Absolutely phenomenal experience with Alaska Ultimate Safaris! If you're looking for the ultimate way to explore the wild beauty of Alaska, look no further than Kirsten and Eric -- by far the best helicopter pilots you could ever hope to fly with. From the very first moment, their professionalism, warmth, and deep knowledge of the region made us feel completely at ease. We embarked on the adventure of a lifetime -- bear viewing, landing on an active volcano, soaring over glaciers -- and every single moment was unforgettable. Kirsten and Eric went above and beyond to make sure we were comfortable, safe, and having the absolute time of our lives. Their attention to detail, calm demeanor, and passion for what they do shines through in everything, from the smooth flight experience to the stunning locations they take you to. Safety was a top priority throughout, and we never once felt anything but completely secure. It's rare to find people who balance excitement and adventure with such a strong sense of responsibility and care. As for value -- it's worth every single penny. This isn't just a flight, it's a full-on bucket list adventure curated by two of the best in the business. If you're thinking about doing anything involving a helicopter in Alaska, stop searching and book with Alaska Ultimate Safaris. You won't find a better team than Kirsten and Eric. Five stars just isn't enough! read more

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We booked the Alaska Ultimate Safari. It certainly lived up to its name. My husband and I felt like this was the ultimate day in Alaska, all thanks to Eric and Kirsten. We went to the glacier first thing and saw mountain goats and spectacular glacial views. It was absolutely breath taking! Eric provided excellent commentary throughout - telling us about the natural history, geography and events that shaped the area. When we stopped back in Homer to refuel his wife Kirsten joined us to see bears and she was such a pleasure, adding even more interesting bear facts! She helped us to spot some moose and some super cool bear dens. We got to see a lot of bears in lake Clark national park and had plenty of time to take stunning pictures. Eric went out of his way to accommodate our desires and we were able to skip the volcano (very cloudy today) and go to another spot for more excellent bear viewing! The scenery was breathtaking the whole day but the last spot was truly stunning! It will be something we will remember for the rest of our lives! Also, they provide everything you needed for the trip including waders and a delicious lunch, so all we had to do was enjoy our day! Truly a wonderful experience read more

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Best thing we did in Alaska! This was the most amazing trip ever. We saw tons of bears, we sat in nature with them. Caught a salmon by hand in the river. Absolutely amazing! Great guides, pilot and staff. read more

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We had a great adventure! The views were amazing and I felt safe and comfortabl. what a great way to experience the wilds of Alaska! Highly recommend the team at Alaska Ultimate Safaris! read more

I took a personal bear tour with Alaska Ultimate Safaris with the owners by helicopter. This tour was outstanding and the owners know this business. I saw a mama bear with cubs, large bears, medium bears, bears from ground level and bears from the air. This was a 6 hour tour, we walked along the beach, along the grassy areas and sat to watch the beauty. This is once in a lifetime trip and enjoyed it all. Very much worth the money. This tour was the best. Love the couple that runs this business. Oh, the equipment works fantastic and is so clean. Thank you to the the staff in the office, nice and know their stuff. I also took a Glacier tour with the owner in the Helicopter with another couple. Fantastic also. Owner sat the heli on the glacier, we got out with our waders, owner put our cleats our boots, gave us direction what was safe. We were never alone, we were always safe as we walked the glacier. Another trip of a lifetime. Always as in the bear tour we were informed of weather conditions, and times. thank you Alaska Ultimate Safaris from Georgette, Virginia read more

If you have any interest in booking a bear viewing tour, look no further, book with these guys. You won't regret it. We took the helicopter tour to see bears in Lake Clark National Park, and it was easily the highlight of our trip of our 2 1/2 week trip to Alaska, which is saying a lot, as we were able to do lots of cool stuff while up there (Inside Passage, hikes to glaciers, Denali Park, ziplining, etc). For our bear viewing tour, we had Eric and Dave as our guides/pilots, and they were the best...funny, informative, skilled pilots, and just super interesting people. The helicopter ride was really cool on its own, but the bears were the stars, and man, did we see bears! Probably 30-40 in total, and at one point, after watching a mama bear and her two cubs eat grass for 20-30 minutes from maybe 100 yards away, they walked right by us on the way to the shore to get some water. It's something I will never forget. Eric and Dave even took a few extra steps to help celebrate our anniversary. Just an epic tour that I cannot recommend enough. read more

Alaska Ultimate Safaris - Bears walking by, 20-25 feet away - Aerial Tours Near Me - Homer, Alaska

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I don't think I can rave enough about the couple that runs this company. They were absolutely amazing from start to finish as they were so sweet, hospitable, knowledgeable and overall very funny! They honestly made the trip that much better! We went out with just another couple and saw quite a few bears! It was pretty fascinating learning so much about them, especially concerning how easily they are spooked along with their primarily vegetarian diets. The company provides thigh high rubber boots, which you learn the reasoning for pretty quickly once you land to get closer to the bears. While it was fine for myself being in my late twenties, my mother in her late 60s did struggle a bit due to her age and short height as you spend much of your time trudging through a lot of thick boggy water/mud. Our pilot and guide (who I regrettably have forgotten his name from ten days of so many tours) was great as he was very patient with my mom and helped ensure her safety throughout the tour. It was a really long day due to bears being too easily spooked or keeping a large distance, but we did finally find one that let us get closer and sit in a log and watch which was very cool! I would definitely recommend this tour for the adventurous who are also not afraid of encountering a lot of bugs! read more

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I talk about my Alaskan adventure every day. Words or photos do not fully explain how incredible this bear helicopter tour is. Eric took 5 of us to various areas in Lake Clark to view Grizzlies. I lost track how many we saw. I was on one of his last tours, very end of September 2017. Planes will stop in one spot, helicopters can stop multiple times and in places that planes cannot go. I usually get motion sickness but was not sick once and the flight from Homer to Lake Clark was breathtakingly beautiful. Eric and Kristen are incredibly knowledgable about Alaska and Grizzlies. Highly recommend this tour, worth every penny! read more

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This was a once in a lifetime experience, I really enjoyed my the flight over. The best part was the landing in the remote areas, and seeing the bears in the wild. read more

Alaska Ultimate Safaris - Aerial Tours Near Me - Homer, Alaska

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This review has more to do with the customer service and attitude of the owner versus the actual tour itself. Why you may ask? I like to think when I have the chance to make someone's day, I do. The owner of this company, lives by a different value and unfortunately the chance to make someone's day, turned in to ruining a honeymoon and no chance to experience the tour. Let me explain: My husband and I chose Alaska as our honeymoon destination because we truly love the outdoors and adventure. We each had our own "must-do" activities while visiting and each one was a total splurge. My activity was a bear watching tour. My husband found Alaska Ultimate Adventures and scheduled with them while we ended the trip in Homer. I was ecstatic and the whole trip was going to end with one of the best experiences of my lIfe. Obviously, if this happened, my review would be different. We had three days left in Homer, Alaska and the bear watching extravaganza was scheduled for our second day of arrival early in the morning. Due to poor weather, they cancelled at 10 pm the night before. Although disappointed I completely understand safety comes first. He scheduled for the next day. The second time was cancelled again for the same reason. Understood. My husband emailed the wife of the owner the night before our last morning (we were leaving that afternoon). She let us know there were actually two seats open on the following days tour. However, that tour was adding an additional stop at the volcano and was an additional $2,000. Not cheap for an already expensive splurge. My husband and I had already taken a helicopter ride to the top of Denali and weren't ready to shell out that kind of money for something we didn't have on our must-see list as a newlywed couple. My husband asked via email if it was possible to fill these seats at the original bear tour price, since this was the third time trying to book with this company. While the wife didn't respond that evening, we decided that we would show up at the hangar the next morning (before 6 am!) to meet with the pilot and plead our case to fill these seats. Mind you, still paying the original bear tour price- not cheap! The owner of the company ended up being the pilot and when we met him, he immediately pulled the front-desk attendant into his office to hear what she had told us. He came out and asked if his wife had promised anything, we said "no we hadnt heard back." WIth that he told us that no, he wouldn't accept the bear tour price, that it wasn't fair to the two others on the flight, paying the full amount and he walked out of the office to the plane. Now, I've previously been a business owner and can't imagine turning down the opportunity to not onLy make someone's day, but also make more money. There's twO solutions I can think of off the top of my head that would have ended in happy customers and a happy review: 1. He took our offer and filled the seats and no one was the wiser or he let the other individuals know that they had cancelled on us twice and that we were atteending at a lower cost. I doubt it would have been an issue. And he would have made $1,500 extra on the flight. 2. He let the other individuals know that he was giving us a discount for our flight because of the prior cancellations and discounted their flights to the same price - STILL a net profit of more money than when he went out with only the two individuals! So, thank you for the lesson Alaska Ultimate Safari and Eric. You instilled the importance of always making someone's day when you can because in not doing so, I missed out on a once in a lifetime experience while on my honeymoon in Alaska (and you actually missed out on more money). read more

Local review : I have not done a bear view but my husband has he said it was amazing no words but just amazing ! But we both did a short tour over the spit and it was amazing too ! I can't wait to go a bear viewing !!! read more

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There are no words to describe how incredible this adventure is... There is just nothing like it in the whole world! Eric & Kirsten are truly fantastic pilots, wildlife guides, stewards of Alaska, and just in general really great people. Forget celebrities... I want to have friends like these two! Eric came to the rescue when the original float plane company we had booked to take us to Katmai unfortunately hit an eagle and their plane was not able to take us out. At the last minute (the night before we were supposed to go out) Eric put together a trip for our party of 6 when literally every single other operator for 100 miles in any direction couldn't. So, right off the bat he was our hero... To come that far and not get to see the bears would have been such a huge disappointment. But, thanks to Eric, we not only got to see the bears, we got to got an INCREDIBLE helicopter ride over to a completely exclusive area where there was not one single other human to be found, so we got to see bears in their absolute most truly wild and natural state. The pictures just don't do it justice. There is truly nothing like it in the world!! Our family got this epic experience of waving to one another from two helicopters as we landed in a place that looked like Jurassic park... I just cannot convey how utterly COOL it was! And that was only the very beginning! Our pilots turned into Nat Geo field guides and led us on a trek right into bear country. We saw so many bears that we lost count. Momma bears and cubs, young bears wrestling, napping, and eating, and even a massive lone male out on a stroll. Eric explained all kinds of things about the bears' behaviors and habitats; he was so knowledgable. We even had something of a 'close' encounter where a young male sort of 'false charged' us but Eric was so cool and calm about it all, we felt completely safe. What a thrill, though!! Kirsten added lots of really cool info too, explaining about different local peoples, various edible plants on the island, and all kinds of neat stuff about the area. If I were ever to get lost in the Alaskan wilderness and I could have one person with me... I'd absolutely pick her! Eric and Kirsten gave us a day of adventure that we will never, ever forget. This was beyond a shadow of a doubt the best money I've ever spent in my life. More worth it than I have the words to describe. Five stars is an injustice. They deserve TEN stars. I very much hope to be able to go back to Homer and take another trip with Alaska Ultimate Safaris one day! read more

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I wish I can give them 6 stars. Giving them 5 stars is probably giving them too little. I was on a glacier landing tour with Kirsten about a month ago. I have spoken about my Alaska trip 10 times in the last one month and the glacier landing was the best few hours spent in my entire Alaska trip. Kirsten is the best! read more

Alaska Ultimate Safaris - Aerial Tours Near Me - Homer, Alaska

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I can't say enough about the trip we took today! Sooo many bears and right up close! We never expected it to be as wonderful as it was and the pilot from start to end was A+++ for anyone on the fence about seeing the bears via a helicopter, do it! You won't regret it. I'm sure this will be my #1 memory of Alaska read more

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Unbelievable. Looking forward to catching you guys at the Air Races. Home run. Money well spent. Thankyou

This was the most amazing first date! Kirsten and Eric are extremely knowledgeable and are sure to show you AK in the most beautiful way. I don't think there is a better way to see and experience Alaska. From bears, mountain goats, sea otters, glaciers and views from mountain top to sea. Even with rain they provided us with berry picking at the mountain tops just below a glacier and provided all the equipment we needed. read more

This is an incredible experience! Being a senior with some mobility issues, I was apprehensive about walking amongst bears in hip waders on wet, uneven ground. The pace is comfortable. Don't hesitate to go if you are mobile. Bear! Moose! Eagles! Seals! Sea otters! And-wait for it- a wolf!! In a helicopter. Do it. read more

This was the most amazing trip!!! I had never flown in a helicopter before, and it is amazing!!! There were only the five of us, so we had the entire area ourselves. When we arrived Eric, our guide, showed us a bear and her three cubs on there way over, we were able to hide ourselves and watch them walk by right in front of us!! Then we walked down to the where all of the bears were fishing, it was high tide and there were over 20 bears, and we set up at a spot just outside of the water. We had fish splashing I front of us, and had a bear charge straight towards us to get one of them, it was terrifying, and amazing. All told while we waited we had four bears within twenty or thirty feet of us. On the way back we were shown several native plants that the bears eat, it was great. The flight back to Homer was stunning, we were taken on a tour of several glaciers and the veiw was terrific. The best part of my entire vacation by far. read more

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Happily checking 'bear viewing' off my bucket list (although It was so cool I may have to do it again). We had Eric for our pilot & guide. He made us feel very comfortable with our first helicopter ride and took us directly to a location with bears. After landing he explained how we would move around so as to not spook the bears. Following his guidance we were able to get close enough to hear the 2 cubs crying for their mom and watch a male cooling off in a stream--just a taste of what we witnessed. A WONDERFUL trip--would/will recommend this tour company to everyone!! read more

10 stars! The most amazing day and Eric is a great guide. We loved everything about it, the flight, the scenery, the bears were awesome and Eric even flew over a glacier on the return. It was fabulous! read more

I started communicating with Kirstin to set up a bear viewing tour for 5 people months in advance. Her enthusiasm for the bears and their business was contagious. So much so that we booked not one, but 2 tours back to back with them. Unfortunately Kirstin didn't guide either tour, instead we went with Eric. All of the members in my group have been to AK countless times, and have taken several different tours and spent many years around wildlife and bears in particular so we know the ropes and how to handle ourselves in almost any bear-related situation. Below is a summary of our experience with this company: Pros: - Stunning scenery - Smooth Helicopter ride - Ability to land in remote locations Cons: - Both tours cut short by 1 hour w/o explanation (credit given for second tour cut short) - Told by our guide that the regs stated you couldn't approach w/in 100 yards of a bear (this is wrong - it's 50 yards and the land we were on we were told was private, not NPS so the regs are irrelevant anyway although 50 yards is standard good viewing etiquette). - Repeatedly told by our guide that we were on the wrong tour. That we should go with someone else if we were there to "chase bears" after questioning the 100 yard rule. - After my foot slipped about 6 inches while crouching on the ground to photograph a mom and cubs our guide started screaming at us to "calm down" and repeatedly chastising me in front of the group that my foot slipping could have gotten us killed. (For reference, there was zero reaction from the bears whatsoever to my foot slipping other than a momentary glance as they kept digging in the rocks). - No educational/informative information was given on the tour or prior to take off. We were mostly ignored aside from the ongoing snide remarks that were consistent throughout both the first and second tour. - The second tour we were taken in the middle of the mud flats and told to "go chase all the bears you want, I brought you here so you can't get in trouble" (because all the bears were 250+ yards away. We asked after the first tour if Kirstin could please take us for the second tour, but that didn't happen. We were given the option to cancel for the second day, but at that point it was well after business hours so no alternative tour could be booked so we went anyway. We spent $5500 in two days and in return were chastised and ridiculed by our guide and on the second day purposefully placed in an area where we could not get close to any bears nor good images. My experience was not in any way what was promised when booking, nor advertised on their website or promotional materials. I think that if we had a different guide this review would likely be very different, but unfortunately that wasn't the case read more

Upon my visit to Homer, AK, I satisfied my love of motorsports by copter flight-seeing with Alaska Ultimate Safaris. Eric is an experienced professional with a sincere passion for flying. He provided a smooth and excellent viewing opportunity of Kachemak Bay, Halibut Cove, Harding Ice Field and local waterfalls. So cool just hovering, surrounded by pristine, majestic, unspoiled beauty! read more

Alaska Ultimate Safaris is the place to be! Kirsten and Eric are absolutely wonderful and our tours BEYOND exceeded our expectations. We can't wait to go back to Homer! read more

We did the glacier helicopter tour and it was AMAZING! A must do for everyone in the entire family. The guides are wonderful and very knowledgeable! I could not reccomend this company more! read more

I took my children on a private tour to the glacier and they loved it! Walking on the glacier and drinking glacial water was the highlight of the trip for them! My daughter is 5 and my son is 2. Kirsten was very knowledgeable and fun! read more

I was skeptical as to how it could possibly worth the price, but my bf REALLY wanted to see the bears during our trip to Homer. Ten minutes into the trip, I was a believer. I am prone to air sickness, but the helicopter ride was so smooth, and the vistas so breathtaking, that it was never a problem. When we arrived at Lake Clark, there were bears everywhere we looked. Eric landed on a sandbar where we could see bears foraging in the meadows in one side and clamming in the mud flats on the other. When other tourist groups began to overtake the area, we loaded back up in the helicopter and moved to another spot. Watching the bears behaviors, even when a couple of them came right up near us, was incredibly beautiful, peaceful, and entertaining. It was the experience of a lifetime and the highlight of our trip to Alaska. read more

This is an adventure with experiencing! Alaska by helicopter is like nothing I've done before. lake Clarke national Park is a sight worth seeing, there's more bears than you can imagine. Eric and Kirsten were excellent pilot's and guides, they were very knowledgeable of the area and the bears behavior! Which allowed us to get very close. If you enjoy flying, the wilderness, and wildlife I highly recommend this adventure!! read more

Totally worth the money. The view offered from the R-44 was outstanding! We counted over 23 Brown bears. Our guide Eric was very informative and very smooth at piloting the R-44. We enjoyed the short hike, bear viewing, whale watching and being able to land in a remote habitat vs a landing strip. read more