Family Centric Inn to Inn Sea Kayaking & Biking Tours
Crystal Seas offers the perfect multi-sport combination for your family. It's a vacation that includes not only sea kayaking, but it includes hiking and bicycling the islands as well... all the while staying at our favorite inns and dining at our favorite restaurants. Sea kayak one day among small remote islands in search of sea birds, seals, porpoise, river otters and orcas... then cycle the next day along unpopulated roads past rolling pastures dotted with sheep and along awe-inspiring cliffs.
Each night retreat to luxurious inns and dine at exquisite restaurants. Few people get to experience each island's unique style the way that you will. We kayak the coastline of San Juan Island's west side where wildlife is abundant and cycle along quiet country roads to views of the snowcapped Olympic Peninsula, stopping at a lavender farm and vineyard. Orcas Island offers cycling through Moran State Park where you can enjoy a panoramic view of all of the islands atop Mount Constitution, hike around lakes down to waterfalls, and paddle through a small group of islands known as the Wasp Islands. Lopez Island is the smallest of the major San Juan Islands and offers kayaking along mellow shores in search of bald eagles and cycling past organic farms to unpopluated beaches.You will get to know these islands inside and out through cycling and kayaking.
Length: These tours range from 2-6 days in length.
Includes: We provide all accommodations, transportation, kayak and bike gear, breakfast, picnic lunches, dinner* and a happy hour beverage of your choice after the day's activity**. Our guests can enjoy ordering dinner off of a full menu at each restaurant.
*Our 4, 5 and 6 day tours allow one night for you to explore town on your own. This one dinner is not included in the cost of the trip.**We do not cover the cost of alcoholic beverages with dinner. Prices are subject to change and are based on double occupancy.
No experience is necessary.
Please note that the vast majority of our trips follow the routes and itineraries listed on our website, but changes may occur for reasons of safety, weather, logistics and guide or administrative judgement.
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Family Focused Kayak & Bike Inn to Inn Tour Highlights
Why Go with Crystal Seas?
The local experience
You’re not just another tourist when you travel with Crystal Seas. You get to experience island life through the eyes of a local, we are passionate about sharing these beautiful islands with you and letting you in on all our local secrets. You’ll eat in local restaurants, stay in accommodations that are locally owned, and learn to love these islands as much as we do.
Top Notch Accommodations
Our Inn to Inn biking & kayaking tours include staying at the Kingfish Inn on Orcas and the Tucker House Inn on San Juan Island. Each inn will cater to the most discerning guest. Enjoy wonderful breakfasts made with fresh local fruit and sleep in comfortable cozy beds at the finest inns in the San Juan Islands. If your expectations are high then this tour will exceed them!
Best Island restaurants
Our all inclusive trip involves eating at the most desired restaurants in the San Juan Islands. On all of our trips our guests are allowed to choose from the full menu and select anything and everything they want**. We select all the top quality restaurants, giving you the best dining experience the San Juan Islands have to offer.
**We do not cover the cost of alcoholic beverages with dinner.
Small personal groups
A great trip involves many factors. One of these is the group size. A smaller group is safer, allows for more interactions between the guides and guest and gives our guests a chance to know each other. Furthermore, we can also adjust and modify the trip to the individual desires and interests of the group, allowing our guests to participate in various activities ranging from birding, to advanced kayaking, to photography opportunities. For all these reasons and more we keep our regularly scheduled multi-day expedition group size to 8 guests or less ( unless a private trip ).
Private and custom tours are available upon request.
Gourmet meals
Starting with lunch on the first day and ending with lunch on your last day we provide all meals in between*. We feel that what you eat can be a major factor in the quality of your expedition, therefore we pride ourselves on the quality of our meals. Prior to your trip we send out food questionnaires and customize all of our meals to the various dietary requirements of our guests. We support many island farms and local producers to provide you with fresh, organic and regional food options. You will be impressed by the daily gourmet breakfasts at your inn, the heartiness of our well prepared lunches and the restaurants that we have chosen for your nightly dinner.
*Our 4, 5 and 6 day tours allow one night for the guests to explore town on their own. This evening's dinner is not included in the cost of the trip.
**We do not cover the cost of alcoholic beverages with dinner.
Professional guides
We strongly believe that an outstanding guide can make the difference between a good trip and a fabulous trip, therefore we place a lot of emphasis on using the best guides available. We pride ourselves on our choice of guides. We choose guides who are people persons, friendly, knowledgeable, have a great attitude, are excellent leaders, great teachers and who love what they do.
Tailored to your skill level
We begin each of our tours with a thorough safety/kayak/bicycle lesson to familiarize you with your equipment so that you are adequately prepared for your adventure. This lesson includes paddling technique, sea kayaking safety, biking techniques, biking safety, becoming familiar with our safety gear and other helpful and necessary preparation for our expedition.
Bikes Bikes Bikes
We have the bike that will best fit your ability and experience. We offer all Cannondale bicycles maintained by our in-house mechanic and tuned perfectly before each ride. Choose from a hybrid bike with upright bars for a comfortable ride or upgrade to a road bike with drop handle bars for a more athletic experience. Prefer to ride an electric peddle assist bike? We can rent you an E-bike that will provides extra support when needed. Whatever type of biking you prefer, come experience the rolling hills and ocean views of the San Juan Island’s.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Do you have electric bikes?
YES. We are able to rent E-bikes to all our guests. Let us know when you are booking your tour that you would like an E-bike for your trip and we will have it on hand when you arrive. The cost is $60 per each day of your tour, plus WA tax. E-bikes are a great option for those in your group needing a little extra assistance.
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Will I fit in the kayak gear?
Here’s a good way to get an idea if you will fit in the kayak. Most people of average body weight and height can fit into the kayak. All of our kayaks are doubles so there is more space that one might think. NOT SURE? PLEASE DO THIS: Take a measuring tape and measure the circumference of the widest part of your body (hips/stomach/chest).
Our SPRAY SKIRTS fits up to 43 inches including clothing, around the largest part of the midriff. The spray skirt is what you will wear around your torso. It connects to the kayak cockpit to keep you dry. You can wear it above or below your chest. There is a string to synch it to your body. If you can comfortably fit into it, you should be good to wear the spray skirt.
Our COCKPIT dimensions are 31" Long x 16" Wide x 14.5" Deep.
The cockpit is the opening area to get into the kayak. You will need to be able to sit down past it to get onto the kayak seat. Remember that your body parts can move and the boat is fiberglass so if you have hips that are around these dimensions, you can typically still sit into the kayak. What we want is for you to be able to safely exit the kayak. *Please send us a message through our website or give us a call, if you question whether you or someone in your group might not fit.
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Am I too tall?
The kayaks are most comfortable for people who are 6’ 4” ft. and under. If you are above this height, you may not feel comfortable. We can put tall people in the front of the kayak to give them more leg room.
*Please send us a message through our website or give us a call, if you question whether you or someone in your group might be too tall. -
How long of a drive is San Juan Island from Seattle?
We are about a 2 hour drive from Seattle to Anacortes and then a beautiful 1 hour 20 minute ferry ride to Friday Harbor. Arrive to the Anacortes ferry terminal about 30-45 minutes before scheduled departure time if you are walking on the ferry and 1.5 to 2 hours before scheduled departure time if you are bringing your car to San Juan Island. We have a shuttle from the ferry in Friday Harbor to Snug Harbor on Mitchell Bay where our tours depart from, for those who wish to leave their cars at the Anacortes ferry terminal. For ferry fees and schedules visit the Washington State Ferries website. You can also fly to the San Juan Islands from Seattle, click on Kenmore Air & San Juan Airlines
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What are the start and end times?
Our Inn trips meet at our office in Friday Harbor between 10am and 10:30am, depending on the WA State ferry schedule on your start date. You will finish between 2-5pm on your end date. We will drop you off at the Washington State Ferry Terminal on the island your trip ends on.
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Do you take beginners?
Yes. All of our tours are designed with the beginner in mind. On all of our tours we give a safety & kayak lesson. All of our tours are guided so you will have an instructor near you the whole time.
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What happens if there is a single person or an odd numbered group?
We use tandem (double) kayaks for all of our San Juan Island tours. If there is an odd number then one person will be in a kayak with a guide or someone from another odd number party.
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Can you accommodate my food requirements on your multi-day tours?
Yes. We will send you a questionnaire when you make your reservation and our guides will plan accordingly.
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Will I see whales on my tour?
Our kayak route offers one of the best opportunities in the world to see wild orca whales from a kayak because we paddle 1-2 days (depending on trip type) in a federally designated whale habitat. Since we can’t guarantee that they will show up on every kayak trip, we offer the option to increase the odds to over 90% by spending one afternoon aboard a whale watch cruise aboard the Odyssey. The resident J, K, and L pods of orcas have recently been put on the endangered species list so our goal is to respect them, abide by the guidelines and not to paddle aggressively into their path. We will give you a lesson at the beginning of the tour for appropriate kayaking behavior near wildlife.
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What kinds of wildlife could we see?
Some of the local flora and fauna are Bald Eagles, Cormorants, Black Oystercatchers, Pigeon Guillemots, Pacific Harbor Seals, Orcas (Killer Whales), Dall's Porpoise, Great Blue Herons, Ochre Sea Stars, Blood Stars, Pacific Madrones, Douglas-firs, Western Cedars, Bull Kelp forests and Eel Grass beds.
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Are all meals and drinks included in the cost of the trip?
We cover all meals on our 2 and 3 day trips, from lunch on the first day to lunch on the last day. On our 4, 5 and 6 day trips we allow one night for our guests to explore Friday Harbor on their own, this evening's dinner is not included in the cost of the trip. Our guides will give you some suggestions of places that are popular among the locals. We provide all our guests with refreshing, non alcoholic, beverages throughout the tour. If you have a favorite drink that you would like us to have on hand, please note your favorite drink in the questionnaire you return to us. Our guides will also provide the group with a 'happy hour' beverage after the day's activity. We provide delicious, sustainable wines or if you prefer beer, we can pick up a cold 6 pack of your favorite Washington variety.
Even More Relaxed cancellation and refund policy
61 or more days before the trip date, full refund of all payments less a $30 per person cancellation fee. 31-60 days before the trip date, guests will be charged 50% of the entire trip cost. 0-30 days before the trip date, guests will be charged 100% of the entire trip cost and no refunds will be made. All cancellations must be in writing and charged amount is determined upon the date of receipt.
Deposit policy
We ask for a 50% deposit when you make your reservation for a trip that is more than 60 days in the future. If the trip is 60 days or less in the future, then full payment upon making your reservation is required.
Select a Tour Length
2-DAY/1-NIGHT - $1280
Every Saturday-Sunday
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3-DAY/2-NIGHT - $1980
Every Friday-Sunday
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3-DAY/2-NIGHT - $1980
Every Saturday-Monday
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4-DAY/3-NIGHT - $2680
Every Monday-Thursday
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4-DAY/3-NIGHT - $2680
Every Tuesday-Friday
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5-DAY/4-NIGHT - $3280
Every Monday-Friday
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6-DAY/5-NIGHT - $3980
Every Sunday-Friday
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