Small boat wildlife/ glacier cruise - please help!

Hello local experts

Group of 4 adults looking for a small boat cruise (20 people or so would be ideal. We are all avid amateur photographers and want to be on a cruise where we get pretty unobstructed views and can get closer to the glaciers/ wildlife

So far I have found Miller landing 6 people cruise (a little expensive for us), and the Kenai Fjords Captains choice cruise

Any recommendations?

Will we actually get better pictures/ viewing opportunities on a smallee boat.

Thanks in advance for your help !

Stuthi

Small boat wildlife/ glacier cruise - please help!

I%26#39;m not an expert...but, we are booked next week on a small boat cruise through/with Alaska Saltwater Lodge.

alaskasaltwaterlodge.com/alaska_whale_watchi…

My research found plenty of good reports on this outfit. Group sizes seem to run 8 to 15 per cruise.

Small boat wildlife/ glacier cruise - please help!

We did the Kenai Fjords 4-6 hr. boat tour and it was very enjoyable. The captain was very knowledgable and was able to show us amazing wildlife and scenery. We saw eagles, sealions, starfish, puffin (which are much more colorful in the wild), dolphins, and some of the most beautiful fjords and foggy coves. Not to mention the glacier(s).

In looking at www.kenaifjords.com, I see the tour we took was one of the Fox Island tours. It was August, and we needed coats/jackets when we were out on the water.

www.AlaskaSaltwaterlodge.com sounds like what your after,small personalized trips.

I%26#39;ve actually been trying to contact the Alaska Saltwater Lodge and they haven%26#39;t returned either my e-mail or phone calls. . .

the message by TheCouv has me a little worried- I%26#39;ve reserved (and paid for) 3 nights and a cruise at Saltwater Lodge and I too have had no reply to recent e-mails. Perhaps Echobird will keep us informed after next weeks visit?

I went on a larger, two story boat, which was fine... although it would be nicer with less people, I would pay a lot more for a smaller cruise. I guess it%26#39;s what ever floats your boat!

Blue

We just returned from Seward and took the Captain%26#39;s Choice cruise. We were amazingly lucky and had chosen the one sunny day they%26#39;ve had in the past 10. There were about 17 people on the boat, and it was small enough to maneuver around but large enough to fit us comfortably. However, if it had been raining (a common occurence) it would have been a tight fit in the cabin. Bring warm clothes, preferably waterproof. There are rules as to how close a boat can come to the wildlife, so that will limit boats of any size. Picture taking opportunities were plentiful. The captain took great pains to point out wildlife, and the copilot was obviously a biologist who studied whales, so quite knowledable.

Alaska Saltwater Lodge was great...weather wasn%26#39;t. Otters and sea lions off the deck every day! Weather very bad for our AK SW Lodge cruise...went anyway. All female crew was terrific...nobody got sick.. 12 on boat, plus 2 crew on 42 ft boat.

I found Ak SW Lodge to be slow reponding to email also, just call them.

On way to Denali now...will post full favorable review of AK SW Lodge when our trip is over.

Echobird - glad to hear you enjoyed Saltwater Lodge - I was getting worried as I%26#39;m booked in there for a few nights and have had no reply to email. I%26#39;m also booked for the small boat cruise but hope to get better weather as I%26#39;m a lousy sailor.