Alaska Helicopter Tours in Palmer: Exciting Views and Knik Glacier Landing

Flight seeing is a very popular activity on an Alaska trip. There are lots of ways to do it with different destinations to choose from, but for epic scenery and a unique experience, Alaska Helicopter Tours out of Palmer is a great pick. I went out with them visiting the valleys East of Palmer, seeing wildlife and glaciers, and landing on Knik Glacier. It was awesome and not as scary as I expected. Here’s what YOU can expect and what to plan for with an Alaska Helicopter tour.

Highlights of Alaska Helicopter Tours with Knik Glacier

We’ve done so many unique tours around the world, from doors-off helicopters in Kauai to puffin watching in Maine (they have them there too!), but nothing has been quite so dramatic as flightseeing with Alaska Helicopter Tours. While Kauai shows you turquoise waters and rugged tropical cliffs, doing the multiple landing helicopter tour departing from the Alaska Glacier Lodge was really impressive.

We landed on a peak overlooking several rivers and glaciers with mountain goats on the cliff above. We flew to a moraine cliff where we stood across from an enormous glacier face watching it calve onto the land. To finish we did an incredible helicopter flight across Knik Glacier and landed at an icy blue pond in the middle of an ice field. Exploring the air and glaciers with Alaska Helicopter Tours was one of the most beautiful experiences I’ve had in Alaska.

I normally am quite nervous in helicopters, but I think that’s due to my doors-off experience. The process and smoothness of the flightseeing here put me very at ease. Yes, initially I was nervous because that’s just me, but by the time we were breezing across the braided rivers leading to the glaciers, I was very much comfortable and enjoying the experience.

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Being Prepared for an Alaska Helicopter Tour

Much like with a seaplane tour, you can’t bring a lot of gear on a helicopter flight. With Alaska Helicopter Tours you get to make landings and walk around, so you’ll need to dress warmly for that, but besides that, the only gear is just light camera gear that you can wear around your neck. I brought my DSLR with a medium lens and my GoPro, and with my phone camera, I was well covered for photography needs. There was a moment when I wished I brough my biggest lens as there were mountain goats on the cliffs above us during one of our landings and I would’ve like a good photo. Oh well, next time…

Tips for Helicopter Flightseeing with Glacier Landing

The best tip I have to doing flightseeing with Alaska Helicopter Tours (or any flight outfitter) is to trust the pilots to show you the best views and to wear DARK COLORS on your flight. The reason for the dark colors is because light colors reflect on the windows of the helicopters and will show up in all your photos. Dark colors allow you to see very clearly without reflections, thus making both your views and photos much better. This is our advice for the Godwin Glacier helicopter/dogsled tour too.

Another great idea for a fun helicopter glacier landing is to wear solid shoes that work well with crampons. Wearing sturdy shoes or hiking boots is a good way to ensure the crampons can easily go onto your shoes for walking on the glacier. Some guests don’t want to do a lot of exploring when landing on Knik Glacier, but how often will you actually be in such a cool place? I absolutely recommend walking around a bit with recommendations and guidelines from the pilot. There are a lot of glacier lakes and streams flowing on the Knik Glacier in summer or fall, so there’s a lot to see. Get guidance on what/where to poke around during your landing for a safe, one-of-a-kind experience.

Getting to Alaska Helicopter Tours in Palmer

If you’re driving yourself to Alaska Helicopter Tours there’s plenty of parking, but also if you’re staying in Anchorage and don’t have a car or just don’t want to drive, they can pick you up. There is a fee, but if it’s the right way to go for you, then book it that way. For driving, it’s about an hour drive from Anchorage, but the drive is beautiful. If you’re staying in Palmer, or even better, at the Alaska Glacier Lodge (adjacent to the helicopter pads) then you have a much shorter drive.

Office and launch point address: 29979 E Knik River Rd, Palmer, AK 99645

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