Where to go whale watching

Whales migrate further than virtually any other creature on the planet - travelling in search of giant squid, of krill, of warmer currents in which to raise their young. For this reason they can be seen breaching and splashing in most of the world's oceans - even off the UK coast - but each experience varies wildly. Different species favour different regions, and some countries offer land-based tours while in others you'll be enjoying life on board. Wildlife fans may want to be able to combine their whale watching tour with the chance to see other species - while sun seekers will be less keen on following them to their Arctic hideouts.

Below are our favourite whale sighting spots. Click on the blue map points for more information about where to go whale watching.

"In the Azores I had a blue whale mother and calf come right up to the boat. I saw the calf and thought "My God, that's a big whale". And then a long way to the side of the calf this big thing like a mountain coming out of the sea, came up, and I realised - that's the mother! I'd thought the baby was the blue whale. They're very big, and they are actually a mottled blue. We run tours to see the blue whales when they migrate through the Azores in May, so that's a great place to see them and it's extraordinary! I really appreciated it because they're endangered. It felt like such a privilege to see the largest mammal on the planet, especially after having been going there for so long and never having seen that particular species."

Sue Grimwood is a whale watching specialist with our supplier Steppes Travel. She shares her tips on where to go whale watching for up-close encounters:
"If you want to see grey whales, the best place is Baja, Mexico. You can see other whales there, but when most people think of Baja they're thinking grey whales - mothers and calves, really close - and the season with the babies really is February to March. The mothers calve in the bay just off Baja, and they have this slightly strange need to get quite close to humans. Quite often they will actually push the calves close to the surface, right next to the pangas (small boats) that go out so they actively seek out human company. They then migrate into the Arctic regions. I've seen them when they're up there feeding, and they're not that keen on humans at all. They'll still feed normally if you're nearby in a boat, but they certainly won't approach you like they do in Baja during calving season."

"During a half day tour off southern Sri Lanka, we saw over ten blue whales. The drivers - fishermen now turned eco-warriors - are very respectful of the whales' habitat. They cut their engine just as much as they fire it up to have you zipping across the tops of waves and having some very close encounters with blue whales. There is something eerily spooky about hovering above an animal bigger than a double-decker bus that is somewhere beneath your boat. When they come up to the surface for air and you see then for the first time you realise how small and insignificant we are as human beings. They definitely are the rulers of the sea."