Boa Vista Whale Watching Trip
Humpack whales & their babies off the coast of Boa Vista - season middle of February till end of May
Season 2024
The 2024 season was unfortunately not a very good season. We started on 13.02.2024 - the last tour took place on 15.05.2024. We ended the season much earlier, as there were no more sightings on
the last tours. We had a very low number of babies. In addition, some tours had to be cancelled due to strong winds and high waves.
Nevertheless, our success rate was still 94%. We are now looking forward to the 2025 season, in which we hope to have significantly more babies again (we normally expect over 20 babies per
season).
general information
The Cape Verde Islands are one of the most important breeding grounds for humpback whales. From June to January you can meet them in the north of the Atlantic Ocean before they migrate to the warm waters of the Cape Verde Islands during the mating season. In January / February, the first North Atlantic humpback whales reach the coasts of Boa Vista to mate here or give birth to their babies the following year. They can often be seen from the beach, but mostly quite far out at sea. In order to be as close as possible to them, we recommend a "Whale-Watching-Tour" with our yacht. The whale watching tours start in the middle of February and end in the middle/end of May.
Humpback whales are very acrobatic: they jump out of the sea (this is called "breaching"), look out of the sea with their heads (called "spy hopping"), hit the water with their tail fin (fluke) (called "tail slapping") or hit the sea with their huge fins. But sometimes we only see their humps and flukes when they dive back into the sea.
what you have to expect on the day of your whale watching trip
You will be picked up at your hotel at the time confirmed by us. We then head to the harbour in the capital Sal Rei, where we transfer to the yacht or Zodiac by rubber dinghy.
On board our seaworthy boats, a crew with many years of experience in whale watching tours off Boa Vista awaits you. You will first receive a personalised, detailed briefing in English with
lots of interesting facts about the humpback whales.
Since the beginning of our whale watching tours, we have been working in co-operation with BIOS CV and therefore always have scientific support on board: all tours are accompanied by local
biologists so that none of your questions remain unanswered.
After the briefing, we head out to sea at a leisurely pace, where good eyes are required to spot the whales. We need patience and, of course, a bit of luck - after all, this is a natural
spectacle.
After returning to the harbour, your vehicle will of course be ready for the transfer back to your accommodation.
Depending on the wind and weather, you should have a jacket with you on the tour. You should also be prepared to get a little wet. Protect yourself from the sun and it may also be advisable
to wear (fixed) headgear. Protect yourself against the sun and a (tight) headgear may be advisable. And don't forget your camera.
what is the advantage of a whale watching trip with us?
The deck of our motor yacht "Simply No Stress" is already approx. 2 meters above sea level. If you take a seat on our flybridge or our sun deck, you will sit another 1-2 meters higher. This
results in a much wider and better view and our chances of spotting whales are correspondingly high.
With the Zodiac "Ocean Blue" we don't have the same visibility as with our yacht, but the cooperation between the two boats doesn't put the Zodiac at a disadvantage.
As we can travel on different routes with the boats, we cover an even larger area and therefore increase our chances of sightings. Both boats are in contact with each other and inform each other
about sightings.
Both boats are maneuverable and can change direction quickly if, for example, animals appear behind the boat.
Sometimes we are lucky and the first animals appear close to the shore. However, this is not always the case. However, with our yacht and also our Zodiac, we have the chance to reach whales
sighted far away in a short time. As soon as we get close to the animals, we naturally slow down, because our top priority is the well-being and protection of the whales.
The yacht offers sun and shade and if it is too chilly in the wind you can even take a seat in the spacious cabin. There are also a few places in the shade on the zodiac.
are the whales disturbed by the noise of the engines?
The last few years have given us a very clear answer to this question: NO. it is even important to approach the animals slowly with a motor so that the whales can perceive an echosounder.
It is important to behave correctly when approaching the animals. In the last few years we have had encounters with the whales where they have approached our yacht to within a few metres. The important thing is to reduce the speed as much as possible when approaching the whales. As far as possible boats should not approach the animals from behind or from the front, but only parallel to them.
It is even forbidden to be near the whales only under sail - without an engine - as this will deprive them of the possibility of orientation.
are there rules for whale watching trips on Boa Vista?
After the 2024 season, a law was finally passed to protect whales.
Here are the most important rules that emerge from the law:
- Boats should move as parallel to the whales as possible, not directly behind them, not directly in front of them and not directly to the side of them. Of course, this is not always easy to follow, as we usually don't know in advance where the giants will surface next. It is therefore also important to reduce speed as soon as we get close to the animals.
- We should keep a distance of 60 m from adult animals and 100 m from mothers with babies. However, our whales here sometimes have their own ideas and come very close to our boat. In this case, the boat naturally remains in place and is not navigated at that moment.
- A maximum of 3 boats should be in the approach zone of a group of whales at the same time. If possible, only 1 boat should be in the close observation area. This applies in particular to mothers with babies.
- Mothers with babies should be observed at close range for a maximum of 15-30 minutes. Of course, this should always be decided on the basis of the animals' behavior. An acrobatically playing baby with a relaxed mother can be observed for longer; however, if a mother and her baby are moving rather quickly and thus show that they want more distance, the time should be kept significantly shorter. Adult animals should not be observed up close for longer than 45 minutes.
- If we find awake animals that dive for a long time, there is a possibility that they are singing. We can find this out with a hydrophone. If a song is audible, the motor can be switched off for a short time to record the song. Otherwise, the engine should always be running so that the whales have an orientation as to where the boat is.
- Whale watching under sail is not permitted, boats must always be motorized
how far out to the sea do we have to go to see the whales?
This varies greatly. There are tours where we just drive out of the harbour and have the first whale right in front of the boat. Most of the time you have to drive a little further to see these wonderful creatures. sometimes it is up to 7 miles out to sea. On other days it can happen that they are very close to the coast. Either to the north or in the bay of Chaves. unfortunately, one cannot rely on that.
how much experience do we have with whale watching trips?
The crew on our boat has been successfully at sea since many years in the whale watching season. Such a well-trained eye and especially the experience of approaching the animals cannot be replaced by luck. From year to year we see an increase in our success rate in sightings and especially in the close encounters with the animals.
what happens if the wind or the waves are too strong?
In this case it can happen that we have to cancel or postpone a tour at short notice. We will then of course offer you an alternative date. dear guests - we are not doing this to annoy you, but only for safety reasons. Our motto "Safety first" is for your safety and well-being. We are aware of the fact that other tour operators, despite very bad forecasts, still run their tours, but for our company we make decisions that are not necessarily based on making money, but on providing you with great experiences.
and another very important final word
As this is a natural spectacle, there is no guarantee that we will see whales on every tour.
We know that our videos and pictures raise very high expectations, but please remember this: during the whale watching season we are out at sea almost every morning and afternoon. That is a
total of many hours in which we take photos and videos of the animals. Your whale watching tour, on the other hand, lasts about 3 (or 7) hours. Since the whales do not perform their acrobatic
skills on order, there is of course not always a big "Specctacolo". Sometimes we only have to be satisfied with the sighting of a fin.
Tip: if you are not sure about your seaworthiness, it is best to take a travel tablet the evening before, and then a second travel tablet before the start of the trip.
If you do not have any travel tablets with you, we will be happy to supply you on the boat. However, you will achieve better results as described above.
If you know, that you are not seaworthy, you should not book the trip.
how to dress
- comfortable
- flip flops are sufficient (we are barefoot on the boat)
- headgear
- Jacket or sweater depending on the wind
don't forget
- sun cream
early season special trip - season 2024 vom 13th of February till 2nd of March - duration approx 4-6 hours
In the 2022 season, we offered an "Early Season Tour" in February for the first time. We were able to spot whales on all of these tours. Also in 2023 every early season tour was successful - but of course we can't give any guarantees.
Why an early season tour?
The first whales reach us already at the end of January. Of course, the number of whales is much smaller at this time than in March and April. Most of the time they are seen further away from the coast and mainly in the south of Boa Vista. To have a chance of sightings this early in the season, you have to plan for a longer time at sea. The duration of the tour is therefore between 4 and 6 hours - depending on how fast we were successful.
Our photo service: for 18 euros you can purchase a photo package from us after your tour. In the package are the 50 best pictures of the last season, as well as the best pictures of the day. Of course without logo and in very high quality.
|
included service |
| transfer from/to hotel |
| drinks on board |
| snacks |
| biologist on board |
| english speaking Guide |
|
prices - trip with the motor yacht |
|
| per person | 90 € / 9.900 CVE |
|
children 4-11 years |
60 € / 6.600 CVE |
|
children up to 3 years |
free |
| from RIU Touareg | add. 10 € p. person / child |
half day trips - season 2024 from 4th of March - duration approx. 3 hours
The half-day tours take place in the morning from 9 am to 12 pm and in the afternoon from 2 pm to 5 pm. The pick-up time depends on your accommodation. For the whales, of course, it makes no difference whether it is in the morning or in the afternoon. Sometimes one tour is nicer, sometimes the other ....
Our photo service: for 18 euros you can purchase a photo package from us after your tour. In the package are the 50 best pictures of the last season, as well as the best pictures of the day. Of course without logo and in very high quality.
|
included service |
| transfer from/to hotel |
| drinks on board |
| biologist on board |
| english speaking Guide |
|
prices - trip with the motor yacht |
|
| per person | 65 € / 7.150 CVE |
|
children 4-11 years |
45 € / 4.950 CVE |
|
children up to 3 years |
free |
| from RIU Touareg | add. 10 € p. person / child |
|
included service |
| transfer from/to hotel |
| biologist on board |
| english speaking Guide |
|
prices - trip with the zodiac |
|
| per person | 55 € / 6.050 CVE |
|
children 4-11 years |
35 € / 3.850 CVE |
|
children up to 3 years |
free |
| from RIU Touareg | add. 10 € p. person / child |
full day trips - season 2024 from 7th March - duration approx. 7 hours
Experience something special with us: since 2020 we also offer a Full Day Whale Watching Tour (7 hours).
Why a Full Day Whale Watching Tour?
This gives us the opportunity to go as far as the south of the island (Varandinha and Santa Monica).
The experiences of the last years have shown that there are a lot of whales in the south. Of course, we will have sandwiches and snacks ready for you on board for this tour.
This tour is of course aimed at the "whale lovers" among you. We are out at sea for about 7 hours (please bear this in mind before booking!) and thus have plenty of time for - hopefully - many sightings.
The full-day tours take place once a week on Thursdays from 9.30 am to 4.30 pm. A prerequisite for the tour to take place is that we reach the minimum number of participants of 12 guests. If we do not have enough registrations for the Full Day Tour on one day, we would then change to a Half Day Tour if necessary.
We don't suggest the full day whale watching trip for children
Our photo service: for 18 euros you can purchase a photo package from us after your tour. In the package are the 50 best pictures of the last season, as well as the best pictures of the day. Of course without logo and in very high quality.
|
included service |
| transfer from/to hotel |
|
drinks on board snacks and sandwiches |
| biologist on board |
| english speaking Guide |
|
prices -trip with the motor yacht |
|
| per person | 145 € / 15.950 CVE |
|
children 4-11 years |
95 € / 10.450 CVE |
|
children up to 3 years |
free |
| from RIU Touareg |
add. 10 € p. person / child |
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our motor yacht "Simply No Stress"
...... was built in 1990 for a spanish casino owner in american style. after we bought the yacht in August 2015, Frank transferred it from Malaga to Boavista via Gibraltar, the west coast of
Africa and Lanzarote at the beginning of October.
Comfortably you cruise with us through the azure blue ocean along the coast of Boavista. we offer you extraordinary tours with variety and fun. Due to the height of our yacht you have a
wonderful view. The yacht offers you comfortable berths and seats. the sun burns too hot? No problem, because we also have places in the shade. Come on board and enjoy in small groups the
trip along the beautiful coast of Boavista - of course accompanied by english speaking tour guide Andrea (together with Frank the owner of the yacht).
technical data:
- 15 m long & 5 m wide
- 750 HP (2 x 8 cylinder Caterpillar)
- Gross weight 25 tons
- spacious flybridge with upholstered benches
- large padded sun deck
- after deck with upholstered benches & table
- sun & shade places
- electric toilet
- seaworthy yacht with all safety equipment
If you are not sure about your seaworthiness, we recommend that you take a travel tablet beforehand.