors through the winter. When the town incorporated, most residents simply stayed in the building, and it remains easier to maintain one heated structure through Whittier’s wet, cold winters than a town of individual houses.

What is the Buckner Building?

An abandoned six-storey military barracks, badly damaged in the 1964 Good Friday earthquake and never repaired. It’s fenced off and unsafe to enter, but it’s a genuine Cold War relic and one of the most photographed sights in town from the outside.

Is Whittier worth visiting beyond the cruise?

For most people, a few spare hours is enough — a walk to Horsetail Falls, food on the harbour deck at Swiftwater, or a look at Begich Towers and the Buckner Building. The Portage Pass hike rewards a half day if you have one. Few visitors need a full extra day in town itself.

Where do people stay overnight in Whittier?

Options are limited: condo units inside Begich Towers, a handful of small bed-and-breakfasts, and the Inn at Whittier when it’s open (it’s currently closed for renovations). Most cruise passengers don’t stay a night at all — Whittier works well as a day trip from Anchorage.

Is Whittier a rainy place?

Yes — genuinely one of the wettest climates in the United States, at roughly 196 inches of precipitation a year. December is the wettest month and June the driest, but every cruise here sails regardless of weather in an enclosed, heated boat.

Can I get to Whittier without driving through the tunnel?

Not by road — the Anton Anderson Tunnel is the only road link. The Alaska Railroad also runs to Whittier and some cruise packages include a rail transfer from Anchorage instead of driving. See our getting there guide for the full transport comparison.

Whittier, Alaska: The Complete Guide