Whale Watching San Diego Style
Is whale watching in San Diego any fun? We have been asking ourselves that question every time whale watching season came around (mid-December to Mid-April). Admittedly, we are whale watching snobs. Don’t get us wrong, we love whales and have driven deep into Mexico twice to the Unesco World Heritage site of the Whale Sanctuary of El Vizcaino to interact with the mothers and calves in their birthing lagoons from a small ponga. We just couldn’t believe watching whales from a 200 person ship could be worthwhile.
Jenn is a local Concierge, and she had a duty (and an invitation) to check out the local whale-watching tours. We gave it a go and came away surprised and pleased with the experience. If you haven’t seen a whale in person and you find yourself in San Diego during whale season, you should definitely check it out. You’ll feel the marine magic, while also getting a waterfront tour of San Diego Bay.
Getting There
The whale watching pier is right next to the Midway Museum, which is not to be confused with the other Hornblower pier by the Maritime Museum. Don’t worry, that mistake isn’t worth re-parking for. You just get a bonus ½ mile walk along the waterfront that is scenic enough to be claimed as a walking tour.
If you are staying downtown on a romantic getaway, you can just walk here. If you’re in Mission Valley / Old Town you can take the trolley. If you’re driving, like we were, there are plenty of lots open that time in the morning. Since the Midway is right next door, we are including their alternate parking map.
Leaving Port
Ticketing was right at the pier and (after an obligatory canned photo op) we were underway. There was ample seating on the boat so we wandered around to whatever was catching our attention at the moment. The first such opportunity happened immediately as we pulled out. We had a magnificent view of the USS Midway. Then, as soon as we cleared the Midway, there was the Coronado Bridge, then the San Diego skyline, then Pt. Loma Lighthouse. Tell you what, we’ll put our best pictures in the slider and you’ll get to see for yourself. There is plenty of eye candy as you’re navigating your way out of the San Diego Harbor.
Note: If you’re on a mobile device or just want the picture bigger the full size picture in from the slider is hyperlinked in the title
Open Water
We thought there would be a lull in the excitement after the harbor and before the whale watching begun we were wrong (again). The magic of being surrounded by water with the wind in your hair while cruising out on an adventure was tangible. Everybody was eager to see whales, but soon, another game was afoot. Dolphins were playing in the bow wake. Our ship had a special wake amplifier, presumably to make things safer for the whales, but these dolphins thought it was their toy. They jumped and splashed and put on quite a show for us. Some of the passengers thought the dolphins were even better than the whales.
There she blows
There is a special channel for whale watchers on the marine band radio so the Captain knew where he was taking us. First, we saw some other boats and then the beauties surface and exhaled a big breath. This behavior is called blowing or spouting, which the whales have to do after diving. Then, they take a series of deep breaths called logging, where their bodies are out of the water and their tale is still submerged for power.
The ship slows down to match speed with the swimming whale and a respectful distance, about six knots. As we pointed out with cruising, slow moving boats make you more prone sea sickness. We didn’t feel any adverse effects, but you want to make sure you take precautions if you are prone to seasickness. The crew will remind you of this before you get underway (since pills take a while to work) and have medicine for purchase if you forgot.
This was early in the season so the whales were heading south to their winter homes and breeding grounds in Mexico. You can see from how close we were from our pictures. It was close enough to hear them breathing but the telephoto lens certainly helped. After a couple of minutes of breathing the whale starts its dive by fluking. Its tail flips into the air and it is gone for about six minutes. Our captain kept the speed and bearing so we got to watch this cycle several times per whale. Unfortunately, there was neither breaching nor spyhopping. It seems like these whales were on a mission for Mexico.
What Whales We Watched
We saw about a dozen gray whales that day, primarily females heading south. Males travel earlier in the season both directions. The females intend to have their calves once they reach Mexico but, occasionally you will see a newborn on the journey southward. We also saw a couple of humpback whales with their magnificent flukes (tails). Occasionally, on a very good day you will even see a blue whale cruising around.
Seasons of Whale Watching
Gray whales go to Mexico for spawning and birthing. They male grays are the first whales to pass by, followed by females. After a little frolicking time in Mexico, the males return north later followed by the females with their calves. This cycle runs from mid-December to mid-April depending on the year. Blues and humpbacks are less predictable. They are solitary animals going to Mexico for winter feeding. They head south when they get hungry and head back north when the southern forging gets sparse. This is usually driven by the amount of winter rain in Baja washing nutrients into the Sea of Cortez, so it varies year to year. The companies keep a tally of how many whales they are seeing so you can call them and gauge how the traffic is flowing. Even with minimal sightings, this is still a fun little cruise. If you do not see a whale do not fret, Hornblower offers a ‘whale check’ good for another whale watching tour, or even a 1 or 2 hour narrated bay cruise. You can’t lose….unless you don’t go 😉
Other thing to do in the area
One nice thing about a big boat is that you don’t get wet. (The pongas in Mexico were truly an immersive experience, in more ways than one). Once your tour has concluded, you are free to play in the downtown San Diego area. Here are some of the other great things to enjoy afterward:
- Take a bike tour of the San Diego Harbor
- Visit the Maritime Museum
- Take a foodie tour of Little Italy
- Shop / Dine / Play in Seaport Village
- Play in the Gaslamp Quarter
- Ferry over to Coronado Island
- Explore the Midway Museum
If you find yourself in San Diego in the springtime, we highly recommend starting your day with a scenic whale watching tour. Afterwards, be sure to take advantage of all of the great sights and tastes San Diego has to offer.
Disclaimer: Although our experience was complimentary, the views and opinions expressed are entirely our own.
We are excited to share our journey with you
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I took a similar whale-watching tour in San Diego. So awesome to see the whales and also hear the sounds they make when the boat shuts off its engines!
Absolutely. There is a distinctive whoosh when they exhale . It’s like nothing else.
Somehow I’ve never been whale watching. I’ve been to plenty of whale hotspots, but always seem to get there just before or after the season. I’d love to finally do an official tour. Will definitely keep this in mind if I end up in San Diego! The boat ride sounds really fun and scenic too!
It’s kind of tricky timing whale watching season, especially greys since they are cold water whales. If they are migrating through the oceans you can bet it’s when you don’t want to be in the water.
I would love to see Whales in the wild and I wish I knew about this trip when I was in San Diego as I really would have like to done this. I suppose the only thing is your not always guarantee that you will see them and you have to going during the whale watching season. Beautiful pictures by the way.
Glad you liked the pictures. It was hard to shoot in the first half of whale season because we were travelling south with the whales right into the sun corridor. You actually are guaranteed to see whales from Hornblower, they will give you another trip if miss out. With all the captains and ships locating passing whales and sharing the spotting, the chances are pretty good. They keep a whale count at the office if you want to check and see how things are rolling before you book.
The whale season is a real thing. Mid-December through Mid-April with an early peak.
You should make time to do it. It’s well worth the experience.
That’s so cool to see whales in the summer time. I am not used to being that far north so whales seem like a winter activity to me. They really are magnificent to see in their natural setting.
Some time I will write an article about the seasons of San Diego. In many ways, summer is the worst time to come. The water doesn’t get warm until July and it’s actually hot in August. September and November are great months because the water is warm and the crowds are gone. Winter brings in a new batch of sea creatures (seven gill sharks, whales), extreme tides and improved surfing. Spring has wildflowers and baby animals at the zoo and Safari Park.
The whale migration is one of the wonders of the world. Greys travel to mate and birth and humpbacks and blues just travel for food. It is one of the longest migrations in the animal world.
Never been around to San Diego, but if I do go, this is something I’ll do. I’ve been dolphin-watching once in Florida, but unfortunately we didn’t see anything. Point Loma seems to be a beautiful place to see too, even if you aren’t out there for the whales
It’s America’s finest city for a reason… Too bad you got skunked on the dolphin watching trip. At least you got to go on a boat ride in Florida.
I had no idea you could go whale-watching in San Diego!! Seems like such a fantastic experience to have! I went whale-watching in Sri Lanka but it was nowhere near as successful as yours. We only saw one whale and only a tiny peek so wasn’t certain which species.
We are heading to Sri Lanka later this year and are super excited for it. I don’t know if we would go whale watching for a just a little peek but it seems like a beautiful country.
Whale watching here starts right after it ends in San Diego! We haven’t gone but you’ve persuaded us- we hope to get our butts out there before the season ends this year. The mister is super prone to seasickness though- meds don’t do much for him unfortunately and he always suffers a little. Did anyone on your boat throw up? I like that they offer to take you out again if you’re unlucky the first time. That’s striving for customer satisfaction right there!
I don’t think there were any pukers on our boat. I don’t even think there were too many people green around the gills. The wave forecasting algorithms work pretty well. You know days in advance how rough the sea will be. I use Magicseaweed for the surf report but it should work for any ocean activity. You could pick a calm day. Also try ginger. It is reputed to help motion sickness and be non-drowsy.
Whale watching sounds like so much fun! Its nice the tour allows you to go on another bay tour if you don’t see any whales!
It was a nice tour and a fun way to get out.
I’m so excited to read about this because we’ll be whale-watching in a couple days in Maui! It’s interesting to learn about the whale behaviours – I wonder why the males travel first, followed by the females and the calves. Why not go together? Glad to hear that you had a great time even on a bigger ship. Nice shots of the whales and dolphins in action!
I don’t think the whales are afraid of predation so pack behavior isn’t critical. My theory is that the migration is staggered to load balance the food supply. The males. The males leave first to leave the remaining krill for the females. This is particularly important for the return journey so the calves are big enough to travel. just a WAG but it’s my working theory without resorting to the google machine.
San Diego sounds like an amazing destination for whale watching and for other activities with kids. I am gonna have to check it out one day.
San Diego is a great destination for kids and nature. You have whales, leopard sharks, sea lions, harbor seal plus the zoo and wild animal park.
We hope to visit San Diego again soon. Last time we didn’t have time for whale watching but after reading this we would love to take a trip,
Definitely, when you’re in town hit us up and we’ll grab a beer.
I am planning to go whale watching in Sri Lanka which is closer to me. I would really love to swim alongside these majestic creatures.
Swimming with the whales would be special. It’s not something that is typically done in America, probably for tort reasons but, if the operator is ethical, it would be quite an experience.
The opening photograph is beautiful. I love the glistening water and the perfectly framed whale. I’d love to watch the whale migration. Great post.
Thank you. We try to pick the best of the bunch that isn’t critical for story telling to make our featured photograph. It was hard shooting south into the sun corridor but we used a polarizing filter that left the glistening effect.
Yep, I agree. Shooting into the sun is very difficult.
Whale watching on a Ponga really seems quite interesting. Apart from watching the whales, this is also an opportunity for a leisurely cruise. The views are also excellent including the San Diego Skyline. All in all a good experience indeed.
Absolutely, between the whale and harbor tour it was an enjoyable day on the water.
A dozen of whales… that is a lot. Lucky! No luck of sighting them in Indian shores. 🙁
Very informative post on them.
It seems like the whales would have to work very hard to get from the arctic to the Indian Ocean. They would also have to swim past Japan, which isn’t always good for whale longevity.
I was on a similar tour but for dolphins down in Florida a couple of years back. Unfortunately, didn’t see anything. Love your pic of Point Loma, it’s gorgeous!
Whale watching sounds like such a fun and different activity to do! I’ve only seen dolphins, but if I were to see a whale, I probably would freak out!
I could totally see you freaking out over a whale. What is really amazing is to look into their eyes and realize how intelligent they really are and then you start imagining everything those eyes have seen during their yearly migrations.
I’d love to go whale watching! It sounds like you had a great experience.
I can understand that it might be a bit hit and miss in seeing the whales so its great that the Hornblower offer a free pass if you don’t get to see them! 2 cruises with those views plus the potential of whales – win win!
Win-win indeed. You might want to put the whale watching earlier in the trip just in case you need to take the up on the offer.
This must be a memorable trip for you! You definitely had great experience. I have’t thought about doing it actually, but after reading this post I’ll put it in my bucket list 🙂
Everybody has to see whales in the wild at least once in their life. Definitely a bucket list item or at least concept. I am still not sold that San Diego is the end all – be all of whale watching but It’s worth doing while you are here.
Wow I always want to do whale watching and catch a look of the majestic creature. Thanks for the recommendation. 🙂
So glad you saw so many whales! And dolphins are always a huge added bonus as well … I always find it fun playing tourist in my home town – I figure travelers come from all over the world to visit and explore here, so I may as well do it too so I know what I’m talking about when people ask! Pretty cool “duty” to pull in as part of being a concierge 😀
Staycations are way underrated. The key is to actually stop working and go out and play. Being a Concierge is not without benefit.
How delightful that you saw the whales. I’ve been out and caught dolphins playing but missed the big guys (and gals.) Also great to read a bit about my hometown.
Always happy to bring the scoop from America’s finest city
Whales might just be my favorite animals on the planet. I love any chance I get to see them, though I’m still waiting for that chance to spot one underwater one day (fingers crossed!) I’m a bit curious where the obligatory photo is? When you say it’s canned does that mean you scrapped it entirely? Haha I only ask cause this is exactly the sort of business I’m in and I’m wondering how you responded 🙂
We were posed for the obligatory photo but we didn’t buy it. They actually did a reasonable job too. It was a photo op on the pier with a ship wheel and the boat in the background. By canned, I mean staged photo op. We did also can it. The photographer was rejected often that day so it they have to be thick skinned.
I guess it shouldn’t come as a surprise, but I never expected there to be whales around San Diego and Mexico!
Maybe because we have so many in eastern Québec, where the water is colder.. I’ve actually always wanted to go see them on a zodiac.
The tour you did also sounds like fun, especially with those friendly dolphins playing with the boat! 🙂
The counter clockwise currents in the Northern Hemisphere bring a lot of cold water and arctic nutrients down the West Coast. It’s warmer in San Diego and Quebec but a lot colder than Florida. The Sea of Cortez is pretty shallow so it can cool off dramatically during the winter months too. Seeing ways from a zodiac sounds like a lot of fun.
Funny thing is that I’ve always wondered if whale watching as worth it. I skipped whale watching in Iceland and now I’m regretting it. Loved that you got to see playful dolphins as well – two for the price of one!
Next time you’ll have to do it. Somewhere, out there, there is a whale waiting to be watched by you.
I’m yet to see a whale!!! Dolphins swimming close to you and seeing the Whales blowing must be one beautiful experience. Hope I’ll experience it too sometime in future! 🙂
I am sure you’ll get a chance if you keep your eyes open. There seems to be more and more whale watching trips starting as they populations are recovering to their historic values.
Is it wrong that I didn’t even realise this was an option in San Diego?! Thanks for bringing to my attention. I love the the local radio station has a channel for whale watchers, and that there is plenty to do in the area too. A foodie tour of Little Italy sounds right up my street!
Technically, it’s the marine band radio so boats can share were the whales are at. Still cool though.