Review Of The Chris Monterey Whale Watching Tour In Monterey Bay, California
Looking For An Honest Review Of The Chris Whale Watching Tour In Monterey Bay, California?
As the daughter of a California native, I’ve frequently visited the state (20+ times), and even went on my first whale watching tour right here in Monterey Bay with Chris’ company. And while there are lots of tour options to choose from in the Monterey Bay area, if you’re looking for specific information on the Chris whale watching tour, I’ve laid out all the good and bad of my personal experience with them down below.
✅ Pros Of The Chris Whale Watching Tour In Monterey
The whale watching tour with Chris’ company that I went on was my very first whale watching experience and despite a few negatives, I had an awesome time seeing whales and other marinelife, so I would still recommend it despite the few issues.
Small Boat, Smaller Crowd
Compared to some of the other tours, Chris’ whale watching tour boat (pictured above) is much smaller in size so there is a smaller amount of people on board, plus it’s docked right at Fisherman’s Wharf in Monterey Bay.
Half Day, Perfect Amount Of Time
There are some tours out there that offer all day experiences in the bay areas (Monterey and San Francisco), but the half day whale watching experience with Chris is the perfect amount of time because like me, you’ll probably be ready to get back on land after spending a few hours out on the choppy, rough waters of this bay.
Great Price
My mom and I went on the whale watching tour here together, but we checked out a few tour companies before finally deciding to go with Chris’ because we weren’t sure what to expect and they offered the cheapest price for the same amount of time as other tours.
Long History
After talking with all the whale watching tour companies, another fact that stood out to us about Chris’ company was that it is the longest running tour company in the Monterey area (50+ years) so we felt good about going with a company that has lasted that long.
Whale Guarantee
Many tour and boat companies in the bay area will also offer this guarantee, but it was great to find out that Chris’ offers a guarantee of whale sightings and if for some reason there aren’t any (pretty low chances of that happening), you get a rain check to go back out again.
Friendly Staff
The staff on Chris’ whale watching tour boat were really nice and helpful about spotting whales and other marinelife. So you know, they do hope for tips at the end of the tour, but they just put a bucket next to the rails on the way out.
❌ Cons Of The Chris Whale Watching Tour In Monterey
There were a few negatives to the Chris whale watching tour, and although they’re not enough to change my recommendation that this is a perfectly good tour option, there are a number of other whale watching tours that leave out of Monterey, Moss Landing, Santa Cruz, and the San Francisco Bay Area in case you’d prefer to look elsewhere.
Smaller Boat, Choppier Ride
Monterey Bay is known for its choppy and seasick inducing waters so it shouldn’t be a surprise that the boat ride won’t be calm no matter what, but companies with larger boats than Chris’ may offer a somewhat smoother ride.
Strong Engine Smell
Due to the choppy waters, many of the passengers on my whale watching tour got seasick. Those sights and sounds combined with the strong gassy engine smell of Chris’ boat caused me to get a little seasick as well (which had never happened to me before).
Larger, newer boats or even eco-friendly sailing options may help keep some of the feelings of seasickness at bay.
No Marine Biologist (or similar) Staff
Some whale watching tour experiences have the luxury of working with marine biologists (or something similar) to give passengers an extra special educational experience. Chris’ staff are definitely experienced, but they don’t hold any kind of marine biologist degrees.
🔁 Sum Up: Chris Monterey Whale Watching Tour Review
Outside of getting seasick (or engine smell/watching everyone else get seasick), I had a wonderful time spotting marinelife on the Chris whale watching tour out of Monterey Bay. I might consider going on a tour with a larger boat next time, but no matter what, a whale watching tour is definitely worth it here in Monterey, California.
