Alaska Tidewater Glacier Tours Put You at the Ice Face

There is a big difference between seeing a glacier and watching one move. You can stand at the edge of a trail and look across at a wall of blue ice, take your photographs, and continue on your way. Or you can sit in a boat in the middle of an Alaska fjord, surrounded by mountains, waiting to see whether a piece of that ice will crack loose and crash into the water.

That second experience is what makes an Alaska tidewater glacier tour so memorable. These glaciers reach all the way to the ocean, and they are constantly changing. You might hear the ice before you see it move, and when a large piece finally calves into the water, everyone on the boat knows it happened.

If you are trying to decide which glacier experiences belong on your Alaska itinerary, it helps to understand the difference between tidewater and land-based glaciers. They are both worth seeing, but they give you very different experiences.

What Is the Difference Between a Tidewater Glacier and a Land-Based Glacier?

A land-terminating glacier comes to an end on solid ground. You can often reach it by road or trail, walk toward the ice, and get a much closer look at the glacier itself. Alaska has several glaciers that make this kind of experience possible, and they are a good introduction to the scale of glacial ice.

A tidewater glacier is different. Instead of ending on land, the glacier flows into the ocean or a fjord. The front of the glacier, known as the terminus, rises above the water and is constantly being shaped by the movement of the ice and the water below it.

And then there is calving. When a section of the glacier breaks away and falls into the water, the sound can travel across the fjord. You may be watching the ice for several minutes without anything happening and then suddenly see a huge piece drop away. That unpredictability is part of the experience.

In simple terms:

• Land-based glaciers are generally reached by road or trail
• Tidewater glaciers are reached by boat or, in some cases, kayak
• Land-based glaciers give you the chance to walk closer to the ice
• Tidewater glaciers give you the chance to watch an active glacier calve into the sea

If you are still trying to decide which part of Alaska to explore, our guide to Alaska glaciers, fjords, and coastal towns is a good place to start.

Where Can You Take an Alaska Tidewater Glacier Tour?

One of the best places to experience tidewater glaciers is Kenai Fjords National Park. The park is shaped by the enormous Harding Icefield, which feeds dozens of glaciers flowing down toward the coast.

Getting into the fjords is part of what makes the experience so special. You are not simply traveling from one viewpoint to another. The boat takes you deeper into a landscape of steep mountains, waterfalls, floating ice, and cold blue water.

Eventually, the landscape opens up and you find yourself looking at the face of a glacier. That is usually when the scale of the place really hits you. What looks enormous from a distance becomes even more impressive when you realize how much ice is hidden below the water and how far the glacier stretches back toward the icefield.

Kayaking offers another way to experience this environment. Being down at water level changes your perspective completely, particularly when you are surrounded by cliffs and glacial ice. Our travel journal about glacier kayaking in Kenai Fjords National Park gives you a better idea of what that experience is actually like.

Why Is Seeing a Tidewater Glacier Different From Seeing One From Land?

There is nothing wrong with visiting a glacier from land. In fact, you should experience a glacier in this way if you have the opportunity. But there is something about approaching a glacier by water that changes the experience.

You are surrounded by the fjord instead of standing at the end of a trail. You can see the mountains rising on either side of you, watch seabirds moving across the water, and keep an eye out for marine mammals as the boat moves through the area.

And then there is the glacier itself. A tidewater glacier is not simply a frozen landscape sitting in front of you. It is moving. Slowly, almost imperceptibly in most moments, but constantly. Cracks form in the ice. Pieces break away. The face changes.

Sometimes you will wait for a long time and see nothing happen. That is part of the fun. You never know exactly when the next piece of ice will come down.

Are Alaska's Tidewater Glaciers Changing?

They are, and that is another reason these experiences are worth making time for. Alaska's glaciers have been changing rapidly, and tidewater glaciers are affected by more than just the air temperature around them. The ocean matters too. Research from the U.S. Geological Survey has shown that relatively warm ocean water can melt ice below the surface and contribute significantly to glacier loss.

If you look at photographs of Alaska's glaciers from decades ago, you can sometimes see just how much the landscape has changed. The ice you see today will not necessarily be in the same place years from now. That does not mean you should visit Alaska simply because a glacier is disappearing. It means that these landscapes are not static. If a tidewater glacier experience is something you have always wanted to do, don't put it off indefinitely.

Should You See a Land-Based Glacier Too?

If you have the time, absolutely! Seeing a tidewater glacier from the water and walking toward a land-based glacier give you two completely different ways of understanding Alaska's ice. One shows you the glacier in its marine environment. The other lets you see how the ice has shaped the landscape around it.

Exit Glacier is a particularly interesting example because it is accessible and easy to reach compared with many of Alaska's more remote glaciers. Along the trail, dated markers show where the glacier reached in previous years. You can actually walk through the landscape and see the evidence of its retreat.

Our guide to the best time to see Exit Glacier covers the seasonal differences, while hiking Exit Glacier gives you a better idea of what the trail is like. We also put together 10 facts about Alaska's Exit Glacier if you want to learn more before visiting.

Seeing both types of glacier is one of the best ways to appreciate just how much ice has shaped Alaska.

How Do Alaska's Other Glacier Experiences Compare?

Kenai Fjords is not the only place where you can see glaciers in Alaska. Your best option depends on how much time you have, where you are traveling, and how close you want to get to the ice.

• Mendenhall Glacier near Juneau is one of Alaska's most accessible glaciers and is easy to add to a Southeast Alaska itinerary.
• Matanuska Glacier can be reached by road and offers opportunities for guided glacier walks and ice experiences.
• Glacier Bay is famous for its tidewater glaciers and is often experienced from a larger vessel traveling through the national park.
• Misty Fjords near Ketchikan offers spectacular fjord scenery, although glaciers are not the main attraction. Our Misty Fjords guide explains what makes this area worth visiting.

If your priority is getting out into the fjords and spending time around active tidewater ice, Kenai Fjords is particularly appealing. The journey is as much a part of the experience as the glacier itself.

What Else Might You See on a Tidewater Glacier Tour?

One of the things about glacier days in Alaska is that the glacier is rarely the only thing you see.

Kenai Fjords is home to an incredible variety of marine wildlife. As you travel through the fjords, you may encounter sea otters floating on their backs, harbor seals resting on pieces of ice, sea lions, whales, and large colonies of seabirds. You never really know what will appear next.

That is why an Alaska tidewater glacier tour is not simply a way to get from the dock to a glacier and back again. The fjord itself is the destination. The glacier is one spectacular part of a much larger ecosystem. Our guide to wildlife on the Kenai Peninsula covers some of the animals you may encounter in this part of Alaska.

Why Combine Tidewater Glaciers With a Bear Adventure?

If you are traveling all the way to Alaska, there is a lot to be said for combining different experiences into the same trip. On our Glaciers and Grizzlies Adventure, the fjords and tidewater glaciers are paired with brown bear viewing at Brooks Falls. The experiences could not be more different. One takes you onto the water and into a glacial landscape. The other puts you in the middle of one of Alaska's most famous bear-viewing areas.

That contrast is part of what makes an Alaska adventure memorable. You are not spending the entire trip looking at one type of landscape or doing the same activity every day. If bear viewing is also on your list, our guide to where and when to see Alaska bears is a good resource before you start planning.

Is an Alaska Tidewater Glacier Tour Worth It?

If you have never seen a tidewater glacier before, it is one of those Alaska experiences that is difficult to appreciate until you are actually there. Photographs give you an idea of the scale, but they do not capture the sound of ice breaking away from the glacier or the feeling of sitting on the water with nothing around you but mountains and ice.

And you cannot predict the best moment of the day. Maybe a piece of ice will calve while everyone is watching. Maybe a whale will surface alongside the boat. Maybe the fog will lift for five minutes and reveal a mountain that had been hidden all morning. These are the moments that make an Alaska trip feel like an adventure rather than simply a sightseeing tour.

If you are looking for a way to experience Alaska's glaciers beyond the typical roadside viewpoint, a tidewater glacier excursion is worth making room for in your itinerary.

Ready to experience Alaska's glaciers, fjords, and wildlife for yourself? Download our travel brochure for the Alaska Glaciers and Grizzlies Adventure.