My bucket list: swim with whales

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Normal-Umpire-3195@reddit

Swim with blue whales in Sri Lanka. Will change your life and no one else you’ll ever meet will be able to say they’ve done the same.

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I am extremely late to this and I have no idea if you have yet to do this, but the Cook Islands have snorkeling with humpbacks tours. Specifically on Aitutaki and Rarotonga (I’m doing one on Rarotonga tomorrow)

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1stOfAllThatsReddit@reddit

Hey did you fulfill your wish? I found this thread because I was trying to plan my dream birthday for this September (but I found out I can’t afford it ☹️) but with your budget you might be able to afford my itinerary

Humpback Whale season starts today in Moorea Tahiti. It’s best in September. A round trip ticket from San Francisco SFO to Tahiti using French Bee airlines is $655-700 (easier to book through their site, they don’t have flights everyday)
Take 30 minute ferry from Tahiti to Moorea ($10)
Stay in a hostel in Moorea for 5 nights (around 250-280)
Book a 4hr whale snorkel tour with Moorea Deep Blue, $140 (but with your generous budget you can book a premium private boat with Moorea Ocean adventures which is the best rated one, it’s a set $850 for the boat tour and up to two tourists can be on there)

For the tour you need to be a capable swimmer because the boat can’t take you closer than 100 m to the whale. So you have to swim the rest of the way.

So all in all $1140-1850 minimum for the whole trip (not including food and taxis)

I hope you can live your dream (I’ll live vicariously through you)

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Apprehensive_Flan157@reddit

The grey whales in Baja Mexico are known to be friendly and the boat guides are a lot more relaxed. The greys season in Mexico ends pretty soon. But depending on where you live in the US travel costs could be fairly low.

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ramillerf1@reddit

This is the correct answer! I know two people whose last wishes were to be in the water with whales and both of them fulfilled that dream down in Baja California. The water is warm and the humpbacks are amazing. Go!

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kluulz@reddit

I have really wanted to go to Baja Cali to swim with whales but found 0 operators that allow that. It is all just whale watching. Who can I reach out to?

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ramillerf1@reddit

I’d look for a smaller whale watching company and book with them. Some will take you out in very small boats. Maybe you accidentally fall overboard

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kluulz@reddit

Good shout! If you know any emails or whatsapps to smaller boat captains please let me know. Quite difficult finding any while not on the ground :)

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bobobaratstar@reddit

Baja is the way

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BajaDivider@reddit

For example, I live in baja and made this drone vid this last season: https://youtu.be/rbtcO5U-QJo?si=3oxLKz5awwiScHd-

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whatwhatwhat78@reddit

Amazing video!!

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Totalfit-Laurel@reddit

Go to la Paz, bcs and swim with the whale sharks, then head over to swim with the grey whales in Bahia Magdalena bcs. Then return to Santa Cruz , ca and go swim with orcas, whales and great whites…

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kluulz@reddit

Do you have contacts for swimming with whales in Magdalena?

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Massive-Rock-8294@reddit (OP)

Seasons/ months?

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bartleby17@reddit

From my understanding your options are:

snorkel with sperm whales in Dominica
snorkel/ swim with humpbacks in French Polynesia
swimming with orcas in sea of Cortez or in Norway fjords
swim with blue whales in Sri Lanka
can unofficially swim with pilot whales in Hawaii (big island at least)
lots of places where you can swim with whale sharks, although those are fish

There is a seasonality to most of these experiences though so would have to look more into it.

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Massive-Rock-8294@reddit (OP)

Wow what terrible options! I really feel like I need to do this just for me.

I’ve been saving/ playing the stock market/ worked in real estate for like 10 years and really never spent a dime on myself except for like a quarterly splurge of $800.

I’m so worried about spending money but I think this is warranted. I know I have to travel alone at some point.

Do you have any recommended stays in any of these locations?

I mean I know I can/ could part with probably max $10k I throw it around in stocks, but still scares me.

But I’m so obsessed with finances and trained to be a saver not a splurger - I have not been anywhere except nyc and miami for like 7 years.

I do think this trip is warranted and want to make the most of it.

Ok so narrowing options down/ my annoying things…

1) AND IMPORTANT: I mentally cannot be away from my 10lb shih tzu/ emotional support animal she’s coming with

2) I am not scuba certified

3) under $10k total

4) read 1 - the dog

5) I’m a bad snorkeler but I could pass a test

6) id prefer to be out of the country - there’s a warrant for my arrest. Jk, just can’t stand America RN

7) I’d prefer a place that has a cute little town/ things in walking distance that the pup and I can wander around to (when not trying to jump in the water at every opportunity)

Xoxo J

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bartleby17@reddit

The dog probably makes things tough since most of these require you either be on a liveaboard or you’re stationed somewhere and do multiple longer boat trips.

I think any of these could be done for less than $10,000. Some of the destinations are a bit far flung and not easy to get to. Dominica may not be a bad option since I believe they base you out of a compound and you do multiple trips out. It’s also not that far from the US. Could potentially pay someone to watch your dog while you’re out in the water. Their whale season is in the summer months I believe.

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Massive-Rock-8294@reddit (OP)

Dominica as in Dominican Republic? Understanding the seasonality now and my timing wasn’t perfect!

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bartleby17@reddit

Nope, different places. DR shares a border with Haiti and is generally easier to get to with more tourist infrastructure. There is whale watching there but no swimming that I know of. Dominica is a separate island nation.

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Massive-Rock-8294@reddit (OP)

Thank you

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Feylin@reddit

If you're looking to swim with a whale and have a real experience, you're going to want to swim with Humpbacks as they can be incredibly playful and interactive with humans when they're in the mood for it.

Sperm whales are not really interactive with people; they mostly just tolerate human presence, except for a specific pod that has been encountering people since people came to film them in the 80s. Blue whales similarly don't interact much and they're hard to come by as with orcas.

Swimming with humpbacks is also a seasonal thing based on where they are in their seasonal migration. Humpbacks in French Polynesia are usually birthing and resting before they head to colder waters to feed so they'll be there for that period.

For your questions,

Travelling with a dog is not out of the question, but it will bring its own challenges with it if you are travelling really far out.
Whale swimming experiences are almost all snorkelling and freediving as the bubbles bother the whales.
You should get comfortable with swimming if you're looking to do this as a good captain will cut his engine before getting too close to the whales to not bother them too much.
You can't really swim with whales in the US. I suggest really researching where you're going before you decide on an experience and where you're going to go.
I've had clients try this out in places like the Silver Banks and have had complete bust weeks. In other places like Tonga, the regulations around the number of people in the water at any given time can mean that you're only going to get a few minutes in at a time, and in places like Mo'orea where it's overtouristed

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Little_Olorin@reddit

Orcas in Norway, commonly see humpbacks on those expeditions

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Massive-Rock-8294@reddit (OP)

I’m down with getting out of the country… I don’t think I want to be confined to a cruise environment fyi everyone - don’t like being cooped up, hence my love of the ocean.

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Giovanni__94@reddit

You don't have to do a cruise. You can also get small rib boats out every day. I've done it and free dived with Orca's, Humpbacks and a Fin Whale. However it's only in the winter (October to January) and therefore you'll need a dry suit. Cold but amazing experience.

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Massive-Rock-8294@reddit (OP)

Yeah but I can’t free dive

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Giovanni__94@reddit

In a dry suit nobody can!

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gradybooch@reddit

Hervey Bay, Australia.

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Creative_Wind5990@reddit

Salt Cay - Turks. Go quick though. Salt Cay Divers.

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Massive-Rock-8294@reddit (OP)

Have you stayed at a specific place?

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Creative_Wind5990@reddit

Salt Cay Divers own properties that you can stay at so it’s kinda like one stop shopping.

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Creative_Wind5990@reddit

Ps No tank required and easy flight from the US to Grand Turk with ferry service or puddle jumper from Provo…little service dog is easy peasy.

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Humble-Persimmon-607@reddit

Please look into Aquatic Adventures. I did the most amazing humpback trip with them out of the Dominican Republic. We sailed to a whale sanctuary called the Silver Banks. We spent 5 days there doing nothing but watching whales. It was a dream of mine too! I wish you the best. I hope you get to fulfill your dream ❤️

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Humble-Persimmon-607@reddit

P.S...Aquatic Adventures is out of Davie/Ft. Lauderdale,Fla. Make sure you pick them! The trip will cost you around $5,000. I promise you it will fulfill your dreams! You will need to fly to the Dominican Republic to meet the boat.

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Massive-Rock-8294@reddit (OP)

Can you swim with them there? The flights to Tonga/ French Polynesia pretty much put me out of budget and I don’t want to fly that long alone tbh… I live in south FL

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bdh2067@reddit

First, sorry about the medical situation. Second, if youre scuba certified, head to San Jose del Cabo (quick!, while the humpbacks are still there) and go see Rosie at East Cape Explorers. Tell her what you want to do and they’ll help make it happen. Good luck.

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Massive-Rock-8294@reddit (OP)

It’s ok the worst thing that can happen is it forces me to do something I’ve been wanting to do. Well then maybe cancer but who the hell knows. I’m in my early 30’s

Best case scenario this inspired me to travel and nothings wrong with me… unless they confused my bloodwork with someone who takes steroids recreationally, oy my life.

Do you need to be scuba certified in order to swim with whales?

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AgonyInTheIrony@reddit

The Georgia Aquarium offers Scuba or Snorkel options in the Whale Shark tank.

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Necessary_Spinach147@reddit

Don’t do this type of things as it is super cruel - the aquariums. You can do this in their natural habitat. All snorkel not diving. Aquarium fuels dolphin and whale hunting and put the survival ones in a life of solitary confinement- read on empty the tanks movement

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tursiops__truncatus@reddit

Better to swim in one of these programs being done as some accredited aquarium with animals that are either born in captivity or unable to survive in the wild as they are used to be around people.... Instead of going to the wild to disturb some wild animals that should just be swimming on their own, hunting etc not interacting with humans.

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Necessary_Spinach147@reddit

I think you should read about cetaceans in captivity

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tursiops__truncatus@reddit

We were talking about whale shark, not cetaceans but anyways what you want me to read? I have actually read papers about both captive and wild cetaceans

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Necessary_Spinach147@reddit

Good on you then :)

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AgonyInTheIrony@reddit

The whale sharks at the Georgia Aquarium were rescued from a Taiwanese fish market. At the time, the commercial fishing of Whale Sharks had not been banned in Taiwan. While I prefer to see them in the wild, I am glad they are being cared for at the aquarium. Their alternative fate was much worse.

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boochyfliff@reddit

What does the term ‘rescue’ mean here? It doesn’t really make sense to me how you’d rescue a whale shark from a fish market - it’d already be dead…!

From their website it looks like the whale sharks were taken from coastal Taiwanese waters where fishing of whale sharks occur. I wouldn’t really call that rescuing - nearly every fish species is at risk of being fished, so with that logic there’s a justification to ‘rescue’ any fish species you like and put them in an aquarium. Maybe I don’t know the full story though.

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Necessary_Spinach147@reddit

Better in a sanctuary in their natural habitat not in tanks

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Massive-Rock-8294@reddit (OP)

Ok guys so Tonga is basically out of budget… flights & trip alone would max out my $10k

I REALLY want humpbacks though and that seems like the very best humpback wise…. Help.

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Feylin@reddit

Hey! I operate Inertia Network; we run trips to swim with Humpbacks in French Polynesia and with Sperm Whales in Dominica. Feel free to DM me :)

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Surfinsafari9@reddit

Now that you’ve gotten some free advertising…..give the OP a really great price!

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edrabbit@reddit

Highly recommend Karim! https://www.dancewithwhales.com/

One of these days I’ll hopefully get to do a second whale trip with him.

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Necessary_Spinach147@reddit

Sorry about the news. Baja’s whale shark season is coming to an end so not sure if you can get booked on ones now. I work with quite a lot of whale watching operators and here are all the options we worked with so take a look what you fancy. All bookable too. All snorkel you don’t need to be diving certified. I think Azores maybe an option.

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DifferentMongoose@reddit

Guerrero Negro, Mexico, but the grey whales will be leaving soon.

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Spirit50Lake@reddit

Happy trails...this info might kick off your search: https://www.bluewaterdivetravel.com/best-places-to-swim-with-whales

Hope you get the trip of your dreams...

Take care, fellow human/Redditor...

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Traditional_Writer10@reddit

Swim with belugas in Churchill, Manitoba, Canada.

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Massive-Rock-8294@reddit (OP)

No tanks, cmon that’s cruel and not a bucket list item.

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Massive-Rock-8294@reddit (OP)

So where are the humpbacks in April? That is what I want and my likely timeframe before treatment.

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qwerty_poop@reddit

My bucket list item is this with unpacks specifically. In tonga. For whale shark experience in a tank you can do it in Atlanta. If I were you, I'd do both though

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SewerHarpies@reddit

I think there’s a place in Hawaii where you can scuba dive with sperm whales or go down in a small sub. There are the orcas in Puget Sound, but you’re not supposed to get close to them. End of this month is the humpback migration along the west coast.

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swisstrip@reddit

Dominica is great for sperm whales, but idk if it is the right time of the year.

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Nun-Taken@reddit

Conscious Breath Adventures