A cruise ship sits at anchor in Icy Strait, spruce forest climbs the hillside behind a restored cannery, and somewhere up the slope a rider is already streaking out over the treetops. Icy Strait Point is a small, purpose-built stop on the edge of the Tlingit village of Hoonah, and the ZipRider is its loudest, fastest attraction. This is a visit built around that ride and the Native-owned waterfront that surrounds it.
Is visiting Icy Strait Point’s ZipRider worth it?
Yes, if you like the idea of doing one big, memorable thing and then spending the rest of the day on a working Alaska Native waterfront with a cannery museum, a bronze orca and whale-watching boats. It suits cruise passengers on a day in port, and anyone staying in Hoonah who wants something more adrenaline-driven than a walk in the Tongass.
What sets it apart from other Southeast Alaska stops is that the whole place was created explicitly for cruise visitors, and it is owned by Huna Totem Corporation, a company of about 1,350 Alaskan Natives with ties to Hoonah and Glacier Bay. You are not walking through a town that was later fitted with souvenir shops.
The ZipRider itself is the headline. It is billed as the world’s largest zipline, and it opened here in 2007.
A cruise line describes the ride as flying over the treetops, and that is the feeling to expect: forest below you, water and mountains ahead, and a view that is hard to get from the ground. Around it, the point offers a museum, a restaurant, shops, a plaza and departures for whales and bears, so a day here rarely hangs on the zipline alone.
Those who prefer to keep their feet on the ground still have plenty to do. The cannery tells the story of a fishing economy, the plaza marks a milestone for the community, and the excursions reach for wildlife that the area is known for. The ZipRider is the reason people come, but it is not the only reason to stay for the afternoon.
What to see at Icy Strait Point’s ZipRider
The ZipRider
The ZipRider is the point of the visit. Billed as the world’s largest zipline, it sends riders out over the forest canopy at 60 mph according to Celebrity’s description of the ride, which is why it draws so much attention among the shore excursions in Southeast Alaska.
Look at the setting as much as the speed. Below you is the dark green of Chichagof Island’s forest, and ahead lies Icy Strait, the water that humpback whales travel. Spectators near the landing area watch the riders arrive, so the ride is also something to see if you are waiting for a friend or family member.
The Hoonah Packing Company cannery
The oldest thing on the point is the cannery. The Hoonah Packing Co. built it in 1912, and the 1930s facility has been converted into a museum, a restaurant and shops. It is the clearest reminder that salmon, not tourism, once paid for this waterfront.
Walk the long wooden building slowly. The museum gives the cannery years their context, the restaurant lets you sit in a room that once handled fish, and the shops fill the former work space. It is a good place to understand why a Tlingit village on a remote shore reinvented itself around visitors.
Kléet Plaza and the bronze orca
Kléet Plaza was dedicated on June 13, 2021, and its centerpiece is a life-sized bronze orca sculpture by Robert Wyland, donated by Norwegian Cruise Line. It is a natural place for photos, and a quiet counterpoint to the speed of the zipline.
The orca is a useful preview of what the excursions are looking for. Standing beside a whale at full size, you get a sense of the animals you may spot from a boat later in the day, though sightings in the water are never promised.
Whales and bears nearby
Whale-watching excursions from Icy Strait Point go to the Point Adolphus feeding area for humpback whales, and Royal Caribbean notes that whale watching is offered off the point. You may see humpbacks, but a sighting is a chance, not a guarantee.
Visitors can also search for coastal brown bears on the Spasski River near Icy Strait Point. Here too, sightings are not guaranteed, which is part of what makes seeing one feel like a gift rather than a performance.
Hours, tickets and rules
The ZipRider belongs to the cruise season at Icy Strait Point, when ships anchor off the point from May to September and bring the waterfront to life week after week. The site was built for those visitors, so the rhythm of the place follows the ships: busy and bright when they are in, much quieter when they are not.
| Feature | Detail |
|---|---|
| ZipRider | Opened 2007, described as the world’s largest zipline |
| ZipRider speed | 60 mph |
| Cruise ships anchoring off the point | May to September |
| Hoonah Packing Co. cannery | Built 1912, now a museum, restaurant and shops |
| Kléet Plaza | Dedicated June 13, 2021 |
Hoonah is reached only by boat or plane, and the shops and museum sit inside a cannery that dates to the early twentieth century. The bears of the Spasski River and the whales of Point Adolphus are wild animals, so their appearance is a chance rather than a scheduled event.
How to get to Icy Strait Point’s ZipRider
Hoonah, the village beside Icy Strait Point, is accessible only by boat or plane, and the point itself sits on Chichagof Island near Icy Strait. For visitors the route is a cruise ship, which anchors off the point from May to September. Princess lists Icy Strait Point among its Alaska ports, and Norwegian’s Alaska cruises call here too, alongside Skagway, Juneau, Sitka and Ketchikan.
By ferry from the Alaska Marine Highway
The Alaska Marine Highway serves Hoonah with the M/V LeConte. The Alaska Department of Transportation built a new ferry facility in Hoonah that opened in early 2001, so the town has had a purpose-built landing for more than two decades.
A ferry arrival is a very different way to meet Hoonah than a cruise call. You step into the village first, among homes, fishing boats and the working harbor, and the visitor attractions come second. It suits someone who wants to see the community before the cruise-oriented point.
By air from Juneau
Alaska Seaplanes offers multiple flights a day between Hoonah and Juneau. Hoonah Airport has a 3,000-foot runway, which says something about the scale of the village: small aircraft are the link to the capital, and the airport is a modest one.
Flying in gives you a view of the Tongass National Forest, which borders Hoonah and holds an unpaved road system of more than 300 miles. That network is separate from the cruise point, but it is a reminder that the island around you is mostly forest.
When to visit Icy Strait Point’s ZipRider
The warm-weather months are when Icy Strait Point is at work. Cruise ships anchor off the point from May to September, and that season drives Hoonah’s summer economy week after week. In the summer, the village’s population can swell to over 1,300 depending on fishing, boating, hiking and hunting conditions, so the town feels fuller as well.
If your plan is the ZipRider, think about the cruise calendar first. A day when a ship is in means a busier waterfront, with excursions heading out and the plaza and cannery lively. A day without one can feel noticeably calmer, which suits someone who prefers to walk the cannery and talk with shopkeepers at an unhurried pace.
Winter is a different story for the area around Hoonah. Recreation areas near the village, including Game Creek, Kennel Creek and Freshwater Bay, are inaccessible in winter because of deep snow.
For wildlife, remember that bears on the Spasski River and humpbacks at Point Adolphus are chances, and no month or hour is promised by the sources. Choose your date for the ships and the open season, then treat every animal you see as a bonus.
Tips for your visit
Pair the ZipRider with the cannery. The two sit on the same waterfront and tell opposite stories: one is about speed and spectacle, the other about the fish and the people who worked here. Starting with the museum gives the zipline some context, and finishing with a meal in the converted cannery restaurant lets you sit where the work once happened.
If whales are on your list, think of the whale-watching excursion as a second headline. It heads for the Point Adolphus feeding area, and the bronze orca in Kléet Plaza is a fitting place to begin or end that outing. Bear searching on the Spasski River is another option, though sightings are never guaranteed.
Take time to learn about the people whose village this is. Hoonah is a traditional Tlingit village, home of the Xúnaa Ḵáawu, and Tlingit society is divided into Raven and Eagle moieties, with clans whose crests appear on totem poles, canoes, house posts, weavings and jewelry. The Tlingit kinship system is matrilineal, so children belong to their mother’s clan. Knowing that makes the carved and painted work you see far more meaningful.
- Look for clan crests on carved and woven pieces in the shops, and ask what they represent.
- Think of the ZipRider as one stop in a day that also includes the museum, the plaza and the waterfront.
- Treat bears and whales as a bonus, not the plan.
- Remember that Hoonah is reached only by boat or plane, so build your day around your ship or flight.
Good to know before you go
Icy Strait Point is a working Alaska Native enterprise, owned by Huna Totem Corporation, so the money you spend goes into a community company. The nearest hospital to Hoonah is Bartlett Regional Hospital in Juneau, roughly 40 miles away or an approximately 20 minute flight, a useful reminder that this is a small village. Plan around your ship’s schedule or your flight, and keep the trip focused on what the point itself offers: the zipline, the cannery, the plaza and the water beyond.
Sources
- Wikipedia, Icy Strait Point (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Icy_Strait_Point), checked October 11, 2026
- Wikipedia, Hoonah, Alaska (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoonah,_Alaska), checked October 11, 2026
- Wikipedia, Tlingit (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tlingit), checked October 11, 2026
- Princess Cruises, Alaska cruises (https://www.princess.com/en-us/cruise-destinations/alaska-cruises), checked October 11, 2026
- Royal Caribbean, Alaska cruises (https://www.royalcaribbean.com/cruise-destinations/alaska-cruises), checked October 11, 2026
- Celebrity Cruises, Alaska cruises (https://www.celebritycruises.com/cruise-destinations/alaska-cruises), checked October 11, 2026
- Norwegian Cruise Line, Alaska cruises (https://www.ncl.com/cruise-destinations/alaska-cruises), checked October 11, 2026
- Alaska.org, how many days (https://www.alaska.org/advice/how-many-days-you-need), checked October 11, 2026
- Wikipedia, Cruise ship (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cruise_ship), checked October 11, 2026