Welcome to Kantishna Air Taxi and Skyline Lodge

  Expensive but ABSOLUTELY worth the cost to do a fly by Denali. We were extremely lucky to have a clear evening. The pilot was superb in navigating the... read more clouds and constantly turning the plane around to ensure all the passengers had a good view of this awe inspiring mountain. The only way to see this mountain any closer would have been to climb it. Obviously you also see the tundra as you fly to the mountain - but then you get a superb birds view of the glaciers, ice fields, moraines and the back of certain mountains not seen or attainable at all. Any other way. The pilot’s narrative through the flight was instructive and educational. An unhesitating five stars for this company and the flight. …

  We chose to fly back from the Kantishna Road house rather than taking the bus 6 hours back and are glad we did. We hung out at the Lodge, which... read more was better than the roadhouse with beverages, a great view, cards and books. Still crazy mosquitos but inside is good. Our flight was 1.5 hours later than scheduled with little communication as to why, but it was comfortable waiting. Since you are dependent on weather and small planes, do not pack your schedule too tightly if you choose this option. Liam, our pilot, was professional, friendly and very skilled and knowledgeable. We always felt safe and he took pains to get us up close to Denali, explain all we saw and let us get good pictures. There was a moose on the landing strip at the end which he easily avoided. He took pictures of all of us in front of the plane and waited until he was sure our ride back to the hotel was coming. …

  We opted to fly from the Denali Backcountry Lodge to the park entrance via Kat Air. What an amazing experience! Liam was our pilot and was outstanding. He provided just... read more the right amount of narration and a smooth flight experience. This is a great way to view the park, as well as get up close to the mountains and glaciers. I would highly recommend Kat Air! …

  The flight from kantishna back to the park entrance was the perfect way to end a great day. Our pilot Liam was fantastic- explaining what we were looking at... read more and giving us all good information without over talking and spoiling the moment. His professionalism as a skilled pilot made us feel comfortable too. If you are considering this as a choice - do it! You’ll be glad you did. Thanks for a phenomenal experience! …

  We decided to charter a flight from Denali Backcountry Lodge to Talkeetna rather than taking the two bus rides totaling 9 hours driving time. Well worth it and the views... read more were amazing. Hawk was a great pilot and explained some of the sights along the way.

  We flew from Kantishna back to the park entrance after a 7 hour bus ride. This was the best decision of our trip! We saw the best of Denali... animals... read more from the bus and Denali from the air. The pilot, Liam, was courteous and informative, the plane felt very safe ... just an amazing experience. …

  The views and then landing on a glacier are totally worth it! Very professional pilot and ground staff. Do it! There is no luggage rack on the hearse...

  We stayed at the Backcountry Lodge and used this service to head out. They were clear with the expectations in advance of our trip. Chris, our pilot,... read more took us so close to Denali Mountain that we felt like we could reach out and touch it. It was one of the highlights of our trip. …

  Liam took us on the flight of a lifetime! This was truly the most amazing experience & I would HIGHLY recommend taking the air taxi scenic route back from the... read more interior of Denali National Park. Liam flew us straight at the north face of Denali at 10,000 feet & we got the unique experience of a closeup view of one of the tallest mountains on earth. He flew us over the Mudrow Glacier which is surging right now & banked & turned so we got different views of both the mountain & the glaciers. He narrated the ride, made our teens feel comfortable in their first small aircraft flight & gave us some amazing memories to last a lifetime! …

  Kantishna Air was an option to not take another six hour bus trip on same route back from roadhouse. Instead, fly and see the mountains from above and between. ... read more Spectacular, take the upgrade. You won't be sorry you spent the extra for this life memory.

  We lucked out with the weather and our pilot Hawk. The views of Denali were breathtaking-just beyond words. We were thrilled that we chose this airline and excursion. Honestly, it... read more was a once in a lifetime flight and adventure. The bus ride back from Kantishna was an amazing way to see the entire park. Our bus driver was quite skilled and there were ample stops along the way. Do not hesitate to book this trip.

  We took the bus into Denali National Park and stayed at The Backcountry Lodge for two nights. The bus going in was so much fun, but it was long,... read more so we opted to fly out with Kantishna Air Taxi. What a wonderful experience! Our pilot, Hawk, was very informative about the mountain and everything around it. He pointed out so many interesting things. We lucked out on a clear morning and the view of Denali was nothing short of amazing. The ride was smooth and the pilot went over all the safety information before we took off. This was definitely a highlight of our trip to Alaska! Highly recommend!

  We took Kantishna Air taxi out of the park after staying at the Skyline Lodge for three great nights. Would highly recommend. They are very cognizant of weather conditions and... read more will adjust when needed. Our pilot, Hawk was great. He gave us great insight into Denali and the Alaskan range both from a historical perspective as well as geologically and discussion of current conditions. He also provided a quick safety run down before we took off.

Would do this again in a minute!

  I flew with 'Hawk', an appropriate name for a pilot. Wow! The scenery was breathtaking as you struggle to comprehend the Denali Massif. Hawk conveyed a lot... read more of information on the natural history and early explorers, climbers, and miners in Denali. I took photos using a fast shutter speed and they turned out great. This is a memorable way to see Denali from a unique perspective that commercial jets do not offer.

  We made the decision to go all the way to the 92 mile marker. This is a long drive but friends had told us it was worth it. ... read more They were right. The scenery and animals were amazing. But that would mean a long 3-4 hour return drive and not returning until after 8 p.m.

We decided to fly back. The planes are small but very capable bush planes. Roger our pilot gave us the best views of the glaciers and mountain that he could considering the mountain had gotten cloudy as the day went on. It was in the clear in the early morning. Less than an hour later we were back at the entrance to the park. My wife is not a great flyer and she did just fine!

  We wanted to experience the Transit bus from Denali Visitor Centre to Kantishna Roadhouse but weren't keen on the 12 hour return trip, so we booked the return flight option... read more thru Kantishna Air.

The service and flight experience provided by Kantishna Air were second to none. We were in a 6 seater taxi and our pilot, Hawke, explained that the trip would take around an hour and that on our way we'd "take a look at Denali (Mt McKinley)". So we said "ok"!!

Hawke gave us a running commentary of the scenery around and below us, and answered our various questions. We seemed to hover in front of Denali for some minutes before gently swerving around it to continue our journey, with Hawke narrating and noting points of interest. It was a great flight and we could see where we'd travelled by bus earlier in the day.

Flying over the mountain was such an unexpected outcome that on our return we cancelled a scenic flight which we'd booked for the following day. It seemed silly to do it twice and we are grateful to Denali Air for their understanding.

I believe the pilots decide on the day how they'll tackle the flight either from Kantishna or the Visitor Centre (you can do fly/bus or bus/fly). We may have just been lucky that the weather conditions etc were perfect for our afternoon flight, and I'm not 100% sure they always fly over Denali.

But it was a fantastic outcome for us and we were absolutely delighted. Thank you Hawke and Kantishna Air for a fabulous finish to an extraordinary day in a wonderful national park.

We highly recommend the bus/fly out fly/bus option as a worthwhile splurge. Please note you have to book the flight separately, and you must book your bus at least one day before you travel. You also have to catch a bus which leaves no later than 8:45am for the bus/fly option, and you have to pay full price for the bus regardless of only travelling half the distance (transit bus price $64pp, Kantishna air taxi one way flight $290pp.

  We loved our flight and our pilot. It was so beautiful to fly over Denali. We took the bus in to Kantishna and flew out.

  Shawn flew us with another couple around Mt. Denali (McKinley) This was not your average flight.

Shawn is an outgoing, informative, confident pilot. We both felt completely safe... read more with him. He shared so much information as we flew and not too much. He was loud enough and clear so we could easily communicate. He is The Best. What a great guy...and pilot!

Although it was cloudy and we thought we’d be part of the 70% who sadly are unable to see Denali, when we got close he found “some light” and was able to get us up there to see it. He banked left and banked right so we could all really see it up close and personal and take pictures. It Was AMAZING. Really, no words can describe it. Even if you aren’t spiritual, it is massive nature and really is...spiritual. For us it was worth every penny!

Thanks, Shawn!!!

  Hey KAT Team, Thanks for getting us back safely!

Knowing that we couldn’t sit on a school bus (as comfy and interesting as they were) for the... read more trip back from Kantishna, we booked this return option together with the wilderness bus ride. All we expected was a quick and safe trip back to Denali Depot, but we got so much more than that.

A bunch more peeps from our tour group had the same idea last minute, but the KAT team kept their cool and got everyone back without much drama. We did have to split up our group of 3 to balance the weight, but safety first and we all landed within 10-15 min of each other.

Since the weather is such a deciding factor to whether this air taxi provides an aerial view of Denali, if your intent is to get that view then you might want to book it the day of your trip to lessen the chance of disappointment.

  What a great way to view Denali! My husband and I took the 1 hour flight into the park, to Kantishna, and then rode the shuttle bus out. Our pilot,... read more Hawk, was great! We were fortunate enough to have great weather the day we flew and were able to see the peak of Denali...WOW! I would definitely recommend this to anyone heading to DNP. Thanks Kat Air!!

  To fly over Denali Park in a small plane is the thrill of a lifetime. The pilots and planes were great. THe way they are organized is a... read more little bit Keystone Cops.....