Kenai Fjords
Glacier Kayak & Wildlife Cruise Combo

Small Group, Private Charter Tours
ONE AMAZINGLY ALASKAN DAY IN KENAI FJORDS NATIONAL PARK

Let us guide YOU on this ULTIMATE, All-Inclusive, Alaskan experience!
Book Early…this small group tour is limited to 12 seats per day and this trip SELLS OUT weeks in advance!

The Kenai Fjords Wildlife Cruise & Glacier Kayak Combo offers a full-day national park experience that blends small-boat cruising with guided sea kayaking near a tidewater glacier. Guests travel aboard Sunny Cove Kayaking’s private landing craft catamaran, Ascension, providing a more intimate alternative to large commercial cruise vessels.

After transiting through Kenai Fjords National Park, our group launches kayaks near Holgate Glacier and spends approximately three hours paddling among ice, wildlife, and dramatic glacial scenery. A picnic lunch is included, and the remainder of the day is spent exploring the park by boat while guides share insights into the area’s ecology, geology, and wildlife.

We know this trip is on the expensive side, and we go out of our way to make sure every penny you spend leads to a truly unforgettable experience! Unsure? Check out our reviews on TripAdvisor to hear what our guests have to say about this adventure.

Is this tour right for you?

This tour is a great option if you want to experience Kenai Fjords National Park in a more hands-on way while still covering a significant distance by boat. It’s ideal for wildlife lovers and travelers seeking a small-group alternative to large cruise-style tours.

Activity Level:

Easy to Moderate - Ages 10+

Offered Daily: 7:30 am - 5:00 pm

May 17 - September 7, 2026

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Group of people kayaking on a body of water near a glacier with ice chunks floating in the water.
Seward Coastal Charters - Ascension
Glacier Cruise - Kenai Fjords National Park, Seward, Alaska

Small Groups, Private Charter, Custom Wildlife Viewing, and Glacier Kayaking

Our day begins at the Seward Boat Harbor, where our guides will escort you from our offices to our private charter, the Ascensio,n to meet your Captain and Crew before getting underway. Next, we’ll cruise for about two hours through Resurrection Bay and around Aialik (eye-al-ik) Cape into Aialik Bay and Kenai Fjords National Park to our launch beach. Our boat is fast, and we typically arrive at our destination before any of the other boats arrive. That means we often have the entire area to ourselves while kayaking! 

Once on shore, we'll spend about half an hour getting you outfitted and running through basic kayaking instructions. After the instruction, we'll have approximately 2.5 hours of kayaking along the rugged shoreline. Along the way, we'll take breaks to immerse ourselves in the sights, sounds, and sensations of floating near an actively calving tidewater glacier. 

We typically kayak at Holgate Glacier, one of the three glaciers in Aialik Bay. We prefer Holgate since it’s less visited than Aialik Glacier, and we prefer the solitude away from cruise boats and large groups of kayakers. Also, Holgate Arm has dozens of incredible hidden waterfalls, towering cliffs, and little nooks and crannies, making for a breathtaking kayaking experience with surprises around every corner.

Following our kayaking tour, we’ll have a picnic lunch and then we'll re-board our private charter vessel to seek out whales, sea lions, seals, puffins, killer whales, and more for a few hours as we cruise back to Seward. Having a fast, private charter boat means we have lots of time to search for wildlife after we wrap up kayaking. Our typical return time to Seward is 4:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m., but it is dependent upon wildlife viewing and weather conditions.

Our All Inclusive Tour Includes:

  • Private Charter Boat

    • Exclusive to Sunny Cove Kayaking

    • Never Shared with Another Company

    • Stable Catamaran with a Heated Cabin

    • Plenty of Comfortable Seating & Bathroom on Board

  • Personalized Experiences

    • Professionally Trained Guides & Interpretive Narration

    • Wildlife Viewing Opportunities

  • Picnic Lunch and Snacks (no additional charge)

    • Wrap, Fruit Snack, Cookies & Chips

    • Vegetarian Option Available

    • Hot & Cold Beverages

  • All Kayaking Gear (no additional charge)

    • Neoprene Mitts

    • Waterproof Boots

    • Dry Bag

    • Spray Skirt

    • Personal Flotation Device

    • Stable Two-Person Kayaks

Kenai Fjords Wildlife Viewing Guide

Monthly illustrations of Arctic animals in the order: eagle, seal, whale, orca, and puffin, representing each month from May to September.

Highlights

  • Private Wildlife Cruise

  • Small Group Tour

  • Tidewater Glacier Kayaking

  • Family Friendly

  • Bird Watching

  • Gulf of Alaska

  • Marine Mammal Viewing

  • First Time Kayaker Friendly

  • 3 Hours (4-5 Miles) Kayaking

  • Rugged Mountains

  • Turquoise Waters

  • Glacier Viewing

Itinerary


7:20 am - Check in at the Adventure Center
7:30 am - Meet your Guides
7:50 am - Board Our Private Charter - Wildlife Cruise to Kenai Fjords National Park
10:45 am* - Disembark at Our Launch Beach to Kayak near a Tidewater Glacier
1:00 pm* - Picnic Lunch
2:00 pm* - Re-board Our Charter to Look for Whales, Sea Lions, Puffins & More!
4:30 to 5:00 pm* - Return to Seward Small Boat Harbor

*Approximate times. Return time may be affected by wind, weather, or whales.

Please note that getting to Kenai Fjords National Park includes boating along the shoreline of the outer coast and the Gulf of Alaska. This portion of the trip will experience sea swell and can expose trip participants to sea sickness.

If you are especially sensitive to motion sickness, we recommend checking out our Fox Island Morning Kayak & Afternoon Cruise Combo.

Glacier Kayaking in Kenai Fjords National Park

$445 pp + tax ($70 savings): May 16 - June 5, 2026
$495 pp + tax ($20 Savings): June 5 - June 21, 2026 & August 24 - September 7, 2026
$515 + tax: June 22 - August 23, 2026


50% deposit due at time of reservation, remainder due 45 days before your trip for bookings created through 3/01/2026. Total due at the time of reservation for reservations created after 3/01/2026.

Availability

This is our most popular tour, and it sells out several weeks in advance.
Last-minute reservations are nearly impossible to accommodate, and we encourage our guests to make reservations well in advance.

On this trip, it’s common to see eagles, seals, and sea otters, and if we’re really lucky, we’ll see puffins, whales, and maybe even orcas.

Kids 10 and up are welcome to kayak with an adult in our two-person kayaks.

*Our return allows time to catch the 6:00 pm bus or train

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