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San Diego Whale Watching: Joining the One Percent Who’ve Seen Blue Whales in Person
- Alyssa
- 5 days ago
- 6 min read
Updated: 3 days ago
Each year from mid June to September an enormous and rare to see mammal appears off the shores of San Diego. Spanning over 70 feet, and weighing over 200,000 pounds the Blue Whale has only been seen by about one percent of the world's population. In the summer they can be found migrating through the warm, krill-dense waters off the coast of California. The exact time of year varies, and once they are spotted they do not stay long, as they slowly eat their way down the North American coast. Since these mammals are not on a schedule, planning a trip far out in advance can be hard, but once they are spotted in the area you have about 3-4 weeks with a chance of seeing them.
In early June we saw an interview on the news with Adventure Whale Watching in San Diego and one of their captains said that they had seen about 25 blue whales in the area and to try and visit soon for the best chances of a sighting! We planned our trip down to San Diego for the very next week, and booked a tour with Adventure Whale Watching!
For two adult tickets, we paid $218, an additional $25.51in port and boarding fees, and a 5% fuel surcharge which totaled $9.81. In total for the tickets we paid $231.52, after receiving a ten percent discount on the ticket price, because booked our trip on a weekday and saved $21.80!
The Experience:
We booked our tickets in advance online via Adventure Whale Watch’s website and chose to go out on the 3:00 pm tour. Unfortunately, no one else was booked for that time, and the company asked us via call and text to ask if we could reschedule. They had an opening for two people on their 8:30 AM tour the same day, and once we approved changing times, they quickly updated our tickets. They were super kind and professional over text and made rescheduling easy. If fewer than four people booked for a time slot you may have to be rescheduled since they will not operate the tour with less than four people!
The day before the tour we received an email with directions to the harbor and instructions on what to bring, and where to park for the tour. For the tour, they instructed you to park at the Sheraton Hotel. There is no bathroom on board the boat, or at their small shop on the dock, and we were told to use the bathroom at the hotel before boarding since. Use the bathroom before as you can be on the water for up to 3 hours without a break.
To get to the harbor from the parking lot you must go through the hotel, but the company provided directions with landmarks to find them. We did not have much difficulty finding the building, and found the directions helpful! At the harbor, we saw their small shop right behind the entrance gate. It was well labeled and staff was outside directing you to the right place. We both had to sign a quick liability waiver and then we were good to go on the tour. We were sized for life jackets and then shortly after we headed towards the boat for the safety briefing.
This is a small group whale-watching tour with room for about six adults and the captain on board. The company uses a small zodiac raft which is low to the water, and gives you expansive views of the water! With such a small vessel we got up close to wildlife and saw it at an angle almost level with the water.
Climbing into such a small and low-water vessel was relatively easy, you just had to be able to step from the dock into the boat. The captain was inside the boat, offered to help us in, and provided a small toolbox step to make it easier to get in. Everyone in our group was able to board with no issues! Inside the boat were three rows of bench seating, and each group of two got their own bench. The benches all faced the front (bow) of the boat, leaving the sides open for viewing.
From the harbor, we headed through the small bay and towards the open Pacific Ocean. On our way out of the harbor, we passed a few sea lions and watched as they tried to jump out of the water onto a buoy. Our captain got us close and slowly circled the area giving everyone a close look.
Once we made our way out of the bay we started to see dolphins jumping from the water and swimming along with our boat. We stopped in the area, and more dolphins kept popping up! They would swim right next to the boat and pop up to say hi! Our captain said that he thought there were at least a few hundred in the area, and that they were the start of a super pod! There were so many jumping up and swimming along with the boat! Being so low to the water, you were only about a foot or two away from them.
Before we got to where the blue whales had been spotted earlier in the morning, we saw two Mola Mola (sunfish), a small juvenile and a large adult trying to get some sun in the early morning. Our guide informed us that seeing a Mola Mola was pretty rare! We got a close look at the fish before it dove back under. We also passed a huge jellyfish swimming near the surface, but it swam away quickly.
After about a 45-minute boat ride we were in the deep ocean where a blue whale had recently been seen. It took a few minutes of looking, but we soon saw a spout in the distance! We quickly made our way towards where we saw the spout and we saw our first blue whale. Soon we saw another spout not far away, and then another! We were surrounded by at least three of the world's largest mammals!
We watched in awe as the whales came to the surface to breathe and watched as they dove back down to catch more food. We were lucky to get a few whale tails as they dove back into the water. Our captain informed us this was uncommon, so we were lucky to see it multiple times during our trip! We stayed and watched the whales for about an hour, give or take a few minutes, and then started back to the harbor.
The boat moves quickly through the water, and has little to protect you from the wind and the sun so it is important to come prepared! For anyone with longer hair, we strongly recommend something to tie it back since there is so much wind as the boat flies through the water! A light jacket or layers is also a good idea to help with sun exposure and the wind.
Once we were close to the bay again we saw bottlenose dolphins hunting for food. We only got a quick glimpse since they were focused on catching food and did not want to interact with the boat. Once inside the bay, we saw a military-trained dolphin working with its trainers outside the military base. It was odd to see, and our guide explained how they used the animals in the military, and how they transported them. It was something we never knew existed and definitely never thought we would see!
We passed by the navy base slowly and saw two submarines. One was out of the water, and maintenance work was being done, and the other was floating beside it in the water. The size difference between our small raft boat and the massive submarine was astonishing. We felt so small as we made our way past them!
We finally made our way back to the harbor, and once the boat was tied up we disembarked. The process was the same as getting in, and we had no issues. It was just a big step from the boat to the dock. We turned our life jackets back in, and our captain gave us a parking validation slip. The boat had a small QR code on the back of the benches which made it easy to scan to leave a review and tip your captain if you did not have cash. The tipping was optional, and did not feel forced!
What to bring:
Sunscreen
Hat
Jacket/layers
Phone/camera for pictures
Hair ties
Cash for tipping
Sunglasses
Summary:
We joined one percent of the world's population that has seen blue whales in person! Adventure Whale Watch in San Diego provided a knowledgeable guide and helped us see an abundance of wildlife. On our tour we not only saw the rare blue whale, but hundreds of dolphins as well. The company's small low-to-the-water zodiac raft boat allowed us to get close to the wildlife, and provided amazing views! For $256.52 it was an experience of a lifetime! In June through September be prepared to make a trip to San Diego to see the rare blue whale in person once they are spotted!
Does a trip to see blue whales with Adventure Whale Watch sound like it is Worth Your Wallet? Let us know below!
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