Whale watching - independent guides better than cruise excursions?

[radhak]

I have been reading comments on TripAdvisor that whale watching with independent guides (anybody from Hoonah Travels to Game Creek Guides) is better than the cruise excursions because of smaller boats.

 

Does that sound right? Everybody seems to charge around the same, so the 'better experience' seems to be a good discriminator, but not sure why the Cruises would not provide as good as any other.

 

(Of course, looks like I've delayed my booking so much that the top choices on that list on TripAdvisor are all sold out, and I might have to settle for NCL's excursion :rolleyes:).

[frugaltravel]

I guess it depends on how you define better. But smaller boat meana fewwr peoplecand much more personal experience.

 

FISHES and Misty Bay Lodge come with great reviews. Teckk has had mixed reviews each year but this year is too earky to tell with the cruisecseason just under way.

[DragonOfTheSeas]

We took a whale watch from 10am to 1pm with Icy Strait Whale Adventures. We wanted to have a more personal experience so we independently booked a small boat (6 passengers). Captain Coleen guarantees that you will see whales or you get ½ your money back. [not needed since there is a 100% whale sighting at Icy Strait]

There were 6 of us on the boat. There was space in the boat and on a back deck. It was very cool on the water and drizzling. By the end of our trip we were cold and tired (in a good way) and headed back to the ship for hot soup. We loved our whale watch.

[Italy52]

We love the small boat whale watching experience. We like being close to the water from a viewing standpoint. There are no words to describe the feeling when a whale comes right near your boat and you are just about at eye level with the whale --- sheer amazement. Of course that doesn't always happen but when it does, I would rather be on a smaller boat than a larger boat. Also, with a smaller boat I don't have to worry about people being in my way when it comes to viewing --- I am short and this is sometimes a problem on larger boats. There are many good vendors out there; we have gone with F.I.S.H.E.S. and Glacier Wind.

[tangerinebunny]

The key seems to be finding an experienced crew that knows how to find promising locations. We've done private and cruise sponsored excursions and don't find them to be that different.

 

If you want to see whales close up and personal don't expect to do it from your cruise ship. Even the 'bigger' boat excursions are able to get much closer.

[radhak]

Great feedback. Yes, watching them from their level or close by would be really worth it, and the smaller number on the boat would definitely count on the good column. Thanks y'all!

[JimmyVWine]

While there may be certain aspects of the ship's excursion that mirror private excursions and are "just as good", I can't think of a single thing about a ship's excursion that is "better", assuming that the private excursion is on a small boat that holds 10 or fewer people. The reverse, however, is not the case. I can think of plenty of things about private excursions that are better. Faster boarding, departure, return docking and disemarking procedures give you more time on the water. It goes without saying that 6 people can board a small boat and get underway faster than 80 people can. And the people who take the smaller boats tend to be more, for lack of a better or more polite term, agile. While the two types of excursions may ply the same waters, the smaller boats are more maneuverable and you NEVER have to fight for a good spot at the rail.

 

The only reasons I can think of why someone would opt for the bigger ship-sponsored excursions would be: concern over the ability to get on and off a smaller boat; the greater stability of a larger boat from a motion sickness standpoint, and the desire to be higher up off the water for angle of viewing and staying dry purposes.

 

Now, if the private excursion that you are comparing uses a boat roughly the same size as the ship's excursion and holds the same number of people, then ignore everything I just said. They will be the same.

[CruiseSB]

Does anyone have the names of any "large boat" excursions? I have done research on a few "small boat" companies. My (8 year old) daughter prefers the larger boat so we want to look into those as well.

 

Thanks

[dani negreanu]

Does anyone have the names of any "large boat" excursions? I have done research on a few "small boat" companies. My (8 year old) daughter prefers the larger boat so we want to look into those as well.

 

Thanks

 

After thoroughly reading the posts re: whale watching tours, I was down to H & M and Orca. BudgetQueen likes Orca... so since I'm worried about motion sickness, so I specifically asked for Orca Odysea, which has a capacity of 42 pax, though I understand that they take between 15 and 30 pax.

[Kirasha]

Does anyone have the names of any "large boat" excursions? I have done research on a few "small boat" companies. My (8 year old) daughter prefers the larger boat so we want to look into those as well.

 

Thanks

 

In Juneau, Allen Marine runs all of the cruise-ship whale watching excursions (all of them large boats).

[radhak]

Anybody know who's the runs the excursions at ICP, specifically the one used by Norwegian? The size of the vessel, the number of passengers could be indicative of what to expect.

[Loeweb]

Any recommendations for a small tour operator in Victoria bc?

[Crusin-Suzan]

Just did Orca last week. Second time I have used them!!!! Captain Larry is a whale whisperer! Saw tons od Orcas and humpbacks! Crew is the best!

[Loeweb]

Just did Orca last week. Second time I have used them!!!! Captain Larry is a whale whisperer! Saw tons od Orcas and humpbacks! Crew is the best!

 

 

is the company "Orca"? any idea of contact info? thank you, mark

[dani negreanu]

is the company "Orca"? any idea of contact info? thank you, mark

 

PO Box 35431, Juneau, AK 99803

497 South Franklin Street Juneau, AK 99801

1-888-733-ORCA (6722) or (907) 789-6801

E-mail: orca@alaska.com www.alaskawhalewatching.com

[chipchris]

We are cruising June 21st and would like to know what are some of the excursions we should do in Alaska. How hard is it to book through private excursions vs. the ship's excursions. This is our first time in Alaska. We have a group of 8 going.

[sherryf]

We are cruising June 21st and would like to know what are some of the excursions we should do in Alaska. How hard is it to book through private excursions vs. the ship's excursions. This is our first time in Alaska. We have a group of 8 going.

 

This year? As in, 4 weeks from now? :eek:

 

It is very easy to book independently, and usually it is a much better experience than the large cruise ship sponsored excursions, but... you are quite late in planning and I'm afraid you will find that most of the top independent tour providers will be fully booked already. I suggest you start researching quickly and come back with more specific questions. Try reading several pages of posts on this board, look over the excursions offered by your cruise ship, and maybe check out http://www.cruiseportinsider.com/

[fflyer]

We signed up for one from HAL, anyone been on this one? We are going last week of June. How large is the boat? Is this a good choice?

[frugaltravel]

We signed up for one from HAL, anyone been on this one? We are going last week of June. How large is the boat? Is this a good choice?

 

It is on the Allen Marine boat that hold well over 100 people and almost always has that many on the boat when I see them. For about the same price I much prefer the small boat operators, especially Harv and Marvs. They have one of the longest times on the water. Also they give a free stop at Mendenhall Glacier if interested.

[Baileybasset]

We just returned from our cruise and used Rum Runner Charters in Juneau. Captain Chris was great and we would definitely use him again on our next visit.

[Orieol64]

This is our first Cruise and we would like to discuss excursions with other experienced cruisers. What is a good way to locate shore excursions not offered thru the ship?

[KruisinKath]

You can read the first several pages of this forum, as a lot of them have been discussed recently. There are also some threads where people listed top excursions or planned itineraries. Don't worry about the age of the posts; most of the excursions/vendors are still around - but of course you'll want to do current checking on any excursions of interest just to be safe. I think I have some bookmarked still....yep, here you go:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1351539

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=766053&page=10

 

This one's good for walking tours in the ports: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1573031

[sherryf]

Another helpful web site that gets posted often here: http://www.cruiseportinsider.com/

 

Once you've looked over the possibilities in your ports and have some idea of what you'd like to do, come back and start a new thread to ask specific questions or get recommendations.

[Soramor]

We went with Hoonah Travel Adventures a couple weeks ago and it was out of this world AMAZING! We did see the larger cruise ship tour on the water at the same time and those people all seemed to be scrambling for a spot on the rail (impossible, it would seem, with all those people?) We had a cozy group of maybe ten and were able to get closer to the whales and even took a detour out to check out some stellar sea lions. Plus, the captain was awesome. We HIGHLY recommend them!

[radhak]

We went with Hoonah Travel Adventures a couple weeks ago and it was out of this world AMAZING! We did see the larger cruise ship tour on the water at the same time and those people all seemed to be scrambling for a spot on the rail (impossible, it would seem, with all those people?) We had a cozy group of maybe ten and were able to get closer to the whales and even took a detour out to check out some stellar sea lions. Plus, the captain was awesome. We HIGHLY recommend them!

 

Unfortunately we will be among those on that larger boat next week, because by the time we got around to booking the Whale watching either at ISP or Juneau, all these smaller boats have gone :(!

 

Well, at least my wife is happy about that - she's prone to motion-sickness and the bigger the boat, the better for her, she says. Hopefully the larger boat will be happier for her!