First off, for those of you staying in the Marina area, the Marina Pier is NOT the area where all the shops and eateries are. We were a little confused as to where the boat left from and had to take a taxi to make it on time. The Marina Pier is where the big cruise ships dock. Be sure to carry some cash with you because there is a 10 peso per person departure tax.
The cruise was pretty good. They served some fruit and a croissant for breakfast on the way out to the whales. The seagulls seem to know exactly when the crew breaks out the food, because the boat is immediately surrounded by them. The birds are pretty talented as they are able to catch food thrown out from the boat in mid-air. Some brave passengers actually held their hands out over the side of the boat and let the birds grab it from them.
We saw quite a few whales, but were unable to get very close to most of them. There were a couple of active whales which we could see breach off in the distance, but by the time we got to them, they were diving again. The only complaint that we have is that the boat was too slow. There were other people that were in small pontoon boats that were able to speed to the whales when they first came up for air, but by the time we got to them, they were ready to dive.
The crew was very attentive and were constantly running back and forth with drinks. On the way back in, they served us a small lunch with chips and a crab meat salad. All in all, it was a pretty good tour, but if you have the money, we'd recommend that you go on one of the smaller, faster boats.