Virgin Voyages' guide to Icy Strait Point, Alaska
Icy Strait Point shifts everything. Air sharpens. Distance widens. Forest pulls you in. Water opens out. And the moment meets you right where you are — unrushed, unmistakable, fully yours.
Wild Grace, Quiet Place
The moment you arrive in Icy Strait Point, you feel it.
Step off the ship and everything sharpens — the air, the light, the distance between things. Forest draws close. Water stretches wide. And the space around you feels real in a way that just is.
This is the edge of the Tongass National Forest — nearly 17 million acres of rainforest, coastline, and wildlife moving exactly as it should. You’re not visiting nature. You’re stepping into it. And it doesn’t take long to feel it.
Start close to the shoreline. The Cannery Shops — set inside a restored 1940s cannery — bring together 12+ locally owned spots, filled with Native art, Ulu knives, and small-batch goods that carry this place with them.
Then take it higher. Ride the SkyPeak Gondola more than 1,500 feet up Hoonah Mountain, with panoramic, 360° views of forest, sea and sky. At the top, a small gift shop waits — part souvenir, part reminder of just how far you’ve come.
And just beyond the port, about a mile out, Hoonah Trading Company keeps it grounded. Pantry staples, everyday goods, and the kind of finds locals actually use — simple, real, and exactly what you’d expect from a place that doesn’t put on airs.
Somewhere between the forest, the water, and the people who call this place home, you start to feel it too. Not like you’ve arrived somewhere new. Like you’ve stepped into something that was already whole.
Shore Excursions
Somewhere Between Wild and Wow
From soaring straight over the treetops to hands-on moments rooted in Alaska’s wild foodways and rugged backroads, Icy Strait Point goes big without losing its soul. Chase the thrill. Follow the view. Make the day entirely your own — or share it with someone who gets it.
ZipRider at Icy Strait Point
Ascend by gondola for sweeping views of Glacier Bay and Icy Strait, then transfer to the launch platform high on Hoonah Mountain. After a safety briefing, strap in and drop over the forest, accelerating to 60 mph on six side-by-side lines. At over a mile long, this ZipRider is the biggest on Earth. Brakes slow you safely into the Drop Zone at sea level. Gondola rides are unlimited, so relive the views before or after your adrenaline rush.
In Alaska’s Wildest Kitchen
Hosted by a local, this relaxed 90-minute session demystifies catching, filleting, and preserving fish the Alaska way. Watch pro techniques, then help grill a “catch of the day” over a custom alder-wood setup. Sit for a tasting that may include fresh and canned salmon dishes and grilled seafood; one beer, wine or soda is included. Leave with printed recipes, stories of remote life, and new kitchen confidence.
UTVs & Alpine Views
Begin with a guided look at Alaska’s largest Tlingit village, then gear up for an off-road ride on forest logging roads. Follow your lead guide to overlooks framing valley, shoreline, and peak views, with photo stops and a mid-tour driver swap for licensed guests. This small-group UTV outing blends culture, scenery, and a dash of mud-slinging fun deep in the Tongass.
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As local as it gets
Icy Strait Point is owned and operated by the Huna Tlingit people.
The shoreline lingers a little longer. Forest draws in close. The water holds wide and steady, like it’s been moving to this rhythm long before you arrived. You start replaying the moments — some of them already worth telling.
That first rise — gondola lifting, the view opening fast over Glacier Bay and Icy Strait. Then the drop. Air rushing past, forest falling away beneath you, the line pulling you forward faster than expected. Over a mile of it. Speeds pushing 60. That split second where everything goes quiet — then doesn’t.
Then the shift. Engines up. Mud under the tires. Logging roads winding deeper into the Tongass. The trail narrowing, turning, pushing back just enough to keep you in it. Then it opens — valley, shoreline, peaks, that wide Alaska horizon stretching out like it’s always been there.
And somewhere in between, the slower rhythm. A local voice walking you through it. What to catch. How to cut. Why it matters. Alder wood catching. Salmon hitting the grill — smoke rising, the water just steps away. Halibut done simply, because it doesn’t need more. A table that holds you a little longer. Food that stays close to where it came from — and tastes like it. No rush. No excess. Just what belongs here.
Icy Strait Point stays with you the same way it reveals itself — one moment at a time. Wild where it needs to be. Grounded where it matters. A place shaped by what’s here — and who’s been here all along.
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