What is the likelihood of seeing whales this time of year while cruising

[keddykat75]

I am going on the 7 day Alaska round trip out of Seattle on HAL on June 28. We booked 5 days ago on a flash sale and got verandah rooms for dirt cheap. Anyways my question is how likely are we to see whales while on the cruise ship as it makes it's way from Seattle to Juneau? I don't want to book a whale watching excursion if we are going to see them anyways.

 

 

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[slix1]

We just cruised sailing June 9 and being in Juneau June 12. This was our 2nd Alaskan cruise and we saw whales from the ship both times. However, we took a whale watching excursion at Juneau both times. The cruise ship could take hours and hour of staring at the sea and you should have binoculars. Auke Bay must always have whales since most tours guarantee you will at least see a whale from a distance. Whales blow 2-3 times and then dive deeper with a flip of the tail. Most are down 5 minutes or a bit longer. You should see them much closer on a whale watching trip which often includes sea lion sightings. However, there is lots to do in Juneau so a sighting from your cruise might be enough for you.

[huskyguy]

If you spend many hours looking, you may see whales (I do spend many hours looking, and occasionally get lucky), but sightings on the excursions at Juneau are guaranteed, and they get you close.

[fishin' musician]

I've done two sailings in late June and saw many whales on each. Last year in Glacier Bay we probably saw 50. You won't see them from the casino or lounges, but if you spend a fair amount of time watching it would be unlikely you would not see some.

[aarrcc2]

You may see them from the ship but they won't be as close as a whale watching excursion. If it's important to you to really see whales up fairly close, take a whale watching trip from Juneau. Doesn't have to be from the ship, Orca Enterprises is right across from dock and offers several trips daily. It really is a thrill to see them!

[peety3]

My wife is a whale fanatic. On our first cruise, she spotted whales from the balcony by watching for the birds' typical behavior during (humpback whale) bubblenet feeding: the birds gather on the surface "inside" the circle of bubbles that has trapped the fish, and they grab what they can before taking off when the whales rise to feed. When the birds fly away, the whales are about to play.

 

On our second cruise, we attended various naturalist talks, and learned when the opportune times were to see whales. I remember the transit from Ketchikan to Juneau was a prime time for spotting, as was into/out of Glacier Bay NP.

 

That said, nothing compares to what we saw on our whale watching excursions. You'll see some from the ship, but an excursion is money well spent.

[Budget Queen]

First point I'll make, if you plan on looking from your balcony and it's not forward, you have cut your chances over 50%.

 

I ALWAYS see whales, BUT, I am out looking for extended times, and KNOW the feeding areas, which most people do not. But, for me, there is NO comparison to any whale watch, which I am always also on.

 

IF you just want a look at some whales, then you need to have a good pair of wide angle binoculars, and invest your time in looking.

 

IF you post your itinerary and times, I can give you more likely sighting areas.

[Budget Queen]

 

On our second cruise, we attended various naturalist talks, and learned when the opportune times were to see whales. I remember the transit from Ketchikan to Juneau was a prime time for spotting,

 

Snow Pass, Leaving Ketchikan, this transit is during dinner times, which some people have a priority for. Of course I don't and always see humpbacks there. (I did 3 Alaska cruises in May and went to the dining room for dinner- twice :) ) I also have hauled myself out prior to dawn on some sailings to catch this area on the southbound, which can be very early morning (again, depending on the route).

[Loubelou]

What about the Tracy Arm small boat excursion? Are whales usually seen during that time? Trying to decided whether to book the evening whale excursion in Juneau after being on the small boat in Tracy Arm for half the day.

 

 

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[Budget Queen]

What about the Tracy Arm small boat excursion? Are whales usually seen during that time? Trying to decided whether to book the evening whale excursion in Juneau after being on the small boat in Tracy Arm for half the day.

 

 

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You may see whales, but sightings are usually brief. This would not compare to any Auke Bay whale watch.

[fleckle]

What about the Tracy Arm small boat excursion? Are whales usually seen during that time? Trying to decided whether to book the evening whale excursion in Juneau after being on the small boat in Tracy Arm for half the day.

We took the Tracy Arm small boat excursion a few weeks ago and saw some whales a couple of times on the trip from Tracy Arm up to Juneau. The boat stopped to let us watch them briefly, but then continued on.

 

Although you may encounter whales along the way on the Tracy Arm excursion, it is not like taking a whale watching tour where the whales are the primary objective and the captain seeks them out.

 

If you take a whale watching tour out of Icy Strait Point and/or Juneau, you can be assured that you will definitely see humpbacks and may see orcas too.

 

How closely you see them depends on the whales because the boats are required to stop 100 yards away from the whales, but the whales have no restrictions so they can come right up to your boat and sometimes they do if you get lucky. Sometimes they even come right up beside the cruise ship at Icy Strait Point.

 

Edited June 22, 2014 by fleckle

[keddykat75]

We spend a lot of time on our balcony. Our room is forward on the upper promenade deck on the port side. We will be at sea on the 29th on our way to Juneau, the 30th is Juneau from 1pm to 10pm, the 1st is Glacier Bay 7am to 4pm, the 2nd is Sitka 7am to 3pm, the 3rd is Ketchikan 7am to 1pm, the 4th is Victoria 6pm to 11:59am then back to Seattle.

 

Thanks for all of the responses.

 

 

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[frugaltravel]

We spend a lot of time on our balcony. Our room is forward on the upper promenade deck on the port side. We will be at sea on the 29th on our way to Juneau, the 30th is Juneau from 1pm to 10pm, the 1st is Glacier Bay 7am to 4pm, the 2nd is Sitka 7am to 3pm, the 3rd is Ketchikan 7am to 1pm, the 4th is Victoria 6pm to 11:59am then back to Seattle.

 

Thanks for all of the responses.

 

As BQ said, if you try to view just from your balcony, you cut your chances by at least 50%. If you are in a forward viewing area, you will see forward and both sides of the ship - way, way better if you really want to see whales.

[Ti2m]

the boats are required to stop 100 yards away from the whales, but the whales have no restrictions so they can come right up to your boat

 

That made me smile ... maybe you should say ... "but the whales have no restrictions ... YET"

[Budget Queen]

We spend a lot of time on our balcony. Our room is forward on the upper promenade deck on the port side. We will be at sea on the 29th on our way to Juneau, the 30th is Juneau from 1pm to 10pm, the 1st is Glacier Bay 7am to 4pm, the 2nd is Sitka 7am to 3pm, the 3rd is Ketchikan 7am to 1pm, the 4th is Victoria 6pm to 11:59am then back to Seattle.

 

Thanks for all of the responses.

 

 

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This is side viewing, with the 50% I mention. For the most sightings, you need to track from way AHEAD, which you won't be able to do if you stay in your cabin.

 

Anyway- IF you want the "most" opportunity, then cut back on your sleep and be out from early morning, your Juneau day. Glacier Bay day- you are best to be up at least a half hour prior to dawn. Going in and out of Sitka, has good potential wildlife viewing, again, with the early port time, at least 1/2 hour prior to dawn, then staying out for a few hours. It depends on your routing, going to Ketchikan, which will be up to you to find out. But, likely open ocean, so if you just want to spend aimless time- the opportunity would be more likely to spot dalls porpoises, and Pacific white sided dolphins. Both are fast moving, that you would be lucky to have 10 seconds of view. :) The whale area, would be Snow Pass, you can ask at the information desk to contact the bridge if your route. Or if your ship has a naturalist, get real friendly, and ask them the precise route.

[keddykat75]

I think I will book an excursion and also get up early to watch from the balcony.

 

 

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[Trip Biatch]

We did see whales from the cruise ship. However, none really close up like we did on our "Wildlife Boat Tour" out of Sitka. The likelihood of seeing whales there is high too if you have another preferred excursion in Juneau. We used Gallant Adventures and would recommend Paul.

[hellokitty49]

Just back from Alaska Southbound Voyage of the Glaciers and we saw whales from the ship off our balcony but you've got to be a little dedicated. We did the Harv and Marv whale watching in Juneau and saw lots of whales!!! I highly recommend them if you want to see whales.