Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center Express
Anchorage, USA
- 3 hours 30 minutes (approx.)
- Mobile ticket
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Overview
Please check in at our new location: 509 W. 3rd Ave, directly across from the Hilton Hotel. Parking is available across the street. Check in at the concierge desk, then wait in our garden or indoor lobby. Please arrive 20 mins before departure. Look for the gray van with a bear! On the way, you’ll get nonstop views of the dramatic Turnagain Arm—one of Alaska’s most-scenic drives—stopping at beautiful Beluga Point before getting dropped off directly at the conservation center. With a mission to save injured and imperiled wildlife, spend an hour visiting with lynx, bears, wolves, bald eagles, and more.
- Hassle-free transfers to and from Anchorage, AK
- Drive past Beluga Point as you journey along the Turnagain Arm
- Direct dropoff and pickup at the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center
- See lynx, muskox, reindeer, and more
What's Included
- Admission to Wildlife Conservation Center
- Tipping is not required but appreciated. Guides enhance your experience with expert knowledge.
Meeting and Pickup
Meeting point
- Alaskas Finest Tours & Adventures509 W 3rd Ave, Anchorage, AK 99501, USA
End point
This activity ends back at the meeting point.Itinerary
1
Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center
Admission Ticket Included
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Stroller accessible
- Near public transportation
- Not recommended for travelers with back problems
- No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
- Travelers should have a moderate physical fitness level
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 14 travelers
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Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Featured review
Had an amazing time. Great tour guide and very knowledgeable. Took my friends and I to see breathtaking views of the glaciers, rivers, lakes and wildlife. Definitely a must see and experience tour if you are planning a trip to anchorage.
Reviews
4.4
based on 59 reviews
Sort by: Most insightful
It was well worth it. Lunch there was ordinary. Don’t get the Mac and cheese.viewing the animals was fantastic even though it was raining. The guide was interesting Melissa and well spoken.
Tour operator cancelled the night before excursion. Please issue refund. It has been over 2 weeks and I have not seen a credit.
All the places that we went to are beautiful and we are given enough time to explore. Our visit to the wildlife conservation was great but to windy conditions we were not able to walk around too much.
Gary is awesome! We had such a good time on this tour (note that we were upgraded to a slightly longer tour, not the express). The wildlife center is definitely worth a visit (we honestly could have stayed longer!) and we learned so much more from Gary than we would have on our own. Gary also took us to some scenic spots for pictures and we did a very easy/short walk. It’s a perfect tour for all ages, including my parents in their late 60s.
We enjoyed seeing the animals at the conservation center. We had a beautiful sunny day and most of the animals were outside and moving around. The tour director/ van driver gave us lots of information, and stopped off a couple of times to view wildlife. It was an hours drive from Anchorage.
Brooks was an excellent tour guide — so knowledgeable. This was a great way to explore south of Anchorage!
I wasn't overly happy with this tour right from the word go. Our tour driver was friendly enough, but unfortunately not particularly engaging. He shared the bare minimum information and, although he made a few bonus stops along the way, he didn’t provide any history or point out interesting places or points of interest during the journey. It felt like there was a missed opportunity to make the journey itself part of the experience. The visit to the park itself was very rushed and I felt that we didn't get much time to explore the park at all.
The actual wildlife park was quite sad and disappointing. Yes, you get to see the animals relatively close up, but they are behind wire fencing, and in some areas the fencing was so thick that you could barely see the animals, let alone take decent photographs.
The beautiful wolf was particularly heartbreaking. He was in the distance and spent much of the time howling, seemingly because he was on his own. The brown bear/grizzly was also just pacing backwards and forwards along the fence line and looked incredibly sad.
While the opportunity to see these animals up close was certainly memorable, I left feeling quite uncomfortable about their living conditions. For me, seeing wildlife should be an experience that leaves you feeling inspired and connected to nature, rather than wondering whether the animals are happy and well cared for. Overall, this was probably one of the more disappointing experiences of my trip.
Response from Host, Aug 2026
Thank you for sharing your feedback. We do want to clarify several points because your review appears to evaluate the experience based on expectations that were not part of the service you purchased.
You purchased our Wildlife Express, which is transportation—not a narrated sightseeing tour. The description explains that the Wildlife Express provides transportation directly to the Wildlife Center, where guests have approximately one hour to visit the facility, followed by transportation back.
The Wildlife Express does not advertise a narrated tour, scenic stops, or a guided sightseeing experience along the route. For that reason, we were surprised to see the service criticized because the driver did not provide extensive narration, history, or points of interest throughout the journey. Those services are simply not part of the Wildlife Express product.
We do offer fully narrated tours, and there are other tour operators that offer narrated sightseeing experiences as well. Those services are priced accordingly because they include a different level of guiding, narration, sightseeing, and tour content.
The price of the transportation reflects the service you purchased. You did not purchase one of our fully narrated tours; you purchased the Wildlife Express transportation service. It would not be reasonable to purchase a transportation service and then judge it against the standards of a completely different, fully narrated tour.
In fact, your own review acknowledges that our driver made bonus stops and provided additional information along the way. We appreciate that you recognized this. Those were extras provided by the driver and were beyond what was advertised. In other words, the driver actually provided more than the basic Wildlife Express description promised, rather than less.
You mentioned that the driver was not particularly engaging and that there was a missed opportunity to make the journey part of the experience. We understand that you personally may have preferred a narrated sightseeing experience, but that is not what you booked. You purchased transportation to the Wildlife Center, and the driver provided that transportation while also making additional stops and providing information that were not required as part of the service.
Regarding the amount of time at the Wildlife Center, the approximately one-hour visit is part of the Wildlife Express description. This is a scheduled transportation service rather than an open-ended excursion, so the departure and return times are established in advance. The driver provided the time that was promised and departed as scheduled.
We also want to address your comments about the Wildlife Center and the animals. The animals there are rescued wildlife, including orphaned and injured animals that require human care and rehabilitation. This is not simply a conventional zoo where animals are kept for display. The facility is specifically focused on the care, rehabilitation, and long-term well-being of rescued wildlife.
The animals are provided substantial areas in which to move and live, considerably different from the small enclosures many people associate with traditional zoos. The bears, in particular, have an exceptionally large area in which to roam. The Wildlife Center has developed a strong reputation for its work rehabilitating and caring for rescued wildlife.
Seeing an animal behind fencing, pacing, or howling does not, by itself, establish that the animal is unhappy, neglected, or improperly cared for. The fencing is necessary for the safety of both visitors and the animals, and individual animal behavior can have many explanations that a visitor cannot determine simply from observing it for a short period.
We certainly respect that you may have personal feelings about wildlife facilities or may prefer seeing animals in the wild. However, your description of the animals as “sad” and your suggestion that their living conditions are necessarily inappropriate do not accurately reflect the purpose of the facility or the rehabilitation work being done there.
It is also important to distinguish our company from the Wildlife Center. We provide transportation to the facility; we do not operate the Wildlife Center or make decisions regarding its animal care, enclosures, exhibits, or rehabilitation practices. Those concerns are more appropriately directed to the Wildlife Center itself.
When we look at the service you actually purchased, the facts are fairly straightforward: the driver arrived on time, provided the transportation advertised, gave you the hour at the Wildlife Center that was promised, departed on time, and even provided additional stops and commentary that were not included in the description.
So perhaps the review could more accurately have read:
“The driver showed up on time, gave us the hour promised at the Wildlife Center, and left on time. The driver also talked about the area and made some bonus stops, which I thought was great. The tour description did not advertise narration or scenic stops, so I was pleasantly surprised by the additional effort. I understood when booking that I was purchasing a ride to the Wildlife Center, and that is what I received, along with some extras.”
That would be a much more accurate description of the service that was actually purchased and received.
We welcome legitimate and constructive feedback. However, we believe reviews should evaluate a service based on what was actually advertised, what was purchased, and what was delivered, rather than comparing it to services that were never included.
Ultimately, you bought a ride, not a narrated tour—and the price reflected exactly that. Had you wanted a fully narrated sightseeing experience with extensive commentary and scenic stops, that is a different product and is available at a different price.
In this case, the driver provided the transportation you purchased, delivered the scheduled Wildlife Center visit, departed on time, and went beyond the basic description by providing additional stops and information.
We are sorry that the Wildlife Center itself did not meet your personal expectations, but that should not be confused with the transportation service our company advertised and provided.
Extremely over priced! Priced at the entrance is $30. Phone number don’t work. No one contact you until you trying to cancel it. Then they show up 1 hour late at the place they told us to meet. I never write bad reviews. I really hope no one gets scammed again! They are very rude people as well!!
Response from Host, Aug 2026
We are disappointed by this review because several of the claims made are simply not accurate, and the actual circumstances are very different from what you have portrayed.
First, your claim that our phone number “doesn’t work” is simply not true. Our company has a designated phone number that goes directly to our dedicated reservation center, something many tour companies do not have because their staff are out conducting tours and may not be available until their tour is finished.
Our phone system is specifically designed to make sure customers have multiple ways to reach us. If our reservation agent does not answer, the call goes to dispatch, then to the owner. If those lines are not answered, the system is then answered by AI as another point of contact, and as a last resort it goes to our answering service where you can leave a message. There are multiple ways to get in touch with our company.
More importantly, our call records show no attempted call from you prior to your arrival at the Wildlife Center. The Wildlife Center called us because you arrived there and they needed authorization from us to admit you. That was when we first became aware of the situation and first heard from you.
You were scheduled to check in and board our tour at our Anchorage office—not at the Wildlife Center. Instead, you went to the Wildlife Center, approximately an hour away, and demanded to be admitted using your tour confirmation. The Wildlife Center contacted us to make sure your admission was authorized and paid for, and we authorized your entrance using our account.
Then, after gaining entrance to the Wildlife Center through our authorization, you attempted to cancel your tour and receive a full refund.
Let's be very clear about what that would have meant: you would have received the benefit of our authorization to enter the Wildlife Center while our company was left responsible for the entrance expense, and you would then have received your entire tour payment back. That is not a reasonable basis for a refund.
You were also already outside our 24-hour cancellation policy. Yet after using our confirmation to gain admission, you attempted to cancel and then claimed you could not reach us. Again, our call records do not support that claim.
You also attempted to take the cancellation issue through Viator, apparently hoping they would override the situation. However, Viator has its own cancellation policies and procedures, and they stood by their cancellation policy after reviewing the circumstances. They agreed that the cancellation was outside the applicable policy and did not issue the refund you were requesting. In other words, attempting to pressure the booking platform into overriding the policy did not change the facts.
Despite all of this, we still offered a solution. We explained that you had missed our scheduled Anchorage departure and the scenic stops because you went to the wrong location, but our driver would meet you and continue the remainder of the tour with you. We made an effort to provide the service you paid for rather than simply leave you at the Wildlife Center.
And regarding your claim that our tour is “extremely overpriced,” that is equally misleading. The tour price was $99, not $30, because you were not purchasing a $99 admission ticket to the Wildlife Center. The $30 entrance fee is only one component. The tour price also covers the driver, vehicle, fuel, insurance, operating expenses, reservation services, and the actual tour itself. Once those expenses are paid, very little remains for the company.
If the only thing you wanted was admission to the Wildlife Center, then yes, the admission price is $30. But that is not what you booked. You booked a transportation and tour experience, not simply an admission ticket. Our pricing is competitive with comparable tour operators, and suggesting that the entire $99 price is somehow an inflated Wildlife Center entrance fee is simply inaccurate.
We have no issue with a customer expressing disappointment. However, there is a significant difference between being unhappy with an experience and presenting an inaccurate version of events in an attempt to justify a refund.
You arrived at the wrong location, missed the scheduled Anchorage departure and scenic stops, used our confirmation to gain admission to the Wildlife Center, and then attempted to cancel outside our cancellation policy while claiming you could not reach us—despite our records showing no prior attempt to contact us.
Had we refunded you after authorizing your entrance, you would have received the benefit of our account at the Wildlife Center while our company absorbed that cost, in addition to refunding your tour. That would have left our company paying for services you received while you walked away with your full payment.
We believe our staff went above and beyond by authorizing your entrance and then offering to have our driver meet you and continue the tour after you arrived at the wrong location. We also stand by our pricing and our cancellation policy.
The facts were reviewed, the cancellation policy was applied, and the refund was not granted. A negative review does not change those facts.
We stand by our records, our cancellation policy, our pricing, and the efforts our staff made to accommodate you.
The animals are in very small habitats and the place is not very well kept. it was a bit depressing. The highlight was watching the porcupine get his nails cut. What a cutie!
We had a great trip with our guide Brad..The Wildlife Conservation Ctr. was very interesting. It was so interesting to see the. Wildlife up close. It was beautiful drive there with many things to see along the way and our guide kept everyone engaged.
The excursion was Easy to book and the tour company was accommodating. Our guide Matt Cho was excellent. A native Alaskan and member of an indigenous tribe, Matt shared a wealth of knowledge and life experiences highlighting the tour. In addition to the Alaskan wildlife conservation center we stopped at some scenic locations and saw several glaciers. The conservation center was an amazing visit and allowed us to safely view some beautiful wildlife up close. An excellent tour day enjoyed thoroughly by myself and my 18 year old twins.
First, appreciate the flexibility in adjusting my reservation due to my flight being canceled! Second, very friendly and engaging tour guide who also offered accommodations for folks who may not be as mobile. Third, if you can, sit on the right side on the way to for the view of Turnagain's Arm! I'd go again!
This is a rescue center for some Alaska’s injured or rescued animals. It makes for a good photo opportunities.
The tour provided a good close up view of animals along with beautiful Alaskan scenery.
Rezi Ramos was an excellent guide - extremely pleasant and friendly.
Brad the tour guide was very entertaining and friendly. He went above and beyond his normal duties as a tour guide to make my twin daughter's 7th birthday extra special in Alaska.
The driver was a last minute chocie and he wasn't that happy about being there. Unfortunately it turned out the weather at the center was very rainy and cold . So he left the big sliding door on the isde of the van open and we had to jump on and off to see and take pictures of the animals. It was cold, wet and hard viewing with no real narration at all from our driver.
I am guessing the experience woud have been much better if the weather had been better and the driver more involved.
Great experience! Melissa is a Nome native transplant to Anchorage. She has so much rich history to share! I lived the ride out to the conservation center - we stopped a few times to see wildlife, grab a snack, and shop. The whole experience was amazing - highly recommend!
Fantastic experience! Great to see a place for wild animals to go and be cared for when they no longer can be in their natural habitat.
The tour guide Melissa was fabulous, however the owner of the business, verbally abused me on several occasions after the tour by phone when I left my purse in the tour van. He called me at 7:30pm yelling and screaming at me and accussing me of things that had nothing to do with me. I simply tried to ask If they could check the van and hold the purse at the office for me.
I was absolutely horrified by his disgusting treatment of me, has ruined my Alaska vacation.
My tour was booked for 12pm they changed my time to 11am as I was the only one booked for 12pm, I arrived at 10:40 and this horrible man screamed at me later that night that everyone had to wait for me, I had 1 hour notice and still arrived before most others. Not sure what making up lies about me has to do with getting my purse back. Holiday ruined. Thanks Alaska's finest.
Response from Host, Mar 2026
Thank you for taking the time to share your concerns. I appreciate the opportunity to clarify what occurred that afternoon.
First, you were originally booked on the 12:00 PM tour; however, because you were the only guest scheduled for the $99.00 non-stop transfer, we contacted you in advance and offered to move you to the upgraded 11:00 AM wildlife tour at no additional cost. This upgraded tour is a 4.5-hour experience with numerous scenic stops, valued at $149, rather than the original non-stop transfer with no stops that you had booked. At the time, you readily agreed to this change and appeared pleased with the opportunity to take the more comprehensive tour. For that reason, it is difficult to understand why your review now suggests that the adjustment from 12:00 PM to 11:00 AM was an inconvenience when the change was discussed with you and accepted in advance.
I also want to emphasize that everything regarding the situation with your missing item was handled according to our standard procedures and as explained during our conversations. Because of your persistence, our team went well beyond our normal procedures and spent considerable time attempting to locate the item. I am very sorry that your pouch appears to have been misplaced.
We always recommend that guests keep personal items of value with them, especially when the vehicle is full of other passengers, as yours was that day. During our conversation, you stated that the item was a small pouch, approximately the size of a magnetic key card, which you had left on your seat.
Given that it was a small item of personal value, it is difficult to understand why it would have been left unattended on the seat, as you indicated, for the entire tour—including while you were away from the vehicle for approximately 45 minutes at the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center.
In your review, however, you now refer to the item as a purse, which creates some confusion as to whether the item was a small pouch with a string attachment or a larger purse. Regardless, before guests exit the van we remind everyone to check around their seating area for gloves, hats, purses, cell phones, and other personal belongings. In addition, our drivers conduct a walk-through of the vehicle after guests exit to check for any items that may have been left behind.
When you first called to report that you believed your pouch—containing what I understood to be your hotel room key card—had been left in the vehicle, I immediately checked the tour timing and confirmed that the driver had already dropped off the vehicle and finished for the day. I explained that if the item was located, it would be placed in our lost-and-found. You expressed that this was not satisfactory, but I reiterated that the driver had already returned home safely and that I would not allow them to return to the road under the hazardous weather conditions at that time.
I answered your call because I was running late for a scheduled pickup at the Alyeska Resort and initially believed it might be a customer calling to ask about my arrival. My intention was to inform them that there had been a fifteen-car pileup on the roadway and that I was slowly navigating around the accident but was still on my way. Under normal circumstances, I would not answer a phone call while driving in those conditions. However, because I believed it might be a guest waiting for transportation, I made the decision to respond.
At the time of your call, I also informed you that I was driving in extremely severe winter conditions that were well above normal. In order to answer your call safely, I had to pull over into a turnout that had over a foot of snow, and I was concerned that my vehicle could become stuck. I stopped only so that I could safely respond to you while navigating those hazardous conditions.
My tone may have sounded louder than normal because you were on speakerphone while I was navigating the snowstorm with vehicles around me. Most drivers on the road do not have studded tires; in fact, rental vehicles typically come equipped only with year-round tires. While year-round tires provide some traction, they are often less effective than studded tires in severe winter conditions. Our company goes the extra mile to equip our vehicles safely, but we cannot control other drivers on the road who choose not to invest in proper winter tires. Additionally, many vehicles were driving without their lights on, making them difficult to see in the blowing snow and creating even more hazardous driving conditions. My priority at that moment was ensuring the safety of myself, my passengers, and everyone else on the road. I explain this so you understand how serious the weather and road conditions were at the time.
Safety for our drivers, our guests, and everyone on the road is always our highest priority. Continuing phone conversations while navigating hazardous winter conditions creates a significant distraction and increases the risk of an accident.
A short time later, you called again while I was still driving in the storm, which had progressed into near whiteout conditions, to confirm whether I had reached the driver. I again explained that the driver was off for the day; however, I did contact her and asked that she check the vehicle and turn in any item found to the office. My responses may have seemed brief because my focus needed to remain on safely operating the vehicle in extremely hazardous conditions. Repeated calls during those conditions created a distraction that could have placed my life, as well as the lives of our guests and other drivers on the road, at risk.
You witnessed the severity of the storm firsthand during your return from the wildlife tour, including the multiple accidents along the roadway while your driver was traveling 15–20 miles below the speed limit in order to prioritize safety for you and the other guests. I hope you can understand the seriousness of those driving conditions. You may also recall that after arriving back at our office, your driver asked the group how her driving was. The guests applauded and thanked her for getting everyone back safely. That moment reflected just how difficult the driving conditions were and how focused our drivers must remain during severe winter storms to ensure the safety of every passenger on board.
Despite the conditions, I immediately contacted the driver and asked her to check the vehicle as soon as possible. She later checked the vehicle with the assistance of a family member and reported that nothing had been located. Later that evening, after returning to Anchorage, I personally checked the vehicle again to ensure nothing had been missed. In total, the vehicle was searched multiple times.
In addition, several members of our team spent time outside of their normal working hours attempting to assist with locating the item. From approximately 3:00 PM until 7:30 PM, our team continued working to try to locate your pouch, coordinating with the driver and conducting additional searches of the vehicle.
After these efforts, I contacted you to report the steps we had taken; however, it appeared that our efforts were still not satisfactory to you. You indicated that retrieving the item the following day was not acceptable, but I reassured you that we would continue to assist once it was safe to do so.
You later demanded the opportunity to search the vehicle yourself before anyone boarded the van the next morning. Although this is outside normal practice for most tour operators, we agreed to accommodate your request and arranged for the driver to meet you so that you could inspect the vehicle.
Because we could not locate your pouch, I also suggested contacting the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center in case the pouch had been set down during that stop, such as in the gift shop area. This suggestion was made simply to ensure that every possible location had been considered. You responded that you had not removed the item from the vehicle. My intention in raising the possibility was only to help consider every possible scenario after multiple searches of the van had not located the pouch.
The vehicle was again made available the following day so that every opportunity could be provided to locate the pouch. The driver and our staff thoroughly checked the vehicle again, and you were offered the opportunity to search it personally.
We understand how concerning it can be when a personal item goes missing. However, every reasonable effort was made to locate your pouch, even though the outcome was not what anyone hoped for. While we always make every reasonable effort to assist guests in locating items that may have been left behind, personal belongings ultimately remain the responsibility of the guest.
If the pouch is located at any time in the future, we will certainly contact you immediately.
Thank you again for reaching out. We appreciate your understanding that safety must remain our highest priority during hazardous driving conditions, and we wish you the best for the remainder of your travels.
The guide made the trip. She is knowledgeable and you can tell she loves what she does. We were lucky to have her
Awesome tour , Great guide - Gary was really knowledgeable and awesome sights to see, had a fantastic time
Beautiful ride to the animal sanctuary and the animals are awake and easy to spot. It’s incredible. 1
Great little trip to the AWCC ! It was a good deal that included a ride to and from with admission. Everyone we interacted with also was very kind.
Advertised as 1 hour Express Excursion but was 1 hour drive each way. 90 minutes spent at Animal Park
Response from Host, Sep 2025
Thank you for your feedback! We’re sorry that the time at the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center was longer than the one-hour Express Excursion advertised. On beautiful summer days, it’s sometimes hard not to give guests a little extra time to enjoy the animals and take in the scenery. We appreciate your understanding and hope you enjoyed the visit and the drive through Alaska’s stunning landscapes.
Ben was a fantastic guide. Really enjoyed the information he imparted. Learned how to say thank you in Tlingit (sounds like "gouda cheese"). The animals in the conservatory were great.
This is a great opportunity to see Alaskan wildlife up close. They have an impressive variety of animals and our guide, Melissa was terrific!
She’s very knowledgeable and enjoyable.
Our guide took us to numerous viewing points that was not on tour. He shared his love for his state. He was very knowledgeable. The time at conservatory was an hour as advertised but not sufficient to see entire property.
Had an amazing time. Great tour guide and very knowledgeable. Took my friends and I to see breathtaking views of the glaciers, rivers, lakes and wildlife. Definitely a must see and experience tour if you are planning a trip to anchorage.
Our guide was very knowledgeable about the area and the animals. We had a wonderful time. Would recommend to everyone.
Our guide was knowledgeable and fun. Great trip and such a great overall experience. Well worth the 5 hours!
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