The 15 Best Vancouver Whale Watching Tours

1.Vancouver Half-Day Whale Watching Adventure with Free Photos

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 5,000 reviews · 5 hours (approx.) · from $193Our pick

Review of Vancouver’s 5-hour whale-watching catamaran tour, with wildlife, free photos, heated cabins, guides, tips, and honest value advice.

“It was wonderful to sit back and enjoy the afternoon, watching whales, both orcas and humpbacks, seals and sea lions without having to take photos, knowing that photos of the trip would be emailed to us. It allowed me to be "in the moment". Megan, our guide, was not only knowledgeable, but she had a great sense of humor! What a wonderful excursion!”

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2.Vancouver: Covered Whale Watching Adventure with Free Photos

★★★★★★★★★★4.8 · 2,260 reviews · 5 hours · from $188

Review of Vancouver’s covered whale-watching tour, with orcas, humpbacks, free photos, heated cabins, expert guides, and Gulf views.

“Managed to see 4 orcas and 3 humpbacks - a very successful morning!”

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3.Whale-Watching Tour from Vancouver

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 1,572 reviews · 3 to 5 hours (approx.) · from $157

Review of Vancouver’s whale-watching cruise, with orcas, humpbacks, sea lions, coastal views, shuttle details, value, and practical tips.

“Great people from starting with booking to heading home. The trip was excellent good sightings and informative commentary.”

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4.Vancouver’s Intimate West Coast Whale Watching Experience

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 698 reviews · 5 hours (approx.) · from $177

Review of Vancouver’s small-group whale watching tour from Granville Island, with orcas, humpbacks, sea lions, practical tips, and honest value advice.

“We loved the experience. There are a couple of companies that offer that tour, but my main reason for choosing them was that they depart from Granville Island, which made it much easier for us to get there since we were staying in downtown Vancouver. We saw humpback whales , orcas and seals. It was cool experience .”

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5.Vancouver Sunset Whale Watching Adventure with Free Photos

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 454 reviews · 5 hours (approx.) · from $193

Review of Vancouver’s sunset whale-watching catamaran, with orcas, humpbacks, free photos, hot drinks, practical tips, and honest drawbacks.

“It was perfect they were friendly and took their time explaining and hanging out with the whales. The hot drinks felt like a bonus”

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6.Vancouver, BC: Whale Watching Tour with Guide

★★★★★★★★★★4.7 · 270 reviews · 5 hours · from $152Best value

Review of Vancouver Whale Watch, a five-hour Gulf Islands cruise with expert guides, orcas, humpbacks, sea lions, and practical planning tips.

“Amazing tour. We've got to see 4 humpback whales, sea lions and bold eagles. Our guides were super knowledgeable and took great care of us. Just be aware that if you get sea sick easily, this might not be the 4 most enjoyable hours 😅”

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7.Wild Whale Watching Experience – Open Air Vessel

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 158 reviews · 5 hours (approx.) · from $169

Review of Wild Whales Vancouver’s open-air whale tour, with boat details, wildlife, price value, weather tips, and booking advice.

“Fresh air, high-speed boat. Ship’s captain knew when to slow down or stop when whales were near. We all hushed, then gasped at the sight of a fin.”

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8.Vancouver-Victoria Day Trip by Seaplane + Whale Watching by Boat

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 142 reviews · 7 to 8 hours (approx.) · from $546

Review of Vancouver to Victoria by seaplane and whale-watching boat, with flight details, wildlife odds, costs, tips, and who should book.

“Great trip, great team, it was just perfect , respectful of the whales, very pleasant flight trip, well done”

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9.Vancouver: Day Trip to Victoria Seaplane with Whale Watching

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 109 reviews · from $520

Fly by seaplane from Vancouver to Victoria, watch whales for three hours, and enjoy free time in Victoria on this full-day coastal adventure.

“The entire trip was fantastic. We arrived at the harbour air terminal in the morning where we caught a seaplane over to Vancouver Island. From there we went by zodiac boat out on the whale-watching tour where our guides Jeff and Shannon found the amazing T60 matriline of Bigg's killer whales, several large humpback whales, a sea lion, some jellyfish, and a few other assorted critters. It was a great experience. We returned by seaplane to Vancouver that evening, and spent the whole time telling people about how much fun we had.”

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10.Vancouver, BC: Whale Watching Tour Small Zodiac with Guide

★★★★★★★★★★4.7 · 65 reviews · 5 hours · from $160

Ride a 12-passenger zodiac from Vancouver to spot orcas, humpbacks, sea lions, and bald eagles across the Gulf Islands.

“Well organised and we got very lucky with the whales!”

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11.Whale Watching Adventure from Vancouver BC

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 59 reviews · 4 hours (approx.) · from $184

Review of Vancouver whale watching from Steveston, with orcas, humpbacks, seals, birds, practical tips, pricing, timing, and value.

“Just let you surprise and it will be a great experience. Enjoy the sea, the wind and the rest will follow. Thanks to the well prepared team of Seabreeze Adventure, who gave us a very good inside view to the nature and the sealife and gave us the feeling that there will be whales to see on our Journey. They were right!”

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12.Vancouver: Open-air Whale Watching Tour, Granville Island

★★★★★★★★★★4.9 · 51 reviews · 5 hours · from $165

Review of Vancouver’s open-air whale watching tour from Granville Island, with orcas, humpbacks, expert guides, 360-degree views, and practical tips.

“Our naturalist Julia was excellent and super knowledgeable. I loved learning about humpback whale behaviours and how to identify them as we tracked the 3 we found during the excursion. I also loved seeing the harbour seals and learning about other marine wildlife like sea otters even though we didn't see them on our trip. I wish we could have stayed out in the northern sound longer to track them but acknowledge that our naturalist and captain tried their best. Overall an excellent experience. I would do it again in a heartbeat and will be recommending Wild Whales to all my friends, family and colleagues.”

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13.Vancouver: Catamaran Whale Watching Tour, Granville Island

★★★★★★★★★★4.9 · 27 reviews · 5 hours · from $165

Review of Vancouver’s Granville Island whale-watching catamaran, with orcas, humpbacks, family-friendly comfort, pricing, timing, and practical tips.

“We enjoyed the whale watching from Granville island with captain Kevin and guide Marcos. We saw orcas and humpbacks in fairly close proximity. The trip lasted about 5 hours and it was just great! Marcos was very informative and passionate about the animals”

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14.Intimate West Coast Whale Watching – Partly-Sheltered

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 18 reviews · 3 to 5 hours (approx.) · from $169

Review of Wild Whales Vancouver’s intimate whale-watching tour, with route, price, wildlife sightings, boat details, tips, and booking advice.

“Very knowledgeable staff and captain re wildlife seen. Kept in touch with others for locations of whales. Shout out to Jasmine & Kevin also Julia & David for 2 fab trips out.”

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15.Vancouver: Zodiac Whale Watching Tour from Granville Island

★★★★★★★★★★4.6 · 6 reviews · 5 hours · from $179

Review of Vancouver’s Granville Island Zodiac whale watching tour, with orcas, humpbacks, marine guides, safety tips, price, and practical advice.

“J’aurais bien aimé y participer mais j’ai été malade et le suis encore et je n’ai pas pu y aller. J’aurais aimé un remboursement mais on ne me l’a pas accordé.”

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