Eleanor was VERY pleasant when we arrived!…read more We filled out our waivers, had to use their outhouse which was an experience and not of the good variety lol Jimmy was my musher OH MAN! That was MY GUY! He was VERY passionate about his dogs. He told me alllll about them, mushing, Alaska etc you name it, we chatted about it during our ride. Loved the trail, nice scenery and the dogs go at a nice pace so you can talk and chat. They gave me a sleeping bag for my feet so I wasn't cold at all minus my face. Would for sure do it if it's your first time in Fairbanks or haven't done it ever.

Wow, wow, wow!!!!! YES, we loved the experience!!! Eleanor is incredible with the children, and…read moregrown ups too:). Her dogs are definitely her children, and she should get parenting awards! I had no idea how peaceful and connected the experience would be for our family. Yes, yes and yes.

Strongly not recommend this place…read more In general, Not like other place in the US, Alaska is not safe due to the lacking of police. I am so surprised to see Dan's review about the threaten from the host and started to feel lucky for not confronting with the host about his rudeness and racism. Here is my story: We stayed 3 nights at this place. The 2nd day, we went a north arctic tour, which was booked before we get to Alaska as we always plan things ahead. The tour guide drove his van to pick us up at the ranch. When the van arrived the ranch, there are some people already in the car who also joined the same tour. These tourists want to use bathroom so they just went inside the main log cabin. My friends and I then step into the van and leave the side door open when waiting for these tourists. The male host seems not happy about other people use his bathroom. He come to our van and ask the tour guide:"do you see a sign of public bathroom?" "Then why are you parking here?" We are not interested with the conversation between the host and tour guide until the host changed his angry target. At the end of their conversation, the host turned his head and look at me straight at my eyes and said:"I respect every culture, but Chineses made a bad name of it." Then he left and leaving me and my friends in the shock of feeling insulted and trying to understand what's happened between the tour guide and the host. He ruined our mood for that whole day. 1. It is the other tourists used his public bathroom without noticing him. We were simply stay in the van and waiting for them. We were tenanted in the place. Should had every right to use the bathroom. 2. We don't know other tourists. From what I see and hear, some of them are not Chinese. They just have a Asian face. 3. The host didn't ask whether we are Chinese or not and made his supercilious assumption that we are all Chinese. 4. He expanded his angry to other Asian tourists to us, who paid and followed every rules. 5. There is no sigh or notice saying people cannot use the public bathroom in the hallway. 6. We didn't say anything when the host is talking to the tour guide. 7. We had not had any conversations with other tourists at that time. After reading reviews in Yelp. I found that all Chinese have terrible experience in this place. Plus by our experience, the host's supercilious attitude towards Asians made me believe he is racist even when he himself is an Asian. Besides the treatment we got, the place itself is bad. It should be renamed as a hostel since none of the rooms have bathroom. The shower is small and spectated by waterproof cloth. At night it is noisy...... it is the worst experience in a hostel in my life.

I don't know who the owner is or if it was he that approached us a couple days ago but there seems…read moreto be some kind of mental instability going on with him. We (4 60+ seniors) were watching the Northern Lights, parked at the public school a mile or so from the ranch and this guy drives up and tells us we have to leave and recommends a place to go. The place he recommends is a pullout along the main highway so we head back toward the school but find a little pond so pull over to view the lights. This guy comes out and harasses us telling us that we were illegally parked on a public road and points a strong flashlight in our faces and tells us "you people from the lower 48 should just go home and stay there". When one of us shined a light in his face, he reached for his hip - as in where a gun holster would be. He says if you take another step, you'll be on my property and you'll be sorry. We never actually saw a gun but he was acting pretty bold walking our to a car full of people at 2:00 in the morning. We notified the state troopers and they said they were going to investigate but haven't heard of any resolution. The thing is that while this guy may be making nice with whoever pays to stay at his place, he actually despises those of us in "the lower 48" in a seemingly mentally unbalanced way. Just a heads up to those considering staying at Chandalar.

A wonderful hour spent with some caribou (AKA reindeer). My family and I enjoyed learning…read moreeverything about the animals, the history human and animal relationships in the region and the current laws and protectionzls. Best of all we got to go for a walk and a photo op on one of the shortest days of the year. An experience worth the time and energy.

What an amazing experience this was! It was a very cold day, so in addition to all of our layers we…read morewere wearing, the guides kindly suggested wearing an additional heavy coat. So glad we took them up on their offer...! We were bundled tight into the sleds, and wrapped in blankets. Our guides, Laura A, and Shaynee T, introduced us to all their sweet dogs and then we were off and running through the gorgeous woods and landscape found in Pleasant Valley. Laura (Runner Dance Kennel) was my team's guide and I learned some fascinating information and heard some great stories from her time in Alaska and some of the crazy long races she's been apart of. My wife had a similar great experience with Shaynee (Howling Ridge Kennel) The east west road is very icy and doesn't catch much sun in late December, early January so allow for extra travel time!

Excellent half-day tour from Fairbanks to Coldfoot and back. The tour lasted around 4 hours. The…read moreviews from the plane were gorgeous, our pilot was very nice. The Coldfoot guide was very knowledgeable and we learned a lot during our short visit. Would definitely recommend You also get a certificate to take home showing that you crossed the Arctic circle!

We did the Gates of the Arctic Air Adventure. We had an Amazing experience - We worked with Matt…read morewho was great to work with. Our pilot Nick did an amazing job narrating us. We had plenty of airtime, and literally flew through the actual Gates. The lunch they offer is really good. Once in a lifetime experience!!

Wilderness Enterprises didn't run short of a fine reputation! Joe ensured three of us had an…read moreexcellent time fishing down the Chena River. Our raft guide Henry gave us a wonderful adventure by taking time to explain the history of the fishing to include catch and release. The grayling are fun to catch and the fish will pretty much hook themselves. The beautiful captivating scenery from the outdoors down the 12 mile Chena River will definitely put a smile on your face. We all caught fish and have everlasting memories thanks to Joe and Henry!

I was skeptical but $180ish (after $20 fishing license and tip) for a half-day fishing trip down…read morethe Chena River turned out to be worth it. For us, it included floating at a brisk pace 5 miles down a river that was in places only a few inches deep, surrounded by spruce and birch trees, with occasional stops to fish in the arctic grayling hotspots (and Joe knew well where they were), with glimpses of several duck species and ravens chasing bald eagles and other things you just don't get to see in the lower 48. Joe has an impressive knowledge of the flora, fauna, and geology of the area. He's also one of the few guides "with it" enough to have an online presence. He's a quiet and likeable guy. Hard to imagine you'd be disappointed with this trip. Caution/disclaimer: I cannot say how the other guided trips compare to the one we did (half-day arctic grayling on the Chena River in early May), or how other Wilderness Enterprises guides compare to Joe, or how the other guided fishing or hunting companies compare to Wilderness Enterprises. (But I can say that I had a good time. And I suspect you would, too.)

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!!!

Oh man, was this the coolest experience? Our tour guide was extremely knowledgeable as well and we…read morehad great conversations. Being able to have contact with such a majestical creature was so cool. They let you feed them as well. This definitely isn't one of those experiences where they are just trying to get you in and out. We didn't feel rushed whatsoever, and had such a great time. A heads up for any tourists out there like me. If you come closer to winter or in the break up season, there is a lot of hardened snow and ice on the roads. I would definitely recommend getting a rental car that has four-wheel-drive. It was my first time ever driving on snow/ice like that. It wasn't too scary. Other than a couple moments when I had to stop and turn around. I could definitely see myself getting stuck if I didn't have a car that had four-wheel-drive. So just be mindful of that. Overall, it was a really beautiful drive though. And if you're going in the summer, you shouldn't have any problem on the roads. You could always call ahead and ask the staff with the road conditions are ahead of booking. But you definitely need to book this! There is also a really cool building where you meet your instructor that has a really beautiful view. There are also a couple of walking trails nearby that you can go down. And there is a coffee shop inside that had a decent latte. I believe they also serve food, though we didn't end up ordering anything, I did see other people eating. When we were trying to find our way there, we did get a little bit lost. But there is signage on the road on the left-hand side if you're heading north. They are part of a larger event booking. You'll see something on the right hand side that looks like a bunch of viewing domes. Then right after that the turn is on the left.

Such a great and unique experience! You can tell how much they love and care for animals. The…read moresession was super informative as well. Highly recommend! This didn't feel like one of the tourist traps.

We went on the Northern Lights excursion. Jason, the owner…read morepicked us up in the van right on time. It was about a 30-40 minute drive. I'd rented a camera from him with the proper settings preset. He also helped anyone who needed their camera phones adjusted. They provided tripods for free. Jason, and his wife Heather have a great set up. Big cabin for warmth. Lots of beverages, snacks, seating. Indoor plumbing. They have modern technology for tracking the northern lights. They told us when to head out. They have a huge, dark field for viewing. We watched a great Northern Lights show. We also saw a lot of stars and constellations. I'd definitely book with them again.

If there were half stars I'd give the experience a 2.5- because the actual dog sledding portion…read more(all 20 minutes of it) was 5 star fantastic, but the getting there and getting back was a one star. Let me explain: Pick up was at Walmart because we stayed in a VRBO. There wasn't very clear communication ahead of time as to exactly where at Walmart and what vehicle I was looking for- tho I was able to reach someone on their business number after I arrived in the parking lot. A large passenger van picked my son and I up, the driver was very young and pleasant looking but literally said nothing but "hello", not even his name. There was one other couple in the van. Here's the weird part- the driver gave us ZERO communication on anything. Not how far we were going, or where, or some background on dog mushing, or pleasant conversation. I asked maybe 2 questions and he answered them but it was clear he wasn't going to offer anything further. The van was so uncomfortably silent I felt like I had to whisper to my son. After about a 35min drive "out of town" I guess I expected to arrive at some kind of professional kennel/facility but it was actually someone's house with dog kennels out back. Again, we piled out of the van, I was holding my purse and my son had a backpack (do I take them? Are there lockers? Do I leave them in the van? Who knows...) and our driver just walked off, giving no instructions. We decided to follow him. I asked if I could use the restroom before we started and he waved me in the general direction of an outhouse in the woods (which I never found- I just took care of business in the trees, clutching my nuisance of a purse). There was a team of dogs already hooked up, and he told the other couple "you're first" and loaded them on the sled with the owner/musher named Amy (we didn't know any of this til my son and I actually got our "turn" because again, ZERO conversation or communication). I guess I expected that if there were other people we would be on separate sleds but all go out together? Nope. Other couple took off with musher. So here we are, standing in the middle of the dog yard with significant dog kennel odors and yelping dogs and van driver than won't say a word and wondering what the hell is going on. I'm still wondering what to do with my purse, as it's obvious this is no place to be carrying it and there's no where to put it. I asked the driver if I could put it back in the van, and he said, "I guess I can take it for you, they'll be back any minute". (Again, I'm confused... they've only been gone 10-15 minutes... is that how long the "experience" is?) Sure enough, they returned a few minutes later. So my son and I load up. Here is where the 5* part comes in. Amy (owner of kennel/dogs/professional musher) quickly introduced herself with a smile and warm welcome. We took off into the woods on a well groomed trail, and she talked the whole time about her dogs, the breed of Alaskan Husky, the sport, her experiences, and more. It was thrilling and fun and interesting to hear her point of view and expertise! Tho the time on the sled was only 20 minutes or so, my son and I both really enjoyed every moment. In short- If you're looking for a full-service 5* adventure, this isn't it.