Honoring Lingít Aaní

About the Tlingit People

Close-up of tree branches with catkins hanging, blurred beach with logs and a person in an orange jacket in the background.

The Tlingit people have lived on Lingít Aaní for thousands of years, shaping their lives around the ocean, the fish and wildlife, the forests, and the shifting seasons. Their clans, stories, art, and ways of caring for this land are deeply connected to what we now call Sitka.

This place is not just scenery. It is a living cultural landscape. The Tlingit have tended, protected, and belonged to these waters long before outsiders arrived, and their presence remains strong today.

At Elysium, we honor the Tlingit by moving through this place with respect and humility. We acknowledge that these are their homelands, we do not speak on behalf of Tlingit communities, and we encourage guests to learn directly from Indigenous led organizations and cultural centers.

We are here as grateful guests, held by a land that has held the Tlingit people since time immemorial.

Our Stewardship Practices

We honor Lingít Aaní by moving through this land and water with care. Elysium Expeditions follows eco-tourism standards, Leave No Trace principles, and ethical wildlife-viewing guidelines. We minimize our impact, respect natural and cultural sites, and give all wildlife the space they need to live and move freely. Protecting this place is part of how we show our gratitude for being guests here.

A forested landscape with a shallow, rocky stream covered with yellow moss or algae, surrounded by tall green trees and distant mountains, under an overcast sky.
Overcast sky over a body of water with small tree-covered islands and distant mountains.
Underwater scene of rocks with a starfish, a black and orange sea cucumber, small purple sea urchin, and numerous small shellfish on the rocks.
Two children, one in a beige coat and the other in a pink coat, walking on a moss-covered fallen tree in a dense, green forest with tall trees and lush undergrowth.
View from inside a boat looking out over a body of water, surrounded by dense forest, with snow-capped mountains in the background.
Waterfall cascading down a rocky mountain face surrounded by trees and greenery.