I love cranes. I love birds. In fact, I’m crazy for all things nature!
This is a must see experience for all ages.
The blinds at Rowe Sanctuary allow kids and my family with 7yo grandson enjoyed 2 AM blind visits and 1 PM. It’s hard to say but maybe we preferred the morning. It is cold and dark so be prepared but definitely worth every second.
Great group of volunteers.
We will return!

I didn't know much about the Sandhill Cranes to start with other than Nebraska was a great spot to view their migration. The guides went above and beyond the call of duty. I was 2 hours late for tour because I overslept and got lost. The volunteer at the front desk contacted someone who contacted someone else. Another volunteer took me in a golf cart to catch up with the tour so I didn't miss the entire event. I got to see a yellow-headed blackbird. Sandhill cranes in the fields. Cardinals, sparrows, and a plethora of red-winged blackbirds. On one road after we disembarked from the tour bus, a herd of cows came over to investigate as we opened our granola bar snacks. Evidently, when vehicles come up this service road, it's chow time. I could tell the cows were extremely disappointed with their human visitors. The Iain Nicolson Audubon Visitor's Center at Rowe Sanctuary is also impressive. According to various literature, it is the second largest straw bale constructed building in the US. (A window-like section is exposed so visitors can see the straw bale inside one of the posts.) I also took the night tour which included a talk in the visitor's center. Next, we went out in groups to a viewing blind and waited for the Sandhill Cranes to descend on the Platte River. It was a gorgeous sunset. The Platte River was awash in pinks and blues. Thousands of Sandhill Cranes. Their calls were almost deafening. Especially if you cupped your ears to magnify the sound. It was a beautiful and mesmerizing experience. I also got to see a beaver. At first, I mistook it for an otter. He (or maybe a she) kept swimming back and forth as if he, too, came to watch the spectacle of the cranes. If you are a bird or nature lover, I highly recommend visiting the Sandhill Crane festival. Book plenty in advance as spots fill up quickly. Do not drive to the sanctuary as the road is rough and dusty. The tour buses pick you up at the Convention Center at the Holiday Inn. I also recommend booking your hotel early. Four months in advance if you want to stay close to the event. A special thanks to all the volunteers who make this event possible.

We have been to Rowe for three years in a row now and plan to continue to visit. The experience of hearing and seeing the cranes is magical! I recommend planning ahead and purchasing tickets to a viewing blind. The views from the blind are outstanding. My favorite is the morning blind! We have also booked the overnight blind which requires booking in January. It is magical as well but, only for experienced campers. The volunteers that work are Rowe are wonderful people that cannot be thanked enough for what they do. They have a passion for this place and it shows in every interaction you have with them. Great work to everyone at Rowe!!!

We called to try to do a crane viewing experience & purchased a Indoor Crane Viewing Experience. The person on the phone had to put us on hold three times to ask questions & then we got different date than what we wanted. We did go to Audubon Rowe Sanctuary the day before & again ran in to some communication issues on our questions. On the viewing experience they did not tell us that we could go on deck outside so did not dress appropriately for outside since this was an inside viewing experience. There was a lot of people mixed with people going to outside blinds so room was full & again no communication to know if we should be in room viewing video or not. We did like the mission & experience listening to sand hill cranes however was not impressed with communication of staff