I went on an air tour of Gates of the Arctic National Park with Northern Alaska Tour Company. I had…read moreto be there by 6 and we left around 7. We flew to the town of Coldfoot, about an hour away and 60 miles north of the Arctic Circle. We landed, a guide picked us up and showed us around town then took us to the restaurant/general store. We got our preordered food, ate, visited the national park visitor center, then returned to the airport. At that point, we got back on the plane, did our air tour of the park, landed briefly at Coldfoot to let people off the plane, then returned to Fairbanks around midnight. This was a really cool experience and I'm glad I went. NATC did a great job lining everything up and making sure things went smoothly. The flight(s) were good and enjoyable. The park was beautiful and flying was a great way to see it - I'm sure I saw far more than those who trek in on foot. Surprisingly, I really enjoyed our stop in Coldfoot. It was interesting to see how people lived in the Arctic and I even saw one of the places we went on an episode of Ice Road Truckers since I got back, which was cool. I was happy with the whole experience and I would recommend them.

Booked an artic flight with my cruise company for while we were in Denali. This flight departs…read morefrom Heely and takes you over the Yukon River to Wiseman and Coldfoot. The main focus is to get you past the arctic circle and to visit Jack a permanent long term resident in Wiseman who lives off the land. It is about 8.5 hours. The van driver picked us up at our hotel. The flight was great in a small Navajo plane with pilot and five people. They do not want you to have more than what you can carry. No large packs, but if you have an item because you didn't know. Then you can sometimes get them to store it in the plane or lock it in the office. The Heely Airport is just an office, old gas truck and portapotty. You can purchase some merch to document your trip. You can also order a meal to pickup in Coldfoot, that helps to support the community. Jack is the main attraction. He shares about the history of his family and shows you around areas of Wiseman. It is a very rough home and life. He will show you how he survives including hunting and gardening. Lots of skins and animal parts. His home is a tight squeeze and our group arrived with another 6 person group from another location. He will show you pictures but make sure to ask to have them pass it around. He is on a schedule so he goes quick and then leads you outside to tour. Very uneven and wet terrain with mosquitoes. TAKE A NET and BUG SPRAY or ask for the spray. There is an early flight that ends at about 5pm and ours departed shortly after and returned a little after midnight (still light in June). Unfortunately, our focus was to get a visit to the Interagency Visitor Center to say we made it to the nearby Gateway to the Arctic National park. Apparently the early flight makes a stop. The visitor center closes at 8pm, so it just closed when we arrived and it was not part of our trip. If they would have arrived half hour early that would have been AMAZING, but it wasn't to be. However, on the way back we talked our driver into making a quick stop so we could get pictures at the visitor center. My biggest recommendation is for the company to realize most people want to not only cross the artic circle but also have bucket list to get to the Gateway to the Arctic National Park, so they should move the schedules around a little to allow both groups, morning and afternoon, to get to the visitor center for at least 15-20 minutes. I liked Jack, but he was not why I took the trip, he was a great bonus. Make sure you bring tip money for the pilot, driver in Coldfoot and Jack. There is also a winter tour where Jack will help you photograph the northern lights, which Jack will correct you to call it the aurora borealis.

Would highly recommend reaching out to this company to schedule a ride. The company works based on…read moreavailable slots but the cab driver is prompt, polite, and pleasant to talk to. Fairbanks is a logistical nightmare when it comes to transportation but Moose Cab and tours made our trip better :) Thank you for your service!

My wife and I were in Fairbanks 2 weeks ago to see the Aurora. We had arranged transportation with…read moreGyorgyi and Moose Cab to transport us to and from excursions on two of the days. Gyorgyi was just awesome. She has a wealth of knowledge about the area. We know our worries about getting around were over once we met her. She was always there on time and we felt very comfortable with her behind the wheel. We plan to take another trip back to the area in the future and now that we know that she plans trips as well I'm sure we will use her for everything. We couldn't be more pleased with her cheerful personal service. Thank you Gyorgyi and Moose Cab!

The Riverboat Discovery in Fairbanks offers an exceptional way to experience Alaska's wilderness up…read moreclose. The river cruise is scenic and relaxing, winding through lush forests and along the sparkling Tanana and Chena Rivers, with plenty of opportunities to spot wildlife like bald eagles, moose, and even bears from a safe distance. The staff are knowledgeable and enthusiastic, sharing fascinating stories about Alaska's history, culture, and the gold rush era, which makes the journey both educational and entertaining. The boat itself is comfortable, spacious, and perfectly suited for viewing the surrounding scenery without feeling crowded. Whether you're interested in nature, history, or just a peaceful river ride, the Riverboat Discovery provides a memorable, family-friendly adventure that highlights the beauty and heritage of Alaska.

Every detail of this experience as well thought out. It's relaxing and informative. It's not Disney…read moreWorld but it's not supposed to be. What a beautiful and perfect day on the river. The fishing camp experience was well thought out and beautiful. It's like going back in time 50 years when family owned businesses were normal and the care that they put into this showed their family pride as they really take good care of their customers. We also went to the dining experience and were surprised that the meal tasted like something you would experience at a family dinner and grandma was at the stove. I am gluten-free and I ate well. I would rate it higher if I could.

My partner and I had an incredible experience with Ronn and Marketa at the Aurora Chasers in…read moreFebruary 2026. We met Ronn & Marketa for the night tour at an accessible & central meeting spot in Fairbanks, as we were staying ~20 min away. Ronn drove the comfortable van while Marketa analyzed satellite data for cloud coverage and predicted the best places to see the aurora. We saw brilliant aurora from the moment we arrived in our spot for the night! I brought my own DSLR and my partner rented a camera; we loved the guidance on how to photograph the sky. Marketa also took stunning portraits of us. From the get-go, their communication was outstanding. The Aurora Chasers website fully prepared us for what to buy/wear to stay warm in -40 to -20F weather. If you're interested in seeing the Northern Lights, I highly recommend taking a tour. My partner and I were not equipped to drive on icy, snowy roads late at night and to navigate weather data on our own - Ronn & Marketa made it possible for us to experience clear skies and thus vivid, magical aurora during our trip to Fairbanks.

After reading all the reviews on Trip Advisor/Viator, and Google, I chose to go with The Aurora…read moreChasers, owned and ran by Ron and Marketa. Having a little bit of DSLR experience, I needed a tour company that didn't just drop me off into a warm hut with hot chocolate, but someone with photography expertise to help me operate in the raw elements of Alaska. I did my research with ALL the local Aurora companies. The Aurora Chasers are the only ones with professional educational videos of Aurora photography on YouTube, have an Aurora cam on their own very easy to navigate informative website. You can also rent cameras and tripods in advance from them. While on the way to a remote area with a beautiful private view to catch the Aurora, they educated us on everything about the Aurora. They played videos on a big screen inside the tour bus, which they produced themselves. They provided us information about the Aurora, and very specific instructions adjusting settings on your specific DSLR and cell phone. They have thorough knowledge of canon, sony, and nikon, and cell phone settings, and I'm almost positive they could figure out any other branded cameras. It blew my mind and excited the inner tech nerd in me. I really liked how although they gave us the freedom to shoot as we chose, they always checked up on us if we needed any help with our camera settings, and even provided hot chocolate. There were various people shooting that night spread out on different locations and they managed to get to every single one of us to make sure we were happy and comfortable. Marketa took amazingly beautiful portraits of my wife and I with the Aurora in the background! She got deep in the snow just to get the right angle! Thank you Ron and Marketa!!! You made this our favorite vacation!!!

The most amazing wilderness views please see my photographs…read more Do not forget a full carry on bag of mosquito repellent!!!

Service is great. Staff was super friendly and helpful. Room was simple but it works for an…read moreovernight stay. We went to the bar inside and out by River. Had a few drinks which were ok. The Woodford old fashion was particularly good to my surprise. Food, meh. I'd recommend going elsewhere where . All in all, a decent place to stay

Excellent experience! Shawn was fantastic and went above and beyond for our comfort. He was…read moreamazing.

The service was the best part of our experience. All the staff, from receptionist to our pilot, are…read morewelcoming, friendly, and enthusiastic. You get charged with positive energy from the get home. That sets the great tone for your experience. Wish our tour experience was half as good as the people who we encountered on it. Our tour, however, was in itself underwhelming. We did the shortest option--just to fly to the Arctic Circle. Here's the run down. Arrive to the airport, the location of this tour company at 12pm, listen to one hour of instructions, get on a 8 seat plane at 1pm, land in Coldfoot at 2:30, spend an hour there, get back on the plane and land back at the tour location at 5pm. I was expecting a tour at the Arctic Circle location (which was a tiny spot in the middle of nowhere, aptly named Coldfoot). But we were just greeted there by a tour guide who "hung out" with us for 20 minutes. We were dropped off at a Truckers' cafe, the only smudge of civilization in the area. People ordered food (fast food--everything on the menu is fried and comes with a side of fries), and we waited for others in our tour group to finish their food. And for this we wasted our time and money? No actual tour of anything was provided, as there's nothing to see in the middle of nowhere, amidst the snowy mountains. We asked our tour guide a few questions, to learn more about her life and how it feels to live in the middle of nowhere, far away from civilization. What was the point of flying all the way here if we did absolutely nothing besides visit the cafe and watch other people eat fast food? You get a certificate at the end of your trip. Would not recommend the tour we had. Be aware, the parking is paid: $4 for the day. You can pay via the app. Instructions available in the parking lot space.

We had an incredible experience with 1st Alaska Tours and would absolutely recommend them…read more We originally booked an outdoor Aurora Borealis tour for December, but the day before the tour they called us to explain that temperatures were already around -41°F and that being outside for hours would likely be miserable. Instead of pushing forward anyway, they upgraded us to their Yurt experience, which was the perfect solution. We could stay warm inside and step outside only when the aurora appeared, warming up in between with hot chocolate, coffee, and soup. One unexpected bonus was that the yurt next to us was offering dog sled rides, so we got to see a dog sled team up close, and that was also an option we could have added. It was a really fun and unique part of the experience. Our driver and guide, Zach, was fantastic. He was friendly, knowledgeable, and very accommodating, and shared great insights about the aurora, Alaska's history, and geography. He was also very honest when he did not know something and tried to find the answer. The next night at the hot springs, we ran into Paul, another guide from 1st Alaska Tours who was leading a different group. He was just as friendly and helpful and offered some great tips, which really says a lot about the company. If you are considering an aurora tour in Fairbanks, 1st Alaska Tours is a great choice. I do apologize for my photography skills and the video was from inside the yurt!

Tour guide George pulled up to my hotel in a heated van exactly on time, and provided commentary on…read morethe region as we drove the 30 minutes or so to Murphy Dome, which I'd been told is optimal for viewing the Lights, with its 360-degree perspective. When we arrived at about 10:30, the Lights were in primitive, foggy form but they steadily got better as time passed, ebbing and flowing in intensity, stretching all the way across the sky at times, in a mesmerizing dance of green and purple. We were fortunate, because the aurora forecast was "excellent" (KP 5-6) for the night we went out, something I'd never encountered before in trips to Iceland or Alaska. Our group of 12 had access to its own warm, roomy, window-encircled yurt, much appreciated due to unusually high winds much of the night. An added treat was the appearance of several dog-mushing teams, coursing across the expanse in front of us. I can't wait to do the exact same trip again next year, but I almost didn't make this one. Although the tour was fully booked when I called 1st Alaska on the day of the trip, they were kind enough to call me back when they received a cancellation, for which I will always be grateful.

Taking the rail was my highlight of my trip to Alaska. We took the train from Denali to Fairbanks…read moreand it was amazing. Staff was friendly and entertaining. They offer large menu of drinks and a small food menu. I will say price for food and drinks is a little high.

What an experience!…read more Everyone should do the Aurora Winter Train at least once! There are limited schedules during the winter months, Northbound on Saturdays and Southbound on Sundays. This is a 12hr ride, however, it does go by quickly! The views are amazing!