Canada Holiday - Whale-watching Holidays

If you want to see some of the world’s greatest mammals, then you’ve come to the right place. The fertile waters of Canada’s coastlines attract many types of whales. The west coast is home to orcas, minke and grey whales. The east coast has humpbacks, fin, right, sei, beluga and pilot whales.

Please scroll down the page to see our different whale-watching holidays.

The orca is actually not a whale — it’s the largest member (up to 7 metres long) of the dolphin family. Orcas can live for almost 80 years and frequently live in pods of up to 30 members. Currently three pods live in the waters off Vancouver Island. The minke whale is the smallest member of the whale family, growing o­nly to 10 metres long. It is also o­ne of the shyest whales and rarely approaches boats.

The grey whale also lobtails, and "spyhops" (jumping clear of the water to see any above-water activity). The grey can grow up to 15 metres long and weigh over 35 tonnes. It’s well known for the 19,500 km round-trip between its northern feeding grounds in the Beaufort, Bering and Chukchi seas and its southern breeding grounds in Baja California and off the Korean coast. Primarily a bottom feeder, the grey whale can dive to a depth of 120 metres if necessary, but prefers much shallower water.

Humpback whales are known for their spectacular arching backflips and frequently "lobtail" (slap their tails o­n the surface) creating gunshotlike sounds. Humpbacks are also known for singing the longest and most complex songs in the animal kingdom. Highly inquisitive, these 15-metre-long mammals show little fear of boats despite having been heavily hunted. They are o­n the endangered species list with o­nly an estimated 10,000 surviving world-wide.

The fin whale is the world’s second largest animal after the blue whale, growing up to 26 metres long and weighing up to 80 tonnes. A series of pleated grooves running from its chin to its navel enable the fin whale’s throat to expand during feeding to take in tonnes of food-laden water, which is then discarded through their baleen plates.

The right whale summers predominantly in the waters of Canada’s own Bay of Fundy. This rather stocky mammal reaches an average length of 17 metres and tends to swim near the surface, feeding o­n plankton. The right whale’s slow speed, finless back and V-shaped blow make it easy to spot and identify, although its small numbers — fewer than 300 in the North Atlantic — make it the most endangered whale in the world.

Sei whales are difficult to distinguish from fin whales and, like them, do not show their tail flukes when diving. However, their evenly-spaced, 10-foot blows and their hooked, 2-foot dorsal fins are clearly visible features. Averaging 17 metres in length, sei whales tend to travel and feed in family groups of 3 to 4 members.

The beluga whale most commonly inhabits arctic coastal waters in large groups but can also be seen in the bays and estuaries of large northern rivers, the St. Lawrence River among them. The beluga is easily identified by its small head, pronounced beak and characteristic frontal bulge ("melon"), as well as its stout body, finless back and creamy white skin.

The pilot whale usually travels in pods of 10 to 20 members, but is fairly regularly spotted in larger groups of up to 200. This long-finned whale is readily recognisable by its curved broad fin and its playful gregariousness. The search for its favourite food — the short-finned squid — brings the relatively small pilot whale into the coastal waters of Cape Breton.

The whalewatching adventures use a variety of boats, enabling you to travel quickly and comfortably to prime viewing sites.