Reviews of Chena Indian Village (Museum)

Gerald Reeves

It was a good place to show how they lived and what they did to survive. The young people were great and I would go there again. It was part of a river cruise and it was great also.

Some Guy

Touristy but nonetheless well done window into native Alaskans' way of life. Talks were informative and insightful. Trailbreaker Kennel talk and dogs were a nice surprise.

Dave Schurman

Fun and interesting but a little cheesy.

Faye Hussong

You felt like you were back in time with the native Alaskan tribes. The guides were native born Alaskan college students who have a passion for their heritage. We saw sled dogs, animal skins, live reindeer and a fish camp demonstration.

Thomas Huwar

Wow what a great show. It takes place right on the banks of the Chena River.

Pete Marinelli

Great experience!

Peggy Tawney

Very educational, loved everything about.

Dave Winogron

Very interesting presentations. Learned a lot about native Alaskan life.

Mary Lee DeCoster

Authentic village, knowledgeable guides, excellent specimens depicting the native history and lifestyle. Enjoyable.

Chris Earick

Wonderful tour

Heather Millington

Very knowledgeable staff. Great little village!!!

Robin Opel-Mohr

Very interesting

James Reinke

Very interesting!

Lori Lutsch

Great time, really enjoyed it

rob hohneke

Amazing hospitality and very cool history

xingbat

Excellent education on the native history.

brian miranda

A must see attraction!

diane schiff

Very well done and informative

Bruce Anderson

Very informative! Great hosts!

Terry Ricchiardi

Fantastic presentation loaded with history and culture.

Lee Mac

Visited as part of a Holland America tour. Very interesting introduction to the Alabaskan culture.

Yara Ruiz Morelos

Super interesting place!! I totally loved it! They have exelent explanations and examples of how natives used to lived, its beautiful and you feel you went back in time!! They have support and ideal organization for big groups of visitors.

Janet Streip

Very well organized. The speakers were very knowledgeable as well as entertaining.

Asylum Harbour

An outdoor activity. Wheelchair accessible. A good native cultural orientation.

Vincent D'Antonio

This is a stop on the river boat tour. You get off the boat and can walk around the village for about 30 mins. You can see how they smoke fish for the winter to feed the families and sled dogs. Bob Harte from the Last Alaskans helped build cabins in the summer month is honored here with a plaque. His sister Nancy works here and she is great and was the highlight to my visit here. They have reindeer and they talk about how they use the meat, hide, and bones to survive the winters. In another area they talk about how the make clothing for winter and how each family has their own mark so when traveling they know the village your from.

Will Clayton

Nice presentation of history and native culture

larry cooper

This is an informative interpretative site which focuses on the life of the Athabaskan just after the time of their initial contact with Europeans. A tour of the village includes four or five interpretative sites within the compound. Live reindeer are a part of the exhibit. It includes a fish trap and a smoke house for the salmon caught in the trap.

Andrew Kaplan

Very informational

Lindsay Eden

A great presentation giving a good insite to local peoples history and ways.

Cindy Nolan

Very educational and so much fun!

Tom Judd

Great tour, should do if you can on paddle boat

Ann Radefeld

Highlight of Riverboat tour. Guides were entertaining and knowledgeable.

Mary Anne Fisanick

Very nice

Carol Godiksen

Beautiful artifacts, exhibits well designed

Jean Calhoun

A nice presentation, although somewhat contrived delivery. Felt like they were trying to play to the crowd and the presumed crowd mentality was low. Maybe the cheeky jokes were better at the beginning of the season? Seems the beautiful history of this village deserved more respect. The fishing wheel was informative and done very well. The presenter engaged with the group w/o the staged humor of the others.

Jessica Smith

Very nice guided tour. There were great workers who helped explain the way of life for the indigenous people of Alaska past and present. Awesome displays and examples.

paul T

The leader of the tour was entertaining and informative. The property is well laid out.

Doug Newlee

Great educational stories of the Native people in this area of South Central Alaska.

Karen Morris

I loved this. They were so informative and willing to share the culture.

Barbara Moore

Fun trip and soooo educational. Enjoyed it all.

Peter Windmill

The young orators did a good job. But for me it felt staged Disney like. More info on the indigenous past rather than post 'integration' would have been better.

Karen Campbell

Very informative.

L Morgan

Very cool stop on the Discovery boat tour! It was neat to learn the history of the Alaskan natives.

Tom McVey

We visited here as a shore excursion with Princess Cruises. We enjoyed the college students that spoke with us about the historic life and living conditions in the village. The village is now a place that is for sigh seeing.

Brick Owens

Well done authentic representation and examples of early Alaskan life! Verry worthwhile. The Discovery 3 boat tour was very detailed, down to wiping the rain off the gang plank handrails before the guests board. I think the owners would have presented the northern lights if they could.

Beth King

This was part over the Discovery Riverboat Tour. Absolutely fabulous and worth every cent we paid.

Charles Hall

I very much recommend this great educational and entertaining experience.

James Roche

We learned how to obtain large a amounts of salmon with a fishing wheel and then preserve them by smoking. We also learned how they use every part of a caribou when they kill it. The hides are used to make rope other parts of clothing in ceremonial dress. The bones are used to make utensils and knives. The fur of otters are used to make the hoods out of their parkas because the oil in the otters fur will not will not allow your breath to freeze on it. They do not kill animals for sport only only for food and clothing.

Tyler Bell

It's one of the most beautiful places in fairbanks, the riverboat discovery company has kept it just untouched enough to make you feel like you're really in the past when looking at the native village.

Deb May

Great tour stop.

Carolyn Kavanagh

Athasbascan way of life in the early days

Mike Schultz

Very nice place to visit. The presentations of tribal practices were great to see.

Paul Berens

Interesting and authentic. Worthwhile cultural learning stop.

Kathy Dittmaier

Coordinated very well with paddle wheel cruise.

Robert Winston

Excellent examples of early indigenous life. Wonderful learning opportunity and space and time for sled dogs.

Brian Lambert

Highly recommend Chena Village on tour with River Boat Discovery tour! Awesome trip!

April Ruhland

Nice overview of local Native culture.

Joe Walsh

Quite fun and informative

Victor Jarvis

Very knowledgable guides and interesting facts.

Rick Palen

Had a good time. learned a lot.

Toney Wood

Awesome place to visit. Explained Alaskan native culture with zeal. Very enjoyable.

Patrick Dugan

Alaska history at its best for first Nation people

Rick Smith

Great experience, lots of information about how they lived.

Carl Meiss

Extremely interesting and educational.

Steve Coates

Nice place to get bit of history about the native people's of AK.

Pam Switzer

Wonderful stop on our river boat ride

Ron Baioni

Great place to visit and learn about local Alaska natives and their customs and culture. Many aspects of Alaska are coverd here

Fiona Vaughan

Enjoyable river boat ride with great information about Susan Butcher through her husband and the dog sled dogs they raise and race.

Jon Luttman

This is done very well, a must see for first time visitors to Alaska.

William Horton

Nice stop on the tour, great educational program

Charlene Mitchell

Loved this place, wish we could have spent more time there. Great staff, loved the presentations!

Mary Helen Whitney

Young tribe members are eager to teach the history of their tribe. Enjoy learning about live in the area before it was invaded.

peter kawonczyk

Enjoyed our visit to the village and the wonderful people doing the presentations.

Russell Fuller

Very nice intro to Alaskan native cultures (Athabascan and Inupiat primarily, at least in our tour). The college kids providing the background information were full of first hand knowledge of the cultures, and the fish camp and fur areas very interesting, with lots of physical examples and demonstrations. Loved it!

Patricia Ernst

A wonderful experience! Energetic native youth share their heritage and history. Well worth the time.

Jill Wisdom

Very interesting. Worth the stop.

Walt Martineau

Very interesting and informative, well organized presentations.

Rod P

Viewed history of a Chena Indian village and their living styles. Well done!

Karen Cross

Excellent experience! Wonderful info and presentation!

Jenny Malouf

Great place for all ages to visit. Very informative and fun. We went on a paddle boat tour to get there, but l am sure you can get there by car.

Susan Marshall Gordon

We actually loved this even though a replica. Friendly and informative

Sirena Martinez

Loved this boat ride definitely worth it!!!

Darrell Sarrazin

Great place very informative on Alasken life.

louis novak

Enjoyed learning about the moose hunt.

Robbyn Tucker

So much fun. It's a part of the riverboat cruise with those delicious doughnuts. So interactive and fun. Guides are friendly and the natives are sweet. It was such a blast, we had the most fun ever on this stop. History was informative and the best time ever.

shabalabbadingdong bolonogonogoo

Just amazing!!! Amazing people and great for kids and elderly

Dean Boyce

Very educational place, enjoyed our stay.

Susan McCoy

Very informative!

Navnaz

We loved this stop on our paddle boat trip in Fairbanks. Was only there for about 1.5. Hours and didn't see everything.

Larry Eason

Nice replica with real deal and real deer as well.

Larry Taylor

Amazingly Rich in Culture! What an honor to be able to visit!!

Doug Early

Part of the Gold Ridge 8 and Steamboat excursion. We really enjoyed this 1. Probably the best excursion we took

Brady Wilson

Very authentic..nice.

Marilyn Bellows

Very interesting place to visit. The people giving the presentation were very knowledgeable and informative.

Patti Armanini

Interesting tour, nicely paced.

jairam amrith

Rather touristy and tacky, they make a big effort to "respect" the indigenous people but it doesn't ring true.

Richard Pearson

Very interesting

John Utsey

Loved the presentation and the style. The whole thing was very nice.

Eric Woerner

Very informative, friendly guides. Was part of the riverboat cruise and that was also very entertaining

Karen Christian

Wow this place is awesome! Great presentations covering history and culture.

Joshua Parra

Nice and clean place to visit. Family activity. Good history about the local native tribes in the area.

Skyler Evans

Wonderful tour, very informative

Diane Jorstad

Much wonderful history. Glad we were able to visit. Highly recommend!

Celeste Fellers

It was very interesting

Daniel Bly

Very interesting tour.

Megan Sokolowski

Friendly & educational

Todd Hunt

This place along with the river boat cruise was awesome. A must see if your in fairbanks.

Mark Williams

Good presentations by Athabascan youth preserving their heritage and sharing it

Mary Volesky

Very interesting!!

Jade C

Fascinating place to visit it and a great place to learn about the local Athabascans. It's great to see a new generation taking pride in their heritage and am honour to be able to learn about it from them

Dennis Camp

Interesting place to visit, some helpful information about American Indians. The village looks a bit Disneyesque. The overall experience with the river boat ride to the village is worth doing once. Less script more honest exchange of history of the area is all that is needed. As mentioned the afternoon was fun but not something that you would do repeatedly.

Fred Cristi

Highly recommend

KLM

Fantastic trip back in time

Michael Gauer

Fun and informative

Kathye Malcom

Very informative.

joann wacker

Great place. Great guides

Candace Burtis

Very informative.

Dave H

Nice place. We toured it as a part of the riverboat cruise. It was a quick learning experience about the native culture and they had some sled dogs and a person from the Kennel answering questions about them.

Laurie Jensen

Great guides took us through how indigenous peoples lived and survived in the Alaskan wilderness. Wonderful "props" to illustrate the housing, clothing, and how important and valuable animals were to their survival. Beautiful setting, well explained. Really enjoyed it.

Brenda Gutsche

Very interesting

Bernedette Walser

Best tour I ever been in a must go

John Campbell

Awesome place.

W Otankis

Informative and fun!

Chinyuan Huang

Good Experience

doug richards

Awesome. Part of the Riverboat Discovery trip. Great interpreters. Well worth it!

Kay Roope

Very nice

Ramon Brooker

Wonderful snapshot of history

Jim Stepler

Great history tour.

Linda S

Very informative and educational. We loved it.

Sunrise -MB 2018 Blasing

This Riverboat Tour is amazing!

Joy Paugh

Loved the narrative on how the tribes lived prior and after the fur traders came. Also the end product of the tanning of various animals.

Bruce Thomsen

Very well done!

Cynthia Olsen

Love this place... the young people know alot about the history of their people. Excellent!!!

Pattie Cartwright

Wonderful exhibit to learn about native people and customs.

Glen Clark

The native guides usher you through three different presentations on Chena history and culture. Part of the riverboat cruise.

Paula Marth

Had the pleasure of learning about a remarkable culture. Our guide was very detailed and informative. He was pretty funny too. The village is beautiful and very well taken care of. Worth the visit. Wish we had more time to explore but our tour was on a time crunch.

JP Cody

Very cool place to visit, when you ate on the riverboat ride. Very old original village. Lots of great information, and short shows that give you a good idea of how the Alaskans did things many years gone past. Make sure you see everything, from the cabins to all the pelts and fish that they caught. Great for younger kids also. They have an old Polaris snow sled that still runs, and in very good shape that the Alaskans had used. Very, worthwhile visit!

Frances Brown

Interesting history of the area.

Abdulrahman Mansouri

It was a wonderful experience with much to learn and see about native Alaskans

Dotty Viker

Riverboat cruise down the river we got to stop at this place they had little station set up so that you could see what it was like for the Alaskan people back in the olden days the clothing that they needed to wear to stay warm how they hunted what they hunted it was a beautiful and awesome experience

Michael Amato

Very informative and presentations were concise. Presenters were enthusiastic, even though we were at the end of the season.

Delia Woods

Very educational and authentic

Steve Fiedler

Cover nice presentations about the native culture

Jeffrey Summers

Interesting visit with multiple stations, from camp sites to sled dog info to a fish wheel. Very pleasant docents

Tom Simpson

Very informative and interesting. Highly recommend.

Doug

Fascinating place that shows you how the locals lived in the early days. Very educational and a must to visit if in the area. Well run and easily able to get around.

Charlotte Parkinson

Very informative and interesting. Enjoyed touring and listening to talks. Beautiful place.

Michael Marth

Gave me insight in the traditional ways of the natives of Alaska, their culture and overall found this to be very informative and a great experience.

Pamela Tapert

Great stuff to learn about, really good staff

Cheryl Rokos

Fabulous. Well informed

Carl Redding

Great presentation

mike nestell

Noah and Danny were excellent. Very knowledgeable and entertaining

karen ledford

Went in September. A great way to learn more about native Alaskan culture and their traditional way of life. Highly recommend. Great for all ages.

Mike Haro

Very informative. Loved listening to the younger kids describing their heritage.

Lawrence Goodrich

Very interesting tour from ship, loved to talk by local Native people about their history and lifestyle. Would definitely recommend.

Tim Bouldin

Great place to visit. So informative.

Patrick Lawless

The young people are to be admired for their efforts to carry on the traditions. It is hard to imagine what they and their knowledge from so long ago.

Gayle Farkas

Fascinating! Amazing! A Must See...