Salmon, totem poles and rainforest at the edge of the Inside Passage

Ketchikan: Misty Fjords National Monument Floatplane Tour

The signature Ketchikan excursion. A floatplane lifts off from the Tongass Narrows and within minutes you are over roadless wilderness: granite walls, hanging valleys and the dark forest of the Tongass. Your pilot explains what you are seeing. Flights are weather-dependent, so book early in your stay if you can.

• Fly over the cliffs, waterfalls and lakes of Misty Fjords
• Commentary from your pilot
• Small group, with an optional audio guide

Ketchikan: Lumberjack Show & Crab Feast

Two Ketchikan traditions in one ticket. First the Great Alaskan Lumberjack Show, where timber athletes race through axe, saw and tree-climbing events in a covered arena; then a sit-down feast of Dungeness crab, served until you have had enough. Easy, fun and weatherproof.

• An hour of chopping, sawing, climbing and log rolling
• All-you-can-eat Dungeness crab feast
• A short walk from the downtown cruise berths

Ketchikan: Alaska Native Cultural and Scenic Shore Excursion

A good-value introduction to the Native cultures of Southeast Alaska. You travel north along the coast to Totem Bight State Historical Park, where a guide explains the poles and the clan house, with stops for scenery and wildlife on the way. The most-reviewed Ketchikan tour on the platform.

• Totem Bight State Historical Park with a guide
• Stories of the Haida, Tlingit and Tsimshian peoples
• Chances to spot eagles, salmon and bears along the way

Bering Sea Crab Fishermen’s Tour

Sail out on a working crab boat with a crew of commercial fishermen. They haul pots of crab, octopus and prawns onto the deck, share first-hand stories of survival on the Bering Sea, and bald eagles swoop to snatch fish from the water. Educational, interactive and surprisingly moving.

• Watch crab pots hauled aboard a real crab-fishing vessel
• See crab, octopus and prawns up close on deck
• Bald eagles diving for fish beside the boat

Ketchikan: Neets Bay Black Bear Viewing Tour with Cruise

A half-day trip by land and sea to Neets Bay, where salmon returning to a hatchery draw black bears to the creek. You walk forest trails to viewing platforms and cruise through sheltered channels looking for eagles, seals and whales. Go when the salmon are running for the best chance of bears.

• Bear-viewing platforms above a salmon stream
• Forest trail walk with a guide
• Scenic wildlife cruise through island waterways

Ketchikan: Alaska Rainforest Sanctuary and Totem Park Walk

A naturalist leads you along trails and boardwalks through the Alaska Rainforest Sanctuary at Herring Cove, explaining the forest, the salmon stream and the animals that depend on it. The walk ends at a historic sawmill and a small totem park. Gentle, and worthwhile in any weather.

• Guided walk in a 40-acre private rainforest reserve
• Historic sawmill and totem park
• Look for bears, eagles and salmon in season

Ketchikan: Rainforest Canopy & Zipline Adventure

Glide between treetop platforms in the Tongass National Forest on a series of eight ziplines and an aerial bridge. Guides clip you in, coach you and point out wildlife below. Small groups and full safety gear; no experience needed.

• Eight ziplines through the Tongass canopy
• An aerial suspension bridge
• Wildlife seen from above

Ketchikan: Orca Cove Fast Boat & Sea Kayaking Tour

Escape the port crowds on a three-hour trip: a fast boat takes you to sheltered coves, where you paddle stable sea kayaks along the shoreline with knowledgeable guides, watching for eagles, seals and whales.

• Fast boat ride to secluded coves
• Guided paddle among eagles and marine wildlife
• Small group, beginner-friendly

Creek Street & Dolly’s House

Ketchikan’s famous boardwalk on stilts — once the red-light district, now its prettiest street.

A wooden boardwalk built on pilings over Ketchikan Creek, lined with brightly painted houses that were brothels until 1954. Today it holds galleries, shops and the Dolly’s House museum, with salmon and sometimes seals in the water below.

Misty Fjords National Monument

Sheer granite walls, waterfalls and silent lakes — by floatplane or boat from Ketchikan.

A 2.3-million-acre wilderness of glacier-carved fjords east of Ketchikan, with cliffs rising some 3,000 feet from the sea. There are no roads: you visit on a floatplane flight of about two hours or a boat cruise of four to five.

Totem Bight State Historical Park

Fourteen totem poles and a clan house in the forest by the sea, 10 miles north of town.

A state park on the shore of the Tongass Narrows where Tlingit and Haida carvers recreated poles and a traditional clan house from 1938 onwards. A short forest trail leads to one of the most photogenic totem sites in Alaska.

Saxman Native Village & Totem Park

A living Tlingit community with one of the world’s largest collections of totem poles.

Two and a half miles south of downtown, Saxman’s totem park holds around two dozen poles, a clan house and a carving shed where master carvers work. Guided visits include traditional dance; you can also walk the park on your own for a small fee.

Great Alaskan Lumberjack Show

Axes, saws, log rolling and a 50-foot speed climb — an hour of timber sports by the docks.

A fast, funny, family-friendly show in which two teams of lumberjack athletes compete in chopping, sawing, axe throwing, tree climbing and log rolling. It takes place in a covered grandstand on the site of the old Ketchikan Spruce Mill, minutes from the ships.

Bear Viewing around Ketchikan

Black bears fishing for salmon at Neets Bay, Traitors Cove, Herring Cove and Anan.

From late July to mid-September bears gather at salmon streams around Ketchikan. You can reach viewing sites by floatplane, by boat and trail, or — at Herring Cove — by road. Sightings are never guaranteed, but in peak season the odds are good.