Katmai park

[cruise junky joan]

Has anyone been to the Katmai park to see the bears and is it worth the huge expense to get there from Anchorage? We are thinking of going in early September for a land tour of the Anchorage/Denali area and Katmai Park.

[greatam]

Has anyone been to the Katmai park to see the bears and is it worth the huge expense to get there from Anchorage? We are thinking of going in early September for a land tour of the Anchorage/Denali area and Katmai Park.

 

Yes, I have been to the Katmai every year for the last five and will be going again in September.

 

I have been to this place 3 out 5 years. http://www.hallobay.com/

 

They are out of Homer, so you would need to find a way to Homer (car or plane). But their 8 hour day excursion is the best of the bears, IMHO.

 

They own a private camp in the Katmai. They live there during the summer, so they know the bear activity on a daily basis.

 

I tried one of the fly in services one year. Only saw two bears all day. I usually see bears on the beach, especially late August/September, just flying into Hallo Bay.

 

If there is any way you can stretch your vacation or work out the logistics to include a trip to Homer, it would be well worth the time. About a 4 hour drive to Homer, so long as you leave early morning or late afternoon/evening.

[cruise junky joan]

Greatam: Thanks for the info. Unfortunately since we are paying for 4 people to take this trip we won't be able to afford much more than the 8 hour fly in. I really can't understand why the addition of a cabin for one night, a guide for one day and our meals could possible cost almost $2600 more than the fly in. Any thoughts? Thanks for the help anyway.

[greatam]

Greatam: Thanks for the info. Unfortunately since we are paying for 4 people to take this trip we won't be able to afford much more than the 8 hour fly in. I really can't understand why the addition of a cabin for one night, a guide for one day and our meals could possible cost almost $2600 more than the fly in. Any thoughts? Thanks for the help anyway.

 

I really don't know what you are saying. The day trips include no food nor lodging. I thought you were going to do a fly in (day trip) from Anchorage and I suggested a day trip from Hallo Bay. And I didn't think Hallo Bay was doing any one nighters anymore. It just became too confusing with people leaving every day and day trippers coming in every day.

 

Hallo Bay's day trip is $550.00. 2 nights is $1300.00, so difference of $750.00 per person. Not cheap by any means, but an exclusive camp without herds of tourists (like at Brooks Falls).

 

Redoubt Bay trip is $987.00 per person for one night from Anchorage. Rust's Day trip from Anchorage to Brooks is $659.00. And Brooks is not good during your time frame.

 

Very comparable in price to this Alaska adventure. http://www.alaskatours.com/wildlife/alaska_lodges/camp_denali_north_face.htm

Or for lodging only.

http://www.kantishnaroadhouse.com/rates.htm

 

Don't forget, you are flying to and from Hallo Bay, which is not included in the exclusive lodging prices in Denali.

 

Yes, overnighting is expensive. Find a way to sqeeze Homer into your itinerary and take the day trip. You will love Homer-reasonable priced (Alaska reasonable) lodging is available and the drive from Anchorage is beautiful.

[steelersfan7]

We just returned from Halo Bay June 21 with Emerald Air out of Homer. It was an 8 hour day trip and an experience we will never forget...worth every penny of the $530 and the highlight of 2 weeks in Alaska. Chris Day knows more about the bears than any other guide; she's been doing this for 20 years and knows the habits of individual bears. We saw 43 bears, a wolf, foxes, golden eagles, bald eagles and one bear that came up to us as we were eating lunch within 10 feet...not even scary with Chris as our guide. You get a beautiful sightseeing trip on the flights as well, as good as any in Alaska so you are really getting multi tours.

[tropicaltravellers]

We used Rust's flying service out of Anchorage. It was about $659.00 pp, we left around 8:00 am, and returned around 7:00 pm (which was leaving 1/2 hour early from Katmai, due to our time constraints). We saw many bears, and loved every minute of it. We went to Brooks Falls, and saw over 30 bears (throughout the park and in the falls). I am not sure of your time frame, but I would recommend calling Rust's to see what they say. This was the highlight of our trip, and we will definitely be going back. Probably we will be staying overnight next time.

[cruise junky joan]

No wonder you were confused by my reply. I thought the overnight was for only one night but you are quite right it is in fact two nights and ofcourse all our meals and a personal tour guide,almost. But even so at 1300.00 apiece for four,I just don't see how we can afford that side trip and the interior to Denali and a coastal cruise, not to mention that we live in Maryland and the last time I checked airfare to Anchorage round trip was over 700.00 a person. Something is going to have to go. Thank anyway for your help, if we win the lottery between now and then we will definitly hit Katmai. Joan

[greatam]

Joan,

 

Just do the day trip out of Homer. In your time frame, the bears will be power feeding in the ocean and they literally stay around in the same area all day. You are going at one of the BEST times to see lots of bears. Yes, the day trip still is expensive, but nowhere near as much as the overnights. You will not regret seeing the bears.

[cruise junky joan]

I think you are right. Since it is beginning to look like this trip will be costing around $20,000.00 for the 4 of us what is another $2,000.00 for a side trip?