Wildlife guide
This wildlife travel guide is meant to be like a trailer for the new Attenborough series. Because we also have individual travel guides for more specific wildlife holidays, such as our safaris, bear watching and whale watching.
Swimming with whales & dolphins
Douglas Adams, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
"Man had always assumed that he was more intelligent than dolphins because he had achieved so much - the wheel, New York, wars, and so on - whilst all the dolphins had ever done was muck about in the water having a good time. But conversely, the dolphins had always believed they were far more intelligent than man - for precisely the same reason"
Unlike captive cetaceans, meeting their wild cousins lets you discover their natural behaviour and become, for a moment, part of their underwater world. And when you realise just how much fun it is down there, you may just decide that Douglas Adams’ clever dolphins were right. Their wave surfing, deep diving, joyous song and gentle nature recall a more innocent time, one of carefree childhood frolics and storybooks where animals and people understood each other.
Swimming with these marine mammals is spiritual for some, an adrenaline rush for others, made all the more magical by the knowledge that with wild animals, encounters are on their terms. The feeling of bobbing beside a pod of spinner dolphins or snorkelling above a 40-ton humpback whose fins alone are the length of three grown men may be tough to capture on camera, but it’s sure to be imprinted on your memory for years to come. Our guide to swimming with whales and dolphins shows you how to encounter these creatures responsibly.
Our Swimming with whales and wild dolphins Holidays
Family swimming with dolphins in the Azores
A family focused adventure and experience of a lifetime.
From
£675
7 days
ex flights
Swimming with wild dolphins in the Azores
Live a dream and swim with wild dolphins
From
£680
7 days
ex flights
Azores activity holiday, incl swimming with dolphin
Snorkelling with dolphins on São Miguel Island, The Azores
From
£1485 to £1655
8 days
inc UK flights
Swim with humpback whales, Tonga
Snorkel with the huge Gentle Giants of the Sea in Paradise!
From
AU $5160
8 days
ex flights
Mexico wildlife and sea kayaking expedition
Marine life and sea kayaking adventure in Baja
From
£1395
9 days
ex flights
Humpback whalewatching and swimming holiday in the Caribbean
Discover Silver Banks- a sanctuary for marine mammals
From
£2990 to £3280
8 days
ex flights
Swim with humpback whales in Tahiti
Snorkel with gentle humpback whales in a warm tropical seas!
From
AU $4750 to AU $5600
8 days
ex flights
Swim with Orcas in Fjords of Norway
6 night live-aboard tour in Norway
From
US $6310
6 days
ex flights
Swim with killer whales and humpback whales in Norway
Swim near magnificent whales in the cold Norwegian water
From
£4555
8 days
ex flights
Azores holiday, Faial and Pico
Responsible travel experience in Faial and Pico, Azores
From
€390 to €490
5 days
ex flights
Swimming with whales in Tonga
Humpbacks whales, wonderful food and tropical islands!
From
AU $4800
6 days
ex flights
Budget Tonga holiday, swim with humpback whales
Once in a lifetime chance to swim with humpback whales.
From
£1999
10 days
ex flights
Azores island hopping holiday, small group
Faial, São Jorge and Pico - a three island Azores tour
From
£1035
10 days
ex flights
Swim with humpback whales in Tonga
Swim with humpbacks - stay at beachside resort in Vava'u!
From
AU $5975 to AU $6050
8 days
ex flights
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Best time to swim with whales & dolphins
The Azores
The Azores
Dolphins are present here year round, but the exposed, mid-Atlantic setting means the winter weather is cold wet and blustery – with wicked sea conditions. May-September, then are the best months with the calmest seas and least chance of being rained off. The weather can still change by the hour, though – so layers, waterproofs, sunscreen and hats are recommended!
Tonga
Tonga
Humpback whales migrate to the tropical Tongan waters from late July to early October. Here, they give birth and suckle their calves, fattening them up before the long journey back to Antarctica. While sightings can never be guaranteed, there is a very high chance of being able to snorkel alongside them during this period – trips usually include at least five days on the water to increase the chance of this.
The Red Sea
The Red Sea
The best destination for year-round encounters, due to the warm, dry climate and sheltered waters. Dec-Feb will be cooler and slightly less pleasant – while any school holidays will bring bigger crowds and higher prices (as well as searing heat in July-Aug) – so we recommend spring and autumn as the best months.
Our top Swimming with whales and wild dolphins Holiday
Family swimming with dolphins in the Azores
A family focused adventure and experience of a lifetime.
From
£675
7 days
ex flights
Small group travel:
2019: 27 Jul, 3 Aug, 10 Aug, 17 Aug, 24 Aug
2019: 27 Jul, 3 Aug, 10 Aug, 17 Aug, 24 Aug
Helpdesk
Hello. If you'd like to chat about Swimming with whales and wild dolphins or need help finding a holiday to suit you we're very happy to help. Rosy & team.
Swimming with whales & dolphins travel advice
Advice on swimming with Dolphins - Responsibly
Advice on swimming with dolphins - responsibly
Amanda Stafford, from our supplier Whale and Dolphin Connection:
“The Azores have a lot of guidelines: only two people in the water, keeping a certain distance, don’t stay too long in the water, lots of signals… Putting 30 people in the water at the same time, all thrashing around, is complete and utter madness. We’ve gone to great lengths to develop management protocol around training people. They need to know how to use a snorkel and mask, feel confident in the water – some places just throw people in and they can’t even use a snorkel!”
Tips on swimming with whales
Tips on swimming with whales
Rae Gill is the tour director of our supplier WhaleSwim Adventures, in Tonga:
"People need to be fit and agile enough to get up a ladder in choppy water. They also need to be able to snorkel 50m at quite a good speed and be confident with their snorkelling gear, not just go out and think they will be able to do it. If they can't, our guides then have to look after one person and it affects the whole group. So we ask them to start getting fit in the swimming pool, to go to there with their snorkel and fins, do lengths to get their speed up and get confident. That way they're not worried about getting water in their snorkel when they're in the water, and they can focus 100 percent on the experience with the whales."
Tips on booking a longer trip
Tips on booking a longer trip
Amanda Stafford:
“We insist people come for a week. We don’t do any one-off trips. That’s huge – if you take someone for a day, they’re desperate, it puts pressure on everybody, the skippers are worried about delivering an experience, everyone’s clambering around and desperate to get into the water. There’s a kind of anxiety which means the animals don’t want to be around. They’re all thrashing around in the water and it just makes for a ghastly experience. But if you have five days, each day you get more confident, each day there are different things in the water, you get better at what you’re doing, you watch other people enjoying the experience too – there’s a great group spirit on the boat. You feel like you’re a little pod with other people, it’s a very profound experience.”
More about Swimming with whales and wild dolphins
Cetaceans inhabit waters around the world - but not everywhere is suitable for swimming with them, due to frequency of viewings, sea conditions and habituation. When deciding where to swim with whales and dolphins you'll need to consider how far you want to travel, what other activities you'd like to enjoy on your holiday and whether you'd prefer whales or dolphins - our interactive map has more information.
More relevant guides
Why book with Responsible Travel
Photo credits: [Page banner: http://simonag3r.wix.com/simonagerphotography] [Is/Isn't : NOAA Photo Library]
[Quote: ss_Paul Vinten_113876968-snorkel--spinner-dolphins--sea]
[The Azores: Ravi Sarma]
[Tonga: Rodrick Eime]
[The Red Sea: jtriefen]
[Swimming with Dolphins responsibly: Ravi Sarma]
[Tips on swimming with Whales: Roderick Eime]
[Tips on booking a longer trip: William Warby]
[Tips intro: Sam Beebe]
[Tip 1: Dino Kuznik]
[Tip 2: Roderick Eime]
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