jillg

When in Seward, we definitely wanted to do a Kenai Fjords Tour. However, we are all prone to seasickness (4 adults, 5 kids ages 7-14). We do plan on using Bonine, but will we be missing out if we only do the 3 hour Resurrection Bay Tour? Will we get to see whales? Also, do you think the kids would be bored on a longer tour? Any input would be appreciated.

BudgetQueen

Sorry, absolutely not. I never recommend this boat tour. You don't even loose sight of Seward. Not likely to have any wildlife either and certainly I would not count on any whales.

My opinion only, either get on a boat of at least 6 hours, or choose some other touring option. Plenty to see and do in Seward.

Have you had experience with Bonine?? It can be an excellent product in the prevention of motion sickness. Consult your health care professional for advice. As for bored kids- yes can happen, key is to have activites- triple the batteries you think you'll need too. But if you involve them in your touring choices and give them "jobs", have them search on the net specific animals- glacier information, migrations, plants etc etc etc ANYTHING!!! Will perhaps hold their interest for the entire trip.

centralpa

jillg

Something else that helps is to take the first Bonine pill 24 hrs in advance, then take the next an hour before you leave. When it first became available back in the 80's, the instructions told you to do that, but they've changed them. One of my sons used to have motion sickness so back that within 10 minutes in a car, boat, or plane he would get sick. This method worked wonders for boats (even went on a cruise successfully). Good luck.

egret

We took the three hour Resurrection Bay tour and it was wonderful. We saw otters, puffins, whales(they cut the engines and they swam right up to our boat--I can still hear them spouting) and incredible scenery. We were very please.
Two words of advise--bring a jacket--it gets cold on the water. Also bring dollar bills for hot drinks, such as cocoa--really warming on the water. We went the end of May.
I would do this tour again in a heartbeat.

dfrostnh

On the longest tour I think quite a few people get bored by the time you head back. My husband dozed off in the cabin. I'm not sure of the timing but the narration winds down unless there's a surprise critter to see. It's an exciting day but a long one. We wanted to see a glacier calf. Even though it didn't actually happen, the bay was filled with ice and the noises the glacier majes are eerie. Orcas are incredible. They swim and dive in unison (we got some great video). We only saw one (humpback?) whale with a baby, close enough to smell whale breath. However, if the whole group is prone to seasickness, shorter might be better. We went late June on a perfect day when no one got sick. It will depend on the weather/seas. If it's a rough day the 3 hour tour would probably be advisable or not going at all. My husband had had his first case of seasickness on a deep sea fishing trip and was worried about how he would do. Check cancellation policy to see if you can cancel if the ocean is rough. Good luck.

caligirl56

Two other things you can do to help with seasickness. (I would do them in addition to the bonine--not instead of it).

Ginger tablets--start taking them the day before. Also, you can get those wrist bands that put pressure on a certain spot in your wrist. For those you can wait until you are starting to feel sick and put them on then. And of course don't eat a huge greasy breakfast the morning of your trip.

We did the six hour tour when we were there. If you stay in Resurrection Bay you won't see the truly big glaciers. I've never been on the 3-hour tour, be I would guess that you won't even see a glacier calve. Also, the longer tour goes down by the Chiswell Islands where there is A LOT of bird life. It's just beautiful.

One other thing--we wore long underwear under our pants--it gets really cold out in the wind when the boat is moving fast. The long underwear (and a warm hat) made a HUGE difference. We needed it--and we were lucky enough to be there on a sunny, fairly calm day!

debnmike

If you want to see ice, Resurrection Bay is not enough. We just returned 6/4/07. Weather prevented us from making it past Resurrection Bay, so while we saw whales, birds, etc., the scenery was green/brown mountains, no ice.

debnmike

Another thought: Kenai Fjords Tour Co. was not particularly service-oriented. The captain did his best to give us our money's worth despite not getting us into the icy fjords, but the college-aged staff wasn't very helpful. I would suggest looking into other companies offering the same itineraries.

The Kenai Fjords Tour captain was very knowledgeable, however, about where to locate wildlife and the whales' patterns and where to find them.

emeraldisle45

We took the Kenai Fjords Resurrectiion Bay tour two weeks ago since the ocean was stormy and the boats would not go out there that day. We loved it. We saw whales right away...and many other animals. We had the Salmon Bake on Fox Island which was very good and well organized. I think it was enough since we saw glaciers and animal life and really enjoyed it.

BudgetQueen

You do not get to any glaciers on the bay tours. Where did you go that you saw glaciers??? Or are you talking about bear glacier at a LONG distance??