Experience Ketchikan As a Local
Ketchikan is full of unique and fascinating things to see. We show you the best of it! Tour an Alaskan Native Totem park and learn about our fascinating cultures. Stop at a picturesque beach and view occasional passing by Orca, seals, or eagles. Make another stop at a beautiful river teeming with salmon while keeping a keen eye out for bears.
Our tours are small and personal with a maximum of 7 Guests per vehicle touring Ketchikan in a comfortable spacious vehicle. We can fill our time with what you are most interested in, or rely on our expert local guidance.
*Ward Cove Arrivals must take the shuttle to downtown Ketchikan's Berth 4.
Note: Please specify your cruise ship for pickup location at booking. For passengers arriving on ships docked at Ward Cove (incl. NCL), pickup is at Berth 4 in downtown Ketchikan where the shuttle drops you off.”
*Call for tours over 7 people
*Call for tours over 6 people
Experience luxury travel in Ketchikan in one of our two top-of-the-line luxury vans. Our spacious and comfortable vehicles offer the perfect transportation solution for your group of up to 7 guests per vehicle. Book your tour now and indulge in the ultimate travel experience.
We never mix and match parties. It’s just you, your family and your local tour guide.
We can easily accommodate groups who are a little less than mobile. Each trip is catered to your interests and limitations. We also have room for collapsible wheelchairs.
I’m Bernie, a 4th generation Alaskan native from the Tshimsian tribe and I’ve lived in Ketchikan all but 7 years of my life. I’ve commercial fished for 35 years and for the past 30 years if I’m not out fishing I’ve been doing sightseeing tours. I’ve grown up here in Ketchikan and boy do I have some great stories to tell! Can’t wait to meet you and show you around my hometown.
Seul moyen de voir Ketchikan Bernie est un natif local avec de grandes connaissances locales. Elle vous emmènera dans des endroits que les autocars ne peuvent pas ou ne veulent pas aller. Son véhicule peut accueillir un maximum de 6 personnes et elle ne prend qu'un groupe à la fois. C'est une expérience beaucoup plus personnelle. Nous avons vu des cerfs, des phoques et de nombreux pygargues à tête blanche et avons pu goûter aux baies de saumon locales. J'ai beaucoup appris sur Totems et j'ai été surpris d'apprendre qu'il y avait un saumon blanc. Je recommande fortement de réserver avec elle.
Exactly the tour we were hoping for We are 3 adults in our 60s who just want to know how things tick. Bernie had the scoop on everything Ketchikan. Although it is early in the season, so the animal food supplies are limited, Bernie made a brave attempt to find some bears. No luck. But we did see a fine tide change, climbed up on some rocks to look at a fantastic waterfall, and had a quick look at some fresh bear scat and paw prints. Being the nosy biddies that we are, we were thrilled to see the local kids playing on their new softball field, the A&P Market where rotisserie chick costs $28, the landslide that took out the old market, the crematorium, the airstrip that is only accessible by ferry, and a great totem park that we had to ourselves. Bernie showed us around to the things that are important to her and her family, which was exactly what we wanted!
Simple mais vu beaucoup! Bernie est venu nous chercher à 14 heures près de l'endroit où nous avons déjeuné. Elle nous a amené à quelques totems et à la recherche de la faune! Super sympa, excursion parfaite pour notre dernier arrêt dans notre itinéraire! Bernie était sympathique et avait beaucoup de connaissances à partager. Elle a fait preuve d'une excellente communication avant notre arrivée. Réservez en toute confiance!


Great tour of wildlife in Ketchikan and other local interest sights. Our guide was Bernadette. She was fun and informative. The van was roomy and comfortable. We saw Orca Killer whales, bald eagles fighting for salmon and so much of Ketchikan, including a waterfall and a house being lifted and moved to a new location. I highly recommend this tour and our guide Bernadette.
A-Maz-Ing Experience! Best way to see the town! Thank you "Roll Tide Rick!" We had the most amazing experience on this customizable tour! Orca Song Tours let us create the experience that was just right for us. On top of that, we saw two bears and lots of eagle. Not to mention gorgeous scenery, remarkable landmarks, and so much more. I cannot rate this experience high enough. Thank you!
Amazing!! The tour was amazing! If Bernie is available you’ll do more than well to book her. We were on an Alaska cruise and had been booking our excursions through the cruise line. Those excursions were good, but the guides were always transplants to the area working summer jobs in Alaska. Bernie was different - she’s a fourth generation local to the area and knows it extremely well! Everyone knows her everywhere and she knows everyone - including the wildlife. She found us a mother bear and her three cubs that had been frequenting an area. It genuinely had to be one of the greatest experiences of our Iives to watch them frolic in a field. She got us close enough to an eagle that I could have literally hit it with a stick (obviously I didn’t). She also knows a group that tracks the local pod of orcas and tells each other where the orcas are headed. Wildlife is wild so there’s no guarantee you’ll see something, but I think Bernie gives you the best chance to see it if it can be seen during your stay. She’s friendly, accommodative, and really just a delight to spend time with. I highly recommend.
4th generation local Tour guide Magic happens when you learn about a place with a 4th generation local. Bernie (Bernadette) was outstanding: patient, knowledgeable, attentive and super proud of her community/city. With that we learned, enjoyed the city, saw bears, salmos, eagles and learned about the Totem in craftsmanship and story. Ended the day with of where to eat and again a great recommendation! Look no further and experience Ketchikan with a local that lives, breathes and loves what she does!
This private tour is the best! Absolutely the best way to experience Ketchikan! Our guide Rick has lived in Ketchikan for over 30 years and was a font of local as well as Alaskan knowledge. Rick really cared that we have a great experience while in Ketchikan. The Honda Odyssey van was spacious enough for the four of us. Rick had pairs of binoculars and waters for us. He took us to a place to see black bears catching and feasting on salmon. We saw Bald Eagles and just missed seeing an orca. While on Creek Street, a black bear emerged from under a building to eat blueberries and huckleberries. We ate a few too after the bear moved on. Rick took us to a totem pole park and gave a great tour and history of totem poles. We took many tours while in Alaska and this was by far the most enjoyable one. You can’t beat having a private tour with a guide who is proud of his town and wants you to have a great experience.
Merveilleuse journée J'ai réservé un petit tour car notre bateau de croisière n'était qu'une demi-journée. Bernie a pu nous faire faire un tour de 2 heures pour ma famille de 6 personnes. Mes parents sont tous deux en fauteuil roulant, mais ils peuvent entrer et sortir des véhicules. Bernie est allé au-delà de stocker leurs fauteuils roulants et nous emmener sur une route panoramique.
Awesome Wildlife Experience Bernie, our guide, really knew the best local places to view wildlife. She made our experience very special and memorable as she shared stories and information about the local sites. I highly recommend you get a private tour. It was so much more personable than our other larger excursions we later did at other sites.
La faune, le saumon et la culture autochtone ... Exceptionnel! Notre guide touristique Bernie est venu nous chercher juste devant notre bateau de croisière après son amarrage. Bernie s'est avéré être un vrai local à Ketchikan, le premier que nous avons rencontré pendant notre croisière. Pour info, nos autres guides en AK étaient tous originaires du sud, nous avons découvert, permettant ainsi peu de connaissance de AK. Ce n'était pas le cas avec Bernie. Nous avons vu Ketchikan des yeux d'un vrai local et partagé les connaissances exceptionnelles de Bernie sur la culture autochtone, la faune et la vie en Alaska!
Wonderfull expereience We had a wonderful experience. Rick was very knowledgeable and kind. He took us to some tourist places and other beautiful places that were not as crowded. He explained and showed us the salmon at different stages. Also took us to the area where we were able to spot about 5 bears. He also told us were to go after his tour.
The BEST! HIGHLY recommend booking this tour! Bernie was great at communicating with us from when we booked the tour all the way up until the actual day - which was incredibly helpful as our cruise docked at a different location from where it was originally scheduled. The tour itself was fantastic!! In just a few short hours, we got a wonderful overview of beautiful Ketchikan and enjoyed see the totem park, eagles, BEARS (yes BEARS!) and salmon. Bernie went over and above to make our visit as special as possible - avoiding crowds, giving us extra time when needed and showing us places she knew we would appreciate as she got to know us along the way (like showing our teenage boys the local little league field - so cool!). Did I mention we saw BEARS!?!? In the wild!? Trip of a lifetime. So grateful for the memories made on this tour.
Awesome Wildlife Experience Bernie, our guide, really knew the best local places to view wildlife. She made our experience very special and memorable as she shared stories and information about the local sites. I highly recommend you get a private tour. It was so much more personable than our other larger excursions we later did at other sites.
Lovely Tour Cut Short We were instructed to meet the tour operator at birth 2 which meant we had to take a shuttle from our boat to birth 4 then walk at least 10 minutes to get to north 2. Our driver then told us he could have picked us up at our boat which would have saved us about 30 minutes. Poor communication between aviator and the tour guide. We enjoyed the tour and the guide was knowledgeable but the tour was only 2 hours instead of 3 hours because of the miscommunication about the pickup location.
Really fun tour Bernie drove us around Ketchikan and showed us the sites while talking about growing up and living in Ketchikan. My daughter and I had a great time on the tour, were so excited to see bears wandering around, and were amazed at one of the beautiful waterfalls Bernie took us to. One of our last stops was at a stand that sold jellies and fudge. My daughter and I both agreed that it was the best fudge we’ve ever had and were saddened that we didn’t buy more. 
Good tour, Great Guide Town is small, and the DT is built for cruise ship tourists. Still, fun, quaint, & plenty of souvenirs. Look for Annabelle’s for fun bar/food experience.


Exactly the tour we were hoping for We are 3 adults in our 60s who just want to know how things tick. Bernie had the scoop on everything Ketchikan. Although it is early in the season, so the animal food supplies are limited, Bernie made a brave attempt to find some bears. No luck. But we did see a fine tide change, climbed up on some rocks to look at a fantastic waterfall, and had a quick look at some fresh bear scat and paw prints. Being the nosy biddies that we are, we were thrilled to see the local kids playing on their new softball field, the A&P Market where rotisserie chick costs $28, the landslide that took out the old market, the crematorium, the airstrip that is only accessible by ferry, and a great totem park that we had to ourselves. Bernie showed us around to the things that are important to her and her family, which was exactly what we wanted!