Lions, Tigers, and Bears, oh my! Nope, instead it was Orcas on a Zodiac in Canada! Here is my review of our whale watching excursion with Prince of Whales Whale and Marinelife Adventures in Victoria, British Columbia.

We sailed on the inaugural sailing of the Norwegian Bliss to Alaska during the first week of June with the last port of call on this dream cruise being Victoria, British Columbia. The ship did not dock in Victoria until 4 p.m. and we only had a few short hours in port.

What company did we use?

As discussed in a previous post, we had several bucket list items for this trip of which one was whale watching. Traditionally, Juneau, Alaska is said to have the best whale watching but we did dog sledding in Juneau. (Check out my review of that amazing shore excursion). We had plans for the other ports of call, so this left Victoria for whale watching. Options for shore excursions in Victoria were limited because our time in port was short, late afternoon/early evening.

I did my own research on shore excursions available in Victoria. There were no offered whale watching shore excursions offered by the Norwegian Bliss. Through research on TripAdvisor, I discovered The Prince of Whales Whale and Maritime Adventures company offered a sunset zodiac whale watching cruise which was 3-3.5 hours in length. The cruise left 5:30 p.m. and cost $355 for the three of us.

We disembarked the cruise ship. Upon immediately, exiting the ship, there was a line to catch a bus or a taxi. We took a taxi from the port to the Prince of Whales office where we checked in for our zodiac whale watching cruise by 5:00 p.m. The tour included winter gear to include a Mustang Survival Suit, hat, and gloves.

Wear warm clothing and closed toe shoes in addition to the winter suit provided to you. Bring sunglasses to avoid a glare off the water and to keep the spray from the ocean out of your eyes.

Before you book this excursion, I would warn you this adventure is not suitable for anyone with a history of serious medical conditions. This would include back or neck injuries, recent surgery, and/or current or suspected pregnancy. In addition, the company also does not allow passengers under 4ft/120cm in height or 50lb/23kg in weight (typically applies to children under 7 years old).

What is included?

What is a zodiac? For those that do not know, it is basically a blow up raft which could hold 12 passengers. Our Captain worked part time for this company and was a full time captain for Canada’s equivalent to the Coast Guard. Because of the captain’s expertise, we felt very safe and knew we were in good hands.

The boat goes very fast and is agile in the water. It took us over an hour to get to far enough out to spot whales. Our Captain received notification from other boats, they had spotted whales. We were lucky enough to see a pod of Orca to include a calf (baby)! Being this close to Orcas in the wild was mind blowing!

In summary:

I would highly recommend a whale watching tour with Prince of Whales Whale and Marinelife Adventures in Victoria, British Columbia. The ease of booking the shore excursion and the timeframe in which it was offered was perfect. Please note a zodiac boat trip is a bit wild. It will not be a cruise, but in fact, more of a speed boat. The ride includes a lot of hard bumps and jarring movements, however it was a once in a lifetime adventure.

Would you consider a whale watching tour on a zodiac? Drop me a comment. I’d love to hear your thoughts?

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