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Some tours can even be combined with a night in a cabin at the Kenai Fjords Wilderness Lodge. As I mentioned earlier, I generally advise that longer is better in Kenai Fjords, but perhaps you only have – or only want to spend – a half-day on your Kenai Fjords cruise. (There are plenty of other great things to do in Seward!) In that case, a shorter tour is best, and the 4-hour wildlife cruise from Major Marine Tours is my top recommendation.
Half-Day Wildlife Tours
Select the time, the length and the route that most stokes your sense of adventure. Our tours take you further into the fjords, and can include an exclusive dining experience on remote Fox Island. To make the most of views and fresh air on the exterior decks, it is important to dress in layers for this tour. Bring a rain jacket, hat, and gloves, and wear warm base layers and rubber-soled shoes.
Top Things to do in Seward this Spring
Arrive early for day trips to take advantage of our free parking and shuttle service. Tours fill up very quickly, so we recommend you book well in advance to secure your preferred tour. Keep an eye on the rocky coast—they use these rocks to dry off and warm up. Our tour is the first to enter Kenai Fjords National Park each day, and we get to enjoy the magic of an awakening wilderness. I started this site to share my travel stories and inspiration to help you complete bucket list trips. I’m also a not-so-secret space nerd and speak fluent emoji!
Who Offers Kenai Fjords National Park Cruises?
The sky is clear and the sun creates a million sparkles of light on the face of the ocean. A humpback whale erupts from the shallow waves in a full breach. A glacier cracks loudly making the phrase “white thunder” make sense as a giant piece of ice falls into the water. An otter rides the wake of our boat, holding onto a rock it will use to crack open the clamshell in its other paw for lunch. These are some of the quintessential experiences you can have on a Kenai Fjords National Park cruise.
And, because big-time calving happens almost every day, you’ll also likely experience some glacial activity. You'll hear a sound like the crack of a gunshot, then watch as a huge chunk of ice splinters off the glacier to fall hundreds of feet to the ocean below. Luckily, there are a number of cruise companies and a wide variety of cruise routes and itineraries to help you reach Kenai Fjords.
Why a Day Cruise Is Ideal for Visiting Kenai Fjords National Park - TravelAge West
Why a Day Cruise Is Ideal for Visiting Kenai Fjords National Park.
Posted: Sun, 13 Nov 2022 08:00:00 GMT [source]
Whale Watch Adventure
Check in at the boat tour office located in the Harbor 360 Hotel. A deli lunch with turkey sandwich, chips, granola bar, brownie, and soft drink is served on board. A vegan/vegetarian lunch option is available and must be requested in advance. Additional snacks, hot and cold drinks, and alcoholic beverages are available for purchase. The staff made sure we had two tables together and everybody was very accommodating. It is nice that you have the tables as your home base for the entire trip.
National Park Tours, 6 or 8.5 hours
The well-being of our guests and staff has always been our top concern. This season we are continuing to take appropriate measures to ensure you can travel with confidence. 3.5 Hour Excursion – Departure times vary – Explore the beautiful coastline and points of interest around Resurrection Bay while looking for local wildlife, and Whales whenever possible. See beautiful Resurrection Bay in the spring, as well as additional wildlife viewing and opportunities to view Bear Glacier in the distance. Several local hotels provide shuttle service to the Small Boat Harbor. For self-drivers, parking is available across the street from the Harbor 360 Hotel or one block south of the South Harbor Office on 4th Avenue.
Yes, this cruise visits one active tidewater glacier in Aialik Bay. Depending on weather, you may also see Bear Glacier, which is a piedmont glacier and the largest glacier in Kenai Fjords National Park, along with alpine glaciers perched high in the mountains. The captain narrates during the cruise, sharing some of his deep knowledge of the Seward area’s history and terrain.
9-hour Ultimate Adventure Tour by Northern Latitude Adventures
We are a locally-owned, family company with over 30 years of sharing authentic Alaska adventures with our guests. Home to three tidewater glaciers, the Northwestern Fjord is unlike anywhere else on earth. Watch for wildlife at every turn, and get so close to the glaciers you can almost touch them on this fully-narrated full-day cruise. Seabird rookeries dot the islands and alpine glaciers cover the horizon.
You will spend time in front of a towering tidewater glacier and watch for calving, where giant chunks of glacial ice break off and crash into the water. Tour Kenai Fjords on one of our cruise options ranging from 4 hours to 8.5 hours. Our cruises explore the glacier-carved fjords and abundant wildlife of Resurrection Bay and Kenai Fjords National Park, offering some of the best glacier viewing and whale watching opportunities in Alaska. Whichever cruise you pick, you'll generally see at least one active tidewater glacier, and your captain takes the boat as close to any glacier as safely possible—typically between a half mile and a quarter mile.
The most popular tour, perhaps because it is a pretty full day, but still flexible. Major Marine Tours is a proud participant of Whale SENSE, an education program that recognizes whale watching companies committed to responsible whale watching practices. This tour crosses through the Gulf of Alaska for a short time, where there is a higher chance of seasickness due to the area’s bumpy open waters.
While we cannot guarantee whale sightings, our captains visit wildlife hot spots and communicate with other vessels about recent wildlife sightings to give our guests the best chances of viewing whales. On average, we see whales on 80% of our 6 Hour Kenai Fjords National Park Cruises. The longer you are on the water, the greater your chances are of seeing whales. Major Marine Tours is my favorite Kenai Fjords cruise operator, and this 8.5-hour tour is their longest tour that will take you to the furthest reaches of the national park. You’ll spend a whopping 8.5 hours out on the water – a great amount of time on a day with good weather (or a miserable unending slog if the water is choppy or has swells!).
Remember, we have a lowest price guarantee for nearly everything we sell. In addition to the afternoon departure, the morning 6 Hour Cruise will depart at 8am and return at 2pm for the early morning risers. I was born on the East Coast and currently live in the Midwest – but my heart will always be out West. I lived for 15 years in Alaska, as well as four years each in California and Washington. I share travel resources and stories based on my personal experience and knowledge.
Captains are always on the lookout for wildlife and will stop the boat to drift along when something's been spotted. You'll probably see hundreds of harbor seals just basking on the icebergs around you, and you might see any number of puffins, cormorants, sea otters or Dall’s porpoises. Okay, now that I’ve covered all of the companies that offer Kenai Fjords cruises, I want to provide you with a ranked list of all of the cruise itineraries they offer. These are all of the primary cruises offered during the Alaskan summer season. I cover each one briefly to explain why I ranked it that way. Join Alaska’s most popular wildlife and glacier cruise, gliding past wildlife, coastal rainforests, glaciers and remote islands.
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