We had the absolute pleasure of going out with Chum Fun Charters yesterday, and I can't say enough…read moregood things about the experience. From start to finish, the crew was professional, kind, and incredibly knowledgeable--but what made this trip truly unforgettable was how they went above and beyond for my 7-year-old son. Catching a salmon in Alaska has been my boy's dream for nearly two years, ever since his uncle took him fishing in the mountains of California and he discovered the Outdoor Boys on YouTube. Yesterday, that dream came true. He hooked and reeled in his very own salmon--completely unassisted--with just a little support holding the rod. A huge shoutout to Jude, the high school student working with the charter, who showed infinite patience, kindness, and enthusiasm. He spent extra time helping my son, answering questions, encouraging him, and making him feel like a real angler. Watching my kid light up with pride was something I will remember for the rest of my life. If you're looking for a family-friendly, well-run, and genuinely caring charter company in Juneau, Chum Fun Charters is it. Thank you for helping make a little boy's dream come true. We'll both be talking about this day for a long, long time.

We stayed in town for a little over a week and used up our first few days on different excursions…read more We found what we really wanted on our last few days was to relax and take in Juneau. With salmon jumping about, it only made sense to find some fishing gear and relax and go fishing. We drove up to the location to find it empty and were a little disheartened that maybe they were out doing an excursion themselves. We called and left a message and Paul called us back 2 mins later. Which was awesome. My husband came out of your shop looking like a kid ready to go on an adventure. Big smile and all. We drove up and down Juneau all the way up to Eagle creek and down to sheep creek to fish and did not leave disappointed. Thank you for helping make memories I know my family will share for years to come.

I found these guys via an internet search and took a leap of faith. I liked their reviews and their…read morename, and figured they had a sense of humor. Best decision ever. We came in on the Disney Wonder. Booking was a breeze. They arranged for a taxi to meet us when we got off the ship and drove us to the boat. Nick and his dad run this labor of love and was happy to answer all of our questions and tell us his story. What a good dude. For a few hours I felt like a local. The boat is clean and beautiful and my 7 and 8 year old had a blast. Don't book through the cruise ships. Book straight through this company. They are an Alaskan gem. You won't regret it.

These guys are fantastic. We brought in three gorgeous halibut and several lovely salmon. Such nice…read morepeople! The boat is perfect.

Captain Adrienne and her Deck hand Marlin led us on an epic fishing and whale watching adventure…read more Our hope was to catch king salmon and to see Orcas and Humpbacks. Adrienne and Marlin made it all happen! They are very accommodating and knowledgeable about fishing and about the wildlife. We plan to hire them again in the future!

Absolutely the best experience for the money in Juneau!…read more My wife and I have family connections in Juneau and we visit on a regular basis. One of the things we look forward to the most is a fishing/sightseeing trip with Rum Runner Charters. Captain Chris and crew have always come through for us. My only complaint is that they always seem to position my wife on the side of the boat that has the largest halibut. Oh well. We highly recommend Rum Runner Charters to anyone looking to fully experience the coastal waters of Southeast Alaska.

Captain Dan and first mate Dane were terrific. Interesting and knowledgeable commentary; found and…read morefollowed several orcas and humpbacks. Top it off with good weather and calm seas.

Took a tour last year with them and wanted to repeat. While this was nowhere as fantastic as last…read moreyear it was still good. It was good enough that will book another tour on return cruise in a few days. While didn't see Orca's and it was rainy and had trouble finding whales, we did find 3 and this proves that nature is unpredictable. What earned them five stars, and an endearing place in my tiny heart, is the crew. Captain Dan was good but what made this trip for me was the naturalist Kaelyn (hope got it right). She was amazing, had a wealth of knowledge, and extremely easy to talk to. She shared the passion she has for wildlife, particularly whales, and spoke at length about their behaviors here and in Hawaii. She really is fantastic. Our boat had a small group size and surprised they didn't cancel it, very small. The crew on this trip, and my prior one last year, couldn't stop talking about the company itself, a small locally owned group which has excellent customer service, truly exceptional. They also Treat their employees like the gold they are Many thanks to them for a great tour. While didn't see as much as had hoped, and while weather didn't cooperate, it's a fantastic trip and time. They really truly take care of you.

Captain was very funny. Caught a ton of halibut and it was just an amazing experience in general.read more

Disappointing and Overpriced Halibut Charter Experience Our…read moreexperience was poor to average. We are a family of four with two girls, ages 11 and 14, and this charter was not a good fit for us this past August, 2025. We were surprised to learn that guides were not allowed to help reel in the fish until they could actually see it at the water line. When fishing for halibut, the line is dropped over 300 feet with a two-pound weight to reach the bottom. Between the weight, the depth, and the rocky waves, it was nearly impossible for our daughters--and admittedly myself--to reel in a fish without assistance. For the price we paid, and after several conversations with the owner before booking, we were disappointed this was never explained upfront. It would have been helpful to know this charter was not ideal for families with kids or teens. We were also frustrated by the lack of basic amenities. The toilet on board was broken, leaving only a bucket with no toilet paper as the option. For almost $2,000, this felt unacceptable. No bottled water or beverages were provided, and the only snack was a single granola bar for a five-hour trip. For a premium charter, this fell far short of expectations. Another disappointment was with the fish processing. We paid the owner in advance for our three fish to be filleted and shipped home, only to be asked again for our credit card later to cover separate shipping charges. This was never made clear and felt misleading. Lastly, we did not catch our limit, and both the guide and captain repeatedly mentioned that a large fishing competition had just taken place in the area over the previous three days. Their exact words were: "It's not good fishing today, it's been way overfished the last few days and it will take about two weeks to get the halibut back to this area." It left us questioning why guests were still being booked at full price when conditions were known to be poor. In the end, we spent a lot of money for what turned out to be an average experience, with limited access to fish and very little in the way of customer service.

These folks appear to be general outfitters for outdoor activities in the area. Their office had a…read morelot of fly-fishing gear, for example. But we were here to see bears. We booked them through the cruise line to take us to see bears in the wild. First, the positives. The people were nice. It was a small outfit, but they had a mini-bus to get us at the dock and then had the plane waiting behind their office. Now the negatives. On the island (Chichagof Island) they were less organized. The van wasn't waiting for us, and when it did come they had to drop other folks off at a dock before our tour began. The people were still nice, but there seemed to be confusion about what time they were supposed to have met us. And while I understand that they can't guarantee bears, they should wait until bears are active. The guides told us that the salmon weren't running yet so the bears were more elusive. (So what were we doing out there?!) The salmon (and bears) become plentiful in late June, and into July. This had the potential to be totally awesome, but they were so eager to fill seats on their tour that they didn't consider that the bears weren't really out in force yet. If this had been in the middle of salmon season I could excuse the lack of bears since it's not really fair to hold them responsible for what nature does or doesn't do. But when they KNOW we're early, they shouldn't even offer the trip. It was really disappointing. I can't comment on their other outfitting activities. They may be outstanding. I think it's up to the buyer to verify if their activity of choice is really in-season or not. Don't assume they'll tell you before you sign-up. (Though, to be fair, since I signed up through the cruise line I have to put some of the blame on them for offering an excursion "out of season", so to speak.) If you are "in-season" with your activity, these folks did seem to be very nice and had a reasonable amount of equipment for fly fishing and cold weather in their office.

We booked a Fly in, Fly Fishing trip through Holland America. This was the outfitter. Matt was…read moreour guide. We caught Dolly Varden and the trip was awesome. We saw orcas playing in the bay while we fished. The fly fishing was just part of the package. The float plane ride was great. We flew over forests, a silver mining operation and we saw whales from above. We will do this again and may book a trip just to Juneau for this. Apple was our bus driver to ant from the port. She gave us the tour along the way and we saw bald eagles all over the place. For us this adventure is a must do. This was one of the greatest outdoor adventures I have had.

Look up Shelter on the web. Shelter Lodge at Auke Bay ( there are two Shelters run by different…read moregroups. Everythinhg first class Actually you need only show up with acchsnge of underwear and sundries as everything else is provided. They do just about everything except cstch your fish. Clean , fillet , package in boxes and freeze your catch. You don't touch your 2 boxes until you pick them up at your home airport. 5 stars !

We have been going to Shelter Lodge every other year for 20 years. This is an update of a review…read morethat I wrote in 2010. I cannot believe it but since writing my review, it has gotten even mo betta. They have totally rebuilt their lodge and nearly all of their cabins. They have a beautiful dining area and decking all around. They have a new utility/changing room where they check you in and outfit you with your rain gear. The dining experience continues to be truly outstanding with Chef Kenny designing, preparing and presenting incredible meals that rival dining experiences of five-star restaurants. Fishing continues to be outstanding with expert guides who put you on the fish. The best and most noteworthy attribute continues to be their wonderful hospitality.

Great trip with Captain Jon on the Petrel July 21 and 23. Jon and deck hand Dillion were very…read morepolite and professional. Jon put us on halibut limit and several salmon both days. Great trip. Thanks

Captain David and Jack were amazing!! We booked an 8 hour salmon and halibut fishing excursion and…read moreasked if they could find 1 or 2 more people to go out with us on the date of our tour so that the price would go down a bit since originally we only had 3 people. Captain Mike found us one other person to go which dropped our prices by around $20/PERSON. They were a little late starting the day because they had to pick up the other passenger from his cruise ship. Captain Mike said not to worry because they would keep us out longer to compensate for the lost time, which he did. Once we arrived at the first fishing spot, Captain David gave us a brief but thorough tutorial on how to reel in the big fish without hurting ourselves (backs) and tiring yourself out since we would be reeling from depths of 250-300 feet. This info was more valuable than I can tell you!! We went to 6 or 7 halibut fishing spots in the AM, then fished for salmon in the afternoon. We had a good catch overall for the day. Captain David event called out to his whale watching friends to find out if there were any whales to see that day. He took us over to where we might find them, but they were not around. He then took us to see some local sea lions up close and bald eagles in their natural habitat along the water. I appreciate the extra effort! When we got back to the dock, Jack gave us a masterclass on cleaning and filleting the halibut, rock fish, and cod we wanted to take with us to eat for dinner. He then gutted and beheaded the rest of the fish so they would be lighter for processing by the pound. Big Jim's suggested a fairly priced processing plant that froze our freshly caught fish and shipped it directly to our homes. --We had a great experience with Big Jim's Charters and will definitely book them when we return to Juneau and tell all of our friends to do the same! Thank you :-)

Julia and Kendall were amazing! Our boat driver did an amazing job finding the whales and giving…read moreus a close, but safe experience! We love kayaking and this experience was out of this world! Just incredible. We saw humpbacks and orcas! Highly recommend this company!

Great place definitely a must do when your in the area . Or just make a point yo go to Alaska and…read moreexperience it first gand

Just what a die hard fly fisherman is looking for. Rocky knew all the patterns that are hitting…read morefor each species and even gave me some ideas for local spots near Juneau before I head off into the bush. Great shop and I'd trust them with your fly fishing recommendations while (or before) you visit the region.

These guys are legit. They have a nice website/online store. Great service and selection. I highly…read morerecommend these guys!