Alaska Photo Adventures
1-5 day Photo Tours
as low as $299.00/pp/day (+ tax)
Depending on tour length and group size, APA day tours can go to many of the SAME place(s) as our complete 7-day tours (depending on time of season and any options you may choose that we can accommodate), including brown bears in Katmai and/or Lake Clark Nat’l Parks (depends on time of season, weather, etc. We can also customize private day tours for groups of 4+.
All tours offer these added benefits:
∗ Comfortable 6-12 passenger vans with plenty of room for gear and relaxation
∗ Pickup/dropoff at your hotel in Anchorage or the Kenai Peninsula
∗ Wildlife around Anchorage, Turnagain Arm, Cook Inlet and, depending on tour length, Kenai Peninsula, Kenai Fjords Nat’l Park, Chugach Nat’l Forest, Katmai, Lake Clark Nat’l Parks.
∗ Snacks/drinks while on the road/in vehicle
∗ Flexible times to suit your needs, with as much time as humanly possible with wildlife, great light and scenery
∗ Photography tips & Alaska natural history narration from our Alaska resident professional photographer guides
∗ Best places to go for up-to-date wildlife sightings, activity, weather, etc. from our local connections throughout the summer and 40 years in Alaska.
See Tour Dates here
Tour Itineraries, Prices & Options
Prices are per person, per day, based on double occupancy. All tours require 3 people minimum for tour to go.
NOTE: Do not be misled by cheaper “wildlife” day tours in Anchorage. Most take you to the AWCC Wildlife Center, which is the open air zoo along Turnagain Arm. It is a fun place to see animals in an open but fenced zoo setting, but not to see wild animals, bears with salmon, or do any of the classic Alaskan options we offer. You can take a bus, rental car or cab yourself to the AWCC and save money.
1 Day: $349/pp + tax (1-3ppl, 4+ $299/pp)
1-Day tours are not formally scheduled, but filled between scheduled tours if we have openings and minimum registrants. This gives you more possibilities throughout the summer to grab them on short notice. Contact us via email or form below for availability as the summer gets close.
Premium wildlife photography tour around Anchorage, Turnagain Arm, Chugach State Park and, time permitting, upper Kenai Peninsula. Includes search for moose, bears, dall sheep, beluga whales (August), bald eagles, loons, otters, beavers and other animals.
May include bears catching salmon later in the season!
NOTE: If you are interested in a 1 day tour, call or contact us via email for availability. If your dates are open, you can also fill out our 1-Day Wildlife Tour Registration here and list date(s) you would like, and we will confirm for you.
2 Days: $795/pp + tax . (Min. 2 people required. Single supplement $99)
Includes all activities on Day 1 PLUS lodging, Kenai Fjords Nat’l Park marine mammal cruise, more time and locations in bear/moose/wildlife hotspots around Chugach National Forest and/or upper Kenai Peninsula. We stay overnight on the Kenai Peninsula and/or return to Anchorage, depending on whether this is your last day or you are on a longer tour. May include bears catching salmon later in the season!
Optional add-on: Helicopter fjords sightseeing ($350-479) or Dogsledding on remote glacier (incl. 15 min helicopter ride – $599)
5 Days: $6795/pp + tax (Min. 2 people required. Single supplement $495).
See our separate 5-day Primo Bear & Wildlife Photo Tour Page
Includes all activities on Days 1 & 2, PLUS: Brown bear and salmon flight to Katmai (Brooks Falls) or Lake Clark National Park (depends on bear activity and time of year) via floatplane. A superb flight across to nearby active volcanoes, 13,000’+ peaks, wetlands, salmon rivers, etc. Daytrip includes photographing wild Alaskan brown bears catching salmon, clamming, playing with cubs, etc. (specific activities depend on time of season, weather, availability).
MOST IMPORTANTLY: The 5-day and 7-day tours give you valuable breathing space. On the shorter tours above, weather, tides and logistics are more critical with less time to rearrange/redo activities if necessary (we have lots of options. alternate locations, etc. if weather or animals aren’t being “cooperative”).
One the 5-day tours, we usually fly out to the bears on Day 3 but if we are weathered out that day, we go to other land-based wildlife spots. Day 4 becomes our fly-out to bears, and return to Anchorage.
Advantages of 1-day vs longer tours
1. Biggest advantage is cost. If weather is good, you can have a thrilling photo shoot with wildlife of all types, including bears in their natural surroundings, moose, loons, dall sheep, bald eagles, beluga whales, etc. depending on time of season.
2. Another advantage is for impulse travelers. If we can get you in “tomorrow”, you don’t have to make longer term reservations. So you’re not locked into a long term commitment as with the multi-day tours. (However, we must have full payment to secure your day tour).
3. Flexibility this works both ways. If the weather is not good in one area where you may have wanted to go for the day, you can try to get on a last minute day tour. Or that day could be your “flex day” to rent a car or see other things on your list or with us. Our schedules, experience and flexibility can help you get to places you can’t get to otherwise during your short time here.
4. Consider this: You will pay the same or less by going through us than if you booked any of the destinations individually yourself. We not only get bulk tour operator discounts, but you’ll get transportation, food and other benefits included. Plus we know where the animal activity and better weather is each day at certain spots that aren’t advertised in the printed brochures or ads.
Disadvantages of 1-2 day Tours vs longer
1. Photography is all about time. More time is your greatest ally in wildlife photography. An extra day or two can sometimes be the difference between getting the shots you came for, or having to settle for shooting in sub-optimal weather. It works both ways on 1-day tours, but if you only have 1 opportunity to get a bear or moose shot, you can’t come back in a few hours or the next day. You won’t have the luxury as you would in our multi-day tours to return to a spot to take advantage of better weather or timing.
2. It comes down to your own risk tolerance. How much time and money are you wiling to save for the risk of uncertainty, versus booking a longer tour (4 or 7 days) to have a buffer? Having a few extra days to shoot or relax a bit eases the stress and unpredictable nature of travel, weather and animal behavior. We will always make the best use of rain/weather days to get you in front of animals wherever we are. If you get caught in a weather day or two on a 4 day tour, that’s 25-50% of your time/photo opps with bears or other animals, flights, etc.
3. More expensive day rate. The cost per day decreases with longer tours, (except for the added flight cost, which gets passed on to the flight charters) and you get much better value for your money. You can see and do more each day on all the overnight tours — there’s a LOT more daylight in those summer mornings and evenings than on a 10-12 hour 1-day tour.
4. 1-2 day tours do not include bear flight adventures in Lake Clark or Katmai. We may get lucky and see them on the roads, but they won’t be fishing for salmon or playing on the tidal flats. It is these classic Alaskan adventures in Lake Clark and Katmai that add the most cost to any tour, as the flights are expensive and longer. BUT THEY ARE WORTH EVERY PENNY (in our humble opinion…).
Notes:
Usually the flights to the bears in Katmai and Lake Clark are booked weeks in advance. On short notice, these options are harder to guarantee closer to tour date. We reserve the option to change bear location based on flight space availability, and/or to give you the best opportunities for viewing and photographing.
Day tours may include pickup/dropoff in Anchorage or the Kenai Peninsula, depending on when we have availability and how far in advance you book your tour. Most day tours are in and around Anchorage, with short trips to nearby hotspots on the Kenai Peninsula.
Sometimes we can combine 2 options in one day, such as a land tour with a helicopter flightsee over fjords, or a dogsled excursion with land tour and/or fjord flightsee. Whatever you’re wanting to do, ask us and we’ll do our best for you.
Above prices based on 3 people minimum on any tour. If less than 3, there is a $50/person fee for 1 day tours, and $100/person for 2-day tours. The advantage is that with larger groups, our vehicle and overnight costs are shared by more folks as well. However, a big advantage with less people is that these turn into a custom tour where we can specifically go to requested places or activities, and spend as much time as you want in preferred hotspots.
See Tour Dates here
Other Tour Add-ons
Other fun options (require 2-7 day tour, dep on activity):
1) Wildlife float trip down the upper Kenai river
2) Whitewater raft trip down a class IV-V river
3) Dogsled riding on a remote glacier (- includes short helicopter ride up to the glacier! Very weather dependent but a truly Alaskan thrill!
Tour options are spread over large areas we visit on the Kenai Peninsula, so the sooner you let us know what you’d like, the sooner we can fit it into your tour.
Unsure about anything?
Call (907) 740-3322 or click here to ask us any questions.
We can help you decide based on your time, money and preferences
