Emerald's has a beautiful spot, full of bear totems and statues! The hosts(?) were very…read morecommunicative and welcoming! They had home made baked breakfast goods for us before departure, and more baked goods amd savory charcuterie on our arrival back! The cookies & banana bread waa baked by Dave's (our pilot) s/o! THE FLIGHT This was my first time on a float plane, so climbing up and down had its challenges! The flight was very smooth, had fantastic views! The seats did need to have more leg space, but otherwise it was fine. BEARS OMG the bears were soooo cute! I wanted to boop them! There were bear paw prints on the sand as soon as we landed! Saw a total of 16 bears this day! One came within feets of us as we were heading back to the plane! Dave was afraid that the Rangers would give is grief, but all was good, the Ranger totally loved my hair LOLOL NEGATIVES The mosquitos! They were everywhere! I thankfully ordered a mosquito net prior to coming, they may look stupid, but I was spared for the most part! One did get me on the left hand, but to only have one was fantastic! But I can't put the mosquitos on Emerald's!

Very misleading. Imagine that you book a trip with wild bears and you think a guide will be with…read moreyou. Make no mistake, this is not a guided trip. They drop you off and you're on your own. I cannot find anywhere on this page that says I will be on my own. Go ahead and pay that $1300 and be placed in an environment with no defense and no guide. Very very very misleading.

The best personalized wilderness bear tour! Ty was a great guide, we (4 + Ty) walked along the…read morebeach, river & trails. Spoke with Beth & her (bear) research team. Saw a dozen+ bear & 3 cubs! Difficult to describe, you are right there with the bear in their habitat, walking the same trails. In awe of our day! How did we find this great gem? My brother & SIL had been in Homer in 2022. They went on a bear excursion with a company that has retired, but being in police & detective work & a pilot himself, my brother looked up the tail number of the plane & traced it back to Cook Inlet Adventures!! So the business name changed but Ty is there & guiding!! Thank you Ty for an amazing day!

Absolutely phenomenal experience with Alaska Ultimate Safaris! If you're looking for the ultimate…read moreway to explore the wild beauty of Alaska, look no further than Kirsten and Eric -- by far the best helicopter pilots you could ever hope to fly with. From the very first moment, their professionalism, warmth, and deep knowledge of the region made us feel completely at ease. We embarked on the adventure of a lifetime -- bear viewing, landing on an active volcano, soaring over glaciers -- and every single moment was unforgettable. Kirsten and Eric went above and beyond to make sure we were comfortable, safe, and having the absolute time of our lives. Their attention to detail, calm demeanor, and passion for what they do shines through in everything, from the smooth flight experience to the stunning locations they take you to. Safety was a top priority throughout, and we never once felt anything but completely secure. It's rare to find people who balance excitement and adventure with such a strong sense of responsibility and care. As for value -- it's worth every single penny. This isn't just a flight, it's a full-on bucket list adventure curated by two of the best in the business. If you're thinking about doing anything involving a helicopter in Alaska, stop searching and book with Alaska Ultimate Safaris. You won't find a better team than Kirsten and Eric. Five stars just isn't enough!

We booked the Alaska Ultimate Safari. It certainly lived up to its name. My husband and I felt…read morelike this was the ultimate day in Alaska, all thanks to Eric and Kirsten. We went to the glacier first thing and saw mountain goats and spectacular glacial views. It was absolutely breath taking! Eric provided excellent commentary throughout - telling us about the natural history, geography and events that shaped the area. When we stopped back in Homer to refuel his wife Kirsten joined us to see bears and she was such a pleasure, adding even more interesting bear facts! She helped us to spot some moose and some super cool bear dens. We got to see a lot of bears in lake Clark national park and had plenty of time to take stunning pictures. Eric went out of his way to accommodate our desires and we were able to skip the volcano (very cloudy today) and go to another spot for more excellent bear viewing! The scenery was breathtaking the whole day but the last spot was truly stunning! It will be something we will remember for the rest of our lives! Also, they provide everything you needed for the trip including waders and a delicious lunch, so all we had to do was enjoy our day! Truly a wonderful experience

Great experience. Most expensive thing we've ever done and didn't regret it. Did have the first…read moredate canceled due to weather, but that's out of their control. Everybody involved was super nice to work/interact with.

We had SO much fun with Wes of Beluga Air on our bear tour. We spoke with some of the other tour…read morecompanies but opted for Beluga because they were so friendly, knowledgeable, and they have a better viewing setup, IMO. You take a float plane to Lake Crescent in the beautiful Clark Lake National Park and then a pontoon around the lake to watch bears. The fresh salmon lunch in the bear lodge was so delicious as well. Many of the other places we checked into bring you to a dock at Brooks Falls where it sounds like you're kind of herded like animals (much more 'touristy') and have limited time on the dock. Not to mentioned you only have one viewing vantage point along with 60 others at once. All in all, five stars. Wes and his wife along with Jessica and others at the lake were really fantastic.

This was the adventure I never knew I wanted. It was pure magic. The guide was great. Tip wear…read morethick socks boots do not have much support.

I cannot say enough about our experience with Chris and J Bear tours. We lucked out with likely the…read moreonly good weather day in a two-week span of rain for our tour. You are guaranteed to see bears and we saw quite a few! Before taking off, we were outfitted with waders (needed for traipsing through the meadow). We signed up for the 1.5 hour on the ground with bears and the time flew by, but I thought we had enough time. Chris took us to see several mama bears with cubs and I never felt unsafe. I was able to take over 100 photos. There is quite a bit of walking involved (but Chris asked each time if we wanted to move to another area) and you do need to be nimble enough to climb in and out of a small plane. Once back in the plane for the return from Lake Clark National Park and Preserve, we hit some great views of Red Glacier and Mt Iliamna. This was truly a unique adventure! You only live once so go for it!

Local owned company that is easy to work with. We were in town for a few days and they gave us a…read moremuch better rate than at the airport and a much sturdier, albeit older, AWD car to drive. If you want everything to be shiny and new, then you can happily rent with Hertz and pay the upcharge to drive around looking like a tourist. If you want to support a small business and drive around feeling like a local, then come here! The guys also gave us great recommendations on where to go hike and eat around the area.

Car got us where we needed, but was clearly having issues which made a long trip longer since it…read morewas struggling to maintain speed on even flat roads. Provided gear was very dirty and incomplete. Found out too late (7 hours away camping near a glacial lake) that the sleeping bag we had been given was still damp. The pop up tent on the car also had mold on the inside

I just flew aboard Kenai Aviation's new Tecnam 2012 plane that is regularly flying between…read moreAnchorage, Kenai, and Homer. The plane is new and pretty nice to fly aboard. USB charging ports are available at each seat. I was informed that they will schedule more flights in Spring 2023.

Our friends late arrival in Anchorage was not a problem for Kenai Aviation. There last flight is…read more11:30 pm! Thank you Kenai Aviation!

I go every year with Dan Eidm, the owner of AW4WT. He's a great guy, very informative, and best of…read moreall, the tours go something like this: Get to his house, sign papers, get in his truck and drive to nearby Nikolavesk (apologies if I can't spell russian village names correctly). He then shows you how to use the ATVs, and you follow him through the forest on ATV trails, while he rides in front looking out for animals (for your safety and his benefit... he's a hunter), picking up trash (hey, an environmentalist hunter, go figure), and stopping at the most amazing lookout spots and telling you pretty much whatever's on his mind. Really relaxing and fun time, and a fun way to see the wilderness at its best. Be sure to bring lunch (I.E. a sandwich from Subway on Pioneer works awesome), because one of the lookouts you will stop at will be an awesome lunch spot.

Wow this guy is something else. We called to try to get a reservation and he was not only rude but…read moreracist. My brother had him on speaker and had asked if we were able to go fast anywhere on the trail. And the owner just went off saying things like "if you want to go fast go to that worthless Mexican down the street" (we're assuming he's talking about some other ATV charter). Then said he didn't want to do business with someone who'd ask to go fast? Then hung up on us. It was honestly so bizarre and we were all laughing about it after. Just glad we didn't sign up for four hours with that guy as our guide. Recommend you don't either