Tidewater glaciers calving directly into the sea, reachable mainly by cruise ship or small plane, with whales, sea otters, and no road access into the bay itself.

Park Pass

Join the National Parks Club

Summer

A single day by cruise ship or day boat covers the highlights, while 2 to 4 lets you add kayaking or a longer stay in Gustavus.

No special permit is required for general visits; private vessels need a permit to enter the bay during the summer season.

Gustavus is the small gateway town, with limited but real lodging and flight access.

There's no entrance fee to the park; cruise ships pay a separate operating fee to enter the bay.

Why Visit?:

Glacier Bay offers one of the most dramatic tidewater glacier experiences in the world — massive walls of ice calving directly into the sea, often with a thunderous crack you can hear from a distance. Most visitors see it from a cruise ship, but that doesn't make it any less spectacular.

The bay is also rich with wildlife — humpback whales, sea otters, and seals are common sightings, especially near the glacier fronts where nutrient-rich water draws them in.

Things to Do:

A cruise ship or day boat tour into the bay is how most visitors experience Glacier Bay, cruising past tidewater glaciers like Margerie and Johns Hopkins. For a more active visit, sea kayaking near Bartlett Cove offers a quieter, closer-to-the-water perspective, with a real chance of otter and seal sightings.

If you have extra time in Gustavus, the short trails around Bartlett Cove are an easy way to explore the rainforest before or after your time on the water.

Get the Full Itinerary

Closest airports: Gustavus Airport (GST) has small commercial flights from Juneau, or most visitors arrive as part of an Alaska cruise itinerary that includes the bay as a scenic cruising day.

Nearby Attractions:

Juneau, about a 20-minute flight away, offers whale watching, the Mendenhall Glacier, and a fuller range of lodging if you're extending an Alaska trip beyond the bay itself.