I went on the "Mt Rainier Highlights Tour" with a group of around 20 people. Our tour guide was…read morethis guy with a cool beard named "Lucas". He was a little late, but he made up for it with how much of an interesting character he was. Throughout the journey, all the way up to stopping at Elbe on our way out, he talked our ears off, but I could listen to that guy talk all day. He told us historical info about Rainier, stories about his personal life as well as previous experiences doing the same tour I went on. Very open to questions too! Took us to Fred Meyers (Kroger) on the way to the park so we could buy some lunch. Showed us all the cool spots to take photos, was very clear on times to meet back, where to go, and even gave us his phone number in case we needed it for something. Since I went during early april, there was still a lot of snow on the ground. Lucas provided all 20(or so) of us with these shoe attachments called "microspikes", which allowed us to walk on the snow/ice covered ground with relative ease. He even made it work for someone with small feet (a kid). Told us over and over to drink water & be safe and whatever else. So uh, great guy, great amenities, great info, great experience. Overall 10/10.

Great experience... Tour guide Cory was really nice and funny. Everything was on time.. A perfect…read moreday!!!

We selected Cheryl's crystal mountain - mount rainier private SUV tour. Cheryl piked us up at pier…read more66 shortly we disembarked our cruise ship. It was a very scenic drive up to the ski resort with a stop along the way for coffee. We rode the gondola (included in the tour price) more than 2,000 feet to the top of the mountain upon arrival at the resort. Even with some haze and smoke the views of Mount Rainier were stunning. That was followed with lunch at the Summit House restaurant. The food and views were both excellent. The drive back to the airport included a stop for huckleberry ice cream. Cheryl is a wealth of knowledge and enthusiasm for her community and kept us entertained the entire time. Best tour experience ever.

We did a private tour of Whidbey Island and came away very impressed with the knowledge of Cheryl,…read moreour guide, as well as her level of customer service. We visited state parks with breathtaking views, Fort Casey and its historical sites, and several quaint little towns that we totally enjoyed walking around. She was quite flexible and tailored the tour to our timeframe and interests. We strongly recommend her.

We did this for my 50th birthday, and it was the perfect way to mark the occasion…read more It felt like a meaningful threshold-crossing experience--celebratory and memorable without feeling over-the-top. As more of my friends have crossed this age milestone, I've seen the full spectrum of responses: people who downplay it and later wish they'd done something special, people who throw huge parties and regret the stress and effort, and people who choose extreme adventures only to find the adrenaline crash leaves them feeling depleted afterward, bringing '50' home in a hard way. This struck exactly the right balance. It was special enough to feel like a true celebration, offered a once-in-a-lifetime experience, and created memories (and amazing photos) I'll carry with me for years. While it's certainly not inexpensive, once you see the amount of equipment, preparation, effort, infrastructure, expertise, and care that goes into each flight, the pricing feels more than reasonable. It's a significant experience without being financially out of reach. If you're looking for a memorable way to celebrate a milestone event--or simply want an extraordinary experience--I highly recommend it.

Be prepared to be cancelled on…read more.. We really wanted to do a sunset flight with Seattle Ballooning last year (Aug. 2025) for our 10 year anniversary, but our flight got cancelled on our way there due to high winds, which was quite the disappointment since it was on our anniversary but understandable for safety. We rescheduled for a few days later, made it out to the launching point for the rescheduled flight only to have it also cancelled... again due to wind. We were told we could reschedule again, but we decided to let Seattle Ballooning hold our tickets until the following summer (2026) so we could do a surprise sunrise flight (since we were told sunrise flights are much less likely to get cancelled) for our son's 10th birthday, which is also in August. And even though there wasn't a cloud in the sky and was a perfectly sunny day on Aug. 20th, we got cancelled on again for the 3rd time... due to fog (even though there was no fog and fog doesn't usually start in western WA until the fall). Needless to say, it's been a very disappointing experience all 3 times, especially since we keep seeing posts about all the flights happening and how now is the perfect time to schedule. While it has been a disappointing experience 2 summers in a row and was also quite the long process to get our money refunded, I can say that the balloon pilots we got to meet last year prior to our 2nd flight getting cancelled were very nice, and the office staff have been friendly. I just wish we could have actually gotten to fly since all the posts I've seen have looked so nice. So if you do book with this company, please be prepared to be cancelled on and maybe have a back-up plan if you're trying to celebrate a special occasion.

A helicopter ride was on my bucket list. So, for my husband and my birthday (a day apart), I…read moresurprised him with a private tour. I booked Route C: The Cascade Mountains, Tiger Mountain, Cougar Mountain, Snoqualmie Falls, VMAC, Downtown Bellevue, Lake Washington, Medina Homes, the Space Needle, Downtown Seattle, Century Link Stadium, T-Mobile Park, and the Puget Sound. I asked him if he could take me to Auburn to get my hair blown out. He should have known something was up because I don't get my hair done....ever! When we drove near the Auburn Municipal Airport he said, "There's nothing back here but helicopters!". I told him, "Good thing because one of those is ours!" It was a great surprise and it just kept going up from there! Our pilot Nate, went through some safety measures and got us strapped in, and off we went. My husband had the biggest smile...and so did I. I was a little worried about motion sickness. I had taken a motion sickness pill about half an hour before, but it didn't feel like anything I imagined, dang anxieties! It was light and the only feeling I had was g-force every once in a while. The scenery was beautiful and the ride was smooth. Nate tried to give us information about the various places we were passing but my husband helped build most of everything he pointed out. We circled and hovered near the Space Needle and we could see the people inside pointing. It was awesome! We also had a really great shot of the mountain. Although I enjoyed flying over the buildings, the nature route was my favorite. The waterfall was breathtaking and we could see our shadow on the ground. It made for a cool photo. Zipping near the trees really gave us a sense of how fast we were going. I wish we could have gone further and flown for longer, but it had to come to an end. At least for now. This was a day we will never forget! Thank you for making our birthdays memorable, Nate! ​

10/10 Hands down the most fun I have ever had in my entire life!…read more I took the girl of my dreams here on a surprise second date, and Craig, our pilot, after a friendly dose of teasing me for choosing such an insane second date, gave us a flight that noone will ever truly comprehend. There is zero chance a cooler or better pilot exists! Imagine a combination of Pete Mitchell, Luke Skywalker, and your brother-in-law that the whole family loves, and that's Craig. His flying skills are UNBELIEVABLE!!!! I can't stress that enough.... UNBELIEVABLE!!!!! I have no idea how I got so lucky to be taken on such an incredible flight performance. Simply dazzling, I will tell this story for decades!! A helicopter ride in and of itself is incredible but Craig took us on a scene from an action movie. That was absolutely a highlight of my life. I can only speak for myself, but judging by my date's face the whole ride, I can confidently say she would say something similar. Thank you Craig, I appreciate that more than you will ever know!

WHAT A BLAST!!! Having never been on a helicopter before, I think I expected a lazy circle around…read moreSeattle from a mile away...nope. We were up-close and personal with the Space Needle, flew directly over the stadiums and downtown, and a fast & low pass over Lake Washington. The pilot was not only informative and personable but adjusted the "thrill level" based on our preference. HIGHLY HIGHLY HIGHLY recommend.

I recommend before you read this review; to go to You Tube and play the song Nina Simone/ Feeling…read moreGood. Just do it- you won't regret it. So there I am 2 months before my boyfriend's 31th Birthday... sitting sipping my coffee trying to figure out a good present to get him. The man has everything. What do you get a guy who has everything - you get him an experience he has never had! Helicopter! I called them up- got my appointment on his Birthday; no problem. Day's later- I decided to take it a step further. I noticed we lived not that far off the flight path- and thought "how cool would it be if I made a GIANT sign on the roof of our home, then got to fly over it...?" I called and asked Seattle HeliTours- please please can you fly over my home... they called me back with a YES! This part may make you ill; the day before I bought 4' Blue Painters Tape went on the roof and taped a huge I LOVE YOU. The day of the flight the pilot maintained the surprise for my boyfriend; they were professional, kins, bend over backwards kind of folks! We did 2 circles around the house and my Boyfriends Birthday was a success as was his surprise! The views, the helicopter, the pilot everything was an experience of a lifetime.

The attitude of the people who work for Pierce county and HMS. The service can be so poor and the…read moreresponses to inquiry very lame.

Very easy to navigate website. Purchase tickets for walk-in or with vehicle. Vehicle ticket…read moreincludes the driver. You have to purchase tickets for passengers in the vehicle. We paid around $30 for the 3 of us, round trip. When you arrive, just get in a lane with your vehicle. Vehicles will enter in order of arrival. Fine for those who cut so please don't. If you don't make it on the ferry, then you'll have to wait for the next one. Have your tickets available, online or printed. While you're waiting, there's a cafe and eateries nearby. Once on Anderson island, there's a general store, museum, gift shop, sometimes garden market and other events, a couple of lakes, Air B&Bs. Definitely popular during the weekend so plan accordingly. When heading back on the ferry, line up the same way you arrived. If you're lucky an ice cream truck may stop by, otherwise not much to keep people occupied.

While our initial Ferry ride seemed to align to the scheduled posted online, the return from…read moreAnderson Island was a bit more confusing. I left to make the 6:45 pm ferry and there was no boat until after 7 pm. I was a bit concerned with the delay considering I had a 3 hour drive home. Once able to board, we enjoyed the sunset, snapping photos on the short trip back. We enjoyed the island and trip so much my daughter was already talking about her desire to return.

I went on my first Pretty Gritty Tour a little while back. There are ghost tours and historical…read moretours for Tacoma and a whole other section for tours in the Tri-Cities in southern Washington. I went on a lantern tour at Fort Steilacoom Park which is located next to Western State Mental Hospital in Lakewood. There is a ton of history in this park and the hospital once owned the land. So there are old barns here and a cemetery of patients that died as well as ruins of other structured here. We went through here around Halloween time so best get reservations in as they fill fast and they don't offer many of them. We went by lantern in the dark to the cemetery and learned about some of the patients that lie resting here and then what went on in the ruins when the hospital had the land. It was definitely creepy and grim but fascinating as you learned a lot of history from the guide. When we went here it was raining a lot and that really added to the creepy vibe which was a nice addition to the experience but glad I had an umbrella with me! Looking forward to doing more of these tours in the future. I really liked this particular tour and would love to do a ghost tour sometime.

Got to do the original tour for my birthday on Saturday. Chris was our guide, which I was super…read morehappy about, cause I have watched SO many of his YouTube videos, and even used it as a source in a paper I wrote. He was just as awesome as on his videos, very funny and genuine. The tour was fantastic, I am absolutely going to do all the other tours now. The story of the reoccurring murder had me hooked. It was super spooky to be guided through Tacoma by lamp light. Our group was fun and I even had other birthday buddies who celebrated with this spooky tour. So don't wait, go book, like right now. It's worth every penny.