FAQs

What should I expect once I register for a tour in Rocky Mountain National Park?

Registration for a Rocky Mountain National Park tour happens through emails. This ensures that we don’t overlap tours with multiple people registering at the same time. Once we have confirmed a date and tour type, we will send you an invoice. Once the invoice is paid in full, which is due upon receipt, we will send you additional information about your tour, including details for the day of the tour, things to do in Estes Park, how to plan for a tour and forms to be completed.

What should I expect once I register for a tour in other locations?

Registration for tours in other locations depends on the tour. Several tours, such as to Churchill, Canada and the Amazon River in Peru, are booked through third-party companies that hire us for our expertise in leading trips. This is noted on the tour information page. Payment, registration and trip information will be coordinated through them, but we serve as a liaison for information, tour knowledge and to answer any questions you have about traveling to the destination.

For tours offered through Creeks and Critters Nature Tours, such as Nature of the Black Hills in Spring and Bald Eagles of Alaska in Fall, tours will be booked through this website. When you click on Book Now, the deposit will be added to your cart. The cart will appear in the bottom right-hand corner. Click on the cart to complete the transaction. That will initiate us to confirm your spot on the tour and start sending you information about what to pack, detailed itinerary, travel information, forms to be completed, etc.

How do I know when my tour is confirmed?

​Tour dates in Rocky Mountain National Park are confirmed and held for you upon payment in full.

For other tours offered by Creeks and Critters Nature Tours, your spot is confirmed upon receipt of a deposit. Please see our Additional Information for specifics about dates for refunds.

For tours booked through a third-party tour operator, specifics for confirmation are based on their guidelines, and may vary from Creeks and Critters Nature Tours.

What options do I have to pay for a tour?

All tours can be paid via credit/debit card, PayPal or bank transfer. The options and links are available within the invoice.

Will I be reminded about payment due dates?

In the case of single day tours, payment in full is due at the time of making the reservation. If a tour involves multiple payments, we will send you a payment reminder approximately a week before the due date of the trip balance or installments.

What information will I receive before the tour?

You will receive an email including details for the day of the tour (pick-up time, plans for the day, etc.), things to do in Estes Park, how to plan for a tour and forms to be completed.

What does the tour cost include?

Typically, all tours include photo instruction, commercial permit for entering the park, insurance for working in the park, and guidance about the natural history, human history and best photo locations within the park. Tour prices are part of a package price and refunds will not be issued for unused services.

For multi-day tours, the price may include lodging, meals and some travel expenses. Details for these trips will be outlined on the tour page.

How many participants attend the tours?

Private tours in Rocky Mountain National park are limited to no more than three people within the same group. As our tours are private, we do not mix groups or individuals who do not know each other. Larger groups can be accommodated with 30 days notification of group size.

For other photo tours and workshops, groups typically range from 3 to 6 people. For some of the tours offered by third-party operators, such as to Peru, the group size is larger but additional guides are available to keep the guide-participant ratio low.

Where do we meet at the start of the tour?

​All tours in Rocky Mountain National Park start and end in Estes Park. We will meet you at your lodging (private home, hotel, etc.) or a pre-determined location, such as the Visitor Center or parking garage where parking is available all day for free.

How can I book a tour?

Because we are frequently in the field, it can be difficult to reach us by phone. Therefore, we ask that you check the calendar on our website to see if the date(s) you want to book are available. If marked available, send us an email at ccnaturetours@gmail.com and we will start the booking process. This includes verifying the date is still available, asking a few questions about what type of tour you seek and discuss time options. With that information determined,
we will send you an invoice. A date is marked as tentative until the invoice is paid in full. Due to the nature of night photography requiring clear skies, we will hold your requested date for you and then select a backup date if your schedule has some flexibility. Night tours are invoiced and paid the day of the tour to confirm that the weather will cooperate with the plans.

Do I need a timed entry reservation to take a tour in Rocky Mountain National Park?

No, timed entry reservations for Rocky Mountain National Park are not needed for our tours. Our commercial permit allows us to operate in the park and take in guests without the need for a timed entry permit. You will, however, need to have a park pass. This includes the annual federal park pass, the Rocky Mountain National Park annual pass, a weekly pass for Rocky Mountain National Park or a daily pass for Rocky Mountain National Park. The annual federal
pass is the best value if you frequently visit national parks and/or federal lands. About a dozen daily entrance fees cover the cost of this $80 pass. Passes can be purchased online prior to your visit at https://nps.gov/romo/planyourvisit/fees.htm or at the entrance gate with a credit card (cash is no longer accepted for payment).

Will I need a timed entry reservation during my visit to Rocky Mountain National Park?

The timed entry reservation is not required during our tour. You will, however, need a timed entry reservation for any days you enter the park during certain times on your own beyond our tour. This blog post can help you navigate the system, including when you need a reservation, the differences between the reservations and how to obtain a reservation.

How do I get a refund?

We do not offer refunds for our tours. Because scheduling can be difficult at certain times of the year, we cannot support the cost of last-minute cancellations. Please make sure your plans are firm before paying your invoice. That being said, if a natural disaster, such as a wildfire or flood, happens in the Estes Park area, we will discuss options for your tour. If we need to cancel a tour for any reason, we will refund your money in full within 30 days. If you would like to reschedule a tour, we will do our best to accommodate your schedule, but we cannot guarantee that another date will be available, especially during the busy seasons.

What happens in the case of inclement weather?

​​Inclement weather for photography is exactly what we want to have. It can produce rainbows, cool clouds and interesting colors. There are, however, certain situations in Rocky Mountain National Park when the weather can become an issue. Because the tundra portions of the park are wide open at high elevations, if lightning is predicted or being seen, we will venture to a different area of the park until the weather is safe to travel to high elevations. If it snows in the high elevations, park management may close Trail Ridge Road, cutting off access to Estes Park. The only way to reach Estes Park in these situations, if on the west side of the closure, is to take a three-hour loop that goes to Granby, then to Interstate 70, head towards Denver, and then loop back north to Estes Park.

What should we wear and bring for our tour?

Each season in Rocky Mountain National Park is very different from the next. Prior to your tour, we will send you information specific to the time of year for your tour.