3 easy walks to do in Icy Strait Point cruise port on your own

Hi there!

Icy Strait Point can be an easy going cruise port for nature and wildlife! You can get a glimpse of this with some free and easy walks from the cruise ship!

I have been to Icy Strait Point on Princess and NCL, and here are my picks for easy walks to do! If you have a day in Icy Strait Point (like 8am to 5pm), then it can be reasonable to do all 3 of these.

Do #3 first, as #1 and #2 can be done more quickly near the cruise ship! Depending on how much time you have left, you can decide to spend more or less time on the things to do near the cruise ship!

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1. Icy Strait Point beach walk

One of the easiest things you can do when you have “nothing to do” in Icy Strait Point is to go for a walk along the beach!

You can do this even if you have less than an hour before the back-on-board time as your final thing you do before you board the cruise ship for good!

Now, this is not your typical beach. It’s actually a rocky beach.

And, in Icy Strait Point style (aka home to lots of marine life!), you have a chance to see marine life!

As you are walking along the beach, look down to see if you can spot jellyfish, starfish, or maybe even seashells!

You don’t need to go looking for the beach. When you are in Icy Strait Point, you’ll see it. Just make sure to look for little creatures for a fun Alaska experience!

There are 2 cruise ship piers at Icy Strait Point. If you’re docked at the Ocean Landing pier, then you walk off the cruise ship and can be at the beach in minutes! (You can see it from the cruise ship.)

If you’re docked at the Wilderness Landing pier, you can walk the easy Icy Strait Point nature trail (explained next!) or the free gondola, and then end up at the beach!

See more about the Icy Strait Point beach.

Icy Strait Point boardwalk

There is also a boardwalk that you can walk that goes alongside the beach to walk a regular surface instead of a rocky surface. Be sure to get off of this boardwalk to look for marine life, though!

The first time I went to Icy Strait Point, I made the mistake of sticking to the boardwalk! The next time I went back, I had a fun time looking for things along the beach!

👆 Map of areas to walk the beach in Icy Strait Point from the Ocean Landing pier.

2. Icy Strait Point nature trail

The Icy Strait Point nature trail is another easy thing you can do if you have less than an hour before your back-on-board time. This is a walk through the forest.

If you don’t have much time, you can just walk a few minutes into the forest, get pretty pictures of the tall trees of an Alaska forest all around you, and then turn around.

If you do have more time, then you can keep going. Even if you walk the whole nature trail, it won’t take you 30 minutes, unless you stop to look more closely at the moss!

There is even a bench that you can sit at to take in your surroundings more slowly too, if you do want to spend more time in the forest.

If your cruise ship is at the Ocean Landing pier, you can walk through the forest to get to the top part of the free gondola, and then take the gondola back down. Or, the top part of the free gondola is also the boarding point for the paid gondola that will take you further up. One of the main attractions at the top of the paid gondola is the zipline, which is said to be the “world’s largest ziprider.”

If your cruise ship is at the Wilderness Landing pier, you will basically be at the top of the free gondola, so you can take the nature trail to go to the beach and the rest of Icy Strait Point.

The Icy Strait Point nature trail also connects to the “beach trail.” This is another walk along the shore line that you can do in search of marine life!

👆 Map of the Icy Strait Point nature trail from the cruise ship at the Ocean Landing pier.

👆 You can walk to the nature trail from the cruise ship.

👆 The “beach trail” connects to the nature trail.

Icy Strait Point bears

Icy Strait Point is located on the island called Chichagof Island.

Chichagof Island is known to have a high density of bears. Sometimes these bears are spotted in the area of the Icy Strait Point nature trail. If this happens, the nature trail may be closed.

It’s a good idea to know what to do if you see a bear. Read what the National Park Service says about being bear aware: Look for the section called “What do I do if I see a bear?” In short, do not approach and slowly move away!

This also means that Icy Strait Point can be a very good cruise port for bear viewing in the summer. It’s important to keep in mind that wildlife is wild and therefore never guaranteed, but one of the best tours you must consider for bears and a fun Alaska experience is the river fishing and bear watching tour. At least if you don’t see bears, you will still have had a classic Alaska lifestyle experience!

If you understand that bears are not guaranteed, a bear viewing focused tour you’ll want to consider is the Chichagof Island brown bear search tour.

3. Icy Strait Point to Hoonah walk

For an easy activity that will take a couple of hours, you can walk from the Icy Strait Point cruise port to the town of Hoonah.

There really is not much in the town of Hoonah, so the walk is more about the journey!

You’ll be walking along the Hoonah Sea Walk, which is a paved path along the shore. Along the way, you can stop to read the informational signs to learn more about Alaska marine life, wildlife, and history of the area.

If you want a destination to walk to in “downtown” Hoonah, then you can make your final destination the Fisherman’s Daughter for halibut tacos (map + reviews) or Icy Strait Brewing (map + reviews)… or both! You can go for fish tacos first, then go to the bar, and then head back to the cruise ship! There is a shuttle stop right in front of Icy Strait Brewing.

Hoonah shuttle

If you don’t want to walk so much, then you can also take the shuttle between Icy Strait Point and Hoonah. Whether you take the shuttle one-way or round-trip, the ticket price is the same. In 2023, this was $5.

Whether you plan to do the shuttle one-way to Hoonah or the the other way, you need to buy the shuttle ticket in the Icy Strait Point area. You’ll just keep walking in the general direction of Hoonah (it’s obvious once you’re there – just keep following the boardwalk and walking path), and you’ll come across the shuttle ticket booth.

You won’t be able to buy tickets on the shuttle, although if you decide once you’re in Hoonah that you don’t want to walk back, I personally doubt you will be denied a ride back. (Bring dollars bills to tip the driver just in case!)

👆 Map of walk from Icy Strait Point cruise port to Hoonah. Explore the map.

👆 The walk from Icy Strait Point cruise port to Hoonah is along the coast!

More easy walks: Juneau | Ketchikan | Skagway | Sitka | Victoria | Vancouver | Seattle

More walking: Hiking in Alaska cruise ports

More for your cruise ship visit: All things Icy Strait Point on the blog

HAPPY WALKING IN ICY STRAIT POINT!