Western Prince Whale Watching Adventures — Attraction in Eastsound

long review incoming, but as someone who reads reviews on a ton of things, please read this, it is so worth it (and hopefully will make you excited to go)

I am a travel nurse currently on an assignment in Seattle and being from the east coast (Tennessee and Florida), orcas, or really any whale for that matter, are not something I have ever seen before, so I decided while I am here, I need to make it happen.

I did research on a lot of the companies that run out of Friday Harbor because I wanted to make sure I picked the right one for me!

Western Prince stood out to me immediately because of the smaller, open air boat they use, meaning smaller groups!

A friend and I did a tour with them on July 3rd and it was absolutely amazing, honestly better than I could have ever imagined! It was my friend's birthday, so we were hoping we would have extra luck!!

Check in was quick and easy, there are bins that lock for your belongings (which was helpful because we stayed the night and were getting on the ferry to go back to Seattle after the tour), and they provide pants and a jacket that are both for warmth and safety!

Ivan is the owner of the company and was our captain for the day, which I thought was amazing! Sometimes, owners of companies just run behind the scenes, but he was there every step of the way! Bethany was our naturalist and she was amazing! They both had great energy, positivity, and excitement when we saw anything; it made me feel like it was THAT much cooler that they were excited too! We saw a bald eagle, seals, sea lions, a sea otter with a view of Mt. Baker in the background (which was soooo cool, there are only about 2,500 sea otters and we happened to be lucky enough to see one), a minky whale, and a family of 4 orcas who were actively hunting! On our way back, we were also SO lucky to spot (from afar) a resident male orca!!

Ivan and Bethany were both extremely knowledge about the whales, answered a ton of our questions, and you could tell that they both absolutely love what they do AND love teaching about whales. I also loved that they were respectful of the animals and let them move about the waters as they wished, not trying to follow them/chase them with the boat. We were extremely lucky that these specific whales swam right next to us!

I loved the first tour so much, I went back on a solo adventure today and had Ivan and Allison as the captain/naturalist. Again, I was truly amazed the entire time, especially after seeing not one, but two groups of orcas!! The first were in water near Vancouver (yes, you read that right, we went that far but it was soooo worth it) and the second were on the way back in. The first group was a family of four with a new baby and the second was a family of six!!

My favorite part of the entire whale watching community in Friday Harbor is that each operator radios to let the others know what they see, so they all work together to make sure you have the best possible experience. Ivan, however, is the BEST navigator/captain and seems to put the whales in the best position no matter which way they are swimming! He puts the boat in the prime viewing spot, and usually in the direction the whales are swimming!

All in all, I cannot recommend this tour enough! I only have three weeks left in Washington, but I may end up going a third time with another friend, just so she can experience the same things I did! Each tour is different, but they were both one of the coolest things I have seen in my entire life.

Western Prince is a wonderful group of people that really want to make sure you have the best time, you will not be...

I went to Friday Harbor specifically for whale watching, and more specifically hoping to see orcas. I went out with Western Prince Whale Watching 3 times, and they were fantastic.

All the crew-- from the captains to the naturalists, to the crew working in the shop-- were friendly, welcoming, and knowledgeable. They make sure you are outfitted properly for a high speed boat by providing wind-and-waterproof overalls and a coat, as well as offering gloves, hats, and hand/toe warmers, plus goggles and binoculars on board. The boat is a RHIB-- rigid-hull inflatable boat-- stable and comfortable and perfect for zipping across the waters around the San Juan islands and beyond. They can cover a wide range of area in the 3 hour trip. The boat only holds 24 passengers, giving that small-group experience, low to the water, with excellent views from any seat.

All the whale watch operators in the area are in touch with each other, which is wonderful, and Western Prince is no exception. We were kept informed by other boats as to where the wildlife was, and in turn, we stuck around with a pod of orcas to "hand them off" to an incoming boat, which I loved, as it's a big area, and the orcas move fast and can be hard to spot. The Bigg's orcas, which are the ones most often seen in the San Juans, are individually identified down to the newest calf, and as we were watching the various pods of orcas, the naturalists provided a wealth of information about these remarkable creatures- not only about orcas in general, but about the specific ones we were looking at. They happily answered questions, and also quickly stopped talking when the orcas surfaced again, so that everyone could pay attention to what we were looking at without distractions. Additionally, the crew was just as excited as the passengers by everything we saw. This is not "just a job" to them-- they genuinely love what they are doing.

The captains always navigated safely around the wildlife, maintaining the required distances, prepared to back away if the orcas came too close. Also, it wasn't just about the orcas: there are Steller sea lions and harbor seals in the area, as well as eagles and other birds, and the captains and crew made sure we all got to see whatever we possibly could in the time we had.

I highly recommend Western Prince Whale Watching for a fun, adventurous, and exciting tour in the San Juan islands, and hope to get...

Our trip with Western Prince Whale Watching was an amazing experience! I had been visiting for a week and was hopeful/excited to see the wildlife around SJI. In the previous days, I went on an 8 hour sail and saw a baby humpback breaching (with a private sailboat), waited at known look out points along Lime Kiln and SJI parks & light houses, hoping to see orca along the way. I think a big part of being hopeful of seeing orca (in the wild, the only place we should be lucky enough to see them) is understanding not to expect it. By the end of the week I had seen everything but orca and was disappointed but was okay with that just being nature. On our last morning I decided to give it one last shot before heading back to the east coast and we booked a trip with Western Prince. From the moment we walked into the shop above the docks, I knew we were in the right place. Elah our naturalist was kind & so knowledgeable, she guided our group into our warm & waterproof outfits and out to the boat. We met Capt. Ivan who made us feel comfortable and ready for the ride! Shortly after we left the harbor, we saw a large group of harbor seals sun bathing along the rocks, bald eagles, a stellar sea lion (with his tongue out playing in the bull kelp...too cute!), big horn sheep grazing along Coller Wildlife area and a humpback whale lazily making her way through the water. Throughout it all our naturalist and guide Elah was giving us fun and informative details about each species and how they live and thrive in the islands big, beautiful marine ecosystem! AND THEN...Capt. Ivan told us there were reports of a pod of transient orca ahead and just like that, I heard the Pppffffttt sound I had been waiting for all week (& cried lol). We were so lucky to see transient matriarch Carmanah (daughter of T46, Wake, who has an incredible legacy with the islands) and her children celebrating after a meal! The orca were rolling over one and other, surfacing a ton and spreading out across the space around the boat. We saw them from a distance but just sharing their space was a surreal experience. I couldn't have been happier/luckier to have been part of Western Prince's group that day. It will be a moment I think about often and can't wait to visit again. I would 10/10 recommend cruising with WPWW in the SJI. Their team is excellent :) !!!! TYSM...