White Pass & Yukon Route

The White Pass & Yukon Route is one of the most spectacular mountain railroads in North America, offering breathtaking excursions through the rugged wilderness of the Alaska Panhandle. Built between 1898 and 1900 to serve prospectors streaming into the Klondike Gold Rush, this narrow gauge railroad climbs from sea level in Skagway, Alaska, to an elevation of 2,888 feet at White Pass Summit over just 20 miles of track — an engineering achievement hailed internationally at the time of its completion. The railroad traverses sheer cliff faces, crosses steel cantilever bridges, and winds through dramatic mountain passes that saw thousands of gold seekers during the late 1890s. Today, it is a designated International Historic Civil Engineering Landmark and a centerpiece of the Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park. Vintage parlor cars, scenic dome cars, and open-air observation platforms provide stunning views of waterfalls, glaciers, and dense boreal forest. The railroad operates a range of excursions from May through September, including the Summit Excursion, the Fraser Meadows Adventure, and multi-day packages connecting to Whitehorse, Yukon.