Leave the mainland behind for the afternoon, and immerse yourself in the beauty of the Monterey Bay, on this family-friendly whale-watching excursion. Grab a lifejacket and hop aboard: With your marine biologist guide’s assistance, you’ll look out for orca and humpback whales, dolphins, seals and sea lions, and much more as you cruise. As you go, take in the coastal views, and relax in the sea breezes.

See a new perspective on the Monterey Bay aboard this boat tour
This family-friendly excursion is suitable for kids and adults alike
Attempt to spot humpback whales, dolphins, sea lions, and more
Learn all about the marine life in the area from your marine biologist guide

What's Included

Life Jackets

Gratuities

Meeting And Pickup

Meeting point

66 Fishermans Wharf
66 Fishermans Wharf, Monterey, CA 93940, USA
Check in is at our office-Discovery Whale Watch Building. For parking please use the address: 245 Washington St as our building's address will only lead you to a 30 minute parking zone when entered into GPS.

Start time

01:30 PM

End point

This activity ends back at the meeting point.

Ticket redemption point

66 Fishermans Wharf, Monterey, CA 93940, USA

What To Expect

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Wheelchair accessible
Stroller accessible
Service animals allowed
Near public transportation

Infants must sit on laps
Not recommended for pregnant travelers
No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
Travelers should have a moderate physical fitness level
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 40 travelers

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.
Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.

Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.
This experience requires good weather. If it’s canceled due to poor weather, you’ll be offered a different date or a full refund.
This experience requires a minimum number of travelers. If it’s canceled because the minimum isn’t met, you’ll be offered a different date/experience or a full refund.

Traveler Photos

Traveler Tips

The seas were very choppy until our return trip so be sure to be prepared with adequate motion sickness medication.

Reviews

5.0

86 reviews

Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews

Reviews by Viator travelers.

Showing 1-10 of 86 reviews

Highly recommend

Louis_J, Oct 2022

Very knowledgeable and professional tour and boat staff. I highly recommend Discovery Whale Tours. We saw whales and many marine species

Enjoyable trip

rita_d, Aug 2022

Enjoyable trip. The team made an effort to make sure we saw whales and dolphins which were amazing. The boat was comfortable but take some warm clothes as it does get cold.

Amazing orca sightings!

Ron_S, Aug 2022

We've been on one other whale watching tour, a number of years ago in Juneau. So, we boarded the Pacifico with high expectations. Captain Danny and Alfredo delivered! A pod of "famous" orcas was quickly spotted and we were able to trail them for an hour or more. We saw them surface a number of times, and watched the younger ones "catch a wave" or two. Alfredo was knowledgeable and very courteous. A few folks experienced some seasickness and he attended to them with discretion. Would recommend this tour to anyone wanting to get a close look at some of the marine wildlife in Monterey Bay.

An experience of a lifetime

Ellen_D, Aug 2022

Fantastic trip. One whale in particular put on a show for us and spent an hour jumping right by the boat. Such an amazing experience. Tour guides were lovely and helpful. We took our 2 year old son and it was great for him. Probably wouldn't bring a pram on board as it's quite bouncy.

lovely

Lisha_S, Aug 2022

Just observing humpback whales gorging themselves was spectacular. No matter how many times I go whale watching I learn something new and experience more of their behaviors. The one criticism is there were too many people on board for ample seating comfort on swells that required secure footing.

The overall experience...

John_C, Jul 2022

The overall experience was great. The trip was well run and we saw some whales and dolphins. Fun afternoon.

Boat was small and it’s...

FredrickJose_A, Jul 2022

Boat was small and it’s too crowded.. the tour was not complete 3 hours.. it’s close to 2 and a half hours the caption and guide was good..

Response from Host, Aug 2022

Hello, We very sorry to hear that you did not enjoy your tour. Are boats are all 50ft-65ft in length and we do not fill the boats to their capacity to allow for more room to move around and to ensure there are personal interactions between our guests and our crew. We pride ourselves on a smaller, more intimate experience. Our afternoon trips are advertised as 2.5-3 hour trips. Please contact us at britt@discoverywhalewatch.com so that we may further discuss your experience-we appreciate all feedback!

Once in a lifetime!

Sherry_P, Jul 2022

When a large group of sea lions and 2 humpback whales fed and hung out right by our boat for over 40 minutes. Nothing short of amazing!

Wait is worth..

Leonard_F, Jul 2022

It was enjoy, and all the wait was super worth it, and has a lot of surprises. I am sure i am recommend this trip, more on to whole family.. hopping to come back soon and found and see sea giant creature..

Not so family friendly

Fernando_S, Jul 2022

The experience says it's stroller accessible and wheelchair accessible, but neither is true. We couldn't bring our stroller so we were forced to have our baby sleep in our arms, which limited our enjoyment of the trip.

Response from Host, Jul 2022

We apologize that you experienced a problem with the stroller. When the boats are full the strollers create tripping hazards. On days where there are light loads we dont mind strollers being brought onboard, but urge extreme caution because if the brakes dont work well on the stroller then it will be rolling around on deck. This trip was booked through a second party so we will work with them to have the information more specific.

Best whale watching tour I’ve had (and that includes trips to Hawaii and Alaska).

Valerie_N, Jul 2022

We saw Humpback whales and two different kinds of dolphins. The most memorable part was watching a young Humpback breach multiple times. Isaiah, our guide was excellent!!

Awesome!

Paola_B, Jul 2022

The crew was super friendly and Andrew gave us great information on the animals we were seeing. Overall an awesome time!

Capt Danny and crew were...

Anna_E, May 2022

Capt Danny and crew were great and had an eye for an amazing place to watch a phenomenal event of Whales, Sea Lions, and birds working together.

We were able to see...

Karrina_M, Apr 2022

We were able to see humpback whales breaching. We followed around a pod of 3 whales as well as a mom and her calf. It was an excellent afternoon and did not disappoint!

We had such a blast!

Richard_L, Apr 2022

We had such a blast! We didn’t expect to see any whales but our Naturalists were excellent at pointing out where to look and the patterns of the whales’ dives after the initial spotting. Highly recommend!

Amazing experience

Amy_G, Mar 2022

Great experience! All the staff was very knowledgeable and helpful. Saw several whales and even saw one breach!

I saw many whales

Angie_W, Oct 2021

I saw many whales and a sun fish and dolphins . I heard many good facts about whales on the boat …..

Great Adventire

GwenH_R, Oct 2021

Best whale watching cruise I have ever had - and I have been on whale watching cruises in Alaska, Hawaii and San Francisco. Crew were great.

Whale watching at its finest!

Michelle_J, Sep 2021

We had such a great time on this trip. We saw Orca's, Humpbacks, dolphins, and of course sea lions. The marine biologist on our trip was great...sorry, can't remember his name! They wanted to make sure we saw all that we could and made the trip VERY worthwhile! Highly recommend this trip!

Awesome

Gildardo_R, Sep 2021

Thank you so much you guys definitely make my date my family and I we have a wonderful time, thank you you guys have a great team

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