Bering Sea Crab Fishermen’s Tour Review

This post will share our photos and review of the Bering Sea Crab Fishermen’s Tour in Ketchikan, Alaska!

Ketchikan, Alaska was one of our ports during our Alaskan cruise onboard Royal Caribbean’s Ovation of the Seas. This Alaska shore excursion stood out to us because we used to watch the Deadliest Catch and even met Sig Hansen in EPCOT several years ago. It is labeled as kid-friendly, offers several time options and doesn’t consume the entire time in port, which left time for us to explore a bit on our own. I was worried it would be a little too “touristy” but we ultimately decided to book based on the many overwhelmingly positive reviews and recommendations for it online. We really enjoyed it and the kids had a blast!

Bering Sea Crab Fishermen’s Tour Background

The boat you take the tour on is the Aleutian Ballad, which is a crab boat that was featured on season 2 of the Deadliest Catch on the Discovery Channel. It is most known for an episode where a 5-story tall rogue wave almost capsized the crab boat. You can watch that portion of the episode in this video.

Fast forward and the Aleutian Ballad has been converted to a tour boat! It now has an amphitheater-style sheltered lower deck and a panoramic open-air upper deck, with lots of seats to view the the speakers and creatures.

How did we purchase this Shore Excursion?

We booked this tour through Royal Caribbean, as the price was a bit cheaper due to a sale. You can also purchase directly from their website, alaskacrabtour.com as well as alaskashoreexcursions.com which is where we purchased our Dog Sledding Tour in Juneau.

How to get to the Bering Sea Crab Fishermen’s Tour

The tour boat is located at the same pier the cruise ship docks at and is just a short walk to the meeting location and then specifically to Berth 3 – Tender Float. There is no need for additional transportation if you are coming from a cruise ship for this shore excursion.

We arrived about 30 minutes prior to the tour, which is what was recommended. There were folks already there sitting all along the front row that had purchased a VIP option, but reviews I read prior to the tour said that 2nd row was actually best as it allows a better view beyond the boat, so we chose 2nd row center and it was a great spot.

As we waited for others to arrive and settle in, there is a tank with various live creatures for everyone to look at.

Bering Sea Crab Fishermen’s Tour Schedule

The tour is approximately 3 hours and begins by venturing to the fishing ground locations. But don’t worry! This isn’t the “fishing grounds” you might be thinking of from the Deadliest Catch! The tour stays within the calm waters of the Inside Passage.

As we made our way to the first location, the tour guides shared the history of the Aleutian Ballad and facts about crab-fishing, crabs, and other Alaskan wildlife and history. They also allowed some free roam where you can take photos. Do I look like a crab fisherman now?

The crew demonstrated pulling up real crab pots.

One of the crab pots contained several types of crabs, which we were allowed to come down and hold.

Aubrey was so funny…she wasn’t scared at all and would just reach in the pot and grab a crab next to the tour guide.

We’ve got crabs!

They also pulled up an octopus pot and showed everyone the octopus that was inside. The octopus was just to see and not for us to hold. With each creature, they would share facts about them, what they like to eat, how they are caught, etc.

They don’t pull up any real Alaskan King Crab in pots, but they do highlight them in two ways…

They show one for everyone to see that they have in the tank up front. These guys are crazy big!

They pull up a crab pot with fake red crabs but with tags tied to the pot. This is a fundraiser they operate where you can donate and have a note tied to the pot. At the end of the season, they collect them all.

There were a few other types of creatures pulled up as well.

Bering Sea Crab Fishermen’s Tour Eagle Experience

While the tour’s focus is crabs, one highlight was the bald eagle experience! The boat ventures to the protected waters of Annette Island. Guests are welcome to leave their seats and stand by the edge of the boat to witness the crew throwing food to the bald eagles.

You can never guarantee what you will see when it comes to wildlife, but we were so fortunate that there were so many bald eagles this day! They fly all around you, it was incredible!

The funny thing is, when we were walking around Ketchikan on our own earlier that day, we spotted a bald eagle and were so elated to have seen it. Little did we know we would have 20-30+ bald eagles putting on a show for us just a few hours later!

This would be a good time to also go upstairs and view from up there, as you get a more 360 degree view and perhaps even some close-ups as the eagles fly by and swoop in.

Eating Alaskan King Crab on a Crab Boat!

On the way back to the pier, they offer some free-roam around the boat, suggesting you check out their gift shop, where you can watch the featured Deadliest Catch episode on repeat on video screens on the wall. They also offer chilled, halved King Crab to eat.

We debated on if that was how we wanted to enjoy crab, but ultimately decided we HAD to do it. How many people can say they ate Alaskan King Crab on a Deadliest Catch Crab Boat in Alaska!? We can now!

Bonus points for the fact that it was actually really good and easy to eat in the way they prepared and served it. You don’t have to worry about doing any kind of cracking. With it being halved, you just use your fork to pull it out, dip it in the butter and enjoy!

They also offer to take photos with you. The tour guides were incredibly entertaining, knowledgeable and friendly.

Are we glad we did this shore excursion?

Absolutely! This was our very first shore excursion on our Alaska cruise and it was a great way to kick off the fun and adventure. I appreciated the variety…times where we could sit and take in the show and knowledge, and other times we could venture around, take photos and interact with the wildlife. The kids were entertained and never bored.

A coworker recently went on an Alaskan cruise (her first cruise ever!) and when she was planning, she asked me for tips on what to do. I recommended this tour to her and she booked it! She sent me photos of her holding a jumbo shrimp, as well as photos of them doing some of the same activities we did. She was super pleased with the recommendation.

Is the Bering Sea Crab Fishermen’s Tour Good for Kids?

The answer is yes. Just check out all the photos in this post…my kids loved it! If your kids are interested in sea creatures like this, this excursion is perfect! Just the right amount of time, time to explore, time to sit and enjoy the show, and a truly hands-on experience.

Bering Sea Crab Fishermen’s Tour Tips

Being out on the water in Alaska can get cold! They do offer large stadium jackets, coffee and hot cocoa if you need it! We were fortunate to have a beautiful, sunny day for our tour, but we still got quite cold. Not enough to need their extra jackets, but don’t let a “beautiful, sunny day” make you think you will be ok out on the water…always bring layers in Alaska no matter what you are doing! We were also shielded by the wind being on the bottom floor. When we ventured upstairs for a portion of the tour, it was much colder up there! Keep that in mind when picking your seat.

Be silly and adventurous! Explore around the boat, take the photos, hold the creatures…have fun!

Take in the view, you’re in Alaska!!

Grab a cool photo on your way to/from the tour in front of your cruise ship.

Looking for other Alaska shore excursion reviews? Check out this one!