Whale Watching...

[kjwinston]

We are crusing in Mid October to the end the first week of November. which Island is the best Island to go whale watching????Is It a bad time?

 

KJ

[breenw]

Sorry but the whales won't show up till mid-December or later. Then you generally see them until early March. You are definitely not sailing at the right time to do whale watching. Bummer.......

[kjwinston]

Sorry but the whales won't show up till mid-December or later. Then you generally see them until early March. You are definitely not sailing at the right time to do whale watching. Bummer.......

 

wow I was shocked when I saw this reply. So I went to another site about whale watching in late October / Early November and this is what they said:

 

"The first whales of the season are typically sighted in October, but whalewatch season in Hawaii doesn't begin in earnest until early November. The season peaks in February and March, and by mid-May, almost all of the whales have departed, to migrate back to their feeding grounds in the waters off Alaska. Maui is recognized as the island with the largest concentration of whales, but humpback whales can also be seen off the other islands of Oahu, Kauai, the Big Island, Molokai and Lanai. Whales can be seen from shore in many locations, although whalewatch vessels offer the best views of the whales."

 

So for those Hawaiian cruisers in late October / Early November we might still have a chance. Can any of the past Hawaii crusiers verify this?

 

Thanks for your thoughts,

 

KJ

[Kartgv]

Sorry, but you are very unlikely to see whales at that time. Yes, the very first few whales might be arriving, but it's an extremely large ocean and your chances of spotting one until much later in the season are remote. You will possibly see dolphins, and there are occasionally small "Pilot Whales" around but not many of the larger humpback whales.

[Astro Flyer]

While there may be a few early birds in October and a few stragglers as late as May it's not very likely that you will have many during your cruise. :(

 

Maui is generally recognized as the best place for whale watching and I've had several friends who spoke very highly of their Pacific Whale Foundations tours. You may want to view the PWF website for information even if you don't book a tour with them.

[PCWalton1]

wow I was shocked when I saw this reply. So I went to another site about whale watching in late October / Early November and this is what they said:

 

"The first whales of the season are typically sighted in October, but whalewatch season in Hawaii doesn't begin in earnest until early November. The season peaks in February and March, and by mid-May, almost all of the whales have departed, to migrate back to their feeding grounds in the waters off Alaska. Maui is recognized as the island with the largest concentration of whales, but humpback whales can also be seen off the other islands of Oahu, Kauai, the Big Island, Molokai and Lanai. Whales can be seen from shore in many locations, although whalewatch vessels offer the best views of the whales."

 

So for those Hawaiian cruisers in late October / Early November we might still have a chance. Can any of the past Hawaii crusiers verify this?

 

Thanks for your thoughts,

 

KJ

 

We have been on Maui (which is usually the best place to see them) the first week of November about a half dozen times and never seen whales. Sorry. :(

[PCWalton1]

While there may be a few early birds in October and a few stragglers as late as May it's not very likely that you will have many during your cruise. :(

 

Maui is generally recognized as the best place for whale watching and I've had several friends who spoke very highly of their Pacific Whale Foundations tours. You may want to view the PWF website for information even if you don't book a tour with them.

 

Pacific Whale Foundation does not even start their whale watching cruises until December 1st.

[Astro Flyer]

Pacific Whale Foundation does not even start their whale watching cruises until December 1st.

That makes sense however I still think that the PWF website is a good place to learn about whale watching options & that's why I suggested it so the OP could research it themselves & to not only depend on us 'amateur' whale watchers. ;)

[kaerofan]

We saw several in Maui a couple of weeks ago.

[CruiserBruce]

We saw several in Maui a couple of weeks ago.

 

Assuming you mean January? I just got back after 10 days on Maui, and saw many. But the OP was asking about late October into November.

[kaerofan]

The OP also asked "which island is the best to go whale watching?"

[Donray]

The OP also asked "which island is the best to go whale watching?"

 

Maui in January or February.

No whales the first of November.

[breenw]

KJ - we cruised to Hawaii last year the first 2 weeks of December and never saw any whales. I absolutely love whales and knew that they really weren't easily seen until mid to late December, but I kept hoping. If you definitely want to see them, you picked a bad time to sail if that is a real important thing you want to experience. Like other posters said, Maui is the best island to see whales. We also have done the Pacific Whale Foundation tours and I can vouch for them as a great vendor to take an excursion with. Good luck and I hope you are lucky enough to get that rare citing that early in the Fall.

[kjwinston]

I guess I will just have to talk to my Cruise Director and "demand" to see a whale when we arrive in Maui.

 

OK I just kidding.....Maybe if I order one of those Drink packages of all you can drink...is it like Pink Elephants, but becuase Celebrity is in Hawaii in Oct/Nov it's "Pink Whales?"

 

hahaha, thanks all I will just have to ask the good lord. We did see many whales on our October cruise through Panama.

 

KJ

[cr8tiv1]

I happen to be on Oahu in December/January. Just before I left (January 8) I posted this sighting's map on my Roll Call. I am sorry that I did not "capture" the entire map of the islands, but you can see that in January, the concentration was around Maui.

 

 

Here is a link to a local newspaper that reported the earliest (ever) sighting of a humpback returning to the islands, dated August 31, 2012.

 

http://www.staradvertiser.com/news/breaking/168190736.html?id=168190736

 

I purposely picked the February voyage to see "my" whales, something I could not schedule when I was working.

 

Good luck to you. Yes, it is a big ocean, but you may find a wayward whale during your visit to the islands. To the best of my knowledge, I do not believe Hawaii has any resident humpbacks or orcas.

 

Renee (displaced local girl)

[CruiserBruce]

None of the whale watch venders start their tours prior to December 1, so if you are going to see a stray whale, it will take some serious ocean watching, to the exclusion of other activities.

[cr8tiv1]

If you want to see some whales, why don't you book a whale watch while in Los Angeles? Still not a good time, but you might see a gray whale, blue whale or orca. Again, not guaranteed at that time of the year.

 

Renee