Juneau Whale Watch-current reliable company for 2017

I booked a rental car for Juneau to DIY the area. However after perusing this site for many months I am second guessing my choice. I have a trip in Kenai Fijords booked with MM for pre-cruise. After reading a post by BQ I just realized what she was saying, that trip is a route trip an if I want to see whales I need a back up trip. So I am now trying to investigate a whale trip as part of my day in Juneau. When I look at previous posts I see that Harv & Marv sold their company so new owners. Jayleen a daughter of one of them has her own company but had trouble with an excursion where the boat passengers needed to be rescued. So who is a reliable company in Juneau at this time?

Gastineau Guiding seems to only book whale/Mendenhall tours and through the ship. I want to keep my rental car for my own DIY driving trip after the whale watch.

We are in Juneau 6:30 am -4pm.

So far I see Dolphin Jet Boat and Juneau Whale Watch. Any feedback on these 2 companies? Any suggestions?

Thanks for any advice.

I've used Harv & Marv's with no issue. I wasn't aware they had new owners but has there been a huge rise in negative reviews since the new owners took over? I've booked with Jayleen for next year - I have just read the one incident you are referring to and there must be more to that story as Jayleen is an accomplished captain. The communication I have had with her so far is superb, she really knows her stuff and is so happy to answer my questions and offer advice. She also has 20 5* reviews on Trip Advisor after 1 season. I'm sure things can happen to any person/company but it doesn't make them unreliable.

Just found this story about Dolphin Jet Boat... http://juneauempire.com/local/2016-08-01/were-sinking-juneau-familys-fast-actions-save-lives-sea

We have gone with Harv and Marv numerous times and enjoyed all of our trips. When did they sell their company? Are you talking about the purchase from the original owners which happened quite a while back? As for Jaylene, don't just rely on Cruise Critic comments, also take a look at TripAdvisor and see what others have to say. I will be going with Jaylene twice in July so I can't comment at this point.

WoW! That article reminds us of how quickly things can go wrong, especially on the water! Glad that turned out so well

.I read about the turnover on CC and I am not sure but I think it was in 2014. Some reviewers on CC felt the quality changed after the sale.

WoW! That article reminds us of how quickly things can go wrong, especially on the water! Glad that turned out so well

.I read about the turnover on CC and I am not sure but I think it was in 2014. Some reviewers on CC felt the quality changed after the sale.

I went with them in 2015 and had a great trip, it really was brilliant and I couldn't fault any part of it from pre-trip communication to getting back to the ship after the trip.

We have gone with Harv and Marv numerous times and enjoyed all of our trips. When did they sell their company? Are you talking about the purchase from the original owners which happened quite a while back? As for Jaylene, don't just rely on Cruise Critic comments, also take a look at TripAdvisor and see what others have to say. I will be going with Jaylene twice in July so I can't comment at this point.

I would be really interested to hear how you get on with your trips with Jayleen in July :)

I would be really interested to hear how you get on with your trips with Jayleen in July :)

I will make sure to report back when we return. The last time we saw Jaylene was in 2008 when she was the photographer on her Dad's boat. Looking forward to touching base with her and enjoying her new venture.

I will make sure to report back when we return. The last time we saw Jaylene was in 2008 when she was the photographer on her Dad's boat. Looking forward to touching base with her and enjoying her new venture.

Oh lovely, thank you, I look forward to hearing how you got on. I must say the communication I have had with her so far for my excursion with her next year has been first rate. She has gone out of her way to offer help and when I mentioned I was getting a new camera, she offered so much advice and also said during the trip she will do her best to give me pointers from everything she has learnt over the years. To me, this is going above and beyond.

Enjoy your cruises :)

I will be in Janeau - whale watching on 5/17. Is this a good time to see whales?

We have used Jayleen three times (ourselves and our adult children). We have all thoroughly enjoyed the small boat (max 6 passenger) experience, her professionalism, humor, and knowledge of the area. I cannot imagine using anyone else. I am sure the other boats are fine, but I don't want to be on a boat that has more than 6 people. You get a totally different experience with the small numbers that you don't get on the larger boats, even those with 15 people.

I will make sure to report back when we return. The last time we saw Jaylene was in 2008 when she was the photographer on her Dad's boat. Looking forward to touching base with her and enjoying her new venture.

We went with Harv & Marv in 2014 and Jayleen was our captain...she was great!! I would not hesitate to go with her and or Harv & Marv again

I am sorry but a family tie and and great phone and book keeping skills do not a great boat Captain make. My family has a great Naval history that is remarkable but that does not qualify them to Captain a boat in small boat waters. A Boat Captain should have first and foremost the safety of their passengers at heart, and they should know the waters they are plying, An accident is one thing but lack of experience, panic in an unexpected event resulting in an abandon ship is a whole different situation. In the case of another company hitting a reef and sinking is a severe situation! The reef is a permanent placement, the tides are known, How did the Boat Captain not know the waters and reef?

I am sorry but a family tie and and great phone and book keeping skills do not a great boat Captain make. My family has a great Naval history that is remarkable but that does not qualify them to Captain a boat in small boat waters. A Boat Captain should have first and foremost the safety of their passengers at heart, and they should know the waters they are plying, An accident is one thing but lack of experience, panic in an unexpected event resulting in an abandon ship is a whole different situation. In the case of another company hitting a reef and sinking is a severe situation! The reef is a permanent placement, the tides are known, How did the Boat Captain not know the waters and reef?

With regards to Jayleen, one person's brief (at best) account of a situation that occurred does not give anything more than a passing glimpse at what happened. And no, before you say it, I don't know what happened either as I wasn't there but had it have been that serious, more than one person would have mentioned it, it would have made reviews on here, Trip Advisor or even the local paper. I guess I believe in innocent until proven guilty... not shoot first ask questions later.

I will be in Janeau - whale watching on 5/17. Is this a good time to see whales?

Whales are incredibly unpredictable as I am sure you appreciate! However, I went in May 2015, had a wonderful time and saw many whales.

Have a lovely time :)

We booked Juneau Whale Watch for our September cruise - the Mendenhall Glacier/Whale Watch combo.

They are the #1 attraction on TripAdvisor for Juneau, if that interests you.

Hopefully we'll have a good time!

With regards to Jayleen, one person's brief (at best) account of a situation that occurred does not give anything more than a passing glimpse at what happened. And no, before you say it, I don't know what happened either as I wasn't there but had it have been that serious, more than one person would have mentioned it, it would have made reviews on here, Trip Advisor or even the local paper. I guess I believe in innocent until proven guilty... not shoot first ask questions later.

More then one person did mention it.

I have no beef in this - never met her but 2 people (not associated with each other) were on that trip and both reported similar accounts. If you do a search, they wrote about their experiences in detail.

We booked Juneau Whale Watch for our September cruise - the Mendenhall Glacier/Whale Watch combo.

 

They are the #1 attraction on TripAdvisor for Juneau, if that interests you.

 

Hopefully we'll have a good time!

I have that same excursion booked for August. I am going to post a review. I have been reading these boards for about 18 months and I haven't seen a whole lot of trip reports with a whole lot of info.

I can give +++ to Harv and Marv. We used them last May '16. Great tour, plus a bonus of seeing the daughters from Alaskan Bush People that we're filming at the dock. My 13 year old left his cell phone in the shuttle van after the tour (of course he did not realize it till we were at our next port and the battery was dead). After H & M located it they asked for our address. When I texted them back I asked if I could pay the shipping through their website.... next thing I knew we received it the mail, priority...no charge. A+ company in my opinion. Oh and on the tour saw lots of orcas and humpbacks. The only thing we didn't see was a whale breach.

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

I will be in Janeau - whale watching on 5/17. Is this a good time to see whales?

Humpbacks are not fully migrated, but you will see whales. :) Have a great trip.

We did Harv & Marv a week ago today. :cool: Had small (6 person) boat w/Capt. Liz. Wonderful experience!

Absolutely no complaints.

same here. we did Harv & Marv on June 6. 12 people on our own private boat. AWESOME. Saw lots of whales. Very fun

We did Harv & Marv a week ago today. :cool: Had small (6 person) boat w/Capt. Liz. Wonderful experience!

Absolutely no complaints.

Glad to hear you had a good time with Capt. Liz. We have gone out with Capt. Liz many times; really enjoyed our trips with her. Did she play her game with the whale?

We are going out with Dolphin Jet Boat with our group of 14 next month. We wanted a shorter cruise and the price was right!

I'm looking for a recommendation of a company other than Harv and Marv - I'd love to use them based on all the awesome reviews but their policy won't allow my 12 & 10 year old kids on their tours so I need to book something else. Has anyone used these companies or can make a recommendation of another that they've used? Going in August so I want to book soon.

http://www.juneauadventures.com/reservations.php

http://www.shoreexcursionsgroup.com/tour/mendenhall-glacier-whale-watching/AKJNDOLWHLGL

Many thanks,

Elissa