Seward Half-Day Tours: Top 5 Adventures You Can’t Miss

Looking for that thing to do that scratches your itch for seeing glaciers and playful wildlife in a snap? Seward, Alaska, might be just that very special place. You see, this city, it’s more or less like a launchpad to all types of amazing adventures, but the half-day tours, wow, they really let you pack a bunch of wow into just part of your day. I mean, for many visitors, that is really the best thing, especially if you have a schedule that is already fairly loaded. We, meaning myself and all my cool travel buddies, have been lucky enough to actually experience a handful of these shorter Seward tours, and I thought that sharing what we learned might be extremely useful.

1. Kenai Fjords National Park Wildlife Cruise

You want whales? Seals? Sea otters? This trip, which, honestly, seems like an all-you-can-see animal buffet, might be right up your alley. As I was saying, the Kenai Fjords National Park Wildlife Cruise, a bit like your highlight reel of Alaskan marine life, is just amazing, alright? These cruises, often clocking in around four to five hours, usually zoom into the park so you can actually see a wild assortment of creatures. These tours are more or less guided by experienced captains who know where all of the cool critters happen to hang out. When we went, that guy knew everything; like, you could tell he had been doing it forever. Honestly, every twist and turn on that boat seemed to offer an opportunity for some jaw-dropping sightseeing and for that Instagram shot. As a matter of fact, I got, maybe, a hundred photos, and half of them were decent, but very, very, few I posted. They do their very best to explain different geological details that helped create the fiords, so it is quite educational, too. Here is my suggestion, bring those binoculars. Trust me, okay?

2. Exit Glacier Guides: Glacier View Hike

Looking for a hike? You want to stretch your legs a bit and be super close to the ice? You may want to consider this. The Exit Glacier Guides’ Glacier View Hike lets that glacier be up close, that’s absolutely for sure, just in a manageable half-day, pretty much perfect for anyone looking for a taste of glaciers without committing to an entire expedition. This excursion tends to start with a really knowledgeable guide walking you right up to the glacier. The guides, typically, give really clear information on glacial formation and the history of the landscape, alright? So, actually, as you hike, they are, more or less, also teaching. Then, as you get closer, you actually have views where you are feeling really dwarfed by how amazing everything is. Bring that water-resistant coat because glaciers leak, alright? This tour tends to balance that need to learn about the glaciers in the region with seeing one up close, so really you are covering two items with one single tour, basically.

3. Miller’s Landing: Sea Kayaking Adventure

Feeling a bit more like active water activities? This kayak tour might get you out on the open water. Sea Kayaking with Miller’s Landing, for instance, they offer some pretty killer half-day adventures near Seward, too it’s almost all different skill levels that are accepted, that’s right. The experienced kayakers take you through protected bays and, of course, along that rugged coastline where wildlife sightings could pop up any second. As a matter of fact, several people have seen different stuff out there, even a whale. Miller’s Landing tends to emphasize giving safe and fun experiences for people of all different paddling backgrounds. Before going out there, the staff does that safety review thing, so very, very helpful. These shorter trips tend to appeal to those folks who might have not ever tried kayaking but very much want to get involved in doing so, but do it in a more protected location.

4. Seward Helicopter Tours: A Quick Flightseeing Adventure

Really want to see stuff from above? These brief but exciting air tours are really neat and provide, arguably, incredible aerial perspectives in a condensed format. Seward Helicopter Tours offer really great flightseeing options for folks just wanting a taste of the Alaskan landscape from above. Usually, just for about 30 minutes or so, a helicopter tour gets you looking over glaciers, mountain peaks, and, of course, lots of wild spots not really accessible by any road. Anyway, most of these tours tend to get you the pilot pointing out things such as geological features, or certain spots of wildlife down there scampering below. So these half-day jaunts are nice if you don’t have the time, or the bread, for a lengthy and super extensive flight. As a matter of fact, this kind of thing also works if you might just be getting over the wiggins of getting in that kind of thing. Be sure you grab your camera. It is really special.

5. Ididaride Sled Dog Tours & Kennel

I was saying, dogs and a sled, can we all get on board? Even when it might not be wintertime, these dog sled tours are fun, especially the one owned by the Seavey family, a pretty famous dogsledding family up there. That location runs that kennel and dog sled tours that operate within a brief time frame. In general, these tours tend to introduce to you to those canine athletes that do that Iditarod race. Here, you see, that team actually gets hitched to a wheeled cart rather than a sled, too it’s almost something that happens year-round so you can appreciate what goes on without snow. The mushers on staff really explain different ins and outs about training and racing. Also, there might be opportunities for you to actually snuggle up and love on some husky pups. The Ididaride Sled Dog Tours tends to really bring forth that dogsled culture to many guests. They are really dedicated.