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New England Aquarium Whale Watch
Rating Details »
Categories: Aquariums, Boating
116 east howard stquincy, MA 02169
(617) 222-6999
Now Playing:
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- Hours:
Mon-Fri. 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Sat-Sun. 9:00 a.m. - 9:00 p.m.
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
10 reviews for New England Aquarium Whale Watch
Everyone always says that the Whale Watch is pretty much the best thing to do in Boston. You HAVE to do a whale watch, they say! I always put it off because spending $40 just seems like a lot to me. So when my boyfriend was able to get us some free passes, I was super excited!
The boat ride over is quite long, and since it was cloudy out, I eventually had to move inside because it was pretty chilly with the wind. Definitely bring a jacket. The person running the tour told us that it was a calm day for the waters, but it still felt like it was bumping around quite a bit. Thus, I wasn't surprised when my boyfriend got seasick. Luckily he just felt nauseated, and didn't actually get sick.
Once you get to the sanctuary, what you see is pretty awesome. We must have seen 15 or 20 whales easily. They were feeding and flipping their tails around. They don't jump up in the air like you see in pictures, but they get fairly close to the boat and sometimes stick their head out and hold their mouth open trying to catch some food. It's a great sight to see because they are massive. We saw two different kinds of whales.
The ride back is long again and pretty boring since it's just a boat ride. I feel like it's still overpriced at $40 since basically watching the whales is only half an hour and the other 2 1/2 hours is riding in a boat and that's why I would only give it 4 stars. But it's definitely a pretty cool experience and a great way to spend a beautiful day out!
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If you happen to watch the Discovery Channel or Animal Planet, and expect to see the whales jump up in the air and dive into the waters to create an awe-inspiring splash, you'll be sorely mistaken. (We couch potatoes are spoiled that way.)
That said, I just had to see with my own eyes this gigantic creature of the blue yonder, so I paid $40+ (along with what seemed like a couple hundred other folks) for a 1.5 hour ride out into the ocean to catch migrating whales, up close and personal.
If you're even just a bit prone to motion sickness, Dramamine is your friend. After downing a couple to make my digits tingle, I claimed a spot port side and attempted to catch blips in the water as the boat slowed down.
Make no mistake, you'll be seeing more waves than whales, and even if the whales are abound, you're more than likely to catch the backs of people's heads as they strain to see the humpback's giant tail as it dives back down. They pop up when they want, and usually it's on the other side of the boat. Spouting blow holes give away their location.
But do have your camera at the ready (preferably one with a great zoom). The first time you see these magnificent creatures it'll take your breath away. The boat gets as close as possible but keeps a respectable distance as it circles around the whales' natural habitat. If you're lucky you'll see several in a matter of, what seems like mere minutes before the boat must turn around for the 1.5 hour journey back to the docks. Lucky for us, our last glimpse of this huge mammal was greeted by it pooping in the water. (Yes, whales poop.) We saw 4-5 humpbacks and several minke whales about.
All in all, it was a nice boat ride out and back. Be sure to bring entertainment since it's literally a 4 hour tour (about 3 hours to and fro, 45 minutes searching and about 15 minutes engaged in actual witnessing of whales). Also, even though it was a nice summer day, I was glad to have brought a sweatshirt as it gets fairly cold when the boat goes high speed.
We took the 2pm tour (since we Chinatown bussed it up to Boston that morning), however, it seems that the morning tour is a lot less crowded, and actually preferable since you still have the rest of the day to do things. Knowing all this, I'd probably do it again. I mean, where else can a city girl like me see such a beautiful spectacle of nature?
"Please be advised that once we leave the dock, there are no cash refunds"
Little bells were going off in my head when this message came on, but I assured myself that everything would be great. I was wrong. I have never experienced seasickness or motion sickness before but OH MY GOD. You could not pay me the forty dollars I spent on this trip to go on another one. About 40 minutes into the 3 hour long excursion, I felt sick like nothing I have ever experienced. I continued feeling like this until we got back into the calmer harbor. During our voyage, I saw the backs of about 4 whales when I could muster a glance up from my focal point on the floor. So yes you definitely can see whales if you can make it out to the deck.
Had it only been me, I would not be writing this review of woe, but at least 30-40 other people in the boat were suffering from seasickness, many of whom threw up and then consequently made the bathrooms horrible. The staff even has a huge box of sick bags- they know that not everyone is going to get to enjoy the frolicking whales.
Our trip, and it seems the majority of trips, did not witness any really interesting whale action, like flips or breaching. My advice is to stay home, save 40 bucks, and watch Planet Earth instead.
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I have lived in the area for the vast majority of my life, but I can only remember going on 1 whale watch. So, I was looking for stuff to do on my week off from work and I decided to go on a whale watch. I looked on Yelp and the aquarium one got the better reviews so I bought a ticket.
Stupidly, I missed the boat for the 9:30 am watch but they allowed me to reschedule for 1:30. I made sure to be in the line early for the afternoon sailing.
The sea was a little choppy and as usual, sun screen wore out quickly and I got a burn. The ride to Stellwagen National Marine Sanctuary was windy but once we got there it was awesome.
There were lots of sightings. It was great. I loved it. Mostly, the whales came up for air and dove all around the boat. It was wonderful to watch. We saw humpback whales only and they were in groups of 2 or 3 whales.
It was well worth the $40.
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i have done this whale watch twice, once in the fall and once in the summer, both times we saw a lot of whales. the boats are nice, the staff knows a lot, and it is convenient because you leave right from the aquarium and quincy market is like a five minute walk so you can catch lunch before you head out - definitely worth the money!
also, they offer you a chance to come back on another whale watch if your boat doesn't see any whales that day. there is also a sunset watch occasionally, which sounds really cool... it might be freezing though--wear layers!
We went to whale watching in July 2009, it was a nice sunny and warm day.
The queue to get into the boat was generally chaotic and mismanaged. Once the tickets are collected, staff disappears and there is no verification or little attention to folks who are boarding.
The boat (high speed catamaran! literally), slowly picks up the speed as it enters deep ocean waters. You get awesome views of the downtown boston skyline. Be sure to have your cameras out. With this speed sets in the chilly air, so make sure you have a light jacket with you (even in summer). Expect the boat to get choppy and high wind hitting your face if you are outside on the deck. Boat was quite big and carry many people but with limited view. As we approach where the whales are spotted, the staff helps out by describing the science behind whales, generally in the inaudible speakers. You must stick your ears to the speaker to hear what they say. They (staff) generally point at whales by yelling the clock times that makes people run around the boat to see the whales. With the size of the boat and the number of people rushing to see them, it is really difficult to get a nice clear view or a picture of the whales. About whale spotting, yes we were able to spot a bunch of whales with 3-4 "breachings" (whales jumping out of water) in a distance, but getting a nice clear view is still an issue.
The boston inner harbor looked like a battle ground with all those cruise ships, honks and smoke from the engine revving.
They should either cut down on current cost or plan on getting smaller high speed boats with better service for additional fees, as they do in Canadian sea near BC and Victoria.
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You know when you see the brochure for a whale watch, and the boat is uber close to the whales, and the whales are breaching, jumping, spinning, and you wish that you were on that trip? Well I was, and it was amazing!
I grew up in this area and have been on many a whale watch, some out of Boston, some out of Gloucester or out of Bar Harbor. This was the most interesting watch with the most whale citings.
The watch leaves from the pier right next to the New England Aquarium and it's possible to get a combo pass so that you can go to the Aquarium after you finish your Whale Watch.
The boat journeys from the harbor to Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary, a protected area for whales and other sea-life.
Almost immediately upon entering the area we saw two Humpback Whales. The boat came very close to the whales (within national guidelines of course) and we were able to easily decipher the tail pattern of the whales. The naturalist on board had a binder full of thousands of known whale tails so an identification of the whales could be made. Very cool!
From here we proceeded further into the sanctuary where we found a mother Humpback and her calf. They were breaching, jumping out of the water, playing, about 10-20 feet from the boat. On the first breach some people on the first deck got splashed. It was amazing! Later in the watch we were able to see Finback whales (the second largest living creature EVER to live! Whoa!) and Minke whales.
The trip is about $40 dollars but totally worth it. The boat is comfortable and roomy and you can sit on the top deck (which I really enjoyed) or go below where it is less windy. There are snacks, beverages and even Dramamine.
The narrator and the naturists on board were keen to answer questions, and they seemed as enthusiastic and excited by the whales as the crowd did. An excellent day trip when you want to escape the city for some nature.
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I'm a whale watch NUT. Having gone on many, many school trips down to Plymouth for Captain John Boats, I thought I'd seen it all.
NO WAY! While pricey for some (about $40) it's definately worth doing. They took us way out to Stillwagon Bank to see humpack and minke whales as well as dolphins.
We were insanely close to the whales. They were diving, doing tricks, jumping, showing us some tail, sticking their heads out and floating by. Amazing.
My only gripe is that the majority of the action happened on the other side of the boat. And when we saw a whale in the distance, the boat was angled so that the other side got the view. I still saw a few amazing things, but my experience would've been even more amazing had the captain thought "Oh, there is people on the RIGHT side too." Whale watches are unpredictible though. You never know where those whales are going to end up.
There is plenty of room on the boat, but you better be first in line if you want a place to sit. There are kids of course which can be annoying when there are 100 cranky kids on a boat for 4 hours, but just zone out and enjoy the day. They also serve hot dogs, popcorn, beer, soda, candy, etc on the boat so all your junk food and boozin needs are met via the New England Aquarium.
I really enjoyed it but PLEASE TAKE THE DRAMAMINE. I have stomach of steel however it got so choppy there were about 30 people heaving ho on that boat... yes i was one of them. Once that was settled we actually saw 10 whales. They were feeding in a cluster which the tour guide noted was not common. It was very informative..she explained the history of whales the past and current challenges within our country as well as others. She even taught us about the names of the whales. Then after our sightings and photo ops, I observed the narrator to go around to all of the passengers to ask if they had any specific questions... well done!
For all you sea animal enthusiasts out there, this 3 hour tour was a big success! Great boat, heated and clean interior, no crowd, snack bar, trained and knowledgable guides from the aquarium. They guarantee whale sightings (We saw 7 whales along the way!), plus if you don't see any they will give you a pass for a future whale watching trip. Highly recommended!
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