San Diego Whale Watching Tour

Overview

Our trips depart from Mission Bay, which requires only a short 10 minute journey access to the open ocean where whales and dolphins can be seen! The search for whales and other animals begins as soon as you depart the dock and our marine biologists are on the microphone explaining exactly what to expect and what you are seeing from the get go!
Typically our trips are 2.5-3 hours in length, but time can vary based on seasons and locations of sightings.

City: San Diego

Wed 09 Jul

Other dates

You can choose the date already on the booking website

Starting at $71.00

Make a reservation

Wed 09 Jul

Starting at $71.00

Make a reservation

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What's Included

Marine biologists are on the microphone explaining exactly what to expect.

Additional Info

Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
Service animals allowed
Public transportation options are available nearby
Not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health
Suitable for all physical fitness levels

What To Expect

Ocean Beach

The tour will take you to the ocean without stopping

Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Traveler Photos

Reviews (1000)

Melvin_B

Sep 2020

Went on a whale watching tour on Tuesday, September 22nd at 12:30 pm......Saw a couple pack of Dolphins--3 times....did not see anything else....no whales....Not seeing any whales was disappointing....because....that's the name of the tour. But, I understand, it's just the luck of the draw/tour.

Kel7278

Sep 2020

The trip overall was nice. The boat was clean and roomy. I only gave it 4 stars and that was generous because of a couple of things. It's nice they have snacks and drinks on board to purchase, but $5 for an over popped bag of microwave popcorn and $9 for a can of beer is ridiculous. My husband and I would normally have a couple drinks each but I was not willing to pay it. Also, on the menu was Corona, we tried to buy it and was told they were out. This was the only tour of the day and you had all morning to re-stock so that was kind of disappointing...Anyways, the next thing we did not like was the non-enforcement of masks. We had a couple sit right next to us, not 6 feet away, with 2 kids not wearing masks, touching everything, and even the guy hoisted up both kids, with no masks, into the window to buy food and drinks. NO ONE said anything to them. It would have been easy to put a stop to this as they boarded as a crew member or 2 greets you, but no one said anything. Several crew members also interacted with them numerous times and did not say anything. We are not ones to start anything so we kept trying to scoot over but this made us uncomfortable the whole time. I think by the crew not enforcing this it puts the other customers in uncomfortable situations and if we were "rowdy" could have caused issues on board. (see You-tube videos LOL) The other thing was they were constantly going over the rails to sanitize. I loved how they did this, however, I was leaning on the rail as the Capt was pointing out dolphins. I guess a crew member was trying to sanitize and I didn't see or hear him. Instead of tapping me on the shoulder, he kicked me! Actually kicked my shoe so I would move. I thought it was my husband playing a joke but he was in line for snacks with the no-mask kids. I turned around and he said I need to clean this. Ok more than happy to move out of the way, but don't kick me! Besides these little issues the crew was professional and Capt informative and learned some good things about the animals. My husband still gave a generous tip to the crew because no matter what, they deserve it. I highly recommend this cruise if they could just enforce the rules, it would be safer and more comfortable for all. We did not see any whales but did see plenty of dolphins.

MaricopaWeasel

Sep 2020

Everyone associated with this outfit was as friendly and helpful as they could possibly be. The vessel itself, while a bit elderly, is exceedingly well maintained and all facilities aboard are well above average. This is a relatively large boat (150 passengers - 75 during COVID) and well suited to motion-sensitive individuals. Our trip, unfortunately, ended up being more an exercise in how well an enterprise like this can be run during the COVID crisis than a wildlife viewing experience. Masks were required aboard for all crew and passengers, and commonly touched surfaces were disinfected every 30 minutes. We went during a slack viewing season, and very few of the local critters felt like receiving visitors that day. We saw one boat-shy hump and one hammerhead. Even the porpoises seemed to be home in bed that day. This can in no way be laid at the door of San Diego Whale Watch...it just happens sometimes. Anything that could be done was done, and the onboard naturalist did her best to make the best of it. Bottom line: We would do it again in a heartbeat and hope for more cooperative critters.