Sep 2023 - Barbara F.
Beautiful day. Stopped for photos along the way. The Fortress of the Bear was wonderful. Great guide
Aug 2023 - Brian R.
The tour guide gave us a very interesting history of Sitka, the fortress of the bears was a little less than what I was expecting and we were only shown 2 totem poles.
Aug 2023 - Nora G.
I really enjoyed the tour. Our guide was very friendly and helpful. I loved the beautiful totem poles, the salmon swimming up stream, to see the man carving a totem pole and especially the bears. I found it very pleasant and informative. Thank You! Great Tour
Jul 2023 - Stephanie M.
Enjoyed the tour. Our tour leader was really good and friendly.
Jun 2023 - Erin W.
Nice excursion. Enjoyed seeing the rescue bears up close! 5 star!
May 2023 - Chloe L.
Steven was super knowledgable and fun to listen to. Small groups made it possible to ask any questions. This was a great excursion to see as much as possible for an affordable price. He had a great sound system that made it super easy to hear at the back of the bus. I wasn't a fan of the fortress of the bears because they were literally in concrete pens, but the tour was a good amount at each stops.
Aug 2022 - Joe P C.
The guide was outstanding. great overview of Sitka. Alaska Shore Excursions were exceptional to work with. They made it easy and everything was better than expected.
Jul 2022 - Joseph B.
This was a nice mellow tour. We got to see bears, totem poles, and some nature. Our tour guide was very knowledgeable.
May 2022 - Deborah H.
It was a fun day, the driver was knowledgeable and friendly. I enjoyed the comfortable seating on the vehicle. I highly recommend this tour.
May 2022 - Cherie W.
This small group tour was very nice, we were so happy that they waited for us when our ship was late getting us to the tour. We had a great time it was shortened a bit because of the lateness of our arrival.
Sep 2021 - Mark O.
The tour was interesting and informative. A good job of telling the history of Sitka that helped us understand the culture of the area. Fortress of the Bears was extremely crowded, but there was opportunity to get photos of the bears in a natural looking environment. The crowd at F of B, made it difficult to keep the group together. The salmon where numerous in the streams (early Sept.).
Aug 2021 - Susan H.
The benefit of this excursion is the transportation. Fortress of the bears was cool but crowded. We really liked the Totem park but parted ways with our group so we could have more time then we walked back to our final destination.
Sep 2019 - Joan P.
Nice excursion but only went for a little over 2 hours making it feel very rushed. Also no room for wheelchair making it difficult to navigate to most things. But guide was knowledgeable and bears were really neat to see so close.
Sep 2019 - Elisse H.
Excellent, guide (owner?) super knowledgeable
Sep 2019 - Diane V.
Loved our guide, full of local knowledge
Aug 2019 - Albert M.
Having a guide who grew up in the area was great and the Fortress of the Bears was a great way to learn about Alaskan bears.
Aug 2019 - Michelle T.
Unfortunately this tour wasn't as good as we expected. The guide kept asking if we had any questions but didn't really have any information about the history of Sitka to impart. We saw the bears for half an hour and then the totems and salmon for about 20 minutes and then back to the Centre. We had to get back for another group to go on another tour so the tour felt very short. Given all that Sitka has to offer this tour was not a good use of our time or money.
Aug 2019 - Lori L. C.
Tour guide was an awesome, quirky, funny, Alaskan original! I think it was Maria. She was so informative. Saw the salmon just lined up forever at the Totem Pole Site, and The Fortress of the Bears was so amazing. Thank you guys for showing us your beautiful home.
Aug 2019 - Nancy A.
I loved our tour guide. She grew up in the city and was very knowledgeable. She had a great personality and made the tour very enjoyable and unique. I also loved visiting the bears at the Fortress of the Bears and learning about their rescue efforts. Learning about the totem poles was also fascinating. Overall, an amazing tour. The only thing I would want differently is for it to last longer!
Aug 2019 - Richard N.
Great tour guide. She made us feel right at home with her very friendly attitude. Was very knowledgeable about Sitka.
Aug 2019 - Jan N.
Interesting tour and guide, who was a local, and very knowledgeable. Felt we got a good overview of the town and history of the city. Really enjoyed seeing the rescued bears along with the totem poles, flora and fauna. Good value.
Aug 2019 - Donald H.
Our tour guide was exceptional!
Jul 2019 - Deborah F.
This tour was very informative. The best part was Fortress of the Bears. Our tour guide was good and receptive to dropping us off at the Science Museum. The guide was on time and we we were back to port on time. We enjoyed this tour.
Jul 2019 - Rhonda D.
Loved learning some of the history of the area with our wonderful and funny guide. Really enjoyed going to the Fortress of the Bears, what a cool place.
Jun 2019 - Cobie S.
Enjoyed the excursions. Very informative. Our guide was very knowledgable and added to the experience.
May 2019 - Ronald S.
Excellent tour of Sitka. The tour guide was awesome!
May 2019 - Robert H.
We had a great time, the Fortress of the Bears building will be lovely. Our driver Deanna, was wonderful.
Sep 2018 - Kelly C.
MARIA is THE best. She's knowledgeable, funny and just someone I would want to be friends with. Thanks for a wonderful Sitka experience.
Aug 2018 - James R.
Great excursion, the smaller group size was very nice. Our driver was great, passionate about Alaska and her ancestry, very informative and a nice person. Very good value.
Aug 2018 - Mary L H.
Vivian was knowledgeable and informative! Wish we could have seen all the Tatum poles, didn't see the 2 in front. Loved the bears!
Jul 2018 - Brian C.
Fun and very informative. The only recommendation would be to have a small bottled water available in the van for each passenger.
Jun 2018 - David W.
An excellent tour of this nice little town. Our guide was very experienced and knowledgeable, and added a great deal of value through her commentary and explanations. She was enormously enthusiastic, to the extent that we were almost late back on the cruise ship!
Jun 2018 - Douglas N.
A small group of 12, in a mini bus driven by our guide Aatcheck ( sorry not sure of spelling). Started with a tour of Sitka, Aatcheck gave us lots of information about the town including things like the boarding school for children from small communities in the interior and further north. She identified many plants and told us about their medicinal uses and how the native Alaskans harvest and use them.
The Fortress of the Bears - a sanctuary for orphaned and injured bears. The staff were friendly and keen to engage, we talked to Chris (who happened to come from a town 10 miles away from us at home in Devon. ) you will see bears, the Brown Bears are in pens which look rather spartan and untidy - apparently the bears have rearranged their surroundings! The Black Bears can come and go from the pen area near the viewing platform into the woods behind and can be more tricky to spot in the woods. We saw them in both places. It is perhaps more "zoo like" than we anticipated but it is a work in progress.
Jun 2018 - Lawrence S.
we had a fantastic time. Our tour group leader was Vivian Mork and she was incredible. She had a wealth of information for us and we could of listened to her all day. best thing we did on our cruise.
Oct 2017 - Sharon E.
Firey well informed guide. New bus.
Aug 2017 - Katharine K.
Enjoyed your very much. Our guide both knowledgeable and helpful.
Jun 2017 - Marie H.
What a great tour, our guide was fantastic, the Fortress of the Bears was GREAT we really enjoyed it. The history and the Totems were really interesting as well with a beautiful stop at the Totems.
May 2017 - Yuan X.
Sitka is small cute town. The first stop was by the bridge and you can see the faraway scenery, which was ok. The second stop was the Fortress of Bear, which is like a zoo with just bears. Above, you will see eagles, quite fascinating. The first stop was a park, quite a short walk. I wish it could be longer. Overall pleasant experience.
May 2017 - Jeffrey B.
Great tour Fran was excellent so enthusiastic about all she was showing us and very interesting.
May 2017 - Teri M.
This was a lovely tour of the town and our tour leader was very knowledgeable of all wildlife in the city, rain forest, and ocean. It was so sweet getting to see the bears and the scenery is to die for! If you want to see the entire town of Sitka and learn a lot about wildlife, you should sign up for this tour.