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Icy Strait Small Group Shore Excursion: We're going on a bear hunt!

4 (9)

Hoonah, US

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Join us on an unforgettable adventure in Icy Strait near Hoonah! We're going on a bear hunt! Get up close and personal with brown bears, Sitka black-tail deer, and other incredible wildlife amidst the breathtaking beauty of the last frontier. This small group shore excursion is the ultimate way to experience the "Bear Island," known for having the highest concentration of bears in the world. With our expert guides, you'll explore the island's stunning landscapes, including an old growth forest and muskeg, while keeping an eye out for these captivating creatures. Along the way, you'll also encounter a variety of other wildlife like eagles, otters, and beavers. With our small group tour, you'll have a much higher chance of spotting wildlife compared to larger tour groups. Don't forget to bring your camera and be ready for an adventure of a lifetime!

About this experience

Free Cancellation For a full refund cancel at least before the start of your booking
4 hours
Suitable for 1-15 Participants
Private Tour, Small Group Tour
Guided Experience

Highlights

See brown bears up close
View other wildlife in natural beauty
Small group tour for an enjoyable experience
Learn about the Tlingit Native population
Chance to see a variety of wildlife

Included

Local guide
Driver/guide
Port pickup and drop-off
Small group size of max 12 people

Not included

Food and drinks

Popular Hotels Closeby

More about this experience

Introduction

Prepare for an unforgettable adventure during your shore excursion at Icy Strait in Hoonah. Get ready to embark on a thrilling journey as you go on a bear hunt in the last frontier. This four-hour tour offers you a unique opportunity to witness the majestic brown bears, Sitka black-tail deer, and other captivating wildlife up close in their natural picturesque beauty.

What to expect?

During this excursion, you can anticipate an immersive experience in the wilderness of "Bear Island," an area renowned by National Geographic for its high concentration of bears. With approximately 1-2 brown bears per square mile, this tour guarantees an exceptional encounter with these magnificent creatures. As a small group tour, you can enjoy a more personalized and intimate experience, maximizing your enjoyment and chances of spotting wildlife.

Who is this for?

This tour is designed for nature enthusiasts, wildlife lovers, and adventure seekers of all ages. Whether you're a solo traveler, a couple, or a family, this experience caters to everyone's desire to explore the untouched beauty of nature and get up close to fascinating wildlife. Don't miss this opportunity to create lasting memories and capture stunning photographs of the breathtaking Alaskan wilderness.

Why book this?

Embark on this unforgettable adventure to discover the untamed beauty of Icy Strait. The small group setting allows for a more intimate and immersive experience, ensuring you don't miss a moment of the wildlife encounters. Unlike large tour groups, this tour can quickly reposition for better wildlife sightings, increasing your chances of bear sightings and other animal encounters. With well-renowned guides sharing their knowledge about the area and the Tlingit Native population, you'll gain insights into the rich cultural heritage of the region. Bring your camera and get ready to capture awe-inspiring moments of bears, bald eagles, marten, and more.

Good to know

Please note that while wildlife sightings cannot be guaranteed, this small group tour offers a much higher chance of sightings compared to larger, slower-moving tour groups. You'll have the chance to explore the island's ten different edible berries, witness a stunning muskeg, take in the beauty of an old growth forest, and potentially catch a glimpse of the king of the island, brown bears. This tour is perfect for nature lovers craving an authentic Alaskan adventure.

Reviews

Travelers who have experienced this tour have shared their overwhelming satisfaction with the mesmerizing encounters they had with bears and other wildlife. They praised the knowledgeable guides who provided fascinating information about the area and the local indigenous population. The small group setting was highly appreciated as it allowed for a more personalized experience, ensuring everyone had ample opportunities to view and photograph the incredible wildlife. Don't miss out on this exceptional excursion that promises to be a highlight of your Alaskan journey.

About this product

How long before the event do I need to book?

You can book at any time before the event

Vouchers accepted in the following formats

Mobile

Is an adult required for the booking?

At least one adult or senior required per booking

Your Itinerary

Hoonah

National Geographic have named the area as the "Bear Island", this tour offers you the highest concentration of bears in the world at 1-2 brown bears per square mile. To get the most from your tour ashore this is offered as a small group tour making it more enjoyable.

Icy Strait

(Pass by)

The Island offers ten different kinds of edible berries along with a stunning view of a muskeg, viewing an old growth forest, and possible chances of viewing the king of the island: brown bears. Using information on current bear movements, their feeding habits, and the temperature throughout the day, there are short stops at key points to scope out an amazing view of these captivating creatures. Our well renowned guides will share information about the area and the Tlingit Native population. During the tour you are pretty much guaranteed to see a host of other wildlife that are quite often spotted during our tours, including mink, marten, bald eagles, sea birds, red squirrels, otter, beaver, ducks, and Sitka black-tail deer. So be sure to bring your camera. Please note: Wildlife sightings can never be guaranteed. However, this tour can re-position quickly, and there is a much higher chance of sightings with our small group tour than any other slow moving large tour groups.

Additional information

Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
Public transportation options are available nearby
Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap
Suitable for all physical fitness levels
At time of booking, Cruise ship passengers must provide the following information at time of booking: ship name, docking time, disembarkation time and re-boarding time
We can also accept hotel guests on this tour.

Reviews

(9)

4 (9)

mercymoi2

Read about the tour on a Cruise Critic message board. Very glad we did. It was a great tour from Jack and Howard. They picked us up outside Icy Strait Point and took us around Hoonah including their home and the surrounding area. They made sure we saw lots of wildlife. Both Jack and Howard have a passion for their culture and town. An excellent tour.

gregaustex

This was one of the highlights of our trip. Our guide Gary took us to "bridge #3" and we watched a mama grizzly and her cub catch four salmon. I know that not everyone will see a bear on this excursion, but we were very fortunate to watch this pair for over 20 minutes just a few feet away. A fantastic experience!

U2054IDnancya

We paid $129/1 person for the Icy Strait Bear & Wildlife Tour. It was a 3 hour ride in a van on very rough (washboard) roads. The tour was too long and no refreshments given. We did not see any bears and only 2 deer. That is a lot of money for basically nothing. The driver and asst. were nice but it got old riding w/o seeing anything but trees. It seemed like since the salmon had not arrived, it would be very hard to find bears and it was . Like I said, we no none! Don't waste your money on this excursion.

Phuketfoody

Could not believe boyfriend of owner hit disabled man. I was totally shocked when boyfriend of owner struck disabled deaf man of 77.

Justdoit121

We didn’t see any bears but if they had been there we wouldn’t have seen them because we were driving so fast. A long drive with lots of trees.

asm284

I think this is now called Alaska Shore Excusions Icy Strait Exclusive Wildlife and Bear Search Tour. We had a fabulous experience on our bear and wildlife tour. We went out with Hotshot as our driver and he knew so much about the area and bears and their way of life. The tour is four hours which is good as it allows time to drive a long way to quiet spots where your driver knows there are bears in the area. We spent a long time not seeing any bears - only a deer and bear tracks, scat and trail through the grass. We were getting resigned that we might not be lucky when one of the passengers called out she had seen something. There we saw a bear! He crossed the creek, crossed the road and back into the creek where he caught a salmon in front of our noses and our cameras! We couldn’t have been happier. Hotshot was ready with his gun, but we felt quite safe watching the bear from the bridge over the creek. The ride is in a fairly battered minibus so try and sit near the front for a better view and to hear the commentary. Don’t forget to take some water as there are no snacks or water provided. Altogether a great experience - the highlight of our whole holiday.

heathertraveler2019

We had a very nice guide who attempted to find us bears during our 4-plus hour tour. Although we spent a long time looking for bears, we regretfully did not see any wildlife during this long excursion. I think it was probably a little too early in the season. Also, I would not recommend this tour if you are prone to neck/back issues. We were seated in the very back of an 8-person van which was extremely uncomfortable. If we had seen some wildlife, it would have been more worthwhile. The guide did everything humanely possible to find us a bear (spending over 4 hours with us), but I wished I had done a whale-watch excursion instead.

trisham731

My mom & I went on a bear hunt excursion with Luke & had a wonderful time. Luke gave us a lot of information about Hoonah, it's history, & what it's like to live there as well as information about the Tingass National Forest. It was only my mom & I on the tour which was nice. It was unseasonably warm when we went so we didn't get to see a bear. Luke said the time of year we went normally has over 90% chance of seeing a bear but they were all hiding from the hot sun the day we went. We did get to see a mama deer & it's baby fawn that Luke said was probably only 1-2 weeks old. We also saw an Eagle chasing a Hawk. We saw an eagle in its nest which was really cool! Lastly, just driving around the beautiful island & Tongass National Forest was so wonderful. There is never a guarantee you will see bears so while we were hoping to see at least one we were not too disappointed. It just would have been an added bonus! Highly recommend this tour even if bears are not seen!!

Marty B

Levi gave us a nice tour of the island and we were lucky to see three bears. Had we not, it would have been a disappointing day.

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2024-07-03 00:14