Jet Boat Whale Watching (plus Nugget Falls option)

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

#5 Highly rated · ranked 5 of 17 Juneau excursions

Dolphin runs propeller-free jet boats out of Auke Bay on a roughly two-hour whale search, with snacks and hot drinks aboard. A longer version adds over two hours at the Mendenhall Glacier recreation area, enough to walk the gravel trail to Nugget Falls.

Tour details

OperatorDolphin Jet Boat Tours

TypeWhales

How long3 hours (whale only); 5 hours with Nugget Falls

SeasonMay 2 to September 30, per the alaska.org listing for this operator

Good forGood for those who want whales and a real walk at the glacier in one outing. Not suitable for wheelchair users or people with back problems; the ramp can be steep at low tide.

Rating4.8 / 5 from 715 reviewsGetYourGuide, checked October 18, 2026

Check price and availability →

Times and policies from getyourguide.com, getyourguide.com, alaskawhalewatch.net, checked October 18, 2026. They change; the booking page has the final word.

Comes with a see-a-whale-or-money-back promise. The Nugget Falls walk is about 2 miles round trip on gravel.

Read the reviews

GetYourGuideTraveler ratings and reviews GetYourGuideTraveler 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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