Description
- Air-conditioned and licensed round-trip transportation from your Icy Strait cruise pier area!
- English-speaking certified local guides!
- Bear Searching!
- Exclusive, small group van!
- Whale watching off Point Adolphus!
- Exclusive boat with a heated cabin as well as outdoor deck space!
- Stop for coffee and optional lunch purchase!
- Escape the cruise ship shore excursion crowds and enjoy the unique sights and wildlife of Icy Strait and the surrounding area!
Combine the two most popular shore excursions in the Hoonah, Alaska area...searching for bears and watching the amazing humpback whales, all in one great day!
Make the most of your time in port...combine two of the most popular excursions in this part of Alaska. You will board your custom-built, whale watching boat and motor to Point Adolphus, near the entrance to Glacier Bay National Park approximately 40 minutes away. Not only does the scenery provide amazing photo ops but the wildlife watching ahead will as well.
Here, the protected inside passage waters are teeming with herring and krill, the major staples of the migrating Humpback whale's diet which make it one of the most populated feeding grounds in Alaska for Humpback Whales. The whales travel up from Hawaii and Mexico during the winter months when they are mating and giving birth. They spend the summer months in the Alaskan waters feeding in the preparation for their 3,000-mile journey.
You will spend approximately 2.5 hours on the lookout for whales' bubble feeding, tail lobbing, and hopefully breaching. To see this massive mammal shoot out of the water, and come back down creating a thunderous sound as it hits the water, is a sight not soon forgotten. After your whale-watching excursion, the boat will take you back to the dock.
The second part of your wildlife shore excursion involves searching for brown and black bears in their natural habitat. Where some tours go to one location and hope for the best, your local guide will take you to several different locations based on where bears have most recently been seen. Being in a small group has the advantage of quiet and quick maneuvering to where the bears are. Your viewing will be from a safe distance.
In bear families, the male is larger than the female. The Brown (Grizzly) male can weigh up to 1,500 lbs (680 kg) They will lose up to 40% of that weight during hibernation. The Black Bears tend to be smaller.
Brown bears dine on a variety of foods including salmon, berries, grasses, small animals, and roots. Although brown bears are capable of bringing down a moose or caribou, this is not common.
During the 3-hour bear portion of your excursion, you may also spot other wildlife such as Sitka blacktail deer, beaver, and eagles just to name a few.
The order of activities may switch. In between the morning and afternoon portion, a stop will be made for restrooms, coffee, and the option to purchase a sack lunch. The day ends back at your Icy Strait cruise ship pier.
Where we meet
For this Icy Strait Bear and Whale Combo Excursion, you will meet your local shore excursion guide in the parking area of the Icy Strait cruise pier shoreside. All necessary details will be printed on your Electronic Shore Excursion Ticket.
Cancellation
Cancellations within 14 to 3 days prior to excursion are subject to a cancellation fee of 50% of total price. Cancellations within 3 days prior to excursion are non-refundable.
For the Icy Strait Bear and Whale Combo Excursion, we issue full refund for your deposit or full payment to us if: Canceled by client prior to excursion date with a minimum of 15 days prior notice by email to reservations@shoreexcursioneer.com.
For cancellation reasons below, you must contact us via email within 14 days after your excursion:
- Your ship arrives into port late and you cannot make it in time to the meeting location (we will verify with the tour operator).
- Your ship skips/misses the port.
- Weather conditions or equipment failure prevents the operator from running the excursion.
- A medical problem prevents you from safely participating in the excursion (we will verify with the excursion operator and the guest may send doctor's note). This applies to individuals only and not the remainder of the group.
- Cancellations/deposit refund requests that do not comply with the above may not be subject to refund.
- Refunds may be subject to a service charge fee as determined by the payment processor, please refer to Terms and Conditions for more information.
