Private Ketchikan Tours

Embark on a private and customized sightseeing adventure with Emerald Forest Tours in Ketchikan. Experience the majestic scenery, wildlife, and history of the area while enjoying the personalized attention of knowledgeable local guides. Book your tour today!

Duration: 3 hours
Cancellation: 1 day learn more
Highlights
  • Ketchikan - Experience the thrill of wildlife with the chance to see bears, bald eagles, salmon, and seals! This open grassy field and salmon-filled creek attract a variety of wildlife to this location! Please note the diversity of wildlife will vary depending on the time of season.

  • Ketchikan - Capture stunning photos and videos of a beautiful waterfall just steps away from where you exit the van! Plus, step inside our lush rainforest for more spectacular views and vantage points of this waterfall! Feeling extra adventurous while at the waterfall, ask your guide to take your group on a hike inside the rainforest alongside the waterfall, just 10 minutes one way to a second stunning waterfall! (The hike is an added option that is decided by your group at that time)

  • Ketchikan - Take a guided stroll through this Totem Park as we walk alongside magnificent indigenous totem poles. It’s rare to see a totem pole in person, but to understand the meaning and significance adds value. As your guide explains these fascinating stories and native culture. This location also has an active carving center, with the opportunity to see a carver at work and ask questions about their craft!

  • Ketchikan - Step inside The Herring Bay Lumber Company Sawmill, which operated from 1956 to 2002! See the variation of milling machinery used and learn about an industry that once dominated Ketchikan. Feeling strong? Try lifting a 5.5ft long STIHL chainsaw from a log that was used at that time! Plus, have an amazing view of the estuary below and possibly see harbor seals, beavers, salmon, eagles, and even bears!

Additional bonus: this site also features Bifrost Blacksmithing, Alaskan-made knives forged in Alaska, with locally sourced materials, like recycled steel for blades and Sitka black-tailed deer antlers for handles. View this amazing collection and speak with the blacksmiths Jake and Joron and learn about their craft!

  • Ketchikan - Explore our diverse tide pools along the coastal inner passage. Discover purple and orange starfish, crabs, sea anemones, sea urchins, sea cucumbers, and more! With a bit of luck, we may even see a whale swimming through the passage. Variation of wildlife may vary depending on tide levels! When the season is right, pick and enjoy the wild edible berries in this location!
What's Included
  • Private transportation
  • Bottled Water
  • Disposable Ponchos (in case of rain)
  • Local Guide
  • Air-conditioned Van (for those warm days)
  • Van equipped with seat belts
What's Not Included
  • $10 dollar entry fee per person at location that includes Totem Park, Sawmill, and blacksmith
  • 4th itinerary Ketchikan $10 per person
Additional Information

We offer private tours of Ketchikan suitable for all ages, ensuring your family and friends are the only guests in the tour van! Offering ease, comfort, flexibility, and a relaxed pace, with an exclusive tour for just your family and friends!

Destinations for Wildlife, Waterfalls, Rainforest, Tide Pools for marine life, Waterfall hike, Totem Poles, and friendly tour guides!

Our private tours allow you to explore at your own pace, without rigid time constraints at each stop! Your group can choose to spend as much or little time at each location, allowing you to focus on areas of greater interest!

With extra care and attention from your guide on this private tour, can be especially helpful with those traveling with young children, elderly relatives, those with medical conditions, special needs or mobility challenges!

Our goal is an experience that is fun, friendly, authentic, and not scripted!

Location
Ketchikan
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
5.0
(87 Ratings)
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Sashag669
Jul 31, 2024
A fab day in Ketchikan. - We had a fantistic day with Bianca from Emerald Forest Tours in Ketchikan. She picked us up promptly at our cruise ship, taking us to multiple stops, pointing out wildlife along the way. She was able to adapt the tour to all members of our multi-generational group, which is no small feat. The highlight of the day for me and my teenage daughter was hiking a waterfall in the Alaskan wilderness.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Danielrw2301ys
Jul 31, 2024
Don't hesitate! Book now! - Hans provided us with a magical experience we will never forget. He was very accommodating to my mother with limited mobility. Highly recommend!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Dfgiants
Jul 27, 2024
Bianca Rocks! - A special tour of the area around Ketchikan! The joy and knowledge conveyed by our guide, Bianca, enthralled our party from age eight to eighty (literally)! We experienced the beautiful habitat and Bianca helped us spot a variety of wildlife. The hike up a local waterfall in the Tongass Rainforest brought us to an unforeseen vista .
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Dannap684
Jul 27, 2024
We love our tour - Our emerald tour was not planned but it was so much the charisma of our guide Bianca that we had to do it. From the beginning to the end the energy of the excursion was incredible. We saw everything Bianca told us and took us to beautiful places we could not reach on foot. The van super comfortable, amazing attention and amazing views.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Alejandro
Jul 26, 2024
Excellent tour option - Very good experience, it was very kind Bianca our Guide, We recommend you to come and do the tour with them, very professional , friendly, helpful and especially knowledgeable of the experiences that the visitor can have
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Llc20192019
Jul 21, 2024
Wonderful tour - Bianca was an energetic guide and we enjoyed our tour with her. We saw starfish in a tide pool, too many bald eagles to count, whales and seals. We also went to an old saw mill where they now carve totem poles. Last stop was a beautiful waterfall. I would recommend this tour company to anyone stopping in Ketchikan.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Bethany_o
Jul 9, 2024
Amazing Family Tour - Thank you, Bianca for an amazing family tour designed to fit our interests! We loved getting out in nature, seeing bald eagles, bears in the wild, and a humpback whale from the tide pools. The waterfall hike was also a highlight. Being in the rainforest is so much better than viewing it from a car. Our memories are priceless.
Review provided by Viator
Seekg
Jul 8, 2024
Bianca Made Our Tour Wondeful! - Our time with Bianca and Emerald Forest Tours was a fantastic first day ashore in Alaska! Bianca picked us up right on time in a clean and comfortable van, and after clarifying what we really wanted to see on our tour, we were off to spot bald eagles. Our first stop took us to a small beach that had so many eagles in the trees! We also observe some tide pools where Bianca showed the teens how to turn over rocks to find small crabs to hold. We were also lucky enough to see a humpback whale right off of the shore! Bianca was so well-informed about the area and did a great job engaging with our 5 teenagers. After the eagles and whale, we set off to try and spot some bears. We stopped and saw an old sawmill, met a local blacksmith and viewed a variety of totem poles. As we were leaving, Bianca decided to turn up a small side street just to see if she could spot bears, and sure enough, we saw one! She quickly returned to the parking lot, and she quickly led us to a boardwalk overlooking a river. Right below us was the bear. We got to watch it enjoy some grass by the river bank and swim in the river. It was a highlight of our day. After the bear viewing, we headed off for a beautiful waterfall where she took the group on a hike up to the top of the falls. It was a magical and memorable stop and not something we saw any other group doing. When we booked with Emerald Forest Tours, we told them we wanted to see wildlife, do some tide pooling and go for a hike. In the short 3 hours we were with Bianca, she delivered! Bianca has lived in Ketchikan for many years and was so informative about that part of Alaska. She took many pictures, which she airdropped to our group at the end of the tour! She was positive, and we felt right at home with her. My only regret is not booking for a longer tour. Based on our experience, we would highly recommend Emerald Forest Tours!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Adventure48388008352
Jul 3, 2024
Best tour ever - Hans led an exceptional guided tour for my family. He is kind, knowledgeable, energetic and accommodating. We felt like he must know all the “secret” spots because we were often the only people at each site. We saw a bear, countless eagles, a waterfall and lots of sea creatures. He was patient and witty when interacting with my three young children. Tour guides will usually take pictures on your phone is you ask. Hans went above and beyond and took pictures/videos using his own phone and air dropped them to us at the end of the tour. I love that he captured so many of my families candid moments admiring wildlife. This was our favorite activity during our week long stay in Alaska. 10 out of 10!!!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
164giag
Jun 18, 2024
Great sights and a charming and entertaining guide! - Exceeded expectations! Bianca, our guide, was an absolute delight. We were picked up promptly in a very comfortable van. On our tour, we explored tide pools, had a short walk to the waterfalls in the forest, and the traveled along the waters of the Inside Passage south of Ketchikan where we saw Orcas swimming along just offshore. We also went to a Native American Village to see an excellent collection of totem poles, and also a carver in the process of making a new totem pole. The entire tour was perfect and made even better by Bianca‘s expert knowledge, warmth, and enthusiasm for discovery.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
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