Taking A Trip With Hyannis Whale Watcher Cruises

Last weekend, I went on a whale watching cruise with Hyannis Whale Watcher Cruises out of Cape Cod. This whale watching cruise got on my radar this year because I started seeing a lot of wildlife photographers posting photos from their trips with this company on Facebook. After seeing so many amazing photos, I decided to book a cruise with them!

Pin

Preparing For Your Cruise

If you’re going to go on a whale watching cruise, you definitely need to prep beforehand. Here are some ways to prepare for your trip:

• Wear appropriate clothes. It’s really important to wear appropriate clothes. First, you’ll want to wear layers, even if it’s a really hot day. You can expect it to be at least ten degrees cooler on the water and the ride can be quite windy. I also recommend wearing UV protective clothing as well as a hat. You will be out on the water for hours and it’s really important that you protect your skin.
• Pack sunscreen. Going back to the need to protect your skin, be sure to also pack sunscreen. On my cruise, there were some people whose faces got really badly sunburnt. Don’t forget lip balm with SPF to protect your lips as well. I’ve gotten sunburn on my lips, and it is not pleasant.
• Wear appropriate shoes. I’d recommend wearing close-toed shoes with good grip and traction. The boat can be a bit unsteady and it will help you get around easier without hurting yourself.
• Bring a phone charger. If you’re planning to use your phone to take pictures and videos, it’s a good idea to bring a charger. You can bring a regular charger because they have outlets on board or a portable power bank. I like this Magnetic 15W Power Bank because you can stick it right on to your phone and charge it without a wire.
• Bring cash with you. You will need it to pay for parking (this is $15 cash) and the crew does accept tips. I didn’t see a way to tip them via Venmo, so cash seems to be best. The crew works hard to spot the whales and let passengers know where to look, so tipping is appropriate.

Getting There

Hyannis Whale Watcher Cruises is out of Barnstable, Massachusetts. This Cape Cod town is located on the Cape Cod Bay side of the cape. It’s only about 25 minutes past the Bourne Bridge. I liked that I didn’t have to go too deep into Cape Cod for this cruise. Anyone who’s driven in Cape Cod knows how bad traffic can be the closer you get towards the tip. The only traffic we hit on a summer Saturday was brief traffic as we crossed the Bourne Bridge.

There is a parking lot provided by Hyannis Whale Watcher Cruises. It is a paid lot and you will need cash to pay to park. A staff member will direct you to a spot. The boat they use for the cruises can hold up to 400 passengers so they might double park you. Because of this, when the cruise ends, they will encourage you to move your car as soon as possible because you might be blocking someone in.

The company stated to get to the parking area 45 minutes before your cruise is set to start. I’m assuming this is because they potentially need to park hundreds of people and board them on to the boat. We didn’t get to board 45 minutes before, but it sounded like that might have been because the cruise ahead of us was running late.

We ended up getting to the parking lot about two hours beforehand. We were one of the first people to park. There is a restaurant, Osterville Fish Too, next to the parking area so we grabbed a bite to eat beforehand. It was really convenient so we could eat prior to our trip without worrying about being late to board.

Pin

Boarding

I’d recommend getting to the boarding area sooner rather than later for a better chance of getting the seat you want on the boat. When we got to the boarding area, I saw that there was a ticket booth, and I went in there since I was not sure if we needed to check-in. Since we bought our tickets online, we did not need to check-in or anything. So, we went to the indicated area to line up for boarding.

Make sure you have your ticket ready. You can print out the PDF they emailed you when you booked the cruise, or you can pull up that PDF on your phone for them to scan. I pulled it up on my phone and had no issues. However, printing out your ticket is a good idea just in case your phone dies or if you don’t have service to pull it up in your email. However, you can always screenshot the PDF so you don’t need cell service to pull it up.

They will do a bag check before you board the ship. This is to help ensure nobody has any prohibited items for the safety of passengers. It was quick and painless.

Choosing Where To Sit

There are plenty of options available for seating on board the ship. There was indoor seating and outdoor seating. There were benches along the railings, on the bow (front of the ship), and at the stern (rear of the ship) as well as an enclosed space with tables and chairs on the first floor of the ship. Pretty much all of the seating on the first floor of the ship offered outdoor seating with an overhang to keep you in the shade except for the front of the ship.

You could also sit on the second floor of the ship. The second floor offers an open deck with benches as well as an enclosed indoor area. The second floor offers a great vantage point and allows you to move around easier.

Since I know how unforgiving the sun can be out on the water, I knew I wanted to be somewhere with an overhang. Because of this, I chose to stay on the first floor. The other reason I chose to stay on the first floor was because I wanted to be as level with the whales as possible. The cruise I did was not fully booked so I was able to move around a lot. I started at the stern of the ship, but I quickly learned that was not a great choice. The engine was super loud, which made talking difficult and effected my hearing for a little bit even after we moved.

Pin

We ended up moving inside while the boat made its way out to where we were set to whale watch. Based on what the naturalist said, they would stop when they spotted a whale. So, we sat back and relaxed until a whale was spotted.

Amenities on Board

The ship has a galley that serves drinks and food. The boat serves both breakfast and lunch, it just depends on what time your cruise is. Since we ate prior to boarding, we didn’t get any food, but we did get margaritas! I loved that they came in cups with lids since the boat did rock a bit at times.

Pin

In addition to meals, they also had plenty of snacks to choose from. They had candy, cookies, and even muffins. If I wasn’t so full from lunch, I probably would have gotten a snack.

They also have large, clean bathrooms on the ship! Bathroom access is always super important.

The Whales

We stopped for the first whale in the Gulf of Maine off of the coast of Provincetown (which is at the tip of Cape Cod). We saw three different species of baleen whales during our trip. We saw fin whales, minke whales, and humpback whales.

The first species we saw was a fin whale. The fin whale is the second-longest cetacean after the blue whale. They don’t often do the tail flips like humpback whales do, but they’re still pretty cool to see. We got to see one really close to the boat.

Pin

The next species we saw was a minke whale. They are the smallest of the baleen whales. The minke whales were popping up sporadically during our trip.

Last, we saw a humpback whale. This is personally my favorite whale to see on whale watching tours. Why you might ask? Because of the tail flips they do!

We only saw one humpback whale during our trip. The whale was identified as Nile. This is a female humpback whale that was born in 1987. The crew said she is one of their favorite humpback whales to see because she is very active. The crew was able to identify her before they even saw her tail because of her dorsal fin.

Pin

Usually, whales are identified by their tails. Nile was named for the long, black mark on the left side of her fluke that splits much like the Nile river in Egypt.

Pin

While Nile was the only humpback whale we saw, she hung around for a while and put on quite a show. We got to see four tail flips from her and she even breached the water. While I didn’t get any pictures of her breaching the water because it was so unexpected, I got a lot of cool pictures of her doing tail flips.

Pin

Sandy Neck Lighthouse

While the whales are the main attraction, you’ll be able to see Sandy Neck Lighthouse. This is one of the many lighthouses in Cape Cod. The best way to see this lighthouse is from the water and this whale watching cruise is a great way to see it. You’ll see it at the very beginning of the cruise and when you come back. Seeing this lighthouse was a great start to the cruise.

Pin

On the cruise, we also went by Race Point Lighthouse, but we were cruising pretty quickly so I didn’t attempt any photos. And while I didn’t see this one with my own eyes as we cruised (since I was inside chatting), I’m sure we also went by Wood End Lighthouse, but it was probably in the distance.

Both lighthouses are in Provincetown and are worth a visit if you have some extra time during your trip. Wood End Lighthouse is accessible via the Provincetown Causeway.

Pin

Race Point Lighthouse is a very long walk to get to, but you can also drive there in your own four wheel drive vehicle. I highly recommend driving to get to it if you can. The walk really seemed never ending when I did it. If you do walk, pack plenty of water and make sure you wear sunscreen because the sun will be beaming down on you.

Pin

Is This Whale Watching Cruise Worth It?

I really enjoyed this whale watching cruise. I thought the boat was extremely comfortable and they had a lot of food and drink options at the galley. This is definitely a good option for whale watching if you’d like a comfortable cruise because of the boat’s large size and amenities.

The naturalist did a great job of narrating during our cruise and I really felt like I learned a lot. She also did a great job of directing us where to look, even before the whales came above the surface of the water. This helped ensure that we were able to get to a good spot to see the whales when they came up.

I enjoyed this trip so much that I’m already planning another trip with them. I’m hoping to do the extended 6-hour tour they offer if I can fit it into my schedule. Otherwise, I’ll likely go again for another regular cruise with them!

Pin