San Juan Excursions

What San Juan Excursions does

San Juan Excursions is a family-owned whale watching and wildlife tour operator founded circa 1993-1994 and headquartered in Friday Harbor on San Juan Island, Washington, serving individual tourists, families, school groups, and private event clients visiting the Pacific Northwest. The company operates the 65-foot USCG-certified motor yacht Odyssey, originally built in 1941 as a U.S. Navy search and rescue vessel and converted to a charter craft in the mid-1980s, equipped with a hydrophone for live orca vocalizations, multi-level viewing decks, and heated indoor salons. It also retails guided sea kayak tours through a channel partnership with Crystal Seas Kayaking and offers a 10% combo discount for bundled bookings, in addition to e-gift certificates and year-round private charters tiered up to 80 guests.

The business runs primarily April through October for scheduled 3.5-4 hour whale watching and wildlife cruises, with private charters available year-round for weddings, corporate events, family reunions, and school field trips. Pricing is unit-based, with sea kayak tours at $99-$125 per person, private charters ranging from $690 to $1,490 per hour depending on guest count, and an 8.3% Washington sales tax applied on top. Distribution is direct-to-consumer via the watchwhales.com website, a toll-free reservations line, walk-up sales at the 40 Spring St office steps from the Friday Harbor ferry landing, and a complimentary ferry shuttle to the Snug Harbor kayak launch on the island's west side.

Revenue is concentrated in ticket and charter sales rather than third-party resellers, supported by an over 90% whale sighting rate with a free return trip guarantee, a TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence in 2026 with a 95% thumbs-up rating, a King 5 Evening Magazine Best Whale Watching designation, and a stated commitment to donate 5% or more of profits to conservation and regional charitable programs. The company is independently owned by Captain Pete and his wife Erin with no institutional capital, no subsidiaries, no acquisitions, and no disclosed financial statements.

Name

San Juan Excursions

Legal name

San Juan Excursions

Website

https://watchwhales.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1993

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

San Juan Excursions is a family-owned whale watching and wildlife tour operator in Friday Harbor, San Juan Island, Washington, running seasonal cruises aboard the 65-foot Odyssey yacht, private charters, and partner-operated sea kayak tours for Pacific Northwest tourists, families, and private event clients.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Eco-Tourism and Wildlife Tours

NAICS

Scenic and Sightseeing Transportation, Water (487210), Tour Operators (561520)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900), Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990)

akta.pro primary industry

Whale Watching & Marine Mammal Tours (THAAAIAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Sightseeing & Scenic Boat Tours (Harbor, Sunset, Dolphin/Whale Watching) (THAJAJAA), Marine Wildlife & Birding Cruises (dolphins, seals, seabirds) (THAAAIAD), Marine Wildlife & Coastal Nature Tours (Whale/Dolphin Watching, Sea Kayaking) (THAAAEAD)

Keywords

• Whale watching tours
• Wildlife cruises
• Private yacht charters
• Sea kayak tours
• Eco-tourism experiences

Headquarters

HQ city

Friday Harbor

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Whale Watching Tours: Primary revenue stream from 3.5-4 hour whale watching and wildlife cruise tours departing from Friday Harbor, operating April through October.
2. Private Charters: Private charter services for weddings, corporate events, school field trips, and special occasions. Rates vary by guest capacity. Available year-round.
3. Sea Kayak Tours: Guided sea kayak tours including 3-hour, 6-hour, sunset, and multi-day options departing from Snug Harbor on San Juan Island's west side.
4. Gift Certificates: E-gift certificates and gift certificates sold for various tour types including whale watching, kayak tours, and combo packages.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

San Juan Excursions operates guided whale watching and wildlife cruises aboard the 65-foot USCG-certified motor yacht Odyssey, departing from Friday Harbor on San Juan Island. The core offering includes 3.5-4 hour whale watching tours, year-round private yacht charters for events, and partnered sea kayak tours, supplemented by gift certificates and combo packages.

Product overview

San Juan Excursions operates a unified fleet-based tour business centered on the 65-foot motor yacht Odyssey. The core offering is whale watching and wildlife cruises (3.5-4 hours), supplemented by private yacht charters and a partner-operated sea kayak program. The company also sells gift certificates and a combo package bundling whale watching with kayaking at a discount. All offerings depart from Friday Harbor on San Juan Island, with kayak tours launching from Snug Harbor on the island's west side.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Whale Watching Tours
• Private Charters

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 90% whale sighting rate
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Pacific Whale Watch AssociationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIndustry association for whale watching operators in the Pacific Northwest. Members share whale location data with each other and helped develop current standards for whale watching in the region. San Juan Excursions is a member.
• The Whale MuseumcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocated in Friday Harbor. San Juan Excursions naturalists are certified through The Whale Museum's Naturalist Training Program. Partnership provides naturalist education and certification.
• Salish Sea Association of Marine NaturalistscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerProfessional association for marine naturalists. San Juan Excursions naturalists are members, ensuring they stay current on area wildlife information.
• Crystal Seas KayakingminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartner kayak company for sea kayak tour operations. San Juan Excursions offers combo packages combining whale watching with Crystal Seas Kayaking tours. Crystal Seas website is linked from San Juan Excursions site for kayak tour bookings.
• SoundwatchminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBoater education and stewardship program. Marti, a naturalist at San Juan Excursions, volunteers with Soundwatch.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves1 record

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Maya's Legacy Whale Watching: San Juan Islands whale watching tour operator running naturalist-led cruises focused on orcas and other marine wildlife. Direct competitor for premium, education-oriented wildlife viewing guests in the same Friday Harbor market.
• Prince of Whales Whale Watching: Major Pacific Northwest whale watching operator with departures from Seattle and the San Juan Islands region offering comparable naturalist-led orca and wildlife cruises. Closely overlapping customer base and product mix.
• Outer Island Excursions: San Juan Islands wildlife tour operator offering whale watching and lighthouse cruises from the islands. Comparable vessel-based wildlife viewing product targeting the same Pacific Northwest visitor market.
• Western Prince Whale Watching & Crab Cruises: Friday Harbor-based whale watching operator running scheduled wildlife cruises from the San Juan Islands on its own vessels. Directly competes with San Juan Excursions for the same ferry-arriving tourist traffic targeting orcas and other marine wildlife.
• Island Adventures Whale Watching: Friday Harbor-based whale watching tour company operating multiple vessels for San Juan Islands wildlife cruises. Competes head-to-head for the same Pacific Northwest tourist cohort and is a fellow Pacific Whale Watch Association member.
• Salish Sea Tours: Friday Harbor-based small-group wildlife and whale watching tour operator running scheduled cruises in the Salish Sea. Directly comparable product offering and target customer to San Juan Excursions.

Others

• The Whale Museum: Friday Harbor-based nonprofit marine mammal education and research organization. Not a competitor, but a strategic partner that trains San Juan Excursions' naturalists and reinforces the conservation brand ecosystem around the San Juan Islands.
• Pacific Whale Watch Association: Industry association of Pacific Northwest whale watching operators, of which San Juan Excursions is a member. Sets whale viewing standards and coordinates sighting data across member vessels — an ecosystem participant rather than a direct competitor.

Emerging players

• Crystal Seas Kayaking: San Juan Island-based guided sea kayak tour operator that already partners with San Juan Excursions to deliver the kayak portion of combo packages. Operates adjacent (not overlapping) tour products from the same launch site at Snug Harbor.

Regional players

• Discovery Sea Kayak Tours: San Juan Islands-based sea kayak tour operator offering guided paddling experiences comparable to the kayak portion of San Juan Excursions' combo product, focused on the same regional visitor base.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/pages/San-Juan-Excursions/98224261179
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/san-juan-excursions

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about San Juan Excursions