Whale Watching in Victoria

Whale watching with companies like Prince of Whales is a popular activity to do in Victoria. There are a number of different tour options.

Prince of Whales Whale Watching in Victoria

One of the more memorable activities in Victoria is whale watching. It’s especially popular during the warm months, with the whale migration season running from March until October.

While there are multiple companies that offer whale watching trips, one of the top ones is Prince of Whales. The company also offers tours in Vancouver and Telegraph Cove as well as in Victoria. All of their voyages start from the Downtown Victoria Adventure Centre at 812 Wharf Street.

Since every outing is different, there is no way to guarantee that every boat will see a whale. However, there is a 95% chance that you will and if you don’t Prince of Whales will offer a free second trip on a different day.

The Tour Options

There are multiple tour options offered by Prince of Whales. They’re all the same length at around three hours or so, but are different in terms of the boats they use or the time of day they take place. Below are details about the different tours.

Half-Day Whale Watching

This is the standard option for the whale watching tours during the migration season. Available from March to November, these tours are on catamarans which hold close to 100 people and include fully enclosed cabins (so they can be heated when it’s chillier out). The boats are also stocked with complimentary drinks like coffee and tea.

The voyages take place regardless of the weather, so make sure to dress appropriately. There are guides on board that narrate the journey and provide more information on the whales as well as the natural environment and any other animals you might see.

Zodiac Whale Watching

As the name suggests, these tours take place in Zodiac boats as opposed to catamarans. The Zodiacs are much smaller with just a 12-passenger limit and they are fully open-air. These tours are available year-round which means that, during the winter months, if you want to cruise for whales it’s the only option.

These boats are faster than the catamarans which means more distance covered while looking for whales. Like the Half-Day tours, the Zodiacs include an experience guided who provides background on everything you see.

It’s also possible to privately rent a Zodiac for yourself and up to 11 other people.

Sunset Whale Watching

In the past, available only from May to mid-September, there were the Sunset tours. These took place on the best catamaran that Prince of Whales has to offer and the tour was designed especially for photography. It is unclear if these tours will be offered in the 2026 season.

On these tours, the boat departs ahead of the sunset once per night, at around 6:00 pm in the summer and down to around 5:00 pm during the fall. The Sunset tour moves slower than the other ones so there is less distance covered, but there is the combo of both the whale watching and sunset watching.

Full-Day Whale and Wildlife Tour

Starting in September 2025, Prince of Whales offered a full day tour. Details about the 2026 season are to be confirmed.

This tour ran for around 6 hours and was a combination of wildlife viewing and nature photography. It took place on one of their state-of-the-art Catamarans that can hold up to 95 people.

The tour began at 8:30 am and didn’t provide lunch, so you needed to bring your own.