Best Whale Watching in Alaska
The best whale watching in Alaska is in Juneau, and we recommend Harv & Marv’s for this excursion.
We traveled in June of 2018 & before in June of 2013!
During each cruise, we went on the private small boat Whale Watching tour for 10 guests with Harv & Marv’s Outback Alaska out of Juneau.
All the links on this post are updated for 2019.
Here is our review of our whale watching trips & what you can expect.
Please email me with ANY questions you may have; this is a BIG trip, and I KNOW how stressful the planning can be! I planned our entire trip TWICE, and it turned out fabulous. You can do it!!
Book Whale Watching Early
This might be a obvious, as most of you understand the importance of booking early, but it’s true.
If you want to have privacy with just your family or group, be sure to book early.
I turned to TripAdvisor to help find some options for Whale Watching and other excursions. I also looked for blog posts, but couldn’t find many. So, I’m hoping this finds those who need the information!
After researching on TripAdvisor, I called several to see how they responded, and some of the companies are better than others. One of the best things about Harv and Marv is how fast they responded to my inquiries, with both email and a phone call.
For me, that was important: to be able to get ahold of them easily.
Meet Your Whale Watching Tour
The port at Juneau is busier than the other Alaskan ports, especially busier than Skagway.
The company you book your tours with will (should) send a confirmation email with instructions on how, where to meet them on the pier.
When you get off your ship, you will be looking for your representative holding their companies sign (usually), or they may give you a place to meet them instead.
Once you find each other and your entire group is ready, off you go to the boats.
In 2013, there were WAY LESS boats, people and whale watching tours.
Now, there is a system of van/bus drop off which is quite smooth, and you are escorted the entire time from start to finish. This is very helpful and keeps groups organized and moving smoothly onto the various boat tours.
Some are whale watching tours, some are fishing tours, etc.
There are port-o-potties by the drop-off, and indoor bathrooms in the building.
Boat Trip to See Humpback Whales
Captain Sean took us out on the “Alaskan”, with hydraulic seats & big windows.
Great ride!
It takes a good 15-20 minutes to boat out to where the whales are eating. All the captains (at least the cool ones) are communicating to make finding the whales easy, or at least easier.
FYI, even though it was a heatwave of 78 degrees on land, we needed jackets to stay warm on the water. We were thankful that we brought them along.
Snacks & water/soda is provided if you are interested, but most of our time was spent watching the Humpback Whales bubble net feed over and over. (this is lucky, I hope you get to see it)
Thanks, Sean & Jaqulin for making it possible to witness up close such a wondrous show of these graceful animals. You are truly lucky to see this on a daily basis.
Look for the Plumes or Water Spouts to Find Whales
Each boat can only be with the humpback whales for a governed time, rotating the amount of time with all the new whale watching boats. Also, a boat can only get within 100 yards of the whales unless the whales choose to come closer to the boat.
When the whales dive, and can’t be seen-sometimes up to 30 minutes, it can be harder to locate them. This is especially true when all boats need to leave, and there is no boat left to keep a lookout.
As a new whale watcher, you will quickly get used to scanning the water for water spouts or plumes. This is a reliable way to find the whales again once they surface.
It’s fun to scan together and always satisfying when you see one.
Private Boat Worth Extra Cost
My husband is claustrophobic, doesn’t like crowds and has motion sickness. Clearly, a cruise is the PERFECT TRAVEL CHOICE for him. Hee Hee.
He is a great sport, and hung in there with all of these adventures.
If your family member is anything like my husband, it is worth the extra cost for a private whale watching tour in Alaska!
Trust me!
As we watched in peace from our boat, the packed cruise boat next to us was tipping from side to side as groups of people rushed to one side of the boat for a glimpse of the whales.
Lines of people were jumping up and down in the back, trying their best to see the whales below.
Then, they would rush to the next sighting, rocking the boat again, forcing people to hold on so they wouldn’t fall overboard.
This is exactly why we were happy to be on our own little private boat!
My hubby had NO MOTION SICKNESS during our boat trip, and thoroughly enjoyed this excursion.
Pictures, Cameras & Video
The first whale watching tour in Alaska, I took my Nikon D50, which did a decent job. It was heavy and bulky and seemed to weigh me down.
So, the next trip, I decided to see how it would be JUST to use new iPhone 8s. This was a huge risk, since these are once in a lifetime photo opportunities. But, I was managing 10 people and a divorce of my brother’s marriage, so I decided to take the risk.
So, was it worth it?
For everything BUT whale watching, the iPhone was fine. But, I missed some great shots—not because the iPhone couldn’t take them.
It was all FEAR. I was afraid of dropping the iPhone. The water was choppy and the iPhone was slippery.
If you are going whale watching, take your DSLR camera.
Video taping will get more out of your time than still pictures, in my opinion. I took 2000 pictures, yet the video taken by my 8 year old caught the moments better than the still pics.
Bald Eagles on the Way Back from Whale Watching
On our way back from watching the whales bubble net feed (AMAZING), there was a Bald Eagle couple flying around, and captain Shawn followed them for a time.
It was amazing to watch them, and they played, dove after fish and generally had a fun time on this beautiful day.
If you get a chance, look around for them.
Conclusion for Whale Watching in Alaska
- Book early
- Spend extra on a private boat
- Bring jackets even if it’s warm
- Pray for Bubble Net Feeding!
- Take your best camera
- Take Video
- Look for plumes or water spouts
- Keep an eye out for Bald Eagles
- Tip your captain
We were fortunate enough to see the Bubble Net Feeding. If not, I would make this my Number 1 excursion to do during my Alaskan Cruise.
Since we have seen it, now we want to see Glacier’s and other animals…IF we ever get to go again, that is.
Have fun! Enjoy every second!
Please email or call if you have any questions.
