Step off your cruise ship to explore Juneau, Alaska’s capital and third-largest city. Nestled at the base of towering mountains overlooking the Gastineau Channel, Juneau’s community’s rich culture, and history are reflected throughout the town and its many beautiful attractions. Meet your private professional naturalist driver/guide and set off on your tailor-made 3-hour tour.
YOUR OPTIONS INCLUDE:
Explore Downtown Juneau
Listen to tales of Juneau’s past and present as your driver/guide takes you through the historic downtown district, showing you some of Alaska’s oldest buildings including the Capitol Building and the Governor’s Mansion. Your guide will also take you across “the bridge” to Douglas Island’s Homestead Park, a place to take in the scenery of town set against the towering backdrop of Mt. Juneau.
Take a Ride on Mount Roberts Tramway
Enjoy an unguided aerial tram ride beyond the Juneau treeline, 1,800-feet above the pier on the Mount Roberts Tramway. Enjoy expansive views of Juneau and the Gastineau Channel as you walk on nearby nature trails, peruse the gift shop for must-have souvenirs, visit the Chilkat Theater, Alpine Tea House, or learn about Alaska’s raptors at the Juneau Raptor Center.
Visit Mendenhall Glacier
Stretch your legs on a secluded trail set within a small corner of the Tongass National Forest. Begin your walk on a forested path that will open your eyes to nature’s magic, illustrating the many connections between the land and the sea in Alaska. After a short distance, the forest’s canopy gives way to the glacier’s moraine with scenic views of the Mendenhall Glacier and Nugget Falls. Spawning salmon, arctic terns, and black bears visit this area each summer and your guide can provide more insights into the interconnected life cycles so important to a healthy ecosystem.
Discover Macaulay Salmon Hatchery
Visit the Macaulay Salmon Hatchery where you will enjoy a 30-minute behind-the-scenes VIP tour of this unique facility learning about the lifecycle of one of Alaska’s most precious resources – salmon! Transparent fish ladders and a myriad of holding tanks, saltwater aquariums, and touch tanks allow you to see and learn about the various life stages of salmon development. Meet other interesting animals that call the Inside Passage home. The hatchery provides you with a fun interpretive perspective about the history, culture, and nature that make Juneau such a special place.
Enjoy a Glacier Gardens Rainforest Adventure
Enjoy a stroll through the beautiful 5-acres of Southeast Alaska’s premier rainforest garden. These gardens offer one-of-a-kind “Flower Towers” that are set within the Tongass National Forest. You will receive an in-depth understanding of the temperate rainforest’s fascinating ecosystem and diverse plant and animal life from a private guide.
Sip a Brew at the Alaska Brewing Company
Visit Alaska’s largest and Juneau’s only brewery. Started in 1986, Alaskan Brewing Company was the first brewery in Juneau since Prohibition. Alaska beers reflect many of the same characteristics of beers that were brewed in the gold rush era. From the historically based Alaskan Amber to alder-smoked malts and Sitka spruce tips, Alaska beers reflect Juneau’s local brewing history and innovation. During your exclusive visit, you will have the opportunity to ask questions about the brewery, their process, and sample a variety of their beers. Note: Guests must be 21 or older to sample beer.
Walk the Historic Treadwell Trail
This easy walk takes you back in time to the heyday of the gold mining boom in Juneau. The trail is a literal outdoor museum with relics and sites left to whither from a distant industrial age. The 1.5-mile walk is on easy level ground. A century ago this was the site of the largest gold mining operation in existence, drawing the best and brightest from the entire world. The passage of years and intensive vegetative growth allows a glimpse of the staggering scale of this historic enterprise.
Visit the Alaska State Museum
The collections of the Alaska State Museum represents the diverse cultures and rich historical record of Alaska’s state capital. Alaskan Native material, historical artifacts, works of art, and natural history specimens are all housed here.
Explore the Juneau-Douglas City Museum
The Juneau-Douglas City Museum collects, preserves, interprets and exhibits a variety of materials that promote Juneau’s cultural heritage, values, and community memory. Visit the General History Gallery to learn about the Tlingit People, Juneau’s changing shoreline, and fishing; learn about different gold mining techniques in the Hands-On Mining Gallery; or get a glimpse into Alaska’s Capital and our quest for statehood in the Politics, Personalities & Power Gallery.
