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Chichagof Island Tour: Brown Bear Search provided by Hoonah Travel Adventures

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LIKELY TO SELL OUT*

Chichagof Island Tour: Brown Bear Search

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See all things to do
Chichagof Island Tour: Brown Bear Search
4
34
By Hoonah Travel Adventures
Book in advance
from
$145.00
per adult
Reserve now & pay later: Save your spot free of charge with flexible booking.
Free cancellation
Not sure? You can cancel this reservation up to 24 hours in advance for a full refund.
Full view
Tour snapshot
Tour Chichagof Island on a bear-searching mission
Duration:
3h
Taking Covid-19 safety measures
Group size:
12
Ticket type:
Mobile
Free cancellation
  • Duration:
    3h
  • Taking Covid-19 safety measures
  • Group size:
    12
  • Ticket type:
    Mobile
  • Free cancellation
About
Look for brown bears in their natural habitat on a bus tour of Chichagof Island. The dense population of bears on the island makes this an ideal trip for tourists hoping to spot bears in the wild. Plus, traveling with a guide who knows the region and bear patterns increases your chances of spotting a bear and provides security and education you don’t get if traveling on your own.
Know before you go
  • Duration: 3h
  • Mobile tickets accepted
  • Instant confirmation
Cancellation policy
  • For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours in advance of the start date of the experience.
Available languages
English
Highlights
  • Learn about the wildlife and landscape from your guide
  • A small-group is better for spotting bears than a larger tour
  • Relax with the security of a guide
What to expect
Know before you go
  • Duration: 3h
  • Mobile tickets accepted
  • Instant confirmation
Available languages
English
Cancellation policy
  • For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours in advance of the start date of the experience.
Highlights
  • Learn about the wildlife and landscape from your guide
  • A small-group is better for spotting bears than a larger tour
  • Relax with the security of a guide
What to expect
Need help booking?
Call the number below and use the product code: 14707P3
Important information
Inclusions
  • Picks Up & Drops Off at Icy Strait Point
  • All individual seating in van, no bench seating
  • Small Group Tour - Max of 12
  • Local Native guide
  • Bottled water
  • National Park fees $5.40
Exclusions
  • Gratuities (Never expected always appreciated)
Duration
3h
Departure details
  • Traveler pickup is offered.
  • PLEASE ARRIVE 15 MINUTES BEFORE YOUR TOUR IS SCHEDULED TO DEPART, OUT OF COURTESY TO OTHERS WE LEAVE ON TIME. If your ship is docked at the Adventure Dock, proceed ashore to the Icy Strait Point Adventure Center. Once inside the Adventure Center walk through the building and exit through door number "2". (This is clearly marked.) Follow the signs along the gravel path to the Excursion Hub. The total walking time is 15 minutes, please allow extra time if you are not a fast walker. We ask that you check in for your tour 15 minutes early and we leave on time. If your ship is docked at the Wilderness Dock this is a 40 minute walk, or you may ride the Transporter Gondola(3 minute ride) to the Adventure Center. If you walk, once you arrive at Adventure Center follow signs to Excursion Hub. If you take the gondola, once you step off of gondola you should see a sign for the Excursion Hub. Take a left and follow path to the Excursion Hub. Please check in with the Hoonah Travel Adventure Representative when you arrive at the Hub! If you are arriving via AK Seaplanes or AK Marine Hwy please call 907-321-3393 before your trip to make other arrangements.
  • Hoonah Travel Adventures, 335 Harbor Dr, Hoonah, AK 99829, USA
  • Ports:
  • Icy Strait Point, 108 Cannery Rd, Hoonah, AK 99829, USA
Additional information
  • Confirmation will be received at time of booking
  • Tour Time is Departure time. Please meet 15 minutes prior at the Icy Strait Point Excursions Hub
  • Each Child on tour must be accompanied by an adult
  • No Smoking
  • At time of booking, cruise ship passengers must provide ship name
  • Not wheelchair accessible
  • Most travelers can participate
  • Children Under the age of 8 are not permitted on this tour
  • This experience requires a minimum number of travelers. If it’s canceled because the minimum isn’t met, you’ll be offered a different date/experience or a full refund
  • This tour/activity will have a maximum of 12 travelers
Inclusions
  • Picks Up & Drops Off at Icy Strait Point
  • All individual seating in van, no bench seating
  • Small Group Tour - Max of 12
  • Local Native guide
  • Bottled water
  • National Park fees $5.40
Exclusions
  • Gratuities (Never expected always appreciated)
Departure details
  • Traveler pickup is offered.
  • PLEASE ARRIVE 15 MINUTES BEFORE YOUR TOUR IS SCHEDULED TO DEPART, OUT OF COURTESY TO OTHERS WE LEAVE ON TIME. If your ship is docked at the Adventure Dock, proceed ashore to the Icy Strait Point Adventure Center. Once inside the Adventure Center walk through the building and exit through door number "2". (This is clearly marked.) Follow the signs along the gravel path to the Excursion Hub. The total walking time is 15 minutes, please allow extra time if you are not a fast walker. We ask that you check in for your tour 15 minutes early and we leave on time. If your ship is docked at the Wilderness Dock this is a 40 minute walk, or you may ride the Transporter Gondola(3 minute ride) to the Adventure Center. If you walk, once you arrive at Adventure Center follow signs to Excursion Hub. If you take the gondola, once you step off of gondola you should see a sign for the Excursion Hub. Take a left and follow path to the Excursion Hub. Please check in with the Hoonah Travel Adventure Representative when you arrive at the Hub! If you are arriving via AK Seaplanes or AK Marine Hwy please call 907-321-3393 before your trip to make other arrangements.
  • Hoonah Travel Adventures, 335 Harbor Dr, Hoonah, AK 99829, USA
  • Ports:
  • Icy Strait Point, 108 Cannery Rd, Hoonah, AK 99829, USA
Duration
3h
Return details
  • Returns to original departure point
Additional information
  • Confirmation will be received at time of booking
  • Tour Time is Departure time. Please meet 15 minutes prior at the Icy Strait Point Excursions Hub
  • Each Child on tour must be accompanied by an adult
  • No Smoking
  • At time of booking, cruise ship passengers must provide ship name
  • Not wheelchair accessible
  • Most travelers can participate
  • Children Under the age of 8 are not permitted on this tour
  • This experience requires a minimum number of travelers. If it’s canceled because the minimum isn’t met, you’ll be offered a different date/experience or a full refund
  • This tour/activity will have a maximum of 12 travelers
Travel safe during COVID-19
What you can expect during your visit
  • Transportation vehicles regularly sanitized
  • Gear/equipment sanitized between use
What you can expect during your visit
  • Transportation vehicles regularly sanitized
  • Gear/equipment sanitized between use
Itinerary
  • You'll start at
    Hoonah Travel Adventures
    Or, you can also get picked up
    See Important Information for details
  • Pass by
    Icy Strait Brewing
  • You'll return to the starting point
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Detailed Reviews: Reviews order informed by descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as cleanliness, atmosphere, general tips and location information.
Popular mentions
4.0
34 reviews
Excellent
17
Very good
4
Average
7
Poor
3
Terrible
3
daddyo-2
Westchester County, NY105 contributions
Bear bust - but great guide!
Nice afternoon out with Gary searching for brown bear. He was super friendly and knowledgeable about bears, the island, it’s history and the native tribes. He grew up here and it was very interesting to hear his stories. We were in a comfortable sprinter van with 2 other couples. Beautiful scenery, lots of signs of bears ie bear poop - but no bears. We checked out a bunch of spots. Luck of the draw i suppose - because they are definitely out and about! Would try again!
Written August 8, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
Malcolm E
1 contribution
Searching for Bears
Really looking forward to this experience. Our tour guide Greg was superb. He was very knowledgeable about the area., It’s people and bears. Unfortunately we failed to see any bears so it was disappointing. However ,this was not a reflection on our tour guide Greg. He searched tirelessly to find the bears.
Malcolm and Margaret Evans
Written July 8, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
tom87020
Grants, NM7 contributions
Luck of the draw...
Jeff was an accommodating host, even though we didn’t see any bears close up. He showed us lots of other interesting and beautiful aspects of Chicagof Island.
Written June 25, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
UNC_Indy
Westfield, IN288 contributions
Did not see a bear but the entire family loved the tour!
I will preface this by letting readers know we were there during a dry spell, and although it should have been peak salmon season, the salmon weren't yet running at all. The creeks were very low. You could even see the salmon jumping and waiting to come into the creeks. Because of this, the bears were scarce as well.

So, we met our guide just behind the activity center and walked through following the directions and had no trouble at all locating our group. We had a small group so we left as soon as we were all there even though we were all early. Our guide told us a lot about the area and the wildlife and was a great guide all around! We tried several locations bears frequent but had no luck other than bear tracks. Still he made sure we had a great time. We explored some wonderful mossy areas near a place bears frequent and stopped to pick and eat berries which everyone enjoyed.

I was worried the teens in our group would feel it was a bummer of an excursion but at the end of the trip the whole family still talked about how much fun it was to explore the wilderness areas on the island and, of course, the berry picking.
Written August 18, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
kmmska
McKinney, TX30 contributions
Disappointing
We had high hope for this tour. We basically drove around for 3 hours and stopped 3 times for 5-8 minutes each time. No bears. The driver had the microphone on for the first part and then turned it off so he could tell his life story to the person in the passenger seat. The rest of us just sat there staring into the woods. Evey once in a while we would pass another van and exchange information about what they did not see. In 2019 you could use radios to do this avoiding wasting time driving to a spot someone just saw nothing. We get you can't guarantee seeing a bear, but tell us more about the area or something local. That's what we paid for.
Written August 14, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
Barbara Lewis
Sachse, TX24 contributions
Bears Oh My!!!
Family
This was the BEST excursion ever!!! We arrived in Hoonah via cruise ship, and right as we got off the ship our tour guide was waiting for us! Luke was the best ever! We couldn’t have asked for a better tour guide, we had the best time ever! We started out on our search for BEARS, as we were looking for them Luke told us all about Hoonah and the Brown Bears. Very interesting to say the least.....On our adventure we saw 27 Bald Eagles and a lot of salmon in the streams. We were very lucky to see one bear down by the ocean bay. Luke told us that he was going to try to take us to see a momma bear and her cubs, so we loaded into the van and he took us to another part of the island in search of the momma bear and her cubs. We found them! It was amazing and such a wonderful sight to see!!! Thank you Luke for your time and patience in our search to see BEARS!!!! Highly recommend and I give Luke and this excursion 5 Stars!!!! Thank you for an amazing day!!!
Written July 21, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
BlueandBittysMama
Brentwood, CA22 contributions
We saw 6 bears!!
Family
We were in Hoonah on June 21, 2019. I booked this tour for our family of 4: grandma, mama and 2 boys (9 & 11 yrs). Stu was our guide and he was awesome!! We prefer tours by locals and Mr. Stu did not disappoint. He was full of knowledge of the area and clearly took pride in his homeland. He took his time with searching for bears and was keen to listening to everyone in the van. We were the only tour van who went in our direction (it's all based on luck in locating the bears--it's all still raw, wild land). Stu took us all the way to the bay and it was lovely. At one point, we were all able to get out of the van and enjoy [in awe] the beauty of a female bear walking [away from us] up the road. We all returned to town satisfied with our tour and excited for what we saw. While shopping afterwards, we ran into some dissatisfied travelers who had gone on a similar tour booked via the cruiseline and hadn't seen any bears in their 3 hours!!
Written July 15, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
Excursion48079
Brookville, NY4 contributions
Horrible customer service!!!
We were in Hoonah on July 9,2019. We had this trip booked and paid in advance. Unfortunately we were running late but only by 8 minutes and this group left us without trying to contact us. We had small children and had about 10 min walk from the boat to the excursion hub. We were really disappointed in them. The company representative standing at the hub had a very nasty attitude and offered no help. When we contacted the main office we were not given a refund. We would not recommend this group to anyone. Please don’t waste your hard earned money with this group.
Written July 14, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
HoonahAK2019
Hello again, as we have said to you before when you demanded a refund, we were sorry you missed your tour with us! Had we had an opportunity to sell your seats a refund might have been possible. Your ship docked hours before your tour started. You had ample time to reach us. In our confirmation, which we know you received, we ask that all guest arrive 15 min prior to departure. This allows for guests to theoretically "run late", but still arrive on time for departure. We pride ourselves on leaving right on time. It is only fair to everyone else who have have been waiting for 15 minutes. All guests this day arrived on time or early, even those with small children. You arrived 23 minutes after the requested arrival time, and 8 minutes after, the specified departure time. Our company representative did try to call you but the area on the island where the tours depart from are in a dead spot and we could not get through. After you did finally arrive, we offered you an alternate tour which you refused. We wish you would have taken the alternate tour, your family would have had a great time. Instead, you chose to insist the tour return for you which was not possible. We hope this unfortunate event encourages you to arrive early at future excursions.
Written July 15, 2019
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
Jojara
Las Vegas, NV66 contributions
Beyond terrible excursion!
I was so disappointed with my experience. I realize you can’t control what wildlife does, so lack of seeing anything is a bummer but nobody’s fault. The reason for this terrible review was the tour itself. There were tour guide issues, so we started late. You would expect to get history, stories, heck even a little enthusiasm- but none of the above. Even walking from viewing point to the others- three views of the same thing. Luckily everything in Alaska is beautiful- but the tour was so rediculously boring. Now- maybe if I paid $20 I would not have had any expectations- but the amount of money for what it was- makes me very angry and felt misled and taken advantage of financially.
Written May 10, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
HoonahAK2019
Hello - I don’t believe you have the correct company. What date did you go on this tour? This trip was only available starting yesterday May 10 and the gentleman we had booked was a no show. We have had zero Viator guest on this tour this season. We only have 1 guide and she is a local Hoonah Tlingit lady who gives lots of information about Hoonah and the Tlingit Culture. So the issue with guides is not our company. Please look into who you went with because it was not with Hoonah Travel Adventures.
Written May 11, 2022
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
LarryHN
Osage Beach, MO315 contributions
Viking Cruise tours were full so we booked with Hoonah Travel Adventures
great trip - Stu Mills, our guide, is the cultural leader of the Raven Tribe and was outstanding..The trip was beautiful, informative and we saw a Bear which the ship tour did not see. Obviously sighting Bear is not guaranteed but Stu knew where to go and even had cleared a trail to a special, potential viewing site. It was a great tour and well worth the price
Written September 21, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
HoonahAK2019
Thank you so much for booking with us and so glad you enjoyed your tour! ~ The HTA Team
Written September 25, 2019
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
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*Likely to sell out: Based on Viator’s booking data and information from the provider from the past 30 days, it seems likely this experience will sell out through Viator, a Tripadvisor company.
About the operator

Don’t take it from us – here’s what people have to say about this operator.

By: Hoonah Travel Adventures
901
timpQ5749AY
timpQ5749AY
00
Whales and other wild life
We had an amazing time seeing bears and whales. Our guides did an amazing job. The ride was comfortable and warm. …
B6348CDjonathanl
B6348CDjonathanl
00
Great Whale Watching Trip
Our family of 5 had a great time. Paul was a wealth of info and we saw plenty of humpbacks as well as otters and s…
1SouthsideGirl
1SouthsideGirl
00
Excellent experience
We attended the whale watching tour last week and it was awesome! The crew was knowledgeable and friendly and we w…
daddyo-2
daddyo-2
00
We had a WHALE of a time!
We went whale watching with Paul and Carson and had a blast! We saw tons of humpback whales, otters and sea lions …
lwood836
lwood836
00
Absolutely wonderful!
My husband and I were blown away by this experience! We signed up for this trip to see whales (which we did!) but w…
Barry A
Barry A
00
Whales in the Fog
PAul did a great job piloting the boat we went whale watching on. He had great narratives about the area we were in…
Voyager32222868922
Voyager32222868922
00
Best Whale Watching experience
Got to see humpbacks and orcas close enough to hear them breathe when they came up. Multiple views with good camera…
Caroline H
Caroline H
00
Amazing experience!
This is an excellent whale watching experience! It was a rough day, but our guide kept us comfortable and safe and…
jeremyfP6413RI
jeremyfP6413RI
00
LOTS of whales!
We saw LOTS of whales and our captain was incredibly knowledgeable. Him and his assistant were very knowledgeable a…
johneV1922XF
johneV1922XF
00
Great Afternoon on the Water
Great guides. They were very knowledgeable and found multiple whales (even got to see one "netting" with bubbles t…
Chelben813
Chelben813
00
Wilderness Tour and Brown Bear Search - Strange and Bizarre experience!!
My husband and I had a stop in Icy Pointe as part of our recent cruise on the Radiance of the Seas. I did not book…
B621PUdebbiec
B621PUdebbiec
00
Good trip not enough poles
We went Fishing with Capt Billy. The trip was good. The only reason I didn't give a five star, the Capt only put 4…
gracepD6040JU
gracepD6040JU
00
Fabulous experience
We had a fabulous time. Saw probably 15 whales and our tour guide/ crew was amazing. This tour was one of the highl…
davidgM3097PK
davidgM3097PK
00
Excellent Excursion
We went on a whale watching excursion and had a great time. Denise was our captain and Brandon was our deckhand. Th…
LanceT_12
LanceT_12
00
Book Whale Tours Independently
We booked this whale watching tour on our own while on the cruise ship. Having done two similar tours in Juneau on…
Frequently Asked Questions about Chichagof Island Tour: Brown Bear Search
Chichagof Island Tour: Brown Bear Search price starts from $145.00. Discover and book Chichagof Island Tour: Brown Bear Search on Tripadvisor
Chichagof Island Tour: Brown Bear Search cancellation policy: For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours in advance of the start date of the experience. Discover and book Chichagof Island Tour: Brown Bear Search on Tripadvisor
Chichagof Island Tour: Brown Bear Search is hosted by Hoonah Travel Adventures. Read reviews, discover additonal experiences or contact Hoonah Travel Adventures on Tripadvisor. Discover and book Chichagof Island Tour: Brown Bear Search on Tripadvisor
On average, this experience will take approximately 3h. Discover and book Chichagof Island Tour: Brown Bear Search on Tripadvisor