Whale Watching Trip on Monterey Bay

The whole experience was wonderful. The boat Captain and his assistant DJ were both very friendly and knowledgeable. The boat was clean and comfortable. The next time I visit Santa Cruz, I will definately take another trip with them.

Although a lot had to do with the beautiful weather that day, we found the trip to be very rewarding. While we didn't see whales for the first 2-3 hours, the captain took us on an exciting ride from north of Santa Cruz almost to Moss Landing. The weather was sunny but windy so I don't think he wanted to go out very far, maybe a mile. We did see a gray whale and calf just off shore at Capitola and followed them for about 3/4 hour. . Both the naturalist on board (Maureen) and the captain were very informative about the area sea life and the whales - we learned a great deal.

This was the first trip for my kids and they loved it! The crew is very knowledgeable, the boat is very nice and you feel totally safe! I would totally recommend this trip!

That was a lot of fun. The guide, Maureen, was great. I liked that she engaged each person/group and spent time talking about the whales, and other facts, and even had show and tell. I found the boat staff to be friendly and informative, and appreciated the commentary provided as we were seeing the whales.

The whale watch cruise was well worth it. Great crew and we saw a lot of whales. If you are not used to being out on the water in a boat, especially on high rolling swells (waves) I highly recommend to take sea sickness pills or wear a patch. My family did not get sick and had a very enjoyable time. Would highly recommend this trip and would definitely go on another whale watch cruise with Stagnaro Charter Boats again.

we would have liked to see moor of a display form the wales

I've been on several whale watching trips in Hawaii, but this was a first for my 2 grandsons, ages 7 and 10, and my first in Santa Cruz. It was by far the best whale sightings I have experienced. The captain took us north along the coastline paralleling 2 large grey whales that surfaced and provided a "fluke show" several times. The boat was immaculate, the crew and naturalists were courteous and very informative and the whales and dolphins gave us quite a show. We also learned about and saw several sea otters resting in the kelp beds. We stayed out on the bow area of the boat for the entire tour but there is a small indoor cabin which we checked out, but preferred to be outside where we wouldn't miss anything. This was a wonderful experience for my grandsons and I to enjoy together and I highly recommend this trip.

Besides the fact of being sick on board and the choppy waves (I do not have a stomach made of steel) the sightings were spectacular and brilliant. It's definitely worth it if you can do well on the open waters :D

We had a good trip. This is the ninth time I've been whale watching and the first with this company. We got a little lost and the company was very helpful with directions by phone and making sure we made it on time. The boat was a little smaller than I'm used to but the extra movement made for a fun ride. We went during a weekday morning so the boat wasn't very crowded and it was easy to get seats and a nice view. The snack bar was good, basically what you would expect out on a boat for a very fair price. We didn't find any whales in the usual places but the Captain took the boat all the way across the bay to make sure we found whales and had a good trip. We saw three humpback whales playing on the surface and the Captain did a good job positioning the boat for a good view. My only slighty negative comment is that the naturalist tended to repeat the same comments and gave pretty basic information. All together, a very nice trip and one I would be happy to repeat.

We liked the boat, and the crew was excellent. The calm weather really helped too. And we saw lots of whales and other animals. Exceeded our expectations.