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
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!
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.
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!
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.
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!
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!
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...
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!
Penelope says
Oh my gosh, what an adventure! How fun!
Colleen says
This is amazing I would sooo love to take a cruise like this one day.
vanessa: thequeenofswag says
That would be so amazing to go whale watching. It's always been a dream of mine to do one day.
Tammy Litke (@threedifferent) says
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).
Robin (Masshole Mommy) says
How fun! I have been on a few whale watches here in Boston and they are so cool!
MommaDJane says
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!
Amy Desrosiers says
I love observing your whale watch from afar! I get way too sea sick on boats myself, but your trip looked splendid!
Christi says
WOW, what a magical experience! This sounds like it would be a great activity for the whole family.
Jennifer says
This sounds like so much fun! I'd love to visit Alaska. It's so beautiful there.
Stacie @ The Divine Miss Mommy says
Those pictures are so beautiful. Alaska is a gorgeous state. I'd love to take a trip there.
Stacey - Seattle Mom Blog says
Grogeous! What a great trip! Whale watching sounds like a blast, and it's so cool that you saw some Bald Eagles as well.
Ben @ Cheap is the New Classy says
I'd love to do that. I've always wanted to visit Alaska. It's so beautiful there.
Dawn says
What a fun trip! I love Alaska, although I've never been. I'd love to get there one day.
Courtney says
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.
Chelley @ A is For Adelaide says
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!
Stefany says
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.
Amber Edwards says
Are you kidding me!? I have always wanted to go whale watching! How amazing! I am so jealous!
Kelsey Apley says
That would be so much fun!I have always wanted to go to Alaska!!!
Pam says
That sounds like an amazing experience. I have always wanted to see whales.
Anne says
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.
Tammi @ My Organized Chaos says
What a great opportunity - I hear Alaska is beautiful! We really need to go one day, we're fairly close here in Western Alberta!
Shauna says
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
Marina says
Just beautiful! I've always wanted to visit Alaska. I'd love to take my kids whale watching.
Liz Mays says
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!
Ann Bacciaglia says
What a fantastic trip! I would love to see some whales. It is on my bucket list!
Nancy L. StyleDecor says
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! 🙂
TerriAnn @ Cookies & Clogs says
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!
Jenn Park says
That looks like so much fun! My aunt and uncle go on cruises a lot since they've retired.
Lori Pace says
I've never been whale watching. I bet it is just a fascinating experience.
Krista says
This is a dream for me. One of these days I will get to go to Alaska!
Mama to 5 BLessings says
I envy your! LOL this must have been amazing! This is on my bucket list, what an experience!
Christine says
My grandma did an Alaskan cruise, she loved it. The sights are breathtaking!
Rebekah says
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.
Rebecca Orr says
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.
Tiffany (Fabulous Mom Blog) says
That's amazing. What an awesome adventure! You got so close!
Kathy says
This is also a dream of mine. I hope to do this cruise some day! Amazing!!!
Theresa Gould @ Faith and Family Reviews says
It would be so fun to go to Alaska, my daughter has always wanted to go (I just don't want those mosquitoes :))
Anne - Mommy Has to Work says
How amazing! I would love to travel to Alaska one day,.
Trish says
What an amazing experience! An Alaskan cruise is way high up on my vacation wish list.
Stefani Tolson says
I have only been on one cruise over a decade ago to Mexico. I have always wanted to see Alaska!
Holly says
Wow, what an adventure that must have been, I am so jealous!