Ketchikan Day Tours & Attractions
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Ketchikan
Fishing Charters View All
Salmon • Halibut • Southeast, Alaska
Baranof Fishing Excursions offers classic Alaska fishing experiences from their private marina in downtown Ketchikan. They provide everything you need from rubber boots to expert guides, for an extraordinary fishing adventure!
From cruise ship excursions to all-day fishing trips, Ketchikan’s Finest Fishing Charters provides top-notch equipment and a customized approach to make your trip an adventure to remember. Keep your eyes peeled for wildlife and be ready for a fishing experience like no other!
Ketchikan is known as the “salmon capital of the world,” and this uniquely personal tour is your chance to angle for these iconic Alaskan fish — as well as huge halibut. You’ll board an intimate fishing boat — complete with top-quality fishing and rain gear, as well as heaters, snacks, and beverages — close to the Ketchikan cruise terminal. And, since this is a private charter, it will be only your group on board!
Sea Kayaking Tours View All
Experience kayaking in Alaska the way it should be — away from the crowds — with these unique Ketchikan paddling tours that make you feel like a true explorer. Your small group (usually just 4 people) will board the company’s comfortable boat and set off from the Ketchikan cruise-ship dock, leaving the big ships and the crowds behind. Choose from a 3‑hour tour, or 5‑hour kayak and hike tour.
Jeep & ATV Tours View All
Tongass National Forest • Independent tour, or great shore excursion
Drive your own jeep along private logging roads that wind up into the mountains, on your way to an alpine lake. Paddle across the shimmering lake to a shoreline camp for a delicious snack over an open fire. Enjoy some storytelling, then go on a short nature walk through a beautiful old-growth forest.
Day Cruises View All
Explore the gorgeous, dynamic scenery and wildlife around Ketchikan by getting out on the water in a low-impact Zodiac — an authentically Alaskan way to travel! Every expedition is different as there’s flexibility for some spontaneity. You can spend extra time in a place if there’s a magical, National Geographic-type moment happening!
Board a rigid-hull inflatable boat for a 20-minute ride out to a secluded island. Weave through a series of small islands with massive cliffs that rise hundreds of feet out of the ocean, check out active bald eagle nests and look for sea lions and seabird rookeries along the way. Once at the island, you’ll climb out on the beach, break out into smaller groups, and set off on a stunning hike on a boardwalk that snakes through the rainforest. ...more
Canoeing Tours View All
Paddle all around a shimmering lake, looking for wildlife on the shore and reveling in the spectacular mountain views that surround you. Then stop off at a shoreline camp to enjoy a snack over an open fire. When you’re finished, you’ll go on a short walk through a dramatic old-growth forest.
Drive your own jeep along private logging roads that wind up into the mountains, on your way to an alpine lake. Paddle across the shimmering lake to a shoreline camp for a delicious snack over an open fire. Enjoy some storytelling, then go on a short nature walk through a beautiful old-growth forest.
Guided Hiking View All
Board a rigid-hull inflatable boat for a 20-minute ride out to a secluded island. Weave through a series of small islands with massive cliffs that rise hundreds of feet out of the ocean, check out active bald eagle nests and look for sea lions and seabird rookeries along the way. Once at the island, you’ll climb out on the beach, break out into smaller groups, and set off on a stunning hike on a boardwalk that snakes through the rainforest. ...more
Experience kayaking in Alaska the way it should be — away from the crowds — with these unique Ketchikan paddling tours that make you feel like a true explorer. Your small group (usually just 4 people) will board the company’s comfortable boat and set off from the Ketchikan cruise-ship dock, leaving the big ships and the crowds behind. Choose from a 3‑hour tour, or 5‑hour kayak and hike tour.
Southeast Alaska is home to the Tongass National Forest, where nearly 17 million acres of glaciers, mountains, rivers, and fjords complement old-growth forests of spruce, cedar, and hemlock. Walk among these giant sentinels, some well over 500 years old, and breathe in the pristine air that they provide in one of North America’s largest carbon sinks. Experience this world-renowned gem of a rainforest on a guided hike or an SUV tour when you stop ...more
Snorkel Tours View All
Throw on a wetsuit and experience Alaska's unique sea creatures up-close
Don a wetsuit, mask, fins and snorkel and get an up-close look at the unique sea creatures of the 49th state: urchins, sea stars, crabs, sea cucumbers, and…what’s that…a humpback whale swimming nearby?! This is the magic of snorkeling in Alaska — a singular experience that you can only do in the waters around Ketchikan. No experience? No problem.
Museums & Cultural Centers View All
Built on the old fishing grounds of Tlingit Natives, the park hosts some of the finest native art in the world!
Experience world-class exhibits and audiovisual programs. Discover Tsimshian, Haida and Tlingit totem poles, the rainforest room, a Native fish camp scene, and exhibits on Southeast Alaska’s ecosystems, fishing, mining, timber and tourism. Located one block from the cruise ship dock in downtown Ketchikan. Accepts America-the-Beautiful passes.
The art of totem pole carving was a luxury that experienced its heyday in the mid-1700s to the late 1800s. The fur trade had provided the Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian peoples a newfound sense of wealth – and time to focus on the artistry of the totem
As part of the New Deal during the 1930s, the Civilian Conservation Corps came to this area and hired skilled Native artists who could recreate old crumbling poles and train apprentices, to keep the art form alive. You can wander the grounds at this state park, and learn about how to interpret the symbols on poles, or check out the large, carved tribal house. Was named to the National Register of Historic Places in 1970. 10 miles out of town on ...more
Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, this collection of 19th century totem poles is the biggest in the world. Salvaged from abandoned Haida and Tlingit villages, some are as old as 160 years — no small feat, since totem poles usually deteriorate in less than a century. You can take a quick, free tour, or check out the current exhibits of contemporary Tlingit art.
In the museum are artifacts,text and photos telling of Alaska’s spirited First City as a Native fish camp, mining hub, salmon canning capital, fishing port and timber town. The Centennial Building commemorates the purchase of Alaska from Russia in 1867. In front is the Raven Stealing the Sun pole, carved by Dempsey Bob and raised in 1983.
If you want a chance to sit back and enjoy an iconic view of Alaska, catch up on your work, or peruse a large collection of Alaskana, there’s no more perfect place than the new Ketchikan library.
Historic Parks & Sites View All
Visit the carvings at Saxman Totem Park and this small fishing town's red-light district dating back to the early 1900s
The art of totem pole carving was a luxury that experienced its heyday in the mid-1700s to the late 1800s. The fur trade had provided the Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian peoples a newfound sense of wealth – and time to focus on the artistry of the totem
Nearly a century ago in 1903, this was the small mining and fishing town’s red-light district but today the boardwalk street, propped up over Ketchikan Creek on wooden pilings, teems with gift shops, museums and well-preserved homes.
Fairs & Festivals View All
Summers are busy in Ketchikan, with up to five cruise ships making port every day, but the locals also know how to play hard — especially at the huge Blueberry Arts Festival, hosted every August by the Ketchikan Arts and Humanities Council. In a town of 14,000, you’re likely to see as many as 8,000 people come out to this family-friendly event that celebrates the Southeast Alaskan blueberry.
Perfectly timed for the approaching holiday season, the Ketchikan Arts & Humanities Council’s Winter Arts Faire showcases the creations of local artists, which make for great gifts. More than 80 artists exhibit their work here, so you could easily fill all of your holiday wish lists with local, handmade gifts.
With almost 30 years under its belt, the Ketchikan Wearable Arts Show is an event you don’t want to miss. Described as the “original runway performance,” this show has inspired imitations in neighboring communities and around the world. If you’d like to see a show that most clearly represents pure artistic talent, this is it.
Points of Interest View All
Eagles nests, scenic waterfalls, wildlife viewing spots, and more
Herring Cove, at the right time of year, is a wonderful place to view wildlife, and in particular, black bears. Mid-June through early September, when the salmon are running, is probably the best time for a chance to see black bears here.
The most spectacular and accessible waterfalls around Alaska you can see from the road, from a hike, or from a day cruise.
Refuge Cove State Recreation Site is a sliver of land lining part of an edge of a neighborhood and is a popular beach picnicking destination with the locals. The site comes complete with pit toilets, sheltered and unsheltered picnic tables with fire grates, and a quarter-mile trail accompanied by interpretive signs that address the local natural history.
Spotting eagles is a highlight of any visit to Alaska. Ketchikan has 30 nesting sites weighing in up to 2,000 pounds and measure 6 feet deep. Eagle’s remain in Ketchikan because eagles know they won’t starve here. Eagles are carnivores and live to eat fish, so you’ll see them plenty at the mouth of salmon streams. Eagles even hang around in winter; the water remains ice-free, and the fish keep coming.
On one of the run-off creeks from Achilles Mountain or Twin Peaks Mountain above pours a 100-foot or more waterfall right beside Tongass Highway towards the end of the road
When she’s not carving linoleum or wood, you may find Evon on one of her many teaching gigs around the state. She’s one of Alaska’s favorite artists-in-residence, which allows her to share her passion for printmaking with students from Kindergarten on up.
This may be the most well-known bridge to have never been built. The idea was to replace the ferry connecting Ketchikan with Gravina Island, where the Ketchikan Airport is.
Want to experience a little piece of rustic, old-timey Ketchikan? Head to the Main Street Gallery at 7 p.m. every second Friday of the month for a night of square dancing. Popular year-round (but especially in the summer), this is a great way to socialize like the pioneers did 100 years ago. Never square danced before? No worries. The regular dancers are a friendly, inclusive crew, ready to teach you how it’s done.
Ketchikan Arts & Humanities Council (KAAHC) is the powerhouse of Ketchikan’s arts community; if there’s an arts event in Ketchikan, this organization is on it! Located at the Main Street Gallery, KAAHC produces dozens of art events annually, such as summer’s Blueberry Arts Festival and February’s famous Wearable Arts Show.
Walking Tours View All
Take a stroll through Ketchikan with one of these terrific walking tours you can enjoy at your own pace