#1 of 17 top-rated excursions

Whale Watching and Mendenhall Glacier Combo

A bus takes you from the cruise terminal out to Mendenhall Glacier for a short self-guided visit, then on to Auke Bay to board a boat for about two hours of searching for humpbacks, seals and eagles.

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By Greg Peters, editor · Updated October 2026 · Ratings checked October 18, 2026

#1 Top rated · ranked 1 of 17 Juneau excursions

A bus takes you from the cruise terminal out to Mendenhall Glacier for a short self-guided visit, then on to Auke Bay to board a boat for about two hours of searching for humpbacks, seals and eagles. It is the single most-reviewed Juneau excursion on both Viator and Tripadvisor, and a whale-only version skips the glacier stop.

Tour details

OperatorAlaska Tales

TypeWhales

How longCombo about 4.5 hours (about 2 hours on the water); whale-only about 3.5 hours

SeasonMay 1 to October 2 in 2026, per the alaska.org listing for this operator

Good forFamilies and first-timers; no minimum age listed, infants ride on laps. Not wheelchair accessible (collapsible chairs only, no scooters). Boats carry up to 49.

Rating4.9 / 5 from 7,687 reviewsViator (Viator and Tripadvisor reviews combined), checked October 18, 2026

Check price and availability →

Times and policies from viator.com, tripadvisor.com, alaska-whalewatching.com, checked October 18, 2026. They change; the booking page has the final word.

Viator allows about 45 minutes at the glacier while the Tripadvisor itinerary shows only a brief photo stop, so check which version you are booking if the glacier matters to you.

Read the reviews

ViatorTraveler ratings and reviews TripadvisorTraveler ratings and reviews

Check prices and dates → Operator website

How we ranked it

On October 18, 2026, we looked up every Juneau excursion on Viator, Tripadvisor and GetYourGuide and noted its star rating and number of reviews. We used the numbers for the specific tour, not an operator's total across everything it sells. Because Tripadvisor reviews also show up in Viator's totals, each tour gets a single Viator or Tripadvisor figure, with GetYourGuide counted on its own. We sorted tours into rating bands first, then put the most-reviewed tours at the top of each band, so a new tour with a few five-star reviews doesn't jump ahead of one with thousands of strong ones. The Goldbelt Tram was closed on the day we checked, so it isn't ranked. Reviews stay on the sites that host them; the links take you there. Operators can't pay to be listed or to move up.

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