Yacht America

My 20 year old daughter and her boyfriend went whale-​watching with me on The America. What a terrific deal! My ticket included hers for FREE. The yacht is gorgeous and the crew is extremely talented and friendly. Complimentary snacks and beverages are provided. I was impressed by the vast amount of knowledge shared by the Captain. We were able to see a variety of sea creatures. Along with perfect weather, this excursion far exceeded my expectations. Worth every dime.

Beautiful yacht. Friendly crew.

Great way to sail and enjoy a 4 – 5 hour cruise while experiencing (hopefully) some wonderful sights of whales, military maneuvers, and military helicopter action (after all, you are in the region of North Island Naval Base and the military maneuvers can be almost as interesting as the wildlife). We were treated to a marvelous day with nice sightings of whales and a courteous crew. The only surprises were that there was no introduction, orientation to the boat history or crew (other than «the life jackets are over there and you’re welcome to wear one») Since we were looking for a quiet, personal experience, this was fine with us, but don’t expect any unsolicited education from the crew as, at least for our trip, half the crew were being oriented for the first time themselves, and the experts are pretty busy finding whales!

Truly, the highlight of our trip to San Diego. We apparently went at the right time, because we saw many whales and they came so close to the boat.
Read Shauna’s review for all the details. I couldn’t have said it better myself.
The boat is awesome and beautiful and the staff was really great.
Worth the money (79 bucks). Be sure to tip them!

We got to sail on this amazing schooner all the way out to sea, about eight miles. We saw several grey whales breach, spout, fluke, and wave a side fin, and also saw pods of dolphins and even sunfish! Passengers helped hoist the sales, and kids pulled the flag up. The guide (his name was Al) was fantastic, entertaining, and really put people at ease. I am prone to seasickness, but had absolutely no trouble. I live in San Diego, and I’ve gone on several whale watching tours, and this was hands down the best. I won two tix in a raffle, so only paid for my son, but I’d definitely say it was worth the higher price when compared to other trips. Sailing on the open ocean (especially when they cut the engine and we were strictly under power of the wind) was a marvelous experience. They even had blankets for those who didn’t dress warmly enough, and snack to boot. Very professional and exceedingly fun.

If you live in San Diego and you have never gone whale-​watching: GO! Go by yourselves, get a group together, wait till you have special out-​of-​town guests — just make it happen sometime in your near future. If you are visiting San Diego from anywhere out there in the rest of the world: GO! There are so many endless things to do and see in this amazing place but serious consideration should go into affording time for a specialized tour such a this.
We have been out at sea on different sorts of whale-​watching tours as guests of others but we only sail as hosts on Yacht America. The tour offered here by Next Level Sailing is THE BEST. I stand by this and I will passionately explain why. My feelings are heightened right now because friends treated us last weekend to a larger, more «coupon-​friendly» tour and whilst we indeed saw whales and the experience was overall pretty fun and the ocean looked just as beautiful, the experience was NOT the same.
First of all, when you call to make your reservations, you will probably be leaving a voicemail and some kind soul will be ringing you right back. They are fabulous — they answer all zillion of your questions and take loads of time with you (probably why the line was just busy when you called!) and make you feel like it’s a cinch: just show up! If anything comes up in your life, you just have to call and reschedule within 48 hours.
The price is steeper than other tours. Other tours are on huge motorized boats with tons of people crammed in and they sell alcohol and food and they take you straight out and straight back and if you see something, you see something and if you don’t, you don’t. Meanwhile, you are running neck-​and-​neck with other sight-​seeing tours and then it gets sticky when you see whales because federal laws govern how close the boats can get and blah blah blah.
Next Level Sailing allows you to be their GUEST and feel welcomed and participate and carry on lunch and wine and celebrate with your friends and/​or family. Other tours simply are not as intimate and you do not mix and mingle with the crew and actually learn about sailing or the ocean or about their experiences or about anything other than just the basics of whatever is said over the PA system of the larger tours. On Yacht America, you receive your information via word-​of-​mouth. As in, «Let’s all get up and start lifting these sails!»
Sometimes you see whales and sometimes you don’t. Is anything in life really 100% guaranteed? Other tours do NOT invite you back for a free sail-​again if zero whales are seen. Once we saw dozens of dolphins and searched and searched but could not find whales so we were gifted a sail-​again. (That’s my terminology — just made it up!) If you enjoy photography, the pictures are amazing when you combine the sky and the sea with the sails and the American flag whipping in the wind.
Hope this paints a vivid picture for anyone considering a top-​notch day either as a San Diego resident who has never ventured out or as a visitor to our fair city who would like a different perspective. We have so many world-​class venues here but the freedom and majesty out there is insurmountable. You are very safe — Yacht America is not tipping over — believe me — because once we were out so far stubbornly searching and it was very stormy and obviously I survived! And yes it can get cold on the way back so coordinate some layers. Wine realllllllly helps warm up your core body temperature! So pack a glorious lunch and see San Diego through different eyes and hopefully sight whales and dolphins and all sorts of neat things along the way!

An awesome 4 hour whale watching trip on the sailing scooner. The staff was very professional, very helpful, and informative throughout the trip. The passengers got to help the crew in raising the sails, which was great fun. We saw several gray whales. The whale spotter was hoisted to the top of the forward mast and would yell «there she blows», yell the approximate distance, and point the direction for the captain whenever he spotted a whale.
Another crew member, a spotter, stood at the bow and guided the captain through the many crab pot markers on the way to sea. Fun to watch.
What a great way to see some whales — and to spend an afternoon in the lovely southern California weather.

Went out whale watching this past weekend and had a great time.
We saw a few grey whales, a finback whale, dolphins and sea lions during our 5 hour tour.
Things to know before you go:
–Right now (early March) is the tail end of the whale watching season (ha, tail end!) so the grey whales are pretty much all business about getting back to Alaska, and they dont meander or breach like they do on their way down to Mexcio. If you want the best whale watching experience, you have to go in December or early January.
–I am pretty sure you have to buy tickets online through the «next level sailing» website. The place where we checked in had no mention of our tour on any of the signs. It doesn’t seem like something people walk up and decide to do last minute.
–Your ticket on the boat gets you free entry into the maritime museum for the same day.
–The staff on board is very knowledgeable. However, they do not give formal presentations. You have to make the effort to go up to them and ask them questions.
–IT GETS COLD. This past Sunday was a low 80 degree day onshore, and we were pretty cold out there. I was bundled in a jacket, and my boyfriend who was wearing a light jacket and shorts was regretting not wearing pants. They have blankets to offer to people who didnt dress warmly enough for the trip, but I highly suggest you wear pants and bring a decent jacket.
–This boat is gorgeous. I picked this tour because not only do you get to go see whales, you get to ride on a replica of the historic sailing yacht that won the first America Cup back in the 1800s. They will even let you help haul up the sails if thats your thing.
–My boyfriend who is known to get seasick was able to take the 12 mile out to sea journey without any hint of nausea, to our relief. They even offer a «no-​sea sickness» guarantee.
–You are allowed to bring your own food and alcohol on board. Coolers are acceptable. They just dont want glass out on the deck. So, if you bring wine, you can have the bottle, but you have to pour into plastic, and the store the bottle away.
–They provide complementary water, soda, and snacks (a variety of snack crackers and «baked» chips), but its a long trip, and you should bring your own food.
–On the way back they offer hot-​chocolate!
–Keep in mind you are taking a 4 – 5 hour trip out to sea, and there is not a lot to keep you entertained. If you are bringing kids, you should bring something for them do to. And also dress them warm enough. And bring food. A bored, hungry, and cold child has the potential to ruin everyone’s experience. Hell, a bored, hungry, and cold me is a nasty sight too.
Why this is not a 5 star review:
–The scheduled 4 hour tour actually took 5 since we had to go so far out to see whales. I didnt have anything planned afterward so it wasnt a big deal, but this is probably not the thing to do if you have plans later that afternoon.
–They overbooked out trip by 1 person, so a couple had to volunteer to get off. They offered to refund their money and give them a free trip, so they were compensated, but it still sucks to have to change you plans because the ticket office messed up.

What a great way to spend New Years Day! Wonderful beautiful boat. The crew is very knowledgeable and attentive to the passengers. Saw lots of whales, even with all the fog. Would recommend this activity to anyone wanting something a little different. Thanks to Fathom for her sucessful whale calling!

Took our visiting company on this whale watching tour during the holiday break. The experience was great. The naturalist/​pirate was informative and our kids enjoyed him. It was a bit chiily, but the hot chocolate they served was just the right thing to warm us up. We brought our own picnic lunch (recommended), but there are snacks and plenty of drinks which are provided by the tour. We only saw one whale, but we sailed along with it long enough for everyone to really observe it. Plenty of dolphins and seals. The ocean swells were fairly big on the day we went, but the boat sails very smoothly and none of us had any problems. The captain and crew were great. The boat is beautiful and clean. The tour also includes entrance to the Maritime museum, so plan to spend some time there as well. I’ll go on the America again.