King George Sound Safari: whale watching and boat tours in Albany WA
We run whale watching and scenic boat tours in Albany WA, leaving from Albany Marina at 5d Toll Place, next to the Albany Entertainment Centre at the bottom of York Street. Trips go out on the Young Salty Dog, a twin-hull catamaran that carries a maximum of twelve passengers. We are the only boat tour operating daily out of Albany Marina. Call Mark on 0429 080 397.
A small boat, and the parts of Albany you can only see from the water
Twelve seats is a deliberate limit. It keeps the trip personal and it leaves time to talk. Captain Mark Muscat is an Albany local, and he spends the trip sharing the town’s history and what you are looking at, including islands, beaches and shipwrecks you cannot reach any other way. The Cheynes II whale chaser and Mistaken Island are two of the things you will see close up.
These waters carry a good deal of that history. Explorers were pulling into this harbour as early as 1627, and the first Anzac troops left Albany for the First World War in 1914 from the same water you will be sitting on.
The Young Salty Dog is a 10 metre former sea rescue vessel with twin 250HP four-stroke outboards. The hull is full of foam, so the deck could fill with water and the catamaran would still float, and it draws very little water, so we can take you in close to shore.
Why a catamaran
People ask why the boat is a cat, and there are six answers we give.
What the two hulls do for you
- Natural buoyancy: a cat stays afloat with a level deck even fully laden, and even if water gets in.
- Faster: cats get up to speed faster, and hold that speed comfortably.
- Economy: a lower wetted surface area means less to run, which we pass on in the fare.
- Better layout: everyone is on the one level rather than spread over decks, which makes a difference to a group.
- Manoeuvrable: twin engines set a distance apart, and a shallow draft that gets us into places other boats cannot go.
- Safety: cats have little heeling and they do not roll at anchor, which matters if anyone aboard is prone to sea sickness. And with two engines, if one stops there is always another.
Whales in winter, the Sound in summer
Our safaris
- Winter Whale Safaris, May to October: three hours on the water, departing 9.30am and 1.30pm. Humpback and southern right whales come through, and occasionally blue whales.
- Summer Sea Safaris, November to April: a two-hour scenic cruise, departing 9.30am, 12.30pm and 3.30pm.
- Custom Safaris: chartered trips of two, three or four hours.
Dolphins and seals are around all year. Concession and children’s fares are available, and infants under five travel free; current fares are on our bookings page.
A charter can be built around most things. The occasions we list are romantic evenings, eco tours, whale watching, scenic cruises, pre-wedding celebrations, parties, corporate functions, family fun days, end of year parties, geo-tourism, staff incentives and supplier incentives.
What to bring, and what happens if the weather turns
Bring a sense of fun and a camera. You are welcome to bring your own food, drinks and alcohol, and there is a barbecue on board on request. There is a porta-potty toilet on the boat, and toilets at the Haz Beanz Cafe at the marina. Parking is at Albany Marina, where the tours leave from.
If something like the weather stops a tour going out, you can move your trip to another available time or take a full refund. If we go out in peak whale season and do not find whales, you are invited back as our guest, free of charge, for another safari.
Why the boat is called Young Salty Dog
We started in November 2016. The boat carries the name of Mark’s son Jay, who died in 2014 and who loved the water and fishing, and the business was set up as a tribute to him.
Mark was in business in Albany well before that. He and his wife Sheryl took over the local pet shop, Head to Tail Pets, in December 2001, from Mark’s parents, who had run it for the twelve years before them.
Booking and getting in touch
We are contactable from 6.00am to 6.00pm daily on 0429 080 397, by email at [email protected], or through Facebook Messenger, where our chatbot Captain A-Aye can answer a question about availability at an hour when we cannot. Bookings, fares and our FAQ are on our website, along with a brochure you can download.