Juneau Whale Watching

[Rambler5678]

Is the boat that Disney uses real crowded? Do you see other wildlife on the tour? How long does the tour last?

 

[tink1970]

I went on this in 2012, my mother in 2011. It was full but not overfull-everyone had a seat

It was around 4 to 4 1/2 hours for my mothers'. Mine also went to the Mendenhall Glacier so it was about 5 1/2 hours. Currently there are three slightly different whale watching port adventures on the DCL web site. In retrospect I would have done the shortest because a glacier after whales was unnecessary.

Other wildlife included sea birds and either sea lions or seals (I know the difference, just can't remember what we saw!).


Both my mother and I used DCL tours but it is quite possible to book your own. Googling trip advisor will help if you want a smaller boat or something a little less expensive.

 

[saxmangeoff]

There are several different tours, with different sized boats. Thoughts on what to look for:

• A larger boat will be less expensive per person.
• All other things equal, I'd go for more time on the water. Wildlife is unpredictable, so more time = more opportunity.

I went on a small boat (which was fantastic) on the adults-only Juneau excursion. I honestly can't tell you if I'd trade to a larger boat if it gave more time on the water.

 

[disneyfaninaz]

I highly recommend looking into a non-DCL whale watching tour. There are so many to chose from. It is so much better being in a smaller boat and closer to the water when watching whales.

 

[tink1970]

It is so much better being in a smaller boat and closer to the water when watching whales.

Definitely! I just returned from my Vancouver Orca Trip---the company I went with had 12 person Zodiacs and a much larger boat. Despite the bounciness of the Zodiac ride (and having to wear a goofy appearing suit) I was much happier being so close to the water...and water is where the whales are

 

[Rambler5678]

Can anyone recommend a good independent company? Harv and Marv will not let small kids go on their tours unless you rent the whole boat. Which makes it very expensive.

 

[diznymom]

We did the Alaska Whales and Rainforest Trails. The boat was smaller, but not crowded. We thoroughly enjoyed it.

 

[diznymom]

Can anyone recommend a good independent company? Harv and Marv will not let small kids go on their tours unless you rent the whole boat. Which makes it very expensive.

Alaska Whales and Science adventures by DCL allows everyone.
After looking around at the port adventures, there are a few that allow everyone to go (ages 0+).

 

[Dug720]

Alaska Whales and Science adventures by DCL allows everyone.

And that sounds like the description of the one I took with HAL which was awesome. Small boat, great leader on mine.

And just to make clearer, yes, a smaller boat will have you closer to the water, but no boat is allowed to knowingly get less than 100 yards from the whales. (Obviously a whale can get closer on its own, but the boat has to safely move away.)

 

[Rambler5678]

Whale Watching and Sea Life Discovery
Anyone ever done this tour?

 

[tigerchic89]

While on our last DCL in Alaska, we got off the boat and wandered to the many kiosks in Juneau. We found the excursion that we wanted at a great price. I'm not comfortable booking on my own in Nassau, but in Alaska it was a nice way to save some $$$ and be flexible.

 

[IBelieveInTheMagic]

We used Rum Runners and split the cost with another family of 3 (so 6 of us total) and LOVED every minute of our private whale watching with them. I also chose them as my DS was under age at the time last summer and Harv and Marv required a higher priced private excursion to accommodate his age (12 last summer).

I would not hesitate to use them again!

Heather

 

[terrybsw]

Alaska Whales and Science adventures by DCL allows everyone.
After looking around at the port adventures, there are a few that allow everyone to go (ages 0+).

I sail next week, but...I chose this one because the boats are smaller. I read about the company on Trip Advisor and tried to book with them and they referred me to Disney. I think the max number is 16. Here is a link to their website:
http://www.stepintoalaska.com/excursions/discover-alaskas-whales

 

[Aby]

We have taken the DCL tour Alaska Whales & Glaciers Photo Safari twice now in Juneau and it was fantastic. The boats for this particular excursion is small and intimate, with 360 degree windows all around that are lifted up for wildlife viewing. DCL does also have other whale watching tours with this company, including Alaska Whales & Rainforest Trails and Alaska Whales and Science Adventure. The staff were amazing and we definitely felt it was worth it. You can see the company's website at http://www.stepintoalaska.com to see pictures of the boats and their tours. We really loved the small group of the photo safari tour.

You can see some pictures on my trip report here:

https://www.disboards.com/threads/t...-wonder-with-four-adults-august-2016.3560012/

Aby

 

[anricat]

We were the other family that split the tour with @IBelieveInTheMagic and I echo her sentiments. Rum Runners were fantastic and we had an amazing time! My DD is 8 and she loved it. We saw some other boats FULL of people and we were so glad that we went for a private tour.