travelbuds Posted June 28, 2009 #51 Share Posted June 28, 2009 Never felt crowded at all. The boat is large, 100' or so. I am guessing we had about 70 passengers on the trip. I have attached a couple of shots that are not in my Webshots album; these show you more of the area where passengers sit and/or walk around. In the first image, the young couple in blue ponchos are passengers (nice shot of the ponchos, too - the man's is open and you can see the fleece lining.) The gentleman in the tan coat is also a passenger as is the the man behind the couple. You can see the stairs leading to the upper deck and in the right side of the picture, you can see 2 passengers on the upper deck. The upper deck runs along both sides of the boat and alsong the top, the full length of the boat. There is a LOT of space available to passengers. If you have a chance to view the tour sponsor's website as posted by Napi's Mom (http://56degreesnorth.com), go to the photo gallery & look at the images of the Aleutian Ballad. All of the blue seats are for passengers, the entire top deck is for passengers (except the wheel house) and all of the boat beside/behind the seating area is accessible to passengers (that's where the galley & restrooms are located.) I also recommend downloading their powerpoint presentation (see the right side of their home page) - that's what I did when gathering info for this excursion and it was extremely helpful! Hope you enjoy this excursion! Hi Mooline, Thank you for all of your comments, pictures, and suggestions. I would like to do this excursion, but my wife wants to kayak with Southeast Seas Kayak at Orcas Cove. Only enough time for one, but we could split up-at least for these tours. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poolwife Posted June 29, 2009 #52 Share Posted June 29, 2009 Do they put the fish and other creatures they show you back in the ocean after viewing? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare mooline Posted June 29, 2009 #53 Share Posted June 29, 2009 Yes; everything goes back into the sea. The crab & octopus were put back right after the discussion and viewing. The rockfish went in a temporary holding tank on the boat and stayed there for most of the tour, so that everyone had a chance to see it up close at some point while walking around the boat. Before the end of the tour, it too was put back into the water. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jalexsai Posted July 11, 2009 #54 Share Posted July 11, 2009 I've watched Deadliest Catch many times and after reading these posts, just booked the Bering Sea Crab Tour through HAL! Don't know if I'll have any time to see Ketchikan, but couldn't miss this opportunity! Thanks for all of your help in making this one an easy decision. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beauty1492 Posted July 21, 2009 #55 Share Posted July 21, 2009 Hey guess!! what Trip Advsior just named the best shore tours in the US and Deadliest catch boat was number 8! http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Photos-TripAdvisor-Tallies-prnews-3635492969.html?x=0&.v=1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare cruzin4us Posted July 21, 2009 #56 Share Posted July 21, 2009 Hey guess!! what Trip Advsior just named the best shore tours in the US and Deadliest catch boat was number 8! http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Photos-TripAdvisor-Tallies-prnews-3635492969.html?x=0&.v=1 Of all the top 10 tours listed the Bering Sea Tour is the only one that appeals to me! I'm glad I'm booked on it in 2 weeks :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PK4SC Posted July 21, 2009 #57 Share Posted July 21, 2009 Bering Sea Crab tour was our favorite. Great staff too. We saw more bald eagles than you can imagine. We do not regret ttaking this tour. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diathoney Posted July 22, 2009 #58 Share Posted July 22, 2009 Our time on the crab boat was one of the highlights of our trip. Being that close to the eagles and watching them scoop up the fish from the water was absolutely amazing! We took a flightseeing tour in the morning before our boat tour and although it was very pretty scenery and we saw a pod of Orcas (from the air it is hard to know what they are unless someone tells you...much different than seeing them from a boat) it was scenery much like we had seen in other boat tours on our trip. What time was your flightseeing tour? We have one booked also and I'm wondering if we would have time to do this too. The HAL site says the Bering Sea crab leaves at 1pm - does it really leave on time? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
travelbuds Posted July 22, 2009 #59 Share Posted July 22, 2009 What time was your flightseeing tour? We have one booked also and I'm wondering if we would have time to do this too. The HAL site says the Bering Sea crab leaves at 1pm - does it really leave on time? Hi, You may want to look into booking this crab excursion on your own if you want to try to fit more in while there. http://56degreesnorth.com Bruce Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tranceFusion Posted July 22, 2009 #60 Share Posted July 22, 2009 FYI - theres a buy-one, get one free coupon for this tour in TourSaver. Assuming you used the TourSaver for nothing else, you still save $60. You don't need the coupon until you get to the tour so you could probably go ahead and book and then order the book. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diathoney Posted July 22, 2009 #61 Share Posted July 22, 2009 Hi, You may want to look into booking this crab excursion on your own if you want to try to fit more in while there. http://56degreesnorth.com Bruce Either way, it still says 1PM. We should be back from flight seeing at 12:45. If the boat leaves the dock at 1pm, we'll never make it. If the gathering time is 1pm, we could. I sent an e-mail via the website above so I'll wait to see what they say. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diathoney Posted July 23, 2009 #62 Share Posted July 23, 2009 FYI - theres a buy-one, get one free coupon for this tour in TourSaver. Assuming you used the TourSaver for nothing else, you still save $60. You don't need the coupon until you get to the tour so you could probably go ahead and book and then order the book. You have to book independently to use the coupon - right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tranceFusion Posted July 23, 2009 #63 Share Posted July 23, 2009 You have to book independently to use the coupon - right? Yes. You must make the reservation directly and over the phone. They will charge you for one ticket but send you two. The 2nd is marked TourSaver so you have to present the book at the time you use the ticket. Sorry if I wasn't clear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AG Cruisers Posted July 23, 2009 #64 Share Posted July 23, 2009 Thanks for answering questions. Where is the best place to sit? Lower deck or upper panoramic deck? Pros and cons of each? We aren't going until next year, but am already planning. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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