Working a summer in Alaska is a very popular choice for seasonal work. There are tons of different types of jobs, companies to work for, and locations to choose from. To give you an idea of what it is like to specifically work in Seward, Alaska for the summer, I interviewed my friend Audrey who spent her summer season working at Kenai Fjords Tours.
Photo Credits: Josh McCausland
Q: What was your summer job in Alaska?
A: I worked in Seward, Alaska for the summer. I was front desk supervisor at Kenai Fjords Tours.
Q: How did you find the job?
A: CoolWorks! When I originally started looking for a job in Alaska, I had applied and interviewed here, but then I ended up taking [a different job]. A friend that I worked with [at that job] had worked [at Kenai Fjord Tours] the summer before. He was telling me about his experience and I saw on CoolWorks that they were still looking for a front desk supervisor. I reached out and said, “Hey, I interviewed for a job five months ago and if you are still hiring I am interested.” That’s how I ended up getting the job.
Q: Did you need any experience for the job?
A: [Yes, but only] because it was a supervisor role. I needed previous front desk/costumer service experience, which I had.
Q: What was your pay and working schedule?
A: Pay was $17/hr as a supervisor, 40 hours a week, 5 days a week. The schedule varied depending on what point in the season we were in. During high season we would open at 7:00am and close at 9:00pm. The slower [part of the] season, we wouldn’t open till 8:00am or 9:00am and then close at 6:00pm. We always wanted to have a supervisor on duty so [I worked] either opening or closing shift.
Photo Credits: Simon Kadula
Q: What was a day in the life like?
A: I’d wake up, walk to work, and normally I would [have the] morning shift. We would do organizational things; check the white board of what boats were going out, who was captaining those boats, who was deck-handing those boats, and then transferring the data from the computer onto the whiteboard so that the captains would know how many people to expect, and the deckhands would know how many to prepare lunch for.
During high season we open at 7:00am and for people going on the 8:00am tour we tell them to get there an hour before, so there is a line out the door before we even open. When we open the doors we check everyone in. People come in, we given them their ticket, tell them the rules, tell them to listen for the boarding call, and to wait outside. We try to do that as quickly as we can because we are trying to check in hundreds of people within a 3 hour widow… we are usually checking people in until noon. It can get very chaotic.
I was the communication between the office and the captains. They had to wait for me to have clearance to depart. We would make the announcement to board when it was 30 minutes prior to departure. Then the deckhands would count how many people were getting on and once they had the right amount of people I’d say, "Okay you have 112 adults and 6 kids, you are good to go." After all the boats are gone we start preparing for the next day; writing the boarding tickets, taking reservations, phone calls, and then its a lot of waiting honestly…standing around.
Q: Can you give an overview of the staff you worked with?
A: Age wise, 20-30s or so, but the majority were probably mid to upper 20s. We had a few younger/early 20s. A lot of them were return workers. The company itself is seasonal so they are not open in the winter. [There] were the four main departments; front desk, gift shop, deckhands, and warehouse. The captains, who were more established, worked year round.
Q: What were the biggest perks of the job?
A: You could go on free tours all the time, so you got to see lots of wildlife… orcas, humpbacks, porpoises, goats along the fjords, puffins… And, since [the company] is owned by Pursuit, a bigger corporation that has different locations, we got a Seward gym membership and big discounts at other Pursuit locations in Alaska. For my birthday some friends and I went down to Talkeetna and staid at the lodge for a very discounted rate. We also got an airplane ride over Denali for $30. It was amazing.
Q: What were the most frustrating parts of the job?
A: Frustrating customers... We have to release the boats at the time they are suppose to leave, even if the people who paid a couple hundred dollars for their tickets aren’t on the boat. We would tell the guests to get here in plenty of time but without fail, at least every other day, someone would miss their tour, and we can’t give them a refund. Sometimes they were very understanding but more often then not they were mad and I am the one that has to deliver that news.
[Also], there is a lot of down time. So, I would read books... there was a phase where I was learning Morse Code for a while… sometimes it was excruciating, just standing there and having nothing to do. You are just trying to kill time.
Photo Credits: Jackson Wilson
Q: Were housing and food provided?
A: Housing was free, [but] food was not included. [Staff lived in what] was called the bunkhouse. Imagine a motel [packed with] 60 people. There are two bunkbeds with 4 people in a room and there is a bathroom in each room. We all had one big kitchen and [laundry, wifi, and other amenities were included]. Food was very expensive in Seward and you had to pay for and make your own food. The bunkhouse is next to Safeway, the grocery store, and its a 10 minute walk... it was very expensive.
Q: What was it like living with the Midnight Sun?
A: I feel like I never truly got to experience [the midnight sun] because it was always so overcast. Even when it was 10:00pm, it was dark and gloomy. You could tell it wasn’t fully dark, like nighttime dark, but it felt like it was. I wish I got to experience it more but there were only truly 5 or 6 nights I was like, “Whoa, its late and its light outside!” It was so rare.
Q: How did you get around Seward?
A: Seward is a very walkable city, it's a small city. [Employee housing] to work was only a few blocks away. But if you wanted to go anywhere else [outside of Seward] you would have to have a car.
Q: What did you like most about living in Alaska?
A: The ruggedness and the nature! If you are big into nature and mountains [it's a great place to be]. And the fjords… I had never really seen fjords like that before. The nature and natural beauty is unmatched.
Q: What did you dislike about living in Seward?
A: It was summer, but I think I saw more sun in the winter in Alaska because it was always overcast. I am not exaggerating. Maybe 8 days out of the whole summer you could see blue sky or sun. Seward is known to be really rainy but that year especially was rough.
In the city, if you don't have a car you could feel very trapped there because you can only walk to so many places. The city is small so once you have explored everything... you have explored everything. I felt kind of trapped there, I could not go and do the hiking and camping and things I wanted to without a car, so that was challenging.
Photo Credits: Daniel Tong
Q: Would you recommend living and working in Seward?
A: Yes? It depends, because my experience there was good but the weather was rough. I would not dissuade anyone from doing it. The company itself… There is good things and bad things about being a bigger operation. The management is high up so they don't see the difficulties the individual employees are going though. For example, for front desk, there sometimes had to be 6 people on at all times even though we were all just standing there for hours [doing nothing].
Q: Is there anything you wish you knew before moving to Alaska for the summer?
A: I did not have proper expectations for the summer. It did not feel like summer, it was cold and rainy. I love overcast and rainy days, but you have to balance them out with sun [so it] feels like summer. [Also] to manage my expectations of what it was like to not have a car. When I worked in [a more remote location in Alaska] I did not miss my car at all. Whereas in Seward… I just felt like there was nowhere for me to go.
Q: Any packing tips for someone heading to Alaska?
A: Pack less than you think you need. There's so many thrift shops you can go to and find things for cheap if you are really in need of something. There were items of clothing that I never even touched because you just find yourself not using them. I tried to pack very minimalist.
Q: Would you work in Alaska again?
A: Yes but somewhere more sunny. Seward is a great place to go visit, it’s beautiful but maybe not to live, unless its a sunnier summer.
Conclusion
There are plenty of options when it comes to finding a seasonal job in Alaska. Your experience may not be exactly the same as Audrey's but hopefully her time working in Seward will help give you an idea of what to expect if you are headed that way. Thank you so much to Audrey for sitting down with me and not only talking about her time in the summer but also working in Alaska during the winter.