Potlatch Totem Park and Museum

A beautiful park with a selection of totems and buildings to explore, as well as some classic cars. The gift shop was extensive and reasonably priced.

Ok, First be ready to be AMAZED at the reat totem poles and wall carvings in this small but VERY intense area. "Laine" our bus driver and tour guide was Fantastic!! She knew all the historical symbols as well as the history of the families. Ask about the totem built for the adopted son of the original owner. The love in this totem is as large as the Whale Base it stands on. Check out the inside and outside of the lodge. Stop to see a REAL Stanley Steamer car exposed with the boiler and drive train intact. Look at the "Modified" 29 Ford now set up with an ELECTRIC power plant. Tesla look out! Beautiful gift shop with free coffee. This private owner museum needs our support to keep building and showing the heritage of the indigenous people.

A beautiful totem village with interesting stories of the totem poles. Very walkable and a gift shop at the end.

This is a beautiful park filled with clan houses and totem poles. Due to the nature of this outdoor park, any of the items shown could be classified as a museum. Overall, this was a great experience.

A wonderful collection of totem poles and clan buildings owned by a native group. The gift shop has the best prices of all the shops we’ve been to in the 8 days we’ve been in Alaska. Also a nice variety of merchandise. Because of the reasonable prices, lines at the register were very long when the cruise ship tours were there.

Good to get an insight into the lives of the first nations people. Park is well laid out and the gift shop has some great things on sale to help remember our visit

Wonderful carving great stories!

Very neat place with a lot of very cool totems. The museum has a good amount of older cars, firearms, and native items to read and learn about. Very beautiful scenery in the whole area. Glad we took the time to go.

This park was covered as part of the tour we purchased onshore, I assume it's included as part of the cruise ship offered tours as well but it's always cheaper to buy a tour directly off the ship. Park is decent sized with several totem poles, a totem pole carving workshop, native clan houses, some vintage cars and a gift shop. Due to the abundant rain Ketchikan is blessed with, this park is covered in lush greenery. You definitely need a guide to help explain the history behind the totem poles, the clan houses and all the other stories. On the whole it will take less than an hour to cover the entire park. The gift store is great as well and surprisingly very reasonably priced compared to the other touristy places. They had several totem poles in various sizes on sale in addition to the regular tourist store items.

With a knowledgeable guide, we came here as part of a cruise tour. Our guide was very knowledgeable explaining the meanings of the totem symbols, such as the Eagle versus the Raven. A potlatch is a ceremonial gathering, like a big party, and the clan's totem pole shows how many potlatches they have been involved with. Enjoyed seeing the small circular doors to the living quarters that would force any unwelcome visitors to stoop down to get through the opening - allowing them to be easily attacked. There is a large gift shop, and a clan house. We did not see any old cars but possibly our guide simply omitted that part of the tour. Those coming without a guide are at a bit of a disadvantage, as I could see no interpretive displays near the totem poles explaining what you were seeing. This is also a cruise ship destination and there were numerous cruise ship groups tramping through the park along with us, affecting the experience. Lots of delays as we had to wait for several groups to clear out before we could go onto the next part of the tour. The crowds also made taking photographs difficult.

Interesting park that goved you a good understanding and history of the totem pole and the people who created them.

Very touristy. Spend your time somewhere else. Boring and made to sell you tacky gifts.

Breath taking. The is so much history here. I M particularly interested in the Totem below. Is there a story for it. I recently purchased this wood carving.

It was a rainy day when we visited the park, however got a lot of knowledge about the history of the totem poles.

We almost missed this and that would've been a shame. So glad we found it! We took a cab to Totem Bight State Park and the cab driver mentioned it was just up the way. As were walking park trails, we happened to stumble upon a gift shop and behind the gift shop is Potlatch Park. The gift shop and Potlatch Park are not part of Totem Bight. There was a gravel path leading to a side road and this is how we just happened to find this place. Potlatch Park has lots of very cool totem poles. It's in a beautiful area on the water. We found a HUGE abandoned anchor, which was neat to see. There's also a building with a display of nice vintage cars. If you go to Totem Bight State Park, don't miss Potlatch Park...it's right next door.

Potlatch totems and the clan houses were interesting. We learned that a potlatch totem is different that a clan totem. Potlatch totems depict how many feasts (house parties) a particular clan has hosted. Our guide was informative and we enjoyed walking around the park. It was a cultural tour without the touristy feel. They also have a collection of vintage autos that were pretty remarkable and a GIANT gift shop with free coffee.

I have been waiting to visit a park like this since I was 8 years old and first learned about Alaskan culture, and totem poles and was immediately entranced by the artwork. When we first arrived we perused the amazing historic cars they had while we waited for our group to gather. I've always heard that winters were harsh on cars so I was surprised that they were in such great shape. Many featured the advertisements for the car in it's time. We immediately saw the majestic totem poles and learned the meanings behind them, the stories that were depicted, and what happens when they've fallen (you'll have to visit to find out). We learned the lore behind the raven and the eagles that are present a lot in their art. We saw buildings crafted in certain ways to protect its inhabitants. The whole park was filled with natural plants and beautiful views as we made it from one part to the rest. It's a mild walk though, so many can do it. We spent time with a totem pole crafter and it was so amazing to see just how large they are. We visited this Park as part of a bus tour available in the charming seaside town of Ketchikan through the Celebrity Cruises, but I would highly recommend a visit on your own or with a tour. They did mention that DIsney cruises also comes through this park. They had a really fun gift shop at the end of the tour with many options for tchotchkies for any budget. Our Three-thumb review is 3 thumbs up! My teen-age son loved the classic cars and the history of the city and this park in particular. He loved learning the lore behind the raven and the eagles - two symbols seen frequently in the carvings. My 10yo daughter loved the gift shop that had so many fun things to buy - she settled on a mini totem pole christmas ornament. They both loved seeing the room with many stuffed, preserved local animals and a real Gatlin gun (not used to catch the animals). I enjoyed seeing the homes and the doors that are built small and round to not let strangers in. I love woodwork anyway, but this was more meaningful than most. #ThreeThumbReviews