petefamily7@yahoo.com Posted March 23, 2007 #1 Share Posted March 23, 2007 We are on the POAM in 2 weeks and we have not booked a whale watching tour but I am starting to wonder if I should. Or will we see whales on our ship?? Angie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PDAZ Posted March 23, 2007 #2 Share Posted March 23, 2007 We saw them from the Pride of Aloha last week -- particularly along the Napali coast. We saw a whale breach there about ten times. But the whale watching excursion was amazing -- we saw so many whales and not too far away. We actually had a mother and calf pass right in front of the boat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PDAZ Posted March 23, 2007 #3 Share Posted March 23, 2007 It really depends on how close you want to see the whales. We were lucky to see the breaching whale along the Napali coast, but the rest of the time we just saw the puffs out of the blow holes. The whale watching tours are specifically looking for whales, so you stand a much better chance of seeing them and with luck, you'll see them up close! BTW, if you're renting a car, there are several whale watching tours to choose from at the Lahaina port. We were there at 9:30 am, and they had tickets available for probably every departure that day. If you do book in advance (other than as a shore excursion with the cruise line), make sure you check their cancellation policy. There's often a 24 hour cancellation policy, and if you're late getting into port or to the harbor, you could be out the cash :cool: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cbcloud Posted March 23, 2007 #4 Share Posted March 23, 2007 We are on the POAM in 2 weeks and we have not booked a whale watching tour but I am starting to wonder if I should. Or will we see whales on our ship?? AngieWe booked a ship tour in Maui when we cruised on the POAm in mid-Feb, and saw lots of whales. We also saw lots along the Na Pali coast. I think they start leaving the islands in mid-April, and are mostly gone a month later. To see some photos of our whale-watching tour, click on the "Pictures" link at the bottom of my signature. That will take you to my Pride of America gallery. Then click on the "Maui" picture to see the photos from that island. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whale-watcher Posted March 23, 2007 #5 Share Posted March 23, 2007 We saw them from the Pride of Aloha last week -- particularly along the Napali coast. We saw a whale breach there about ten times. But the whale watching excursion was amazing -- we saw so many whales and not too far away. We actually had a mother and calf pass right in front of the boat.I plan to spend a LOT of time on deck when we cruise, but I will also be taking whale watching excursions in Maui (and possibly Oahu as well). There are few sights more amazing than a breaching whale!:D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petefamily7@yahoo.com Posted March 23, 2007 Author #6 Share Posted March 23, 2007 I do have a car rented at every island. Now the question is, if we decide to do a whale tour what island would be the best? We are staying on ohau for 4 days before, maybe I should do this pre-cruise?? Any thoughts? Angie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruisepal48 Posted March 23, 2007 #7 Share Posted March 23, 2007 Just got back from the POH last week. We saw whales off the Na Pali coast as well as other places. We rented a car and there's a look out going to west Maui and we saw whales breaching from the look out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PDAZ Posted March 23, 2007 #8 Share Posted March 23, 2007 I do have a car rented at every island. Now the question is, if we decide to do a whale tour what island would be the best? We are staying on ohau for 4 days before, maybe I should do this pre-cruise??Any thoughts? Angie I didn't notice any when we were in Oahu, but we were there such a short time. We were out on the water in Kona and didn't see any whales, but we did see several pods of spinner dolphins doing the spinning thing (very cool!). I wasn't looking for whales in Hilo, so I can't help you there. Maui has a lot of whale watching tours -- that's where we took the tour -- I'm guessing because they have the best viewing. We did see whales from the shore in Kauai and along the Napali coast when cruising but mostly we just saw the puffs from the blow holes. My vote goes for Maui. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whale-watcher Posted March 24, 2007 #9 Share Posted March 24, 2007 I do have a car rented at every island. Now the question is, if we decide to do a whale tour what island would be the best? We are staying on ohau for 4 days before, maybe I should do this pre-cruise??Any thoughts? Angie There are whale watching tours from Oahu...not sure if the whales are as numerous as they are in Maui, but I plan to take a trip or two while the rest of the family act like normal people on vacation and hang out at the beach/pool. I have never seen spinner dolphins spinning...sounds very cool, PDAZ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PDAZ Posted March 24, 2007 #10 Share Posted March 24, 2007 We took the Pride of Aloha's "Nature cruise and dolphin watch" excursion in Kona to see the spinner dolphins. Our guide said we were seeing pods of sleeping dolphins, but the youngsters were active. They'd jump out of the water and spin around. I'd never seen anything like it! They were on both sides of the boat so we had a great viewing opportunity. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Umbarger Posted March 24, 2007 #11 Share Posted March 24, 2007 will we see whales on our ship?? The only whales you will see ON the ship are the ones by the pool. :eek: You may see some out in the ocean though. Sorry I just found this funny. You must mean 'from' instead of 'on'. :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LokiGB Posted March 24, 2007 #12 Share Posted March 24, 2007 We just got back Monday from a POH cruise (with Cruisepal) and saw a number of whales from the ship.....especially going in to the port on Maui and also leaving Maui. I also saw a whale one morning from our balcony as we entered the breakwater in to the port at Hilo. We also saw whales along the Na pali Coast as the ship sailed past. We had a plane ride around the island of Kauai and from the air, near the Na pali coast, the pilot spotted a pod for us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whale-watcher Posted March 24, 2007 #13 Share Posted March 24, 2007 We took the Pride of Aloha's "Nature cruise and dolphin watch" excursion in Kona to see the spinner dolphins. Our guide said we were seeing pods of sleeping dolphins, but the youngsters were active. They'd jump out of the water and spin around. I'd never seen anything like it! They were on both sides of the boat so we had a great viewing opportunity.Thanks for the info...I will look for this excursion when we sail on the PoAM:) We had a plane ride around the island of Kauai and from the air, near the Na pali coast, the pilot spotted a pod for us.COOL!! We are bringing 4 kids along, so probably won't have this option, but it sounds fantastic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Budget Queen Posted March 24, 2007 #14 Share Posted March 24, 2007 If whales are a priority, you definately need to bring binoculars. I enjoyed seeing humpbacks just about EVERY day. Several areas you can drive to for good chance of views- Maui and Kauai. I also took a whale watch tour and was suprised at how small newborns are. :) Never saw them so young and little. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
time4cruise Posted March 24, 2007 #15 Share Posted March 24, 2007 I just bought a pair of Zen-Ray SUMMIT 10x42 waterproof binoculars. They are wonderful. With such a high quality and the price we paid for, they are bargain. We are planning to get another pair so we don't have to fight for who gets to use it. :) Another board has a lengthy discussion. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=517858 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petefamily7@yahoo.com Posted March 24, 2007 Author #16 Share Posted March 24, 2007 Thanks for all the input!! I think we are going to take the paper work I have come up with and decide when we get to Ohau. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JENNY8589 Posted March 24, 2007 #17 Share Posted March 24, 2007 We were on the POH with Cruisepal and LokiGB and we also saw them at the blowhole in Kauai. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beach4me Posted March 24, 2007 #18 Share Posted March 24, 2007 We were on the Jan 26 sailing of the Island Princess and saw LOTS of whales. We expected to see them around Maui as that's their primary area in the islands. (If you take a ww in Maui, I prefer the ones out of Lahaina as opposed to Maalea Harbor. And, Pacific Whale Foundation can't be beat, imo.) I was very surprised to see so many whales outside the Hilo breakwater. They were much more active late in the afternoon than earlier in the day. We saw several breaches there. A nice, unexpected treat. We also saw several from various spots on Oahu. They were not nearly as numerous as they were in the Maui channel or Hilo area though. We didn't get to cruise the Na Pali coast (darn it!). If you've not ever had the privilege of seeing whales, here's what you need to do...look at water surface level. When you see a 'cloud of smoke', that is actually a whale blowing. It appears as a quick puff that kinda drifts above the water. In the Maui channels, you are most likely to see very close puffs - one of the momma whale and one of the baby. It may look like it's not very big from the ship - but it actually can rise 20 feet above the water. You will often see a smooth back roll accompanying the blow. If it's a really big blow, watch for a tail. If you see a tail, the whale has probably gone for a dive and will not resurface for several minutes. You should start scouting other areas for whales. When you see a small splash, it was probably either a pec slap or a baby breaching. Babies love to breach. Keep looking in that are - babies will often breach 4 or 5 times in a row. If you see a huge splash, it was probably an adult. Watch really closely...babies like emmulate their parents...you are very likely to see a baby breach shortly. It is actually quite easy to spot them from the ship if you know what you're looking for. btw - we also saw more dolphins than we've seen on our previous 38 cruises combined! Look down along the side of the ship. You'll probably spot them along the 1st half of the ship. There were actually very few times that I looked down that I didn't see dolphins when we were in the islands. Enjoy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petefamily7@yahoo.com Posted March 24, 2007 Author #19 Share Posted March 24, 2007 Thank you so much for the information. We have never seen whales before in the ocean. It sounds like Maui would be the better place to ww. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beach4me Posted March 25, 2007 #20 Share Posted March 25, 2007 Yeah, you're right. There are more whales in the Maui channel. Since it is getting later in the whale season, you will probably have much better luck with a ww in Lahaina. Don't fret though - we've been there the first week of May and seen several whales. Please post your experience when you get back. I hope you find it as magical as I do. btw - if you are there during a full moon, Pacific Whale Foundation offers moonlight whale watches. I haven't done one of those but am planning a 2-week stay on Maui next Feb and will definitely try one then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dreamalaska Posted October 15, 2007 #21 Share Posted October 15, 2007 yes, we saw tons of humpbacks last winter. do prepare to invest some time out on the deck and a good pair of binoculars (10x) is a must. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dhmom99 Posted December 7, 2007 #22 Share Posted December 7, 2007 when will be the best time to do whale watching in Hawaii? Can you see from the cruiseship? Any specific route we should be looking for? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hawaiilvr Posted December 7, 2007 #23 Share Posted December 7, 2007 Winter is when the whales come to Hawaii. If you want to see whales from the cruise ship, your only opportunity will be on the day of the Na Pali coast sailing (if on PofAm or PofH). That is the only day the ship will be under way during daylight. You may get lucky and see them from Kona while you ship is at anchor. The intinerary changes some time next year and leaves earlier from Maui. We saw dolphins and one whale while cruising the Na Pali coast in November. The best way to spot them is to look for their spray when they exhale. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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