Trip from Haines, AK to Kenai, AK

Drive Time

17h 35m

Distance

912.7 mi

1,469 km

Drive Score

7/10

Good drive

Same Day?

2-day trip

Fuel Cost

$199

one way

EV Charging

station data

Best Time to Leave

Save up to 47 min

4 AM

17h 20m ★

6 AM

17h 35m

8 AM

18h 7m

10 AM

17h 47m

12 PM

17h 43m

3 PM

17h 48m

5 PM

18h 6m

8 PM

17h 26m

Estimated drive times based on typical traffic patterns. Actual times may vary with weather, construction, and real-time conditions.

Best Time Drive vs Fly

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Haines, AK

Tima Miroshnichenko

Kenai, AK

Tima Miroshnichenko

Trip Overview

Spanning 912.7 miles across Alaska, this journey from Haines to Kenai is a significant long-distance undertaking that requires careful planning. You should budget approximately 17 hours and 35 minutes of actual driving time, making it impossible to complete safely in a single day. Given the length of the trek, we strongly recommend splitting the trip over two days to avoid driver fatigue. With an estimated fuel cost of $199, you will want to keep a close eye on your tank throughout the journey. This route transitions you across vast Alaskan landscapes, moving from the coastal environment of Haines toward the Kenai Peninsula. It is a serious commitment that rewards those who prepare for the long haul.

Trip Pace

Best split across 2 days

Treat the return leg as its own travel day rather than an afterthought.

Break Rhythm

5 planned breaks

Plan on a short reset every 3 to 4 hours to stay fresh behind the wheel.

Midpoint

456.4 miles from Haines, AK

A natural place for your longest stop of the day , about 8h 47m into the drive .

Drive Character

Expect a demanding experience behind the wheel, as this 912.7-mile route does not rely on interstate highways. You will navigate a mix of local roads, including stretches of 2nd Avenue, Main Street, and the Haines Hwy Cut-Off, meaning your pace will fluctuate considerably. Because the highway share is 0%, you should prepare for a driving experience defined by surface roads rather than high-speed cruising. The road's personality changes as you move through these different Alaskan corridors, requiring constant attention and navigation. Be ready for a steady, focused drive that demands patience as you cover the distance between these two points.

Expect a mix of faster highway mileage and slower local approaches near the beginning or end.

There are about 22 navigation steps in the underlying route data, so the final approach matters more than the middle miles.

2nd Avenue is one of the defining roads on this drive.

How Hard Is This Drive?

At 17h 35m, this is a long-haul route where pacing matters more than any single turn. This route has several spots where lane changes, forks, or exits need your full attention.

Route Complexity 7/10

Demanding - plan breaks and stay ahead of the key maneuvers

This is a demanding drive. With 0 significant decision points across 912.7 miles, you will need to stay alert — especially through interchange areas and urban stretches. Consider splitting it into segments if you are not comfortable with fast highway navigation.

Where does it get tricky?

This route does not have any notably tricky sections. Most of the drive from Haines, AK to Kenai, AK is straightforward, with well-signed roads and simple exits.

Main Roads

Road	Distance	Duration
2nd Avenue	Unavailable	Refreshing
Main Street	Unavailable	Refreshing
Haines Hwy Cut-Off	Unavailable	Refreshing
Haines Highway	Unavailable	Refreshing
Haines Road	Unavailable	Refreshing
Alaska Highway	Unavailable	Refreshing
Tok Cutoff	Unavailable	Refreshing
Richardson Highway	Unavailable	Refreshing

Per-road distance and duration are being refreshed from OSRM for this route.

Longest stretch: 2nd Avenue — detailed segment metrics are refreshing.

Turn-by-Turn Driving Directions

Step-by-step road directions between Haines, AK and Kenai, AK.

Start on Dalton Street

49 ft · 4 sec · Dalton Street

Turn right onto 2nd Avenue

381 ft · 7 sec · 2nd Avenue

Turn right onto Main Street

0.7 mi · 48 sec · Main Street

Continue on Haines Hwy Cut-Off

0.2 mi · 12 sec · Haines Hwy Cut-Off

Continue on Haines Highway

85 mi · 1 hr 47 min · Haines Highway

Continue on Haines Road

62 mi · 1 hr 15 min · Haines Road

Turn left onto Alaska Highway

291 mi · 6 hr 30 min · Alaska Highway

Turn left onto Tok Cutoff

122 mi · 2 hr 33 min · Tok Cutoff

At the end of the road, turn left onto Richardson Highway

14 mi · 16 min · Richardson Highway

Turn right onto Glenn Highway

147 mi · 3 hr 3 min · Glenn Highway

Merge slight left onto East Parks Highway

515 ft · 6 sec · East Parks Highway

Continue on Glenn Highway

33 mi · 38 min · Glenn Highway

Continue on East 5th Avenue

1.5 mi · 3 min · East 5th Avenue

Turn left onto Gambell Street

1.1 mi · 2 min · Gambell Street

Continue on Seward Highway

88 mi · 1 hr 45 min · Seward Highway

Take the exit slight right

58 mi · 1 hr 26 min

Turn right onto Kalifornsky Beach Road

6.0 mi · 8 min · Kalifornsky Beach Road

Turn right onto Bridge Access Road

3.3 mi · 5 min · Bridge Access Road

Turn left onto Kenai Spur Highway

0.5 mi · 1 min · Kenai Spur Highway

Turn left onto Broad Street

92 ft · 6 sec · Broad Street

Turn right onto Frontage Road

466 ft · 20 sec · Frontage Road

Arrive at your destination

Trip Plan

To tackle this 17-hour and 35-minute drive effectively, plan for at least five distinct stops to stretch your legs and manage your fuel consumption. Leaving at dawn is your best strategy to maximize daylight hours, especially since you need to account for an overnight stay to break up the 912.7-mile trek. Because you are navigating surface roads, keep a buffer in your schedule for slower-than-expected segments. Always verify your fuel status before departing Haines, as the $199 estimated cost is only a baseline that can fluctuate based on specific station availability along the route. Prioritize finding a comfortable midway point for your overnight rest to ensure you arrive in Kenai alert and ready to enjoy your destination.

Morning Departure

Start early — leave by 6-7 AM to arrive at a reasonable hour.

Evening Departure

This is a long drive — plan for a morning departure or consider splitting it into two days.

This drive is better paced as a 2-day trip.

Plan roughly 5 meaningful breaks for fuel, food, and rest.

The halfway point lands around 456.4 miles from Haines, AK, or about 8h 47m into the drive.

Consider an overnight stop or starting very early.

Departure

Before you leave

Start with fuel, water, and navigation already sorted so the first hour feels easy.

First stop

Around 201 miles or 3h 52m in

Use this first pause for coffee, a restroom break, and a quick traffic check ahead.

Halfway reset

Around 456.4 miles or 8h 47m in

This is the best place for your longest stop, a real meal, and a full fuel check.

Overnight split

Day 1 wrap after about 456.4 miles or 8h 47m

Stop before fatigue turns the last few hours into a grind. You want day two to start fresh, not just resumed.

Final approach

Final hour starts around 16h 26m

Traffic, exits, and arrival timing usually matter more near Kenai, AK than in the middle of the route.

Before You Leave

Open the route before leaving Haines, AK so your first major turns are already loaded.

Leave with enough water and a charging cable within reach, not packed away.

Check your fuel range against the first long segment, especially if you are starting outside city service areas.

Pick one backup stop option before the midpoint in case traffic changes your pacing.

Treat this as a 2-day road trip and book the overnight stop before the busiest arrival window.

Day 1

Settle into the route from Haines, AK

Aim for roughly 456 miles and 8.8 hours of wheel time on this day.

Day 2

Finish the approach into Kenai, AK

Aim for roughly 456 miles and 8.8 hours of wheel time on this day.

Your first comfortable stop window is around 201 miles from Haines, AK.

This route usually feels better as a 2-day drive than as one long push.

Plan about 5 real breaks rather than only quick fuel stops.

Where to Stop

Rest stops, refuel points, and overnight suggestions along this route.

Halfway Point

Midpoint

About 456.4 mi from Haines, AK · 8h 47m into the drive

First major stop

Coffee and fuel

Tok, AK

301 mi into the route

Best for: Coffee, fuel, and an easy first stretch

This is a natural early stop once the first hours of the drive are behind you.

Popular next leg

Tok, AK to Kenai, AK

474.5 mi · 8h 36m

Second major stop

Overnight candidate

Palmer, AK

602 mi into the route

Best for: Hotel check-in, dinner, and a fresh start

This lines up well with a realistic day-end stop if you are breaking the drive into stages.

Find hotels in Palmer, AK

Overnight Options

Night 1

Cordova, AK

456 mi · about 8.8h in

A practical overnight split lands near Cordova, AK after about 456 miles or 8.8 hours of driving.

Find hotels

Pacing Suggestions

First break window

Fuel and coffee

A short stop after about 201 miles helps settle the day before fatigue starts building.

Cordova, AK

Meal break

The midpoint is around 456.4 miles from Haines, AK, which is a good place for a longer meal and fuel stop.

Overnight split

Hotel stop

For a steadier pace, wrap day one after about 456 miles or 8.8 hours on the road.

Final-third reset

Rest stop

Plan one more short stretch-and-water break in the final third of the drive so the last arrival window feels easier.

Arriving in Kenai, AK

The final approach into Kenai, AK usually feels slower than the middle of the drive, so avoid planning your tightest schedule at the very end.

Try to arrive with enough fuel left to skip an immediate station stop unless you already know the area around Kenai, AK.

On a multi-day trip, keep the last day a little lighter so you reach Kenai, AK with some flexibility left in the schedule.

These stop ideas are pacing suggestions — the exact town or exit can change with traffic, hotel plans, and fuel range.

Fuel & Cost

Regular Gas

$198.64 one way

$397.28 round trip

$5.53/gal 25.4 MPG avg 319 kg CO₂

Fuel Type	$/gal	One Way	Round Trip
midgrade	$5.82	$208.95	$417.90
premium	$6.02	$216.39	$432.78
diesel	$5.64	$202.77	$405.54

No toll roads detected on this route.

Estimated Trip Cost (one way, 1 person)

Fuel

$199

Hotel (1n)

$80–$140

Meals

$50–$100

Total

$329–$439

Rough estimate based on US averages. Hotel $80–$140/night, meals $25–$50/day.

Estimated CO2 emission: 319.3 kg one way. Prices: EIA weekly data, 2026-04-06.

Driving Electric?

About $96 in charging · 3 stops · 66% less CO₂

Vehicle Type	kWh	Stops	DC Fast	Home Charge
Average EV	273.8	3	$95.83	$43.81
Efficient EV	228.2	2	$79.86	$36.51
EV Truck/SUV	365.1	4	$127.78	$58.41

Gas CO2

319 kg

EV CO2

107 kg (66% less)

Plan for 3 charging stops, roughly every 270 miles. Allow 25-40 minutes per stop at a DC fast charger.

DC fast charging avg $0.35/kWh. Home charging avg $0.16/kWh. US grid CO2: 0.39 kg/kWh.

Travel Intel

Current conditions at both ends of the drive.

Forecast data refreshed 3 years ago

Origin

Haines, AK

Afternoon in Haines on Sunday

Local time

4:30 PM

AKDT

Current temp

76°F

Unavailable

Live forecast

Destination

Kenai, AK

Afternoon in Kenai on Sunday

Local time

4:30 PM

AKDT

Current temp

27°F

Unavailable

Live forecast

Along the Route

4°F

Tok, AK

301 mi in

27°F

Palmer, AK

602 mi in

Seasonal Notes

Summer travel usually means heavier construction, hotter rest stops, and busier weekend traffic around major cities.

Winter travel shortens daylight, so a route that looks manageable on paper can feel much longer after dark.

Holiday weekends tend to make both departure and arrival windows slower than the raw route time suggests.

For long drives, weather on day two can matter just as much as conditions at departure, so check the whole travel window rather than only the first day.

Time zone

Same local time

Origin and destination are on the same clock, so arrival timing is easier to judge at a glance.

Temperature spread

49 degrees cooler at arrival

A meaningful temperature swing is a good cue to rethink layers, water, and how soon you want to arrive.

Road read

17h 35m on the road

This is long enough that the arrival forecast matters almost as much as departure conditions. Recheck both ends before you roll.

Weather data from the National Weather Service. Conditions may change; check closer to your travel date.

Frequently Asked Questions

The drive from Haines, AK to Kenai, AK covers 912.7 miles and takes about 17h 35m without stops. Add 15-30 minutes for a fuel or rest stop on longer drives.

The main roads are 2nd Avenue, Main Street, Haines Hwy Cut-Off. Expect a mix of highway and local road driving.

Consider an overnight stop or starting very early.

Yes. This route is usually more comfortable as a 2-day drive. A sensible stopping point is after roughly 456 miles on day one.

The midpoint is about 456.4 miles from Haines, AK. Look for rest areas, gas stations, or food options near the halfway mark.

At current regular gas prices, expect to spend about $198.64 one way. This estimate uses 25.4 MPG — your actual cost will vary with your vehicle's fuel efficiency and current gas prices.

Start early — leave by 6-7 AM to arrive at a reasonable hour. This is a long drive — plan for a morning departure or consider splitting it into two days.

Plan about 5 meaningful breaks for fuel, food, or rest. Plan on a short reset every 3 to 4 hours to stay fresh behind the wheel.

This route does not have any notably tricky sections. Most of the drive from Haines, AK to Kenai, AK is straightforward, with well-signed roads and simple exits.

The route from Haines, AK to Kenai, AK does not surface many named destination signs beyond the main corridor.