Just what it sounds like! A water taxi is a boat that takes you where you want to go, and picks you up when you’re done. Mako’s is Homer’s oldest and most experienced water taxi operation, and we’ve been called the “Uber” of Kachemak Bay! We have the most boats and carry the most passengers in Kachemak Bay. Our boats are well-suited for the conditions in Kachemak Bay, and our boat captains know the local waters. We run all year round, in rain, snow and rough seas. During the summer, our boats typically run from 7 AM to 8 PM, but if you need a boat outside that timeframe, we can do that too for an extra “afterhours” fee.

Mako’s Water Taxi office is close to the end of the Homer Spit, on the left hand side before you get to the Salty Dawg Saloon if you’re driving from town. As you approach the end of the Homer Spit you will see the Homer Harbor on your left. Look to your left for a bright orange sign:  Mako’s Water Taxi. If you get to the Salty Dawg Saloon, a wooden lighthouse on the left, you’ve gone too far.

4308 Homer Spit Road
Homer, AK 99603

No! The Homer Spit is a natural feature……- The longest spit in the world is the Arabat Spit in the Sea of Azov, Ukraine, at 70 miles long. The second longest is the Farewell Spit on the South Island, New Zealand, at just over 16 miles long. The Homer Spit is four and a half miles long, and is where Mako’s Water Taxi has been providing transportation across Kachemak Bay for locals and visitors since 1996.

There is free parking on the Spit. There is also paid parking next to our office. The cost is $10 per day. We recommend you come to the office and drop your gear off then look for one of those free parking places.

……..Yes. We also accept Mastercard, Discover, American Express, personal checks, Travelers' checks, cash, gold bullion, first born, etc.

We are a taxi and we operate on demand. We have no regularly scheduled runs. As we get reservations we put them in our schedule and then put people on those boats until they are filled. If you reserve early we operate on your schedule; if you reserve late you travel on our schedule.

We tell people, “We don’t do weather.” Truth is, we don’t want the responsibility unless it's beautiful and warm, in which case we’ll take credit for it. Weather in Alaska is highly variable. Temperatures range from low 50s to mid 60s in the summer. The old timers will tell you, “One year it snowed on July 4.”

Layers. When the sun goes behind a cloud you will feel the temperature drop. A windbreaker is a good idea on the boat, and light rain gear is always a good idea.
There are only a couple of destinations, Humpy Creek for example, that require boots to get off the boat. Most landings are dry. Comfortable hiking shoes are recommended unless of course you’re tidepooling, in which case waterproof boots are desirable.

30 minutes is the average time for trips across the bay. There are some destinations that are farther. You may get on a boat that has several stops along the way and those trips may take a bit longer. There is always the chance that a whale may appear and we all want to stop for the show.

No. Relief is across the parking lot from our office. Please use the facilities before departure. There are outhouses in the Park. And if the need arises let the skipper know and he’ll find a bush on a beach for your privacy.

Aside from the Homer Harbor, there are few docks in Kachemak Bay. That means we drop you off and pick you up directly from the beach. Sometimes wave action can make drop offs and pick ups more interesting!

Cook Inlet and Kachemak Bay have some of the highest tidal swings in the world. The alignment of the moon and the sun shape our tides, and during full or new moons, we can see low tides dip to negative 5 feet and high tides push over 23 feet. That’s a 28 foot vertical exchange of water in a little more than 6 hours! In fact, these big tides create a phenomenon known as the bore tide, which is basically a wave that forms on the front end of the incoming tide

We hope so! But we never promise. Nature is a fickle beast, and different whale species - such as humpbacks and orcas - come and go at their own schedules. Typically they’re following their food sources, but we see whales virtually all year long, so it’s impossible to predict. But if there are whales while we’re running the boat, we’ll do everything we can to make sure you see them!