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    Home » Travel » Cruising

    Whale Watching in Alaska with Carnival Cruise Line

    Published: Sep 3, 2014 · Modified: Jun 22, 2023 by Jennifer · This post may contain affiliate links · 41 Comments

    252 shares

    Ah...Alaska. It has always been a dream of mine to go on an Alaskan cruise. I love the outdoors, I love cruising, I love wildlife - so an Alaskan cruise was definitely the way I wanted to see this place that is so far away from us here in Miami that even though it's part of the United States, it seems like a foreign country. When Microsoft invited my family on an all-expenses paid Alaskan Cruise, I about fainted! While Chris wasn't able to get the time off from work to join us, Angeline and I packed our bags full of sweaters, boots and down jackets and headed to Seattle to embark on the experience of a lifetime...I mean, come on, Whale Watching in Alaska with Carnival Cruise Line - who wouldn't dream of this trip for half of their life?!

    Whale Watching in Alaska with Carnival Cruise Line

    Whale Watching in Alaska with Carnival Cruise Line

    Whale Watching in Alaska with Carnival Cruise Line

    We did so many things on the Carnival Miracle Alaskan Cruise that I will have to break it up into a few posts, but for now, I really wanted to share our experiences with whale watching with you! This was by far my favorite part of the trip and what will probably lead me to book a follow up Alaskan cruise when the Harbor Seals are birthing in the early summer!

    On our first day at sea, I was sitting on my balcony watching the waves when I suddenly spotted a mist rise up into the air.

    I immediately knew that it was a whale spouting - I had never seen this before, but I instinctively recognized what it was because I knew we were in an area that had whales! I believe we were approaching Stephen's Passage at that point, where we later saw a ton of humpback whales!

    Whale Watching in Alaska on the Carnival MIracle

    We had brought along our binoculars for spotting wildlife, but the water was so smooth and the whales were so close that we didn't really need to use them that often. I have had LASIK eye surgery, so I didn't need them at all, but Angeline used them to spot the whales that were out in the distance.

    Whale Watching in Alaska on the Carnival Miracle 1

    While we did see a ton of humpback whales during our voyage through Stephen's Passage, they weren't all incredibly close like they were when we went on our Best of Juneau shore excursion.

    The Best of Juneau shore excursion includes 3 of Juneau’s top attractions: a “whales guaranteed” wildlife cruise, a wilderness island salmon bake, and a short visit to the Mendenhall Glacier!

    Whale Watching in Alaska with Carnival Cruise Line

    Do you just absolutely love whales? Do your kids love whales? Check out all of these fun whale finds on Amazon!

     

    The wildlife cruise took us back to Stephen's Passage, which is a feeding ground for the humpback whale.

    As we drifted into Stephen's Passage, we came across a little island full of Harbor Seals, which tickled me pink. I love seals and was almost as excited to see them out in the wild as I was the whales!

    Whale Watching in Alaska on the Carnival Miracle 3

    We saw Harbor Seals much closer on our Sawyer's Glacier visit on the Tracy Arm Fjord shore excursion, but I was still happy to see these at all. They looked so happy flapping around in the rocks!

    There were many American Bald Eagles in the area, and a friend even caught one in a photo she took. Alas, no American Bald Eagle shots for me - the zoom on my Nokia Lumia 1020 didn't quite reach that far, and the zoom lens on my Sony DSLR didn't capture them either. They were nestled in the treetops, very rarely flying near us.

    Whale Watching in Alaska on the Carnival Miracle 5

    We saw humpback whales breaching almost the entire time we were in Stephen's Passage, with many even flipping their tails! Each time we would spot a whale (which was happening non-stop, sometimes more than one whale at a time in the same area), we would all yell "Show us your tail!!!"

    They did not disappoint us!

    Whale Watching in Alaska on the Carnival Miracle 4

    We had naturalists on board who explained about the different whales - they had them all named, and kept track of which one was which by the marks on their tails.

    Did you know that no two humpback whales have the same markings on their tail?

    You learn something new every day!

    Whale Watching in Alaska on the Carnival Miracle 7

    Whale Watching in Alaska on the Carnival Miracle 9

    Whale Watching in Alaska on the Carnival Miracle 8

    One day while we were out at sea, I was in the bathroom getting ready for brunch and Angeline started screaming from the balcony KILLER WHALE!!!!!! MOOOOMMM!!! KILLER WHALE!!!!!

    I threw on my robe (yes, there are super comfy free robes to use while on the Carnival Miracle!) and grabbed the camera and ran outside, only to NOT see a killer whale. Angeline said that it had breached RIGHT below our balcony and she was so excited, I thought she was going to jump out of her skin!

    Just as I was about to give up on spotting the Orca, it surfaced towards the end of the ship. I caught a photo of it's fin before it disappeared again...

    Whale Watching in Alaska on the Carnival Miracle 6

    You can learn more about the Carnival Miracle Alaskan cruises on Carnival.com.

    You can find out more about the Nokia Lumia 1020, which I used throughout my Alaskan Cruise, in this blog post. It's fantastic for wildlife photography when you don't want to lug around a clunky DSLR!

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    252 shares

    About Jennifer

    Jennifer, AKA "The Rebel Chick," is a 40-something Gen Xer who strives to help her readers live their best lives possible with easy recipes, travel inspiration and lifestyle tips!

    Comments

    1. Penelope says

      September 03, 2014 at 8:37 pm

      Oh my gosh, what an adventure! How fun!

    2. Colleen says

      September 03, 2014 at 9:18 pm

      This is amazing I would sooo love to take a cruise like this one day.

    3. vanessa: thequeenofswag says

      September 03, 2014 at 10:10 pm

      That would be so amazing to go whale watching. It's always been a dream of mine to do one day.

    4. Tammy Litke (@threedifferent) says

      September 04, 2014 at 2:37 am

      This is the same excursion company we used to do our whale watching cruise when we were in Alaska! My daughter loved it so much - it was the first time she had ever seen whales in their natural habitat before (well if you can call seeing the fins and the water spouts "seeing" lol).

    5. Robin (Masshole Mommy) says

      September 04, 2014 at 10:17 am

      How fun! I have been on a few whale watches here in Boston and they are so cool!

    6. MommaDJane says

      September 04, 2014 at 11:19 am

      When we were going over plans for our Alaskan cruise our kids got nervous about taking an excursion to see whales up close. They feared that the boat you go on is almost the same size as the whale and didn't think they would feel as safe as they do on the big cruise ship. I think it looks exciting!

    7. Amy Desrosiers says

      September 04, 2014 at 2:18 pm

      I love observing your whale watch from afar! I get way too sea sick on boats myself, but your trip looked splendid!

    8. Christi says

      September 04, 2014 at 2:59 pm

      WOW, what a magical experience! This sounds like it would be a great activity for the whole family.

    9. Jennifer says

      September 04, 2014 at 3:37 pm

      This sounds like so much fun! I'd love to visit Alaska. It's so beautiful there.

    10. Stacie @ The Divine Miss Mommy says

      September 04, 2014 at 3:37 pm

      Those pictures are so beautiful. Alaska is a gorgeous state. I'd love to take a trip there.

    11. Stacey - Seattle Mom Blog says

      September 04, 2014 at 3:39 pm

      Grogeous! What a great trip! Whale watching sounds like a blast, and it's so cool that you saw some Bald Eagles as well.

    12. Ben @ Cheap is the New Classy says

      September 04, 2014 at 3:39 pm

      I'd love to do that. I've always wanted to visit Alaska. It's so beautiful there.

    13. Dawn says

      September 04, 2014 at 3:40 pm

      What a fun trip! I love Alaska, although I've never been. I'd love to get there one day.

    14. Courtney says

      September 04, 2014 at 3:41 pm

      What a great trip! I'd love to take a trip to Alaska with my husband and daughter. She'd love watching the whales and the eagles.

    15. Chelley @ A is For Adelaide says

      September 04, 2014 at 4:31 pm

      I'm so jealous! I want to take an alaskan cruise AND you got to see whales- which somehow always blow my mind. Such abeautiful animals!

    16. Stefany says

      September 04, 2014 at 5:45 pm

      What an absolutely amazing trip this must have been. The whales are just breathtaking in pictures so I bet in person it was even more.

    17. Amber Edwards says

      September 04, 2014 at 6:13 pm

      Are you kidding me!? I have always wanted to go whale watching! How amazing! I am so jealous!

    18. Kelsey Apley says

      September 04, 2014 at 6:45 pm

      That would be so much fun!I have always wanted to go to Alaska!!!

    19. Pam says

      September 04, 2014 at 7:35 pm

      That sounds like an amazing experience. I have always wanted to see whales.

    20. Anne says

      September 04, 2014 at 9:02 pm

      You got some great pictures! We went on a whale watch last summer but the pictures just looked like blobs. Alaska would be amazing to visit.

    21. Tammi @ My Organized Chaos says

      September 04, 2014 at 9:04 pm

      What a great opportunity - I hear Alaska is beautiful! We really need to go one day, we're fairly close here in Western Alberta!

    22. Shauna says

      September 04, 2014 at 9:41 pm

      That is just amazing... I have always wanted to go whale watching and it seems like you had a blast and got some great shots

    23. Marina says

      September 04, 2014 at 10:07 pm

      Just beautiful! I've always wanted to visit Alaska. I'd love to take my kids whale watching.

    24. Liz Mays says

      September 04, 2014 at 11:00 pm

      That is such an exciting thing to see so many of them. You guys are very lucky to have taken the cruise at the right time!

    25. Ann Bacciaglia says

      September 04, 2014 at 11:28 pm

      What a fantastic trip! I would love to see some whales. It is on my bucket list!

    26. Nancy L. StyleDecor says

      September 04, 2014 at 11:49 pm

      I have always wanted to go to Alaska and go whale watching. I've never had the chance to do either one! Looks like an incredible time. I love seeing animals in their natural habitat! 🙂

    27. TerriAnn @ Cookies & Clogs says

      September 05, 2014 at 3:03 am

      Yay! I'm glad that you finally saw the orca and even got a photo of it. That must have been amazing to experience that. We went on a whale watching tour in southern California once and came back after two hours only seeing seals laying on a buoy!

    28. Jenn Park says

      September 05, 2014 at 4:06 am

      That looks like so much fun! My aunt and uncle go on cruises a lot since they've retired.

    29. Lori Pace says

      September 05, 2014 at 5:45 am

      I've never been whale watching. I bet it is just a fascinating experience.

    30. Krista says

      September 05, 2014 at 10:09 am

      This is a dream for me. One of these days I will get to go to Alaska!

    31. Mama to 5 BLessings says

      September 05, 2014 at 10:27 am

      I envy your! LOL this must have been amazing! This is on my bucket list, what an experience!

    32. Christine says

      September 05, 2014 at 11:33 am

      My grandma did an Alaskan cruise, she loved it. The sights are breathtaking!

    33. Rebekah says

      September 06, 2014 at 1:15 am

      I have always wanted to go on an Alaskan cruise - I just love the country up there. Whale watching is one my favorite things too! My family has gone out on excursions several times.

    34. Rebecca Orr says

      September 06, 2014 at 2:50 am

      My grandparents took an Alaskan cruise and they loved it. My sister also had the opportunity to visit Alaska for her senior trip in high school many years ago. She has always wanted to go back. You got some gorgeous shots Jenn! Glad you had a great time with your daughter.

    35. Tiffany (Fabulous Mom Blog) says

      September 06, 2014 at 9:42 am

      That's amazing. What an awesome adventure! You got so close!

    36. Kathy says

      September 06, 2014 at 8:19 pm

      This is also a dream of mine. I hope to do this cruise some day! Amazing!!!

    37. Theresa Gould @ Faith and Family Reviews says

      September 06, 2014 at 11:13 pm

      It would be so fun to go to Alaska, my daughter has always wanted to go (I just don't want those mosquitoes :))

    38. Anne - Mommy Has to Work says

      September 07, 2014 at 11:12 am

      How amazing! I would love to travel to Alaska one day,.

    39. Trish says

      September 07, 2014 at 3:44 pm

      What an amazing experience! An Alaskan cruise is way high up on my vacation wish list.

    40. Stefani Tolson says

      September 09, 2014 at 1:26 pm

      I have only been on one cruise over a decade ago to Mexico. I have always wanted to see Alaska!

    41. Holly says

      October 23, 2014 at 8:36 pm

      Wow, what an adventure that must have been, I am so jealous!

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    Hi, I'm Jennifer! I'm a Miami native and I love sharing easy dinner recipes, baking recipes, travel ideas and general Miami Lifestyle fun! Follow along for inspiration on how to make the most of your life!

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