3 best Whittier Alaska excursions to do! (26 glacier tour you must consider) Anchorage + Whittier cruise port tips

Hi there!

Whittier is a small town and you really don’t have a whole lot of options for excursions. The good news is, that makes your decision making easier! 😂

The best Whittier excursion is the tour that’s listed #1 below!

Whittier is all about Prince William Sound, and there are glaciers in Prince William Sound that are a sight to see!

You’re going to Alaska to see glaciers, and there are Whittier excursions that will allow you to feel like you’re getting pretty close to glaciers!

There are basically 3 types of tours to do in Whittier that will make for a perfect Alaska experience: boat tour, kayaking tour, and jet skiing tour. (Jet skiing in Alaska?! Yes! Jet skiing to a glacier?! How epic!)

Whittier cruise port can be the start or end of a 7-day Alaska cruise. It can also be visited as a day trip from Anchorage.

I have been to Whittier to start a cruise, to end a cruise, and as part of back-to-back cruises.

So I know what it’s like to do a cruise in all of the situations that will bring you to Whittier if you are doing an Alaska cruise on Princess, Holland America, or NCL! (I was on Princess cruise ships, but I imagine it will be the same for Holland America or NCL!)

Now, here are Whittier tours you must consider if you will be going to Anchorage!

 

 

Partner websites are included below.

 

 

1. 26 glacier cruise boat tour

You’re going to Alaska for the glaciers (I think!), and the 26 glacier boat tour is one of the best glacier tours to do as a part of your Alaska cruise! This is also a tour that you can do as a day trip from Anchorage.

The official name of the tour is the 26 glacier cruise, but to avoid confusion with a cruise on a cruise ship, I will call it the 26 glacier boat tour.

One of the epic things you must do during your Alaska cruise is see a glacier up close!

If you won’t be doing that at any other time during your cruise, then you will want to highly consider doing the 26 glacier boat tour! And if you are doing another glacier tour, this is another glacier tour you need to consider to get a really good view of 2 glaciers!

The biggest highlights of the tour are seeing not just 1, but 2 glaciers in Princes William Sound up close!

And then you will see a lot more glaciers (26 in total?!) on your way to the highlight glaciers.

You can enjoy the glacier views from the warm comfort inside, or you can go out on deck to get a better view of the glaciers.

 

👆 The view of a Blackstone Bay glacier from the open deck on the boat in early September (top) and May (bottom)!

 

👆 The view of a Blackstone Bay glacier from inside the boat.

 

👆 The view of a College Fjord glacier from inside the boat.

 

👆👇 Small boat sailing through glacier ice to get closer to the Harvard Glacier in College Fjord!

👆 Sailing by glacier in College Fjord.

 

And although wildlife is never guaranteed, this can also turn into a wildlife watching tour too!

 

👆 Dall’s porpoise swimming alongside the boat in Whittier!

 

👆 Right near the 26 glacier cruise check-in is a board that lists wildlife sightings on tours within the past week. This is wildlife seen in May.

 

👆 Wildlife sightings at the end of August.

 

You will be sailing through Chugach National Forest, and there will be a national forest ranger onboard who will be narrating as your passionate naturalist to tell you about all things glaciers, wildlife, and wilderness in Alaska as it relates to Prince William Sound.

And to make it official, you will even have a chance to get a national forest stamp during this tour too!

The 26 glacier tour starts at 12:30pm and ends around 6:20pm, so the tour is around 6 hours long.

It’s available in 2025 from May 3 to October 5. So if you will be in Anchorage in May, June, July, August, September, or early October, this is a tour you must consider!

 

College Fjord on a cruise ship vs 26 glacier tour?

If you are doing a northbound Alaska cruise from Vancouver to Whittier, then your cruise will most likely include a glacier evening in College Fjord. This is the same area of College Fjord that you will be visiting during your 26 glacier tour.

So, if your cruise ship will be going to College Fjord, is it still worth it to do a small boat tour to College Fjord? YES! There is such a big difference between seeing glaciers from a big ship from deck 15 (cruise ship) and basically sea level being able to get so much closer to the face of the glacier (boat tour).

The first time I did the 26 glacier tour was the day after I went to College Fjord for the first time.

On the small boat, once near the glacier, it felt like I was in a totally different place!

The 26 glacier tour boat got so much closer to the “final destination” College Fjord glacier.

The boat was surrounded by ice near the glacier in May. The cruise ship would not get that close.

 

How to book the 26 glacier boat tour

You can book the 26 glacier cruise direct through Phillips Cruises and Tours, or book through Viator (read the Viator reviews either way), or book through Getyourguide (read the Getyourguide reviews).

• Book the 26 glacier cruise on Viator
• Book the 26 glacier cruise on Getyourguide

Note that “self-drive” just means that you are getting yourself there. If you are staying in Anchorage, viator also has a day trip combo package where you can get transportation to and from Anchorage included: Anchorage coach and 26 glacier tour combo

 

🤓 Be informed: It’s very reasonable to do the 26 glacier tour before your Alaska cruise from Whittier, after your Alaska cruise to Whittier, or on the turnaround day if you’re doing a 14-day round trip Alaska cruise! The 26 glacier tour literally starts right next to the cruise ship.

If you’ll be doing it before or after your cruise, the best way to get between Anchorage and Whittier is by train! (video)

The 26 glacier tour timings are coordinated with the train timings.

The cruise ship arrives in the morning and doesn’t leave until late evening, so there is no concern that you will miss the tour or the ship. The tour company will hold your luggage for you while you are on the tour. You can let them know when you check-in that you have luggage.

 

How to book the train between Whittier and Anchorage

I have done the train + 26 glacier tour combo both ways (before a cruise from Whittier, and after a cruise to Whittier), and both times I booked the train direct through Alaska Railroad. You want to book the Glacier Discovery train. Here is the Glacier Discovery train schedule and the current cost of train tickets.

 

🤔 Alternate glacier boat tour: There is a shorter glacier boat tour that you can do with the same tour company, called the Glacier Quest tour, which I will talk a bit more about below.

 

2. Blackstone Bay glacier jet ski adventure

This might be along the lines of snorkeling in Alaska crazy. 🤣

I learned about jet skiing to a glacier when I saw the jet skiiers from the warm comfort of the 26 glacier boat that I was on!

When I saw them, I was like … 🥶🥶🥶

The water that’s splashing up must be colddddd!

But as it turns out, you are geared up for the cold water (similar to the Ketchikan snorkeling tour!) so it seems like it’s really not as cold as you might initially think. (Although they do recommend you wear warm layers on the jet ski tour!)

You can be a beginner jet skier, but you do need to be physically fit.

Jet skiing to a glacier sounds like an epic glacier experience in Alaska, so it’s another Whittier excursion you need to consider!

 

 

How to book a Whittier glacier jet ski tour

There are 2 jet ski tour companies in Whittier:

• Glacier Jet Ski Adventures (reviews)
• Alaska Wild Guides (reviews)

Both tour companies have morning and afternoon tour times during the cruise season. The tour is 4 hours long.

 

3. Passage Canal kayaking tour

If you want to do a kayak tour in Alaska, then the Passage Canal tour is the epic kayaking tour to do in Whittier! You’ll see glaciers, waterfalls, hidden coves, and you’ll even do a shore landing to do a little hiking during the tour too!

You can be a beginner kayaker, but you should be reasonably fit. It will be a full day of paddling 7 to 10 miles.

The tour starts at 10am and ends between 3:30pm and 4:30pm, so this tour is around 5.5 to 6.5 hours long.

 

🤔 Alternate kayaking tour: If you’re looking for a shorter tour, there is the Kittiwake kayaking tour with the same tour company. This tour doesn’t go as far away and is therefore cheaper and shorter. You will go kayaking to the kittiwake bird rookery where you will be able to do bird watching and see waterfalls! (You will see this rookery and waterfalls on the boat tours too.)

 

👆 Waterfalls near Kittiwake rookery.

 

👆 Looking at the waterfalls and Kittiwake rookery from a 26 glacier boat tour. The white dots are birds!

 

How to book a Whittier kayak tour

The Whittier kayaking tour company is Alaska Sea Kayakers. (reviews)

• Passage Canal kayak tour
• Kittiwake kayak tour

 

 

4. Glacier Quest boat tour

The Glacier Quest tour is the shorter version of the 26 glacier tour.

It’s the same tour company, and a similar experience as the 26 glacier tour, except that it’s less time on the water with less glaciers to see.

Once again, this is officially called the Glacier Quest cruise.

The Glacier Quest tour starts at 1pm and ends around 4:45pm, so the tour is around 4 hours long.

It’s available in 2025 from May 17 to September 14.

 

26 glacier vs Glacier Quest?

The main difference that matters between the 26 glacier cruise and the Glacier Quest cruise is that the 26 glacier tour goes to an extra area of Prince William Sound where you can see more glaciers. It really is worth it to do the full 26 glacier tour if you can!

 

 

On the 26 glacier tour, the most notable glaciers you see will be a close-up of a College Fjord glacier and a Blackstone Bay glacier. On the Glacier Quest tour, you only get a close-up of a Blackstone Bay glacier.

 

👆 Whether you do the 26 glacier cruise or Glacier Quest cruise, you will go to Blackstone Bay.

 

And while it’s not make or break, the 26 glacier tour goes through Esther Passage. This is a more narrow area than most of the boat ride and you’ll sail closer to the coast line so you can feel the wild and remote Alaskan wilderness in a different way.

This is also where I did some exciting whale watching on one of the 26 glacier tours I did!

You may also see some sea lions at the sea lion rookery near Esther Passage, although it’s helpful to have binoculars.

They do provide binoculars for a small fee ($5). But if you’re interested in wildlife watching, you’ll want to bring your own because they will be helpful to have for your entire Alaska cruise!

 

👆 You will go through Esther Passage on the 26 glacier cruise but not the Glacier Quest cruise.

 

👆 You can explore the route map on the Phillips Cruises website. As you can see, you cover a lot more water on the 26 glacier cruise vs the Glacier Quest cruise.

 

I was actually originally booked on the Glacier Quest tour. Then, a few days before the tour, I received a phone call saying that the Glacier Quest tour is canceled (because of boat maintenance issues they said), and I was offered a free upgrade to the 26 glacier tour. And I was so glad that happened!

All that said, if you can only manage the Glacier Quest tour for one reason or another, I did think the close-up glacier experience in Blackstone Bay was awesome! So even if you do the Glacier Quest tour, you will be wowed!

So, you will be happy with your Whittier glacier experience on either tour, but being able to get a close-up of a second glacier really is great! I vote for doing the 26 glacier tour instead of the Glacier Quest tour!

 

How to book the Glacier Quest boat tour

You can book the Glacier Quest cruise direct through Phillips Cruises and Tours, or book through Viator (read the Viator reviews either way), or book through Getyourguide (read the Getyourguide reviews).

• Book the Glacier Quest cruise on Viator
• Book the Glacier Quest cruise on Getyourguide

Note that “self-drive” just means that you are getting yourself there.

 

 

5. Alaska craft beverage tour and cruise transfer from Whittier to Anchorage

If your cruise will be ending in Whittier and you want to get to know the local beer scene while also getting a ride to Anchorage, then you will want to consider the Alaska craft beverage tour that comes with a transfer from Whittier cruise port to Anchorage.

 

Here is what Ed said about the tour on Viator, in part:

If you have an extra 8.5 hours at the end of your Alaska cruise, I’m not sure there’s a better way to spend it.

The best micro brewery tour I’ve ever had.

We arrived at the airport refreshed and ready for our red-eye back to NJ.

Read more of his detailed review.

 

This tour is specifically only if you are going to Anchorage. Otherwise, if you’re staying in Anchorage, you can also do the Alaska Craft Beverage Tour from Anchorage.

 

How to book the tour with transfer to Anchorage

You can book the tour through Big Swig Tours, or book through Viator (read the Viator reviews either way).

• Book the Alaska Craft Beverage tour with transfer from Whittier to Anchorage
• Book the Alaska Craft Beverage day tour only if you’re staying in Anchorage

 

HAPPY DOING A TOUR IN WHITTIER CRUISE PORT!