Dad, BIL, and I are talking about going to Alaska to fish for kings and sockeye salmon (maybe the other species as well if I can go later in the summer), pike, grayling, char, and rainbows. Any recommendations for lodges that won't break the bank, I get it's going to be a big chunk of change but still want a reliable yet affordable rec.

This would be next summer btw. Too late this season lol

Do you have a number (or range) in mind? I've done a few of these but would need to reach out for 2027 availability and rates.

Feel free to DM or email if you don't want to share here.

Kreg17 said:

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Do you have a number (or range) in mind? I've done a few of these but would need to reach out for 2027 availability and rates.

Feel free to DM or email if you don't want to share here.

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Honestly, and I know this gonna sound dumb, but I don't even know where to begin. I've seen some that are $10K+ and I feel like that's probably not doable. So $10 and down I guess? But I will look at some that are more if they get super rave reviews on here. Does that help?

Also, I see that you're a travel agent. Honest question, primarily because I have been curious, but would it be better to book with an agent like you or through the lodge itself? What are the benefits and cons to both? I appreciate any and all information!!

If you don't mind something outside Alaska, take a look at Salmon Eye Charters out of Ucluelet on Vancouver Island. The best salmon fishing I have ever done. It is bay fishing not river fishing if that matters. Ucluelet is a lot like Port O'Connor, but nicer.

We had 150 lbs of salmon and halibut after three days of fishing. All cleaned and shrink wrapped. We had 100 lbs sent home and gave 50 lbs to the guide.

The whole area outside of town is a temperate rain forest national park. We did hikes every afternoon. Honestly, it was one of the better fishing trips i have ever been on.

Wahoo82 said:

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If you don't mind something outside Alaska, take a look at Salmon Eye Charters out of Ucluelet on Vancouver Island. The best salmon fishing I have ever done. It is bay fishing not river fishing if that matters. Ucluelet is a lot like Port O'Connor, but nicer.

We had 150 lbs of salmon and halibut after three days of fishing. All cleaned and shrink wrapped. We had 100 lbs sent home and gave 50 lbs to the guide.

The whole area outside of town is a temperate rain forest national park. We did hikes every afternoon. Honestly, it was one of the better fishing trips i have ever been on.

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We want to fish the rivers. Not interested in deep dropping tbh.

I'm currently working on a fishing trip with another Texager, but you are right, they are quite pricey but this one is in Wyoming. Pricing for just under $7k for 3 nights and under $12k for 5 for 2 people.

There are a range of packages for Alaska. I have clients leaving tomorrow but we are just doing a one day in Seward as far as fishing so not a big package.

They do book up quickly so keep that in mind.

I'm not sure how long you envision being in Alaska but I'll assume 5-7 days, if that's the case I would suggest finding a rental home for the duration of your trip and book individual or packaged fishing charters. You might be able to find a 4 night / 3 fishing day package at a lodge somewhere that will be close to $10k but it'll probably have to be early season. The trips I've planned in the past have been $5k - $10k per person.

I'd suggest somewhere along Kenai River, maybe Soldotna. Kenai Fly Fish for example offers a full day of fly fishing for $325 per person. You'll lose the lodge aspect with housekeeping, shared meals, (etc.) but you can still have excellent fishing which is probably the focus.

Regarding your question about booking direct or with an agent, I would say it depends. If you know the exact lodge you want to stay with and that's all you want to do on your trip there isn't much added value I can provide. If the fishing lodge is part of an overall trip I can help with the full thing, so it could be helpful if you don't want to do the added planning. If you don't know where you want to go, working with an agent will save you all of the time researching and figuring out the logistics. For the high demand lodges, they will often reserve portions of the inventory for clients coming through agencies or local partners, so it can be very beneficial in that instance.

Feel free to reach out if you have any other questions.

Search the outdoors board. Lots of threads on this.

And, you can get the whole trip done for about 10k. That is flights, fishing and food. Well, you could a couple years ago.

I've used Dove Island Charters in Sitka a few times and they are a first class operation. Highly recommend.

Wahoo82 said:

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If you don't mind something outside Alaska, take a look at Salmon Eye Charters out of Ucluelet on Vancouver Island. The best salmon fishing I have ever done. It is bay fishing not river fishing if that matters. Ucluelet is a lot like Port O'Connor, but nicer.

We had 150 lbs of salmon and halibut after three days of fishing. All cleaned and shrink wrapped. We had 100 lbs sent home and gave 50 lbs to the guide.

The whole area outside of town is a temperate rain forest national park. We did hikes every afternoon. Honestly, it was one of the better fishing trips i have ever been on.

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Vancouver Island is magic as well. This sounds like an amazing trip

Look at yellowdogflyfishing they will plan everything for you and it's the exact same price as going direct with the lodge. I fished Alaska a couple years ago and it was well below $10k all in.

Which location did you fish?

I was curious so I just clicked through ~ 10 of the lodges on their site in Alaska and not a single one will get three people in for under $10k total. For one person, yes, super doable.

I thought he said $10k each. That's going to be real tough/ impossible for 3 people if they want a lodge.

To be fair, he didn't specify, but I assumed it was the whole budget. If it's $10k per person there are amazing options for sure!

I've enjoyed Salmon Catcher Lodge in Soldotna. Gloria and Justin have done well since they purchased the place a few years back. Only suggestion I've had to them is have a few more options for guides/outfitters - having done the halibut fishing out of Ninilchik a few times, I think I'd opt for multi species fishing out of Seward. The fly in/out fishing trips were great. I'd be open to other lodges as well to get some variety.

Kreg17 said:

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To be fair, he didn't specify, but I assumed it was the whole budget. If it's $10k per person there are amazing options for sure!

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I'm sorry I thought I specified!! No, I meant it was going to be at the highest 10K a person, but I really would prefer it closer to like 6-8 mainly because my dad is paying for all 3 of us.

Oh, we are so back lol

In that case I would suggest Wilderness Place Lodge, or Grosvenor Lodge (this one is limited to 6 guests at a time).

The link that Kalall shared is also great since they list out a bunch of lodges.

Feel free to reach out if you decide you want help with the trip!

Kenai Riverside Lodge near Cooper Landing

https://www.alaskawildland.com/lodges/kenai-riverside-lodge/

Kreg17 said:

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Oh, we are so back lol

In that case I would suggest Wilderness Place Lodge, or Grosvenor Lodge (this one is limited to 6 guests at a time).

The link that Kalall shared is also great since they list out a bunch of lodges.

Feel free to reach out if you decide you want help with the trip!

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Reached out to Grosvenor. I've also seen a Naknek Fishing lodge while doing some research. Does anybody know anything about them?

Marauder Blue 6 said:

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Kenai Riverside Lodge near Cooper Landing

https://www.alaskawildland.com/lodges/kenai-riverside-lodge/

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This! My wife's nephew is one of the guides there. We went last year and had a blast.

scd88 said:

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Marauder Blue 6 said:

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Kenai Riverside Lodge near Cooper Landing

https://www.alaskawildland.com/lodges/kenai-riverside-lodge/

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This! My wife's nephew is one of the guides there. We went last year and had a blast.

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I noticed it's not fishing specific. Or maybe I'm reading it wrong. Are they fairly customizable on what all you can do?

BasketballCoach2015 said:

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scd88 said:

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Marauder Blue 6 said:

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Kenai Riverside Lodge near Cooper Landing

https://www.alaskawildland.com/lodges/kenai-riverside-lodge/

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This! My wife's nephew is one of the guides there. We went last year and had a blast.

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I noticed it's not fishing specific. Or maybe I'm reading it wrong. Are they fairly customizable on what all you can do?

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It's mainly about fishing. It's very structured, though. They provide everything. There are two big houses that sit right on the Kenai that are essentially Airbnb's. Those can be rented separately. We went last year with a group and stayed in one of the houses.

scd88 said:

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BasketballCoach2015 said:

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scd88 said:

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Marauder Blue 6 said:

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Kenai Riverside Lodge near Cooper Landing

https://www.alaskawildland.com/lodges/kenai-riverside-lodge/

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This! My wife's nephew is one of the guides there. We went last year and had a blast.

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I noticed it's not fishing specific. Or maybe I'm reading it wrong. Are they fairly customizable on what all you can do?

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It's mainly about fishing. It's very structured, though. They provide everything. There are two big houses that sit right on the Kenai that are essentially Airbnb's. Those can be rented separately. We went last year with a group and stayed in one of the houses.

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Is it fly-in or off the highway? How crowded were the places yall fished? That's one thing I'm nervous about is all the jockeying for places to fish.

Fly into Anchorage the day before the start of your stay there. They will pick you up and drop you off, though, so no need to rent a car. It is a 2 hour trip in each direction.

There are other boats and guides on the river, but we never had a problem with traffic. You essentially float down the river as you're fishing. Every so often, you'll pull over and bank fish. That's fun as you can spread out a bit versus being in the boat.

We went late in the season last year (after labor day) and were only interested in fishing for trout (catch and release). We had no desire to fish for salmon, but you can definitely set that up for the summer.

Hopefully, I answered your questions; but I'd be happy to provide more information.

https://www.kingsalmondeauxlodge.com/

Located in Soldotna right off the Kenai. Wake up and fish in the river.

For a non fishing lodge but nice hotel route, call Paul at http://www.aksupperclub.com . He used to run a fish processor in Ninilchik and knows tons of fisherman commercial, fly in, and river guides that he can connect you with while you stay with him. His food is great.

Also, if you do go anywhere near Homer, check out https://www.normanlowellgallery.org/ I don't really appreciate art but this gallery has fantastic, awe inspiring wall size oil paintings of landscapes and glaciers calving