Ketchikan - flight seeing vendors (or alternatives)

[PixiTrix]

I posted this question within another thread....but it is sort of buried now, so I am starting its own thread.

 

I am debating about doing the flight seeing...if I can just get past my nervousness. :p I have two main questions:

 

1. Which vendor do you recommend and why for Misty Fjords?

 

After looking through the different vendors, I notice that some have a slightly longer tour (2 hours vs 1 1/2 hour) and more time on the ground (15-20 vs. 30 minutes). Some boast smaller/quieter planes and less passengers, some friendly staff, some supposedly safety awards.

 

2. A second question is if there is a better time recommendation for the flight? I am in port from 7am until 6pm (off the top of my head). Between 8am, 10am, 12pm, and 2pm times choices).

 

I will most likely book one, because this is what my husband would like to do. It also leaves us time to walk around town. I had one recommendation in the other thread, but was curious about what makes one vendor better than another.

 

Thanks in advance.

[RicoRoxy]

Easy answer for me. Just back from one way Princess Cruise Whittier to Vancouver. Used Ketchikan Air tours with a great pilot and owner, Randy. He partners with Michelle at Island wings. Island Wings could not accommodate us and we are really glad that we went with Randy at their recommendation. He was calm, cool, and collective and offered a great flight and commentary, without being overly talkative. Beautiful plane with headsets and honestly, it was just the easiest Excursion we had on this Alaskan cruise. This was my third time to Alaska, third time to Ketchikan, and my 2 previous bookings with Island Air were cancelled, due to weather and FAA ground stops. I'm not the best flyer, so I get the nervousness, but I would do this again in a heartbeat. The views are amazing. As far as time goes, we took a 2 o'clock flight, and it was perfect. There are typically morning clouds and therefore your flights could be canceled or not as viewable, so later in the day maybe a little better. Definitely try to go to Misty Fjords. Go big or go home.... :)

[PixiTrix]

Thank you for the detailed response! I don't think that was one that I looked at, but Island Air was.

[flatlander321]

We used Family Air Tours for flightseeing on Misty Fjord. They fly a Cessna 185.

Why recommend: they did what they advertised. We had 20+ minutes off the plane on a floating dock in misty fjord and 2 hours dock to dock total time. They also picked us up from the cruise ship area when they said they would. It was a very photographic area; attached are 2 examples.

 

+

 

[AryMay]

I second the vote for Family Air. We did a Misty Fjords tour with them two years ago and it was spectacular.

 

We took the earliest flight available because of our shorter port times in Ketchikan. That gave us time to still explore the city on foot afterwards. We were lucky with our weather that day and had no rain or clouds.

 

Although they picked us up at the pier, their plane was literally right next door to the ship. I joked that if we would have taken a leap off the side, we could have almost landed IN the plane!

 

Family Air's plane is small, but that worked to our advantage...we were traveling with another couple and we were the only ones on the plane. (One of the reasons we chose Family Air over Island Wings.) During the tour, Dave (the owner & pilot) landed the plane next to land and we were able to explore for about 30 minutes before taking off and continuing the flight.

 

There are a lot of photos from our tour on my blog if you would like to take a look. Here is the link.

 

Family Air Misty Fjords Flight Tour

[Budget Queen]

I highly recommend Southeast Aviation. Superb, seasoned Alaska pilots, and there is nothing like flying in a de Havilland Beaver. :) A Cessna doesn't cut it for us. :)