Whale Watching Tour from Anacortes
Recommended by 96% of travelers
San Juan Islands, USA
- 3 hours (approx.)
- Mobile ticket
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Overview
Get up close with the killer whales of Anacortes, the home port to the San Juan Islands, on this whale-watching cruise led by naturalist guides. Climb aboard a Blackfish fleet vessel and travel through some of the most picturesque scenery in the Pacific Northwest searching for orca, humpback, and gray whales. Along the way, see ocean wildlife in their natural environment, like seals, porpoises, sea lions and otters—plus a wide variety of birds and more.
- Visit Anacortes, home port of the San Juan Islands
- See resident orca, humpback, and gray whales
- Witness local ocean wildlife in their natural environment
- Sightings are guaranteed from April through early September
What's Included
- Professional guide
- High Speed Vessels
- 3-4 hour tour
- 8.5% Washington State sales tax and applicable fees.
- Gratuities
Meeting and Pickup
Meeting point
- 2201 Skyline Way, Anacortes, WA 98221, USA
Meet at the yellow building with a red roof past the Skyline Marine Center. Our office is on the first level, marked Blackfish Tours by Outer Island Excursions. Parking is located behind our office building in our parking lot, along the street for free, or in paid parking lots across the street.
End point
This activity ends back at the meeting point.What To Expect
1
Anacortes
2
San Juan Islands
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Children must be accompanied by an adult
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Please note that this tour departs from Anacortes (90 minutes north of Seattle)
- Stroller accessible
- Service animals allowed
- Most travelers can participate
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 49 travelers
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Cancellation Policy
This experience is non-refundable and cannot be changed for any reason. If you cancel or ask for an amendment, the amount you paid will not be refunded.
Traveler Photos
Featured review
We sailed a total of 50+ miles around the islands. We saw 2 Orcas, a humpback whale, sea lion, seals, and a sea otter. It was an great experience. The staff was personable, friendly, and extremely knowledgeable about the area and wildlife. I highly recommend a trip on the Blackfish VI.
Reviews
4.8
based on 790 reviews
Sort by: Most insightful
Easy booking and easy to find the parking/meet-up spot. We were on a newer boat, Blackfish VI; it was really nice! We sat up top in the enclosed space, with our own table with cup holders. There were USB ports as well! Captain Matt was super friendly and did a great job finding us a pair of orcas to follow. What a fantastic experience getting to see them in their natural habitat! The rest of the crew were very knowledgeable and we learned about all of the local animals and island history. Definitely recommend!
They took us to see the whales, sea lions, and lots of cool places. SUPER KNOWLEDGEABLE ABOUT THE WHALES; names, matrilines, calves, residents or transients, etc. Loved it.
It was a beautiful day on the water and we had great views of a pod of orca. They were very playful, and our boat captain did an excellent job of keeping us close enough to enjoy the pod and take plenty of pictures. We also saw seals, a sea otter and sea lions. The crew were friendly and knowledgeable. It was a great experience that was deeply satisfying. My family continues to talk about what a wonderful day it was.
Very knowledgeable, Captain and expedition guides. Well maintained boats with the speed to get you to a number of places in short period of time.
Captain Drew, Bruno and Matilde are the best, most knowledgeable and friendly team we’ve ever experienced on a tour. They make it educational and fun. They are our favorite and will recommend to our friends and family who visit the area.
For those of you wondering what to wear: dress in layers because even if it is a warm temperature on land, the cold of the water and wind will make you wish you had brought a winter coat. Bring a warm hat and light gloves or make sure you have a very warm hoodie. Wear pants, socks and closed toe shoes.
The office has beverages and snacks for sale and we recommend you either bring your own or buy some at the office. There are some snacks for purchase on board but not as big a selection.
Overall, it’s an informative, fun and memorable experience. Well worth the money. This team does an outstanding job, so definitely bring some extra cash for showing your appreciation.
We had a great time, we left on time, the guides were knowledgeable and super friendly. The trip was as promised, smooth, and lasted about 3.5 hours. We made stops along the way, to see other animals, and they found us some whales to watch!! This was a lifelong dream come true for us!!
Recommend!!
Outer Island Expeditions gave us a great experience whale watching. The Captain and Crew were very knowledgeable and took their time making the experience personable. Saw orcas, a sea otter and sea lions.
The crew of Drew, Bruno,Katie and Brooke wher outstanding. Very knowledgeable,friendly and funny. It made for an entertaining and enjoyable time.
Crew was amazing! They knew so much about the orcas we saw and made the experience great for everyone. Paige was amazing had some great whale related jokes!
The orcas were amazing right from the start! Even rolled under our boat! A bucket list experience for my wife and I. We celebrated our 40th anniversary. The crew were all amazing! Thank you
Lovely ship. Very, very knowledgeable naturalists on board: Thomas, Carly and Katie were encyclopedic in their knowledge. Captain Matt kept us safely engaged with the orcas. Great experience.
Get your oxygen mask and portable oxygen, yo will be in for carbon monoxide poisoning from the boat engines.
Response from Host, Aug 2026
Hello- it appears you have posted this about the incorrect business.
We pride ourselves in only operating new, environmentally friendly, fuel efficient, gas powered engines for all of our high-speed aluminum catamarans for all of our vessels. We DO NOT have any boats using diesel fuel, which can definitely be toxic and smelly on older, traditional whale watching boats.
Hope this helps!
Crew works hard to put you in whales. Brooke was very knowledgeable about the area and sea life we saw.
Captain Matt and team were very knowledgeable and professional. We saw sea otters, dolphins, orcas, bayleen whale, and seals. And various birds. Highly recommend this tour!
Our whale watching trip was incredible! I had never seen a humpback before. Our guides were so knowledgeable about all the other wildlife as well. Saw tufted puffins, harbor porpoises, some rhinoceros auklets (birds) and several species of gulls. A little rainy and cold, so wear a jacket/rain gear. The hot chocolate was a blessing!
Excellent experience! We were lucky to see several Orcas!! The guides were friendly and professional! Megan was amazing! She didn't demonstrate her knowledge but shared several of her pictures with us!!
This is was my 1st whale watching experience and it surpassed my expectations!! The crew (Alex, Thomas and Tyler) was knowledgeable and so very friendly. I definitely recommend and would do again. We saw a pod of Orcas, seals and a Hunchback whale! Very successful trip!
We saw two humpback whales and lots of seals. Megan was a great guide sharing lots of knowledge about the whales.
Outer Islands Excursions team members are knowledgeable and passionate about wildlife and the ocean and happy to share info, experiences and personal camera shots! I was concerned that the boats might be past their prime, but these were clean, safe and fairly new boats. The crew did everything in their power to insure that we had lots of whale (and other wildlife) sightings! I would definitely recommend this whale watching tour!
We had a great time on the boat. Saw orcas, seals, sea lions, including an orca feeding on a seal!
When we had an accident on departing the boat, the captain and crew were incredibly helpful.
We met several wonderful families on the trip, and it was exciting to hear about their lives while enjoying the beauty around us.
The boat ride was absolutely wonderful. The employees were amazing—so knowledgeable and clearly passionate about what they do. The whales we saw were beautiful, and we learned so much about their behavior. We even learned about the local birdlife and a surprising fact: when whales eat seals, the smell is similar to watermelon.
The entire experience was fun, exciting, interesting, and incredibly informative. It was a beautiful day and a memorable adventure from start to finish.
First, don't go with the expectations that you will see the Orcas or any other whale up close, but their fins in the horizon. I guess many of the people who posted pictures up close got really lucky. But wild animals are unpredictable and the crew do their best to get you there.
That being said, make sure you check the weather, and then you are off for an awesome day trip and a gorgeous view of the San Juan Islands and even Victoria in Canada. We ended up right in front of Victoria to spot the Orcas.
Our captain Matt, and crew members Ethan and Sam were exceptional and work really hard to give you the best of the day trip. It was over 3 hours of sailing. Make sure to bring your own water and snacks. We also saw many other wild animals.
I strongly recommend this day trip!
The captain and crew were awesome and we were able to see Orca whales hunting a seal. Everyone in our group thought it was awesome.
Had an awesome time with Outer Island Adventures. On our was Captain Drew, with Becca, Taylor and Ethan rounding out the crew. We saw a juvenile humpback whale, and three pods of killer whales. It was pretty cold, but a great experience. Very cool that the crew all have marine biology and zoology degrees so they are very knowledgeable about all the animal life.
Outstanding staff and an unforgettable experience I would highly recommend going on a whale watching trip with them!
Go in the afternoon for best sightings. All the crew was educated and helpful. We learned a lot! This was truly a once in a lifetime experience
This was one of the highlights of our trip to Washington! We saw two types of whales, seals, sea lions and a bald eagle. The staff were knowledgeable and friendly. They were all marine biologists. Incredible experience, highly recommend!!
It was absolutely amazing the crew was very friendly and interactive; talked to you about yourselves and genuinely seemed like they wanted to get to know you. They were also very informative about the whales whenever we spotted them or we saw any wildlife. It was truly an experience of a lifetime.
We saw whales, porpoises, eagles, otters and even wild sheep! The guides were so knowledgeable about everything. We would definitely come back and do this again.
We had a wonderful time seeing the whales and enjoyed a fantastic excursion! The crew members were friendly, experienced, and highly knowledgeable, making the trip both fun and memorable. We hope to come back and do it again next year!
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$113.05
per personWas $119.00(-5%)
-You will not receive a refund if you cancel.
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Whale Watching Tour from Anacortes
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