Whale Watching from Friday Harbor

Overview

The best orca whale watching is from Friday Harbor, San Juan Island, just an easy day trip adventure from downtown Seattle. The San Juan Islands are considered the "jewel" of the Pacific Northwest, located in the Puget Sound.

City: San Juan Islands

Wed 25 Dec

Other dates

You can choose the date already on the booking website

Starting at $135.00

Make a reservation

Wed 25 Dec

Starting at $135.00

Make a reservation

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What's Included

Whale Watching Cruise

Local taxes

Additional Info

Service animals allowed
Specialized infant seats are available
Suitable for all physical fitness levels
For maximum safety children under 2 should be in a harness carrier strapped to a parent and remain in the cabin
"Special Limited" tour not recommended for child aged 13 and under
Restrooms are available on board the boat
Face masks required for travellers in public areas
Face masks required for guides in public areas
Hand sanitiser available to travellers and staff
Social distancing enforced throughout experience
Regularly sanitised high-traffic areas
Gear/equipment sanitised between use
Guides required to regularly wash hands
Paid stay-at-home policy for staff with symptoms
50% capacity on vessels

What To Expect

San Juan Island

San Juan Island is considered the best place to view orca whales because the salmon, which are their prime source of food (about 95% of what they eat), travel up and down the west coast of San Juan Island and outlying areas. Take this Whale watching tour and see orca whales which has been viewed on over 90% of the tours with the possibility of spotting minke, humpback and gray whales to be higher. What is the best time to see orca whales? Anytime. They are out and about all day. You will be guaranteed see marine mammals and come back with memories to last a lifetime! Enjoy the beauty of San Juan Island on an exclusive Whale Watch Cruise from Friday Harbor. Sail aboard the fast, new 55 foot MV Sea Lion (with windowed, heated cabin, which seats up to 24 guests). 40 or fewer guest aboard this comfortable boat with walk around deck.

Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Traveler Photos

Reviews (660)

Bharat S

Jul 2013

Friendly and informative crew. The boat was also pretty good. Great for family with kids.

njbeachbum56

Jul 2013

Our family loves our experience on the San Juan Safari whale watching trip. They had not seen the whales for a few days before, but they came back for us! We only saw one breech, but watched them come up many times and also many tail flaps. Boat ride to and from whale area also beautiful.

Ph0t0trip

Jul 2013

I had whale watching with San Juan Safari on July 4th weekend, the experience was "TERRIBLE", they did not tell you you'll need to be stay inside, otherwise you'll get soaking wet. The Capt. doesn't really care you viewing location.

Response from Host

Jul 2013

Dear Mr. Luh, Thank you so much for your feedback on our San Juan Safaris and San Juan Outfitters Trip Advisor pages on July 9th. Thank you for acknowledging our wonderful reservations staff and our high quality customer service. We sincerely enjoyed having you as our guests, but were very disappointed in your tour experience for kayaking and whale watching on July 4th. Looking over our email dialogue in March of this past spring, it appears that we did sell our tours accurately, and we did provide the tour experience we discussed in March. You are correct in saying that we do not encounter whales by kayak as often as by whale watching vessel. This is why we encourage all of our guests who travel to the San Juan Islands only to encounter whales to join us for a wildlife tour by kayak and a whale watch tour by motorized vessel, or to schedule multiple full day kayak tours. In regards to watching whales in the wild, we do adhere to all federal NOAA guidelines, which we also did discuss in our email exchanges. We encountered killer whales on our sunset whale watch tour that evening, and did so in a respectful way as to not negatively impact wildlife. We do have rain slickers, rain jackets, and blankets on board our vessels for our guests’ use. We would have been very happy to provide you with extra layers when needed. Again, we sincerely apologize that your tour experience did not meet your expectations. Please let us know if we could have done something differently to more accurately describe and sell our tours. Sincerely, Brian Goodremont Owner I Operator I Captain San Juan Safaris 800.450.6858