Overall, I had a really great experience with Oceanic Expeditions. I went out recently while…read morevisiting the area and after following them on social media for years, knew I wanted to book a trip due to the small boat size (only 6 people max). I went on the 9:30am trip with two couples and we were lucky to have great weather and overall calm waters. We were lucky to see many humpbacks and several breeches and to see humpbacks relatively close to the shore. The reason however I docked a star is that we were back at the dock after 2.5 hours, when the trip was very clearly listed as 3 hours. Given that this was a pretty expensive experience, it left me feeling a bit confused and cheated. Even though we had seen a lot of "action" and I had a wonderful time, I still feel that we should have been on the water for the amount of time the tour was marketed for - if it was 10 minutes short I wouldn't have been as bothered losing half an hour is a significant portion of the trip. I have been on many whale watching tours and they are typically marketed with a range of hours or a minimum amount of time, and the duration has always met that minimum. I do think Oceanic Expeditions would be better marketing this as 2.5-3 hours if they are not going to be on the water for the full 3 hours.

Booked with them for my bf and I's 3rd anniversary. I was hoping to see Orcas but because of the…read moreprice point we booked the normal whale watching experience. They called to have us move our date a week before, due to not enough people being booked on our boat. While this was clearly stated on the website it was a bit disappointing as we had already booked our hotel in the area with that date in mind. Maria was so nice and we were able to join the orca expedition the following day at a slightly discounted price. I was able to move the hotel reservation for a small fee, but was excited at the prospect of seeing orcas. The boat was quite small, which is great for an intimate experience, but not great if you suffer from bouts of seasickness. I took every precaution I could and ended up in the back of the boat feeding more fish than I saw. Unfortunately no orcas came out that day, even after sailing the full 6 hours. We saw many beautiful humpback whales and the people working the boat were very sweet. While I understand orcas are not guaranteed, it seems you might be just as likely to see them no matter which tour you buy, it just depends on the luck of the day. I will not be going again anytime soon, but if you can handle being on a small boat in rough waters, I would recommend them!

I can confidently say I was blown away with the level of service and quality provided by Secret…read moreHarbor Charter. The small group of us couldn't have asked for a better weather day, and the well-appointed "Meridian" was a treat to cruise through Monterey Bay. I loved sitting on the bow of the boat giving over the cruising swells...after being cooped up all winter, it was a much-welcome reprieve. Spacious and comfortable, the boat comfortably fit crew and passengers safely, keeping COVID protocols in mind. The crew was helpful and friendly, and open to any and all questions relating to the bay and the local area. The crew's Naturalist offered their expertise knowledge of the environment and the diverse marine life that calls the bay home. I had no idea about the massive and deep canyon that carves through the floor of the bay, and what keeps the wildlife so varied. While it may have been a little on the early side of the year for a photogenic whale show, we did meet up with the bay's Rissos Dolphin pod who encircled the boat and provided some great opportunities for pictures with a telephoto lens. Perfect for smaller groups to comfortably enjoy the natural bounty of the bay, Secret Harbor Charters is yacht-life done right. I say small but the boat is 50 feet long, and very kushy, good for groups of friends. An impersonal touring ship it is not. I hear they're planning on officiating weddings at sea too! Anchors Aweigh!

After finding out our originally planned charter with another local whale watch company was…read morecancelled on the morning of the charter (after driving 2 hours from San Francisco), we contacted Sea Harbor Charters at the very last minute for a charter out into the bay and we could not have asked for a better change of plans. The boat was in excellent condition and the crew even provided us with morning refreshments. This tour was more private, which made maneuvering around the boat to take in the sights very easy. Erica, the onboard naturalist, was extremely knowledgeable and friendly guide on our charter. Having traveled all the way from New Orleans, Louisiana in the hopes of seeing a whale in real life, we were fortunate enough to actually spot two humpback whales swimming side by side! Five stars to this business and we hope to return to the bay very soon for another trip!

James was truly the best. He got us in last minute and worked so hard to find great whites for us…read moreto see. He drove around all over to ensure that we got to see them. Our brake line had blown as we pulled into the parking lot and he not only tried to help fix it but drove my husband to the auto parts store. He was the nicest guy around and I would for sure recommend him to anyone that wants to go on any kind of tour!

If you want an adventure, you want to know Captain James Moskito and Safari Monterey…read more I've known James for years and have done a few various adventures with him from whale watching to white shark adventures. I haven't been on one of his travel vacations yet, but plan on it one day. He's a class act, extremely knowledgeable about his field, the animals, the adventures, the conservation, the areas, etc etc.; Whatever adventure you decide to take with Safari Monterey, just know it'll be a great time and he'll bust his ass to make sure you get the experience you pay for. That being said, nature is nature and NOT a zoo, so you may or may not see the animal du jour, but just know that it won't be due to lack of effort On James' part. This weekend I did a whale and white shark tour; 3 hours encircled by 20+ Whales and 4 hours searching for Great Whites, all while covering 64-nautical miles and we didn't see a White Shark until 10-min before docking! Luckily, I had my camera out taking a photo of a Pelican, when James yelled "SHARK", then brought the boat to a stop... and that was it. The shark went down and didn't come back up. We estimated at 11'-13'. It was a BIG dorsal fin. There were Whales everywhere you looked all across the bay and we got our fill there. Just came up short on White Sharks, but it was a great day overall with James and Safari Monterey.

These folks are the best deal on the block. Their Groupon is an amazing offer…read more I love that they have coffee and breadsticks available to munch on before you get on the boat. The boat is nice enough although it's the smallest in the area. Their boat goes to the same place Sea Goddess goes so the experience is basically the same once out on the bay. As a whole they are A-OK (definition of a 3 star yelp review). The crew and staff are fantastic, and alone would get 5 stars. My only personal issue with their setup is that the boat you go out to admire marine life in is the same boat used to go out and slaughter marine life. Kahuna fishing does all day excursions where they take fishermen out to sea in this ride. I love animals so I don't kill them. I don't fund the killing of animals by eating them either. There's an irony that we can marvel at one segment of the marine life and thirst to destroy the other.

The most amazing experience ever! My whale watching tour was cancelled and I had driven 3 hours…read morefrom Sacramento when I meet Carol from Khauna Sports fishing and whale watching. She was amazing, she wrangled up her crew, Bryan the captain and Katherine the naturalist in half an hour. I wrangled 33 strangers, like me who were disappointed that our trip was cancelled. Carol and the Khahuna crew gave us the perfect outing and Katherine' s knowledge was amazing! We saw Risso's dolphins, Bottlenose dolphins, Humpback whales,Sea otters, Harbor seals, Sea lions and several different species of sea birds. We had Watchers from different parts of the country and world, China, France and Netherlands and USA I would say, the day was a successful meeting of different species ! Bryan even followed the Whales and dolphins for what seemed forever. He gave us an experience of a life time. Everyone was amazed at the trip. Way better than the other company. Thanks Carol, Bryan and Katherine you rock! Kat and Marian and group.

Always a great trip! Would recommend . We catch limits most times !. Will go again . Call before…read morehand and ask how rough it will be out there to avoid sea sickness!

I liked a lot of things about this charter. Mainly the time spent fishing, the Capt. and deckhand…read morehad everything under control. The boat was clean with adequate space for the 20ish fishermen. I can't get enough of Monterey and the Wharf area making J&M my new go-to for rockfish.

I have traveled with Cheesemans Ecology Safaris since 2007 and found them to be exceptional at all…read morelevels. Excellent guides, good itineraries, kind office personnel. Antarctica three times, Falklands, South Georgia, Snow Hill, Bhutan, Borneo, Sulawesi, Komodo, Silver Bank, Sri Lanka, Palau--the list goes on. I know I can trust CES to deliver as promised. That said, there have been times when the food was not great, specifically on the MV Ortelius sailing to Antarctica. But the other trips were all good. CES checks with me before, during and after each trip to make sure all is well. In my opinion, Cheesemans Ecology Safaris is the best travel company on the planet. Vicky C.

I wish there were negative stars:…read more I was asked to evaluate the Alaska trip on Cheeseman's Ecology Safari: My letter was full of examples of behavior, lack of customer service and simple poor communications, From May until August I did not hear anything until a third party too a negative action against my traveling companion based on my original letter. I will be happy to share the original letter with people considering using Cheeseman's. Instead of coming to me to discuss the situation, four months later I discovered what The Cheesemans' were doing behind my back. Here is a list of some of the things that went on: Breach of privacy and business ethics Cheeseman gives my letter of complaint to a third party: Email from Gail Cheeseman: "I did write to (name removed - executive director of a non-profit) about your complaints. I already explained that to you in my email last night when I ...." From Ted Cheeseman: "we did not invade your privacy or breach any business ethics..." Ted has refused to acknowledge this email from Gail. Cheeseman's refuse to explain why my private information was shared with this third party. False Adversisement: Email from Gail Cheeseman: "If we had said to you that there would be a lot of photography on the trip, would (Name removed) have refused (to go)..." They never addressed this. They knew how much photography was on the trip and never informed me. They knew I was not a photographer. Dangerous situation never addressed: One driver fell asleep at the wheel while driving us, he almost crashed in a ditch. He was drinking the night before and again that night same night. I had specifically told the Cheeseman's before the trip that I did not drink and was uncomfortable around heavy drinkers. No one apologized for this or even asked us if we were Okay. I stayed far away from the heavy drinkers of the trip, and this was view as me being a bad customer. The next day they blamed me for not wanting to stay our late with this driver. Lack of Customer Service: From Ted Cheeseman: "To grow from this experience by better screening our participants" I have asked the Cheesemans' over and over to give me one example of customer service the main guide showed to us. Still waiting for an answer. His answer was none of this was his or the guides' responsibility, they just need better customers I asked Ted Cheeseman to release all the files they have on me. His response" "to do so would be a breach of privacy and business ethics...." Amazing releasing my private information to a third party is OK, but releasing information they have on me is not. I was not a photographer and there were professional photographers on this trip. I was told to just stay out of their way. Cheeseman's totally blamed me, What kind of a business keeps a private files on it's customers. It's probably illegal for them to do so.

We had a great time. The staff was friendly and knowledgeable, the scenery was incredible, and they…read moretook every effort to make the trip enjoyable. Trisha was our Zodiac captain, and her knowledge of the area and the wildlife and their behaviors was priceless. We saw several pods of Orcas, a pod of Humpbacks, and another of porpoise. She's a excellent captain and her knowledge and command of the boat and the weather and tidal conditions made for a very enjoyable trip.

What a fantastic experience Captain Dan created for our family. He was so flexible with time and…read moreprovided an experience that blew away not only the kids but the adults too. We'll be back on the open sea again with Santa Cruz Nature Tours. Thank you for helping us create beautiful memories.

We had a great time out at sea with Captain Dan. Went on an excursion with 4 little kids + 4 adults…read moreand felt very safe. Captain was super knowledgeable and an excellent guide. Boat is comfortable and roomy even with our larger crew. Would definitely recommend!