The cost of visiting the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge varies enormously depending on the kind of trip you do, where you fly to, how many people you split the bush charter with, and whether you go independent or guided. The cheapest way is a commercial flight to Kaktovik on Barter Island and walking the coastal plain from there. The most expensive is a long charter flight from Fairbanks to a far corner of the refuge for a small group. Our guided ANWR trips typically run between $5,000 and $12,000 per person. Some operators charge more. Independent personal trips can be done for considerably less if you have the experience and the gear.
What drives the cost
The biggest variable is air access. Bush charters into the refuge are billed per flight, not per person, so the per-person cost depends on group size. A four-person group splitting a charter pays a quarter what a solo traveler would. The charter price itself depends on:
Where you’re flying from. Charters out of Arctic Village, Coldfoot, Happy Valley, or Fairbanks each have different baselines.
Where you’re flying to. Far end of the refuge versus near side can be a 3x difference in cost.
The plane size required. A larger group with more gear needs a bigger plane, sometimes multiple flights.
The cheapest way: Kaktovik on the coast
A commercial flight to Kaktovik on Barter Island is relatively cheap compared to chartering a bush plane. Once you’re there, the village is on a barrier island just off the refuge mainland. You can hire a local boat to ferry you across to the mainland for a fairly short ride, then walk the coastal plain. Even on the water around Barter Island, inside the barrier islands, you’re on refuge waters.
This isn’t a backcountry expedition into the interior. You’re accessing the coastal edge of the refuge from the village. But it’s a real way to be on the refuge for a fraction of what a full bush charter trip costs.
Bush charter operators
The standard operators for backcountry charter access into the refuge:
Yukon Air out of Arctic Village. South-side access into the southern Brooks Range portion of the refuge.
Coyote Air out of Happy Valley (or Coldfoot, depending on routing). North-side and central refuge access.
Silvertip Air out of Fairbanks or other bases. Often the most cost-effective option for small groups doing longer flights into the refuge.
Pricing changes year to year and depends on the route. Contact the operators directly for current quotes. Group size matters more than almost any other factor in the per-person math.
Independent trip cost ranges
Rough order-of-magnitude for independent trips, not counting your own gear, food, and pre-trip travel to Alaska:
A Kaktovik-based coastal plain walk: a few hundred dollars for the commercial flight, plus the boat ferry, plus lodging in the village if not camping. Realistically a few hundred to maybe a thousand dollars depending on how long you stay.
A short bush charter trip into the southern refuge from Arctic Village or Coldfoot, with a small group splitting costs: $1,500 to $3,000 per person on charter alone, plus food and gear.
A longer bush charter trip into the central refuge with a small group: $3,000 to $5,000 per person on charter, plus everything else.
A coastal plain river trip with a charter drop and pickup at different points: similar range, plus the cost of rafts or packrafts.
Guided trip cost ranges
For our guided ANWR trips with all logistics, food, gear, charter, and guide fees included, pricing typically runs $5,000 to $8,000 per person depending on length and route. That covers backpacking and coastal plain rafting trips. Polar bear photography tours out of Kaktovik run higher, mostly because the boat-based operations and the specialized logistics around bear viewing add cost.
Other operators on similar routes generally charge more than we do. Pricing changes year to year, so check current trip pages for the most accurate numbers.
What’s not included in the price
Even on a guided trip, plan for additional costs:
- Round-trip travel to Fairbanks
- Lodging in Fairbanks before and after the trip (one or two nights either side is typical)
- Meals in Fairbanks
- Trip insurance
- Any personal gear not provided by the outfitter
- Tips for guides and pilots, if you choose to give them
For independent travel, add all of the above plus the operating costs (food, gear, charter, lodging in gateway communities like Coldfoot or Bettles).
How to think about the budget
The single biggest cost question is: are you splitting a charter with a group, or paying for it solo? A four-person group can do a backcountry trip into the refuge for perhaps a third of what a solo traveler would pay. Coordinating with other travelers, joining a guided trip, or flying to Kaktovik and skipping the bush charter entirely are the three ways to bring the budget down.
For a rough planning baseline: assume a guided ANWR trip will run somewhere between an Alaskan cruise and a Patagonian trekking expedition. Cheaper than the high-end international expeditions, more expensive than most domestic guided trips. The remoteness is what you’re paying for.
