We were a party of 13 family members in Alaska on Quantum of the Seas. We elected to book a tour directly with Alaska Tales rather than a ship excursion because of the heated interior of the boat, and the availability of a restroom on board.
Quite simply, our whale watching experience was epic! We were on a boat staffed by Larry, Ben, and Monica. We saw whales 30 minutes into our tour, and ended up in an area with several whales who gave us the best show ever - it felt like we saw a whale every 5 minutes! Larry, Ben and Monica were very kind to answer all of our kids questions, also explained whale anatomy and socialization, which made the tour fun for the kids. They were so informative, and helped each of us to see as many whales as possible.
We even saw baby humpbacks breaching that day!
There is a 20 minute or so bus ride from downtown Juneau both before and after the boat - the guide basically gave us a tour which was fun - we saw many eagles and other wildlife. He had the best restaurant recommendation - Dockside Dave’s!!!! We ended up going there and loved it!
I would highly recommend Alaska Tales to anyone considering an independent tour. This was a superior value and experience compared with the cruise excursion offerings.