Decided · Valdez Day Cruise

Meares it is

We weighed both Stan Stephens boats and chose the Meares Glacier Excursion: the longer run up Unakwik Inlet to an actively calving glacier face. The cancellation terms and the case we made are below; the full Columbia-vs-Meares comparison is kept for the record.

Cruise day

Wednesday, July 8, 2026 in Valdez. Both boats sail that day: Meares at 9:00 am, Columbia at 10:30 am, and both return around 4:30 pm.

Who is going

2 adults + a 5-year-old. Kids 3 to 12 ride half price on either boat; both have heated cabins, three restrooms, and kids' life jackets.

The next day

July 9 is heavy: a ~6-hour drive to Anchorage, then an 11:15 pm redeye home. Meares returns by ~4:30 pm, so the evening stays free, but the 7.5-hour day still matters for the 5-year-old.

Cancellation policy: booked, here are the refund terms

The Meares cruise is booked and paid in full. If plans change, refunds depend on how far ahead of the July 8 cruise we cancel:

  • By Mon Jun 2216 or more days out: full refund
  • Jun 23 to 308 to 15 days out: 50% refund
  • Jul 1 onward7 or fewer days out: no refund

Why this matters for us: Meares does not run daily, and July 8 is our only cruise day (we drive to Anchorage on the 9th). It is dark July 6 and 11, so there is no nearby fallback sailing. June 22 is the last day we could change our minds for a full refund. If Stan Stephens scrubs July 8 for weather they can adjust schedules, and a weather cancellation should be refunded, but we would simply miss the cruise: there is no rebooking window given our one-day stop in Valdez.

01 The two routes

Both boats run the same first leg out of Valdez through the Narrows and down Valdez Arm. Columbia then turns north into iceberg-filled Columbia Bay; Meares continues south of Glacier Island and up Unakwik Inlet to the glacier face. Routes are approximations of the typical track, not GPS data. Click the map to enable scroll zoom.

Columbia (~80 mi round trip) Meares (~110 mi round trip) Valdez harbor
02 Side by side
Aerial view of Columbia Glacier and iceberg-filled Columbia Bay with the Chugach Mountains, 2017

Columbia Glacier and Columbia Bay, 2017. Photo: C Watts, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

Columbia Glacier Cruise

The shorter, cheaper sister tour. Runs daily in July.

  • Departure & duration10:30 am, 6 hours; check-in 9:30 am, back about 4:30 pm
  • Price for our family$173 adult / $86.50 child (age 5 qualifies), + $6 fees each: about $450.50 total
  • Route~80 miles round trip down Valdez Arm and into Columbia Bay, working through the iceberg field
  • At the glacierHonest framing: Columbia is in catastrophic retreat, and the boat usually cannot reach the face. Distance varies with the ice pack: about 1 mile on a good day, 7+ miles in June 2026 reports. The guaranteed show is house-sized blue icebergs at arm's length, often with seals on the floes
  • WildlifeHumpbacks, otters, sea lions, seals, eagles, puffins; June 2026 logs also list orcas, a minke, and mountain goats
  • FoodClam chowder, bagel, and cookies included; free hot drinks; bring kid snacks (encouraged by the operator)
  • BoatGlacier Spirit: 90-ft catamaran (2017), 149 passengers, heated cabin, three restrooms
The calving face of Meares Glacier seen from the water in Unakwik Inlet, with floating ice

Meares Glacier face from the water. Photo: joiseyshowaa, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

Meares Glacier Excursion Booked

The longer flagship tour. Does not run daily, but it does run July 8.

  • Departure & duration9:00 am, 7.5 hours; check-in 8:00 am, back about 4:30 pm (sometimes nearer 5:00)
  • Price for our family$193 adult / $96.50 child, + $6 fees each ($1 harbor + $5 fuel): $500.50 total
  • Route~110 miles round trip, past Glacier Island and up Unakwik Inlet; the farthest-out glacier tour from Valdez
  • At the glacierMeares is one of the few advancing tidewater glaciers in North America, with a stable, active calving face. The boat gets within about a quarter mile, and captains "are almost always able to get to the face," often shutting down to wait for calving
  • WildlifeSame species mix as Columbia; the extra distance and shoreline time improve the odds (operator's own staff say so). Mountain goats and bears sometimes seen on shore
  • FoodMorning bagel plus a hot lunch (chicken alfredo, rice, vegetables, roll, cookies); free hot drinks; outside kid food welcome
  • BoatValdez Spirit: 82-ft catamaran (2005), 149 passengers, heated cabin, three restrooms
03 Scannable facts
  Columbia Glacier Cruise Meares Glacier Excursion
Times on Jul 8 Check-in 9:30 am, depart 10:30 am, return ~4:30 pm Check-in 8:00 am, depart 9:00 am, return ~4:30 pm (possibly ~5:00)
Duration 6 hours 7.5 hours
Price, 2 adults + child ~$450.50 (incl. $6/person fees) ~$500.50 (incl. $6/person fees)
Glacier behavior Retreating; face usually unreachable (1 to 7+ miles off depending on ice). Icebergs up close are the show Advancing and stable; boat reaches within ~¼ mile of an actively calving face almost every trip
Distance traveled ~80 miles round trip ~110 miles round trip
Runs Wed Jul 8, 2026? Yes; Columbia runs every day in July 2026 Yes, confirmed at 9:00 am on the live booking calendar. Meares skips 8 July days (incl. Jul 6 and 11), so there is no same-week fallback if weather cancels
Meal Clam chowder, bagel, cookies Bagel snack + hot chicken alfredo lunch
Kid fit (age 5) Strong: shortest day, slow 10:30 start, documented family experiences with toddlers Workable: 90 more minutes afloat and an earlier start; one reviewer cautioned against under-6 on the old 10-hour version
04 Pros and cons

Columbia

From passenger reviews and operator data

  • Shortest day with the latest start: a slow morning, 6 hours afloat, back by 4:30
  • ~$50 cheaper for our group
  • The iceberg field is genuinely the show: "massive sections of ice, some the size of buildings," with the boat nosing right up to them
  • 4.9/5 from 197 TripAdvisor product reviews; zero "Poor" or "Terrible"
  • Proven with young kids: one family blog took a 22-month-old and a 7-year-old and got coloring sheets, a kid-friendly crew, and a cockpit photo
  • Calm protected water; motion-sick families report no trouble
  • You usually do not reach the glacier face; a June 2026 reviewer was "closer than they had all season" at 7 miles out
  • Calving at the face is unlikely; the glacier reads as a distant wall plus icebergs
  • Lighter food: soup and a bagel vs a hot lunch
  • Rare off days exist in reviews (fog, an unengaged crew in one Aug 2025 report)

Meares

From passenger reviews and operator data

  • Near-certain close approach (~¼ mile) to an advancing, actively calving face; "Got to see it calve several times!"
  • More water time and shoreline means better wildlife odds, per the operator's own staff and repeat passengers
  • 4.9/5 from 118 TripAdvisor product reviews, 100% rated 4+ stars
  • Hot lunch included
  • Multi-generation groups and families report it works
  • 7.5 hours on the boat with a 9:00 am start: the main caution for a 5-year-old, with 2+ hour open-water transits to fill
  • A June 2026 reviewer hit a slow wildlife day and preferred the Columbia tour
  • ~$50 more for our group
  • Pre-2019 reports of Meares sailings being cancelled and consolidated into Columbia trips when bookings or weather were thin
  • In flat light the face can underwhelm: "it just looks like a bunch of dirty ice"
05 What reviewers say

"We ended up getting closer than they had all season (so far) we were still 7 miles away. Not to worry because there was a ton of other stuff that we experienced."

mysterymail, TripAdvisor, Columbia cruise, Jun 2026

"Got to see it calve several times!"

John H, TripAdvisor, Meares excursion, Jun 2025

"Both were pretty different, so if in doubt I think they are both great and absolutely both worth it."

GRZ, TripAdvisor, May 2025 (did both tours)

"I wouldn't recommend this for children under six years - just too long, 10 hours. But older kids would find it fun, I think."

Strider97116, TripAdvisor, Aug 2011 (the old 10-hour Meares; it is 7.5 hours now)
06 Verdict
Why we chose Meares

We went with Meares. Both boats sail July 8 and both return around 4:30 pm, so the choice came down to what we most want from a day on Prince William Sound. Meares is the one option that all but guarantees what a glacier is supposed to do: the boat gets within about a quarter mile of an advancing, actively calving face and often idles there waiting for ice to fall. Columbia, in heavy retreat, would likely have been an iceberg field viewed from miles off.

The trade we accepted: 90 more minutes afloat (7.5 hours, a 9:00 am start) and about $50 more. For the 5-year-old that is the main watch-out, but the boat is back by ~4:30 with the evening free before the July 9 drive, it is the current 7.5-hour tour rather than the old 10-hour one a reviewer warned about, and the hot lunch plus the calving show help fill the longer day.

Booked. The cancellation terms are in the callout above if plans change: June 22 is the last day we could back out for a full refund.