Whale Watching

in Orange County

Humpback Whale

Why whale watch in Orange County?

There are whale and dolphin sightings here every month of the year! Orange County is right along the gray whale migration route which takes place January through May with March being the most consistent. Outside of the gray whale migration, other whale species show up to feed like blue whales, fin whales, humpback whales, minke whales, and Bryde's whales. Blue whales can typically be spotted sporadically between May through September, their sightings vary each year depending on abundance of krill. Throughout the summer and into the winter, humpback whales can be spotted off and on depending on abundance of anchovies which can also vary greatly from year to year. Throughout the year, fin and minke whales show up at random. While whales can be hit or miss here, dolphins are seen almost on a daily basis! With wildlife, of course there is never a guarantee to see anything because they are always moving around. However, if you don't see everything you want to see your first time out, go out again! Every day is different and every experience on the ocean is enjoyable.

Blue Whale

How are whales found?

The only way to find whales is simply by eyesight as there is no technology other than that to find whales. Things to look for: Spouts, splashing, and seabirds. Some whale spouts can be spotted from 5 miles away! There are no spotter planes or trackers, however all of the official whale watching boats communicate with each other to help find whales, this is why it's important to ONLY use the whale watching companies listed in this article. If you go with a company not listed here, your odds of seeing whales are greatly reduced.

Transient Orca

How many options are there?

There are several whale watching tours operating legally out of Dana Point and Newport Beach, all of which offer varying experiences. All of these companies communicate with each other and are operated by professionals. However, there are a few tour operators you will find online that aren't quite worth your money or time. This list will help you determine who to go with for your best odds. When you book a tour with anyone other than these following companies, you are undermining those who operate legally and professionally operate around these animals.

There are several illegal tour operators in Newport Beach, here are some things to look for:

- Fake reviews (Especially if a tour is advertising to be #1 or the best). If you see a highly rated tour online that is not listed here, it has fake reviews.

- Fake Instagram followers. This is an attempt to appear as a reputable company but may have stolen photos. Compare the number of followers to the number of "likes" on each post, if the ratio seems low, that's why.

- Boats advertising at 6 person maximum. The Coast Guard doesn't have to inspect boats with 6 people or less so you will be on a boat that does not have Coast Guard approval. These non-approved boats will likely advertise that it's 6 person maximum for your comfort etc... but it's because it's not approved by the U.S.C.G.

According to the cities of Dana Point and Newport Beach as well as The U.S. Coast Guard, these are the only legally operating companies (listed below)

Dana Wharf

Dana Wharf

Operating a fleet of boats out of Dana Point, Dana Wharf has been taking people whale watching since 1971 and is the oldest operating whale watching company in Orange County. All of their boats have restrooms, snack bars, and experienced crew/naturalists.

(949) 496-5794

http://danawharf.com/whale-watching/

  • Dolphin Safari
  • Dolphin Safari
  • Dolphin Safari
  • Dolphin Safari

Capt. Daves Dolphin Safari

Operating out of Dana Point, Captain Dave's Dolphin Safari has catamarans and RHIB's which offers 2 unique experiences. Manute'a (their signature boat) has underwater viewing pods which is an incredible experience, you can be underwater with dolphin without having to get wet. Their main boats have restrooms and experienced crew with naturalists but their RHIB's do not have restrooms.

(949) 488-2828

http://www.dolphinsafari.com/

Newport Coastal Adventure

Newport Coastal Adventure

Operating out of Newport Beach, Newport Coastal Adventure was the first whale watching company to operate with small boats in Orange County. This company uses RHIB's and has the fastest whale watching boats in California. They have experienced crew/naturalists but there are no restrooms onboard.

(949) 922-8784

http://newportcoastaladventure.com/

Davey's Locker

Newport Landing / Davey's Locker

Operating out of Newport Beach, Newport Landing and Davey's Locker has a large fleet of boats departing all throughout the day. They have experienced crews and naturalists as well as snack bars and restrooms onboard.

(949) 673-1434

http://www.daveyslocker.com/whale-watching/

FAQ

Q: What time of day is better?

A: There is no better time of day since mammals have to come to the surface to breathe at all times of the day and night.

Q: When is the best weather?

A: Mornings are typically the calmest ocean conditions which can allow for more sightings.

Q: Is Dana Point or Newport Beach better to go out from?

A: Both harbors have equal odds of seeing whales and dolphins, neither one has an advantage over the other. If you see something saying otherwise online, it's just poor marketing.

Q: When is whale season?

A: There are whale sightings any month out of the year off Orange County, however, March is the most consistent for whale sightings which is right in peak gray whale migration. Other months yield other whale species but not as consistent.

Q: Are there spotter planes?

A: No, spotter planes are not used to find whales.

Q: Are bigger or smaller boats better?

A: They both have their advantages: Larger boats have conveniences like food, restrooms, and comfortable seating while smaller boats have more speed and can cover more ocean but are more expensive.

Q: Is Orange County the best place to whale watch?

A: Neither Dana Point or Newport Beach is the best place to whale watch in terms of consistency but variety of sightings throughout the year is very good. California does have some of the best whale watching in the world in places like Monterey Bay and Santa Barbara, Orange County can't compete with that but we do have lots of good weather days and a fair amount of whale sightings.

Q: Is Dana Point the whale watch capitol of the world?

A: Dana Point is definitely not the best place to whale watch in the world, that term is just very poor marketing. That trademark was offered for sale to many whale watch areas, Dana Point just happened to be the area that paid the money to obtain that name. The whales don't actually show up there just because of that title.

Q: What if I didn't see a whale?

A: Go out again! That's how nature works, everything is always moving around and sightings vary greatly day to day.

Sightings off the Orange County Coast

Blue Whale

Blue Whale

The largest animal to ever roam the earth, many people that live here don't even know that they show up along our coast. It's truly special to see one of these giants right off Orange County and we typically see them around May and June, sometimes into July. They pretty much dwarf any whale watching boat so when you see them for yourself, it really puts their size into perspective.

Bottlenose Dolphin

Bottlenose Dolphin

One of the larger species of dolphin found here, bottlenose dolphin can weigh up to around 1,000 lbs. We have 2 eco types of bottlenose here, inshore and offshore. Inshore bottlenose typically travel in very small pods of 2-5 very close to shore. Offshore bottlenose typically travel in pods of around 20-60 and will not go close to the beach. they can be very playful and are capable of launching themselves 20 feet into the air. Inshore bottlenose just cruise up and down the coast every day but offshore bottlenose are typically seen here when there is an abundance of squid, their favorite diet.

Common Dolphin

Common Dolphin

Common dolphin are the most commonly sighted cetacean off the Orange County Coast. This species can be seen here any day of the year although occasionally they can be difficult to find as they are always on the move. They are the smallest dolphin species seen here but form the largest pod numbers and are very playful.

Fin Whale

Fin Whale

The second largest animal on the planet, we tend to see fin whales more consistently in early winter although their sightings can happen any month of the year. Fin whale almost never show their fluke/tail so if you're looking for that iconic whale tail shot, these won't do it for you but they are great to watch. Nicknamed the greyhounds of the sea, they are the fastest baleen whales

Gray Whale

Gray Whale

"The great migration," 20,000+ gray whales travel along the California Coast every year. We can expect to see them from January until early May with March being the most concentrated. When we see gray whales, they are strictly migrating, only traveling south and north since there is no food here for them which is why they are considered our only whale migration. Other whale species also migrate but it's not as consistent or predictable. During their southbound journey they tend to be farther out from shore but during their northbound journey they tend to be closer to shore, often viewable from viewpoints along the coast. In early January they are not consistent yet but is when we see females with newborn calves as they are the first ones to head down to the lagoons off Baja. Those cow/calf pairs are the last ones to travel back north and we see them in April/May.

Humpback Whale

Humpback Whale

Probably the most iconic whale to watch, humpback whales are known for their massive breaches and being boat friendly which makes they great to watch when they're around. Typically considered out summer species, they show up randomly to feed on anchovies alongside common dolphin. It's actually possible to see them any month of the year here.

Minke Whale

Minke Whale

The smallest baleen whales that we see here, they can be difficult to find and track as they don't put up a spout and they almost never travel in a straight line. They can be found feeding on anchovies alongside common dolphin. Once in a while these whales become very boat friendly but for the most part, they can be difficult to watch and photograph. They can show up randomly any time of the year.

Pacific White-Sided Dolphin

Pacific White-Sided Dolphin

Pacific white-sided dolphin are our winter visitors as they prefer colder water, typically seen here around December through May. While not considered a migratory species, during the summer they go north to stay in their preferred water temperatures. In Central/Northern California, this species forms large pods but when they are in Southern California, they are typically seen in very small pods, most of the time very close to shore. They can be identified by their curved black and white dorsal fins and do not have beaks. You might also see them associating/traveling with common dolphin.

Risso's Dolphin

Risso's Dolphin

The most unique dolphin we see here, Risso's dolphin are always scarred up, most often from their main food source of squid which fight them back. These dolphin just have a few teeth in their lower jaw only and their skin is more prone to getting scarred. When they're born, they're actually all gray but turn more white as they get older due to the scarring. They are a large dolphin, weighing upwards of 1,000 lbs. They are one of the less seen species of dolphin here but can show up when there is an abundance of squid.