I want to move to ANCHORAGE,ALASKA!!! WHERE DO I START?????

[nynubianqt]

Iam 22 yrs old no kids,I have put my mind to moving to Alaska. Its like fate I thought about it one day next thing you know im meeting people left & right from there seeing shows about it!LOL Im scared I live and VA and I have a ton of questions! Like: Will I be able to find a job in Customer Service? And an decent apartment?? Should I drive or fly or Cruise??? How much money should i save before moving?? Is it posible to have a job lined up before I get there. How are the people?? What are the benefits? Should I get my Degree before I move there or are there good colleges there! Do I need a passport??(doubt it) Can I settle there?? I know its cold, Im from NY I can handle it. Gosh I need help. Someone who knows about alaska.Thanks so much!

[CandyApple]

I flew from Anchorage to Austin, leaving everything (including a car) behind that couldn't be brought aboard the plane. I left two packages with someone who later shipped them to me.

If you're going through Canada (driving), these days you'll need a passport. You do NOT need one to fly to Alaska, not sure about the cruise (if it doesn't stop in Canada, there'd be no problem, if it does, I have no idea). You will need a government ID (state, military, etc.), though. Edit: Can't remember if getting from Haines to Anchorage has you go through Canada or not... Be sure to ask the cruise line before you book your trip!

I don't know where you are in Virginia, but driving from Alexandria, VA, to Anchorage is 4285.3 miles, according to Yahoo maps. Basically, it'd be like driving cross country twice to get there, that's how far it is. If you get 20 MPG it'd be over 210 gallons of gas, or $630 at $3.00/gallon (not counting going off the path to explore, going the wrong way and having to backtrack, etc.). You also have to factor in motel and/or campground fees and eating out/gas station food. Costs will vary depending on how long you want to take getting there.

For three people going one way, I got tickets from Anchorage to Austin for like $1200 (~$400 each), but I think I got a kid's discount on one (not sure). Call the airlines to see how much it costs. You can check 2 items @50lbs. each, plus you get your carry on(s).

From USATODAY.com - Most tourists cruise to Alaska, but you can take your car

Car ferries:

• Alaska Marine Highway System ferries — Alaska Marine Highway System :: Alaska DOT&PF or (800) 642-0066 — depart from Bellingham, not far from Seattle, and from Prince Rupert. From Bellingham, you'll sail through the Inside Passage in southeast Alaska to Haines or Skagway. The trip takes about four days. Two adults with a car traveling on a peak July weekend runs about $1,400. To reach the Alaska Highway from Haines, drive the Haines Highway to Haines Junction. To reach the Alaska Highway from Skagway, drive the Klondike Highway to Whitehorse in the Yukon.

If you're excited about the prospect of a long cruise or drive, and the beautiful scenery, it might be worth taking that route. If the logistics are making you stressed, I'd just take the plane and save the grand tour for when you don't have so much to worry about.

Another thing to take into consideration is your stuff. If you head out to the airline and have something too big (it won't fit through the magic checked baggage hole, the size of which they neglect to mention over the phone), even if it's within the allowable number of linear inches (height + width + depth = 62" max total on the airline I flew), you will have to stand in a DIFFERENT line for oversized baggage for an extra hour to check it, causing you to miss your flight. Be sure to have someone come with you to the airport in case you run into problems (better your friend end up with your stuff than the airline or the dumpster, right?)

When I was moving from Alaska, the minimum charge any mover I called quoted was over $1000. That means, no matter how little stuff you have, they won't charge less than that. So, if you just have a few things that need moving that you can't drag along with you, have someone hold onto it and mail to you when you get there. Of course, I don't know how much postage will cost... When someone inquired about sending me my bicycle through the mail, they were told it would be ~$300, about $100 more than what the bike was purchased for new! (I think it had something to do with it being "oversized").

If you drive, would you be willing to haul a trailer behind you that far, taking into account the added difficulties of finding suitable parking when you're hauling a trailer, plus the cost of either renting or buying one? If not, depending on your vehicle, you might not get too much more stuff in your car than on the plane.

The big question is, what to do with your stuff? How much do you have? If you were to sell it/give it away now, would you need to replace it later? Would it cost more to ship it, or buy it over again new/used?

I wish I had started paring down my stuff first, then researching where to move to, because my house was so cluttered with junk I would've been better off with less stuff anyway. It would've given me more time to sell things, instead of having to give a lot of stuff (even relatively valuable stuff) away at the last moment. And it would have allowed me to more carefully choose what to bring with me. There's a few things I would've left behind, and a few I would've kept if I hadn't been frantically packing the day of departure... Once you try packing your stuff in a very limited number of boxes, you realize you can't fit quite as much as you thought, and you start to prioritize a bit better.