Just booked Capt. Larry, hope it's as good as I've read

[cruiseaway]

I just booked Capt. Larry's whale watch for myself and 10 year old son for July 14. I read
up on this whale watch and the ones offered through Princess and went with Capt. Larry. Sounds like an awesome experience. Had a great time talking with Carol when I made our reservations. If anyone out there is thinking of booking, don't wait to long the seats are going fast. Thanks to all of the previous cruisers for pointing out the advantages of Capt. Larry. We arrive in port at 1 pm and whale watch from 3:00-6:30. Will we have time to take the tram either before or after the tour?

[rduke]

Hey Cruiseway, we will be with the Captain also on the 14th but since our ship gets in early we will be on a early morning outing. Hope we see more whales than you!! ha ha

[url="http://www.geocities.com/warrnhu/wars/knight8.gif"]www.geocities.com/warrnhu/wars/knight8.gif[/url]
Cunard Princess 9/83
Big Red Boat 10/95
Conquest 3/03
Spirit 8/04

[rduke]

oh oh I just reread your post...we won't be there until Aug. 14 so I guess you have nothing to worry about!!??

[url="http://www.geocities.com/warrnhu/wars/knight8.gif"]www.geocities.com/warrnhu/wars/knight8.gif[/url]
Cunard Princess 9/83
Big Red Boat 10/95
Conquest 3/03
Spirit 8/04

[Mezzaluna]

We're also booked for July 14, but are on the 9:00 cruise. From everything I've read here, we're in for a wonderful excursion!

Stella Solaris '80
Carnival Celebration '92
RCCL Majesty of the Seas '01
Coral Princess '04

[Budget Queen]

I've gone with Orca 4 times- just a supurb operator in my opinion. Yes you'll have time for the tram- go first as your ticket is for all day then repeat the ride up at nights- very pretty with the town and ships lit up.

[mpk]

I also just signed up with Capt Larry.

On TV the other day, there was a whale watching trip in Mexico where they use really small boats. The boats could hold no more than ten. The humpbacks would come right up to the boats, and the people could actually pet the whales. I doubt this is the case in Alaska, right?

Myself, that would put me on edge being in a tiny boat with huge animals swimming around it :O But it sure looked fun.

[wildflwr3]

Does Captain Larry's have a web page or do you have to call direct? If I have to call direct can someone provide a phone number?
Thanks,
Sheryl

[sboh]

Here is a link to their website: [url="http://www.alaskawhalewatching.com"]www.alaskawhalewatching.com[/url]
We're booked for July 19 and can't wait!

[mpk]

[url="http://www.orcaenterprises.com/"]http://www.orcaenterprises.com/[/url]

[Budget Queen]

The humpbacks would come right up to the boats, and the people could actually pet the whales. I doubt this is the case in Alaska, right

Correct- no contact. AND probably the whales you saw were grays not humpbacks.

[newbiecruiser54]

We'll be on Captain Larry's on June 8th and will report back when we get home! We are very excited [img]http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif[/img]!

Radiance of the Seas - Alaska!
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[sarahjane]

Budget Queen, can you help me??
We will be in Juneau (RCI Serenade) in late July. I'm trying to figure out a way to combine the 4 1/2 hour glacier trek excursion with an afternoon whale-watching tour. I can't find a way to work out the timing. My 2 teens and I are going in the a.m. with Northstar and will be back at 12:15. My husband will be fishing and back around 12:00. So far all of the whale-watching tours I've been able to find (through RCI and Orca Ent.) start at noon or before. Is there one that won't leave until 12:30 or later? I don't see how we could get there any earlier. Also a problem -- Serenade leaves port at 4:00. Is there any good whale-watching out of Skagway? or maybe Ketchikan? We REALLY want to glacier trek, and hubby REALLY wants to fish, but it's sad to not go see the whales!! Any help and/or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
THANK YOU!
sarahjane

Serenade to Alaska 7/25/04!!!
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Serenade 7/04
Enchantment 1/04
Voyager 7/02
Majesty 2/01

[mpk]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Correct- no contact. AND probably the whales you saw were grays not humpbacks.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Wow, you are sharp! [img]http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif[/img] I got curious and checked. As you say, they were gray whales in Baja. They only occasionally see humpbacks and orcas. If they say occasionally in a sales sense, that must translate to rarely!

[Budget Queen]

I don't see any whale watching option for you with a 4pm ship departure. Even the noon trips are essentially out as they run 3- 3 1/2 hours and you are at least a 20 min transfer from the ship dock. You need to be on board by 3:30pm. But I do have a suggestion- be out at the front of your ship - well prepared in your attire with a good pair of wide angle binculars leaving Juneau, some sightings possible, also if not in port real early- get up in time for the sail in- by several hours. If there is a ship naturalist- ask where the whales were seen the week before- be willing to invest a considerable amount of time at the front deck. Another good area is Vancouver Island- be up early your first sailing and out late your last sailing day.

[sboh]

mpk- I also saw that segment. They were grays and they were beautiful!

[two cruisers 723]

Sarahjane, you may want to try some of the smaller independents. Some of them will charter around your schedule. Try [url="http://www.juneausportfishing.com"]www.juneausportfishing.com[/url]. The have a max capacity of 6 people per boat and do whale watching excursions. If they don't have anything else booked at that time, they may charter privately for you and your family. We chartered a 31 foot boat for a full day out of Icy Straights during our Alaska cruise next month. Although they'll take up to 4 people, they're going to take just my husband and I and if we meet anyone on the ship, we can bring them along (they'll have to pay also, of course). This company also does whale watching tours. But you didn't mention stopping in Icy Straights, so it's probably not an option for you. You can get on the internet and search for whale watching charters in juneau also and may find several independents to look into.