Kenai Fjords Tours — Attraction in Seward

First: I had a major heart attack booking this. I booked it in May for a cruise in July, and when I went to print my info the week before taking the cruise, realized that there had been an error somewhere. My cruise date had been set for May instead of July! At this point it was already July 17th. I called the Kenai Fjords Tours and instantly was able to speak to someone, but he wasn't sure if there was anything they could do. Heart attack time! I had booked it for 5 people, it wasn't cheap! However, they got me the number for management, and management called me back within a few hours. They said that the website will set the date to the next available sail date if it resets before you check out, and I must not have noticed it. They managed to get me in for my desired date, though, and re-sent my confirmation. Whew! Crisis averted!

Now, for the cruise itself. The only annoying thing is that it was popular enough to be full, so anticipate a lot of people getting in the way of your photos. The views= spectacular! The captain was knowledgeable and funny, we saw so many animals and beautiful scenery. They pulled glacier ice in so we could touch it, and we got close enough to watch the ice fall off the glaciers and hear it crack. The craziest thing was the jellyfish- literally millions of them! I brought three children, one got sick and threw up in the toilet, luckily we had extra dramamine that we gave him and he was fine. They were thrilled by the whole 8 hour ride, but we brought coloring books and a puzzle plus snacks for the slower times, and they were able to color and play a little at the tables. If you have a big group, totally claim an inside table! Bring dramamine and binoculars, for sure! Also, even though it was July, it was surprisingly cold with the wind out at sea, so gloves, hats and warm jackets are a must.

Lunch was OK, a chicken wrap that was 95% salad. Dinner was really good, salad and salmon and potatoes and veggies- they served it surprisingly fast and we had time to skip rocks on Fox Island beach (which they rope off so you can't go too far). Warm cookies after we got on board!

The shuttles stayed around for about an hour after cruise, so we got ice cream at the nearby shop (which I...

We were referred to this tour company by our Air B&B host. We chose the all day Northwestern Glacier tour and loved it. We got a small snack in the morning, a modest light lunch, and a cookie included with our tour. We bought the unlimited refills take home reusable mug and it was well worth it. I got several teas over the course of the day. The boat has ample viewing decks, the staff were all very friendly and helpful. The captain/narrator to our very own “wild planet” episode in real life was full of dad jokes and knowledge about the animals we saw. We loved him. The boat itself is comfortable and large, inside and outside seating, plus tables and two levels for best wildlife viewing. On our particular tour we happened to see two bald eagles, several pods of Orcas swimming close to the boat, numerous puffins and other fun birds, a Fin whale, plus the glacier itself which was majorly awesome. We got tons of great photos- I highly recommend busting out the fancy camera with zoom lense if you own one. We rented binoculars for $10 since we don’t own any and I loved them. Quality and I used them a lot. It was a dry day so tennis shoes and several layers were fine. It was chilly with the open water and wind but there isn’t ocean spray on the bow and you can sit inside if you like. I recommend a hat, sun glasses, and some extra snacks as the lunch they served was very very light. We stayed dry the whole time. The gift shop has great stuff and if you fill out the comment card you get 5% off your entire purchase. I had a great time and felt like we really got our monies worth. I did see a few people sleeping the whole time on the boat and frankly my mind was blown. Sure, nap on the long stretch back after we see all the cool things but on the way there?! I mean, that is one expensive nap!!!! If you have the money and are at all a nature buff, GO. We loved it and would happily do it...

Based off what I’ve seen on social media, this trip should deserve 5 stars but weather effected the outcome of our experience.

We checked in at the counter for the tour and the lady told us that the weather condition was a little sketch that day and offered us two options: 1) a full refund 2) to go on the tour and if the captain decides it’s too much and brings us back early then we’ll get a partial refund. We decided to give it a try and trust that the captain will make safe calls.

As we’re making our way out further into the bay the crew serves everyone their complimentary meal of chicken wrap, chips and a granola bar. The boat was pretty rocky and the crew were having to really focus to keep their balance. As we passed some of the barrier islands the water really started to get choppy as we rode 10-12ft waves and half of the boat started getting sea sick from a mixture of the motion on top of a belly full of food.

The captain did manage to bring us to a calmer part of water to see a glacier and we eventually found some wildlife (sea lions, puffins, an otter, and a humpback whale) but by this point, all of the people who were sick weren’t able to come out onto the deck to see the sights. The captain drove us all around the bay to fill in the time and when we got back to dock we found out that the other boats had all come back early because it wasn’t safe enough on the water.

I believe the captain should have made the decision to bring the boat back to harbor much sooner instead of trying to salvage the trip and deny everyone a partial refund. The safety of the passengers should have been the captain’s priority and I don’t think it was, hence the lack of stars. I have faith that one a good weather day, this trip would have...