Capt. Bill & Sons Whale Watch

We were very happy to have chosen Captain Bill’s. The staff and the naturalist were great, and we saw about 5 sei whales, which are normally only found about 200 miles out (we are told).
One thing we hadn’t realized in advance is that since it takes a while to get far enough out to see the whales, the ride back feels very long. This isn’t anything done improperly; it’s just something to think about. Maybe bring a book and a blanket, or what have you. I believe we had cell reception throughout the trip, in case that helps.

Excellent adventure on the high seas. My buddy got us tickets online with a great discount. I have done the party boats before but never a whale watch. Much tamer but still interesting and definitely saw plenty of them. Clean well kept ship with informative crew. I would recommend them for sure.

Excellent inside customer service and thorough information from staff at main desk! Trip was good… lots of whale sightings. Boat was clean. Crew was gracious.

Was on my wishlist and loved it. Saw 6 whales with a trio of humpbacks hanging with some dolphins. Just the cruise and scenery was enough taken day. The naturalist guiding the tour was an absolute joy. Tip — bring a good sunscreen and hat.

Was there this Wednesday and saw pod of dolphins, humpbacks, minkes, fin whale and few seals. I had no problem using the voucher bought online, and they even called me beforehand to inform the schedule change, which was really nice of them.
Magnificent sightings but only wish we saw more of them. Riding the ship out and coming back is easily 3−4hrs, while the sightings are pretty short lived, happening occasionally. Overall a pleasant experience!

I’ve never been on a whale watching excursion before, and didn’t really know what to expect.
What I received absolutely exceeded my expectations.
Ordering tickets and making reservations over the phone was super easy, and the lady I spoke with was very friendly.
Once we boarded our clean and well appointed boat, we were some interesting facts and stories about whales, dolphins and other nearby marine life. Just a few miles from shore, we encountered a large pod of dolphins, who played around our boat for a long while. What an added bonus!
By the time our boat reached Stellwagen Bay, we came upon a group of about a dozen whales, mostly mothers and their calves. The mothers seemed unconcerned about our presence, and continued feeding around and under our boat. The calves were curious though, and seemed to enjoy the attention they were receiving from us. They played about for nearly half an hour, before it was time for us to head back to shore.
This was a great experience, one that I will repeat on my next trip to Boston and Gloucester. I highly recommend Captain Bill and Sons, for a great adventure of whale watching.

These folks are incredible. They worked hard to put us on multiple groups of whales. The tour guide had the heart of a teacher and loved her job. I can’t recommend them highly enough.

Excellent tour, it was an amazing experience watching the whales come so close to the boat. Captain bill is an expert and knew exactly where to go, I am glad we choose you for our whale watching trip.

I can’t comment about the actual whale watch but their customer service is amazing! They went above and beyond to help us out! Looking forward to making our next whale watch with you guys!

I had an amazing time! The staff is so knowledgeable and friendly! We saw whales and white belly dolphins. It is a nice, large boat, that serves food and drinks on it.
The seas can be upsetting, lol, we had a few people not watching whales, because they were sick, so you might want to take some medicine if you get sick. Also wear sunscreen and dress warm!
It’s a great time and I can’t wait to come back up and do it again!

Great whale-​watching experience. Crew was knowledgable and friendly. Great deal with the $ 29 vouchers.

Decided to take the 2pm trip at the last minute. I wasn’t really thinking about asking questions before I paid but I did after lucky me. From what I had read in previous reviews was the trip was 3.5 — 4 hours our trip was taking off at 2 and not getting back in till 7pm!!! We were told it was further out to get where the whales were. The staff was friendly but it was a very long ride and unfortunately it wasnt worth it. Now dont get me wrong the crew doesnt have control over nature it’s a hit or miss. We did see whales I just wish it was more. The water was so unbelievably choppy we sat outside boy what a mistake we got soakedddddd. As we were standing outside a swell came over the side of the boat and drenched us everyone went running inside my partner got pushed in by the crowd while I got hit with swell after swell. I was saturated from head to toe and it was freezing. When that happened I was done and wanted to go back again not the crews fault they dont control the ocean. I was besides myself on the way home freezing wet just miserable. A few things to adhere by dress WARMLY sweats/​sweatshirt/​sneakers, take something for sea sickness and after 5 hrs take another (10pm last night I still felt like I was on the boat) sit inside you can easily walk outside people are constantly moving once all the inside seats are taken thats it for the entire trip, absolutely wear sunscreen and bring towels or blankets. I got some sunburn but more wind burn on my arms and hands. They have food, snacks, drinks, wine & beer. Unfortunately I got to see a girl seasick and even though the crew repeatedly told the crowd throw up outside she threw up in the garbage. I would do it again IF it was only an hour trip out and back and I would make sure I sat inside.

Let me start off by saying the staff was friendly, the intern speaking throughout the trip seemed very knowledgeable and they offer free parking while you are on the tour. We spent 2 hours getting to an area where whales had been spotted earlier that day before seeing anything. We got pretty close to the humpback whales and it was neat to see 2 swimming together. Obviously, they can’t control nature and we were lucky to see anything, but I was pretty disappointed. They mentioned they had been having to go close to Provincetown on Cape Cod to see the whales lately, which is why the trips out and back were so long. I really wish I had known that. The other Gloucester whale watching boats were all in the same area, so it didn’t matter which company you went with. Captain Bill’s definitely seemed to be the least crowded, which I think was a good thing. The sea was pretty rough and even though we took non-​drowsy Dramamine, my husband and I got a little dizzy (not nauseous thankfully!). The 2 hours back were missssserable. We brought some music to listen to, but it was so boring. It was also very cold. We had sat on the top deck, and on the way back all the seats downstairs were taken. I get that, just wish I had brought a big blanket or something. Anyway, I guess it depends on the day and we just weren’t lucky with our whale watching experience. I wish it had been cancelled due to weather as we were bouncing all around the waves. I was very happy to be back on land.

Excellent experience. We made a reservation a week in advance and they were already almost at capacity. However, I was pleased to see that when it was time to depart, the boat wasn’t stuffed and overcrowded. They do an excellent job making sure the tour is full with a comfortable amount of people. I’ve been on whale watches in the past where it’s just way too crowded.
It was a beautiful day and a beautiful ride, we saw some cool marine life included a huge pod of dolphins! The tour guides (Hannah and co.) were very friendly and it was obvious they really loved their jobs.
The kicker here is that it was a great experience and we didn’t even see a whale! Toward the end of the tour we briefly saw a blow hole and a speck of a whale dive, but it was quick and far away. The company decided it was worth it to give everyone a voucher to come back another time, as a courtesy for not really seeing a whale during the tour. I thought that was such a generous business move on their part.
I would recommend this company to anyone interested in doing a whale watch out of Gloucester. They do not overcrowd the boat and it was a great time!

We had a great time even though it got a little rainy towards the end on the way back (not that they should be held responsible for the weather). It’s a large boat with plenty of space, but I was surprised how crowded it got. The scientist on board that describes the whales and their biology was really great. These guys know where the whales are and how to find them so you will not be disappointed. I also really enjoyed some of the environmentalist comments about preserving our oceans! She mentioned the continent sized trash piles in our oceans, which I doubt most people even know exists.
Have fun!

What an awesome time we had whale watching! Great staff with wonderful info on whales. We saw many humpbacks. Amazing afternoon!

I’ll keep this simple. There are lots of whale tours. Captain Bill & Son’s does it right. We’ve done several tours out of Boston, but we spend more time on the water GETTING to the watching spot, than watching. So, we took a gamble on taking a train North, thus more time WATCHING the whales on the water.
Our gamble was spot on. We saw 8 Humpback whales, and over 30 breeches. 1 whale literally came up so close I could have touched it. My camera lens was wet from the water blow. Very memorable and certainly worth it. Crossed that one off our bucket list with a lifetime memory.
Thanks B&S! :)

Best part of our vacation — saw three humpback whales, boat was comfortable and very seaworthy, staff enthusiastic and patient with all ages. Highly recommend — we drove from Boston — while out on trip, saw an overloaded triple decker boat from Boston Aquarium — so glad we chose this less crowded tour boat! The whales of course are breath taking — a bucket list experience. Must be patient– long ride out and back, but worth it.

Great time spent! very friendly staff, and always willing to answer questions, took the time to explain about the whales behavior. Captain also took extra time to find more whales, made it more interesting! Definitely would do it again!

I went on an incredible whale watch with Capt Bill’s Whale Watching. The ride took just over an hour to reach whales but the crew were determined that we would see whales. And see whales we did! At one point, you could look in any direction and see whales-​breaching, blowing, diving. It was incredible.
I saw one other boat crew out (not sure which company) but they didn’t seem to be in the thick of things as we were. I would certainly recommend this company as they aim to ensure a good whale watching experience.