CABO: Whale Watching With Food & Booze???

[RCCL Fan]

We're going to Cabo in the heart of whale watching season.

 

Most of the tours appear to be on smaller boats,  with benches and no bathrooms. We're going with kids, and 2 hours on a boat like that would be torture for everyone involved.

 

We're looking to charter a boat with food, drinks, music, maybe a stop somewhere along the way.....   found lots of that..... but almost all operators I've talked to say they "don't get too close to the whales for their safety"  They seem more music and food and less whale watching.

 

Does anyone know of a whale tour with a nicer boat and food  or a nice boat charter that isn't afraid to get us up close and personal with the whales?

[Ine]

Since it is illegal to come close to the whales, no serious operator will do that. They will loose their permit and it will cost a lot of money! It has nothing to do with being afraid. Not just for the safety of the animals but also for you and your family. 

it seems you are looking for a party boat not for a whale watch tour. 

Edited November 16, 2022 by Ine

[CruiserBruce]

To second what @Ine  said, it is illegal to deliberately interact with the humpbacks and grays in the popular locations like Cabo, Puerto Vallarta and the Hawaiian islands. If the whales come to you and check you and the boat out (which they can do), that is one thing, but deliberately getting closer than a specified distance (I believe it is 100 feet), is against the law.

 

There is the option to snorkel in the area of a different breed of whale in the Gulf of California, but that is a different situation.

[RCCL Fan]

 

N

11 hours ago, Ine said:

Since it is illegal to come close to the whales, no serious operator will do that. They will loose their permit and it will cost a lot of money! It has nothing to do with being afraid. Not just for the safety of the animals but also for you and your family. 

it seems you are looking for a party boat not for a whale watch tour. 

 

No, not looking for a party boat at all.   We're not party people at all! lol

 

Three hours on a flat bed boat with just aluminum benches, will bore my kids, and likely me and my wife as well

 

If we can break up those 3 hours with drinks and snacks and maybe some tunes, then I think my 8-year old won't melt down and my 13 year old won't bury in her iphone.

 

The whale watching tours out there that we saw had lines in their material that said  "guaranteed to see whales"  or "our inflatable boats are specially designed to get you closer".  The focus was on the whales and not the ride to get there.

 

The charter boats we saw the focus was on the food, luxury accomadations and not the whales.    We hoped to find both and was looking for advice from anyone who may have found that.

 

My whole point of this post is we're NOT looking for a party boat,  seeing whales is a priority.  It's our only reason we're doing this.  We just don't want to sit on an aluminium bench for 3 hours on rocky seas in January, and would like some thing more comfortable with other activities to break up the time. 

 

 

[SDPadreFan]

It's not really a 3 hour excursion to see whales. You will make the obligatory run/slow cruise past the snorkeling area where some of the boats will throw tortillas into the water to bring the fish to the surface, then a slow cruise past Lover's Beach, then on to sea lion rock and the arch where you will sit for a few minutes, then probably around the corner slowly to view additional rock formations and caves (and of course "Divorce Beach" on the other side of Lovers Beach"). Depending on where the whales are - you might cruise up past Solmar Beach, Pedregal, and Sunset Beach to lighthouse mountain and an area below it where some of the movie "Troy" (with Brad Pitt) was filmed. That's probably at least 30 minutes of your time gone already. Then on to find some whales. Jan/Feb is peak time (IMO) so there shouldn't be any issue with finding them. Whales in Cabo are there to play and cavort (and train their juveniles on proper whale behavior). So there is a lot of activity. In Alaska (by comparison), they are there for serious feeding. So there, you will see spouts and tails and little else. People think seeing whales in Alaska are an attraction but they have never seen them in Cabo/Puerto Vallarta. If you get to see "bubble feeding" whales in Alaska, now that is a sight. But otherwise, fairly boring compared to Cabo. The better experience in Alaska is seeing a pod of Orca's, or a couple of bears feeding on some tasty salmon (but that is pretty rare). Even the Bald Eagles are more interesting to look at (IMO).

 

The little inflatable boats don't get you any closer to the whales (other than being closer to the water line) and you really can't move around in them. There are enforceable limits on how close any boat can purposely get to the whales. Do the whales follow those rules - no, so many will come quite close all by themselves. Also no bathrooms. But they are faster moving. That's really not an advantage in my opinion. We've done both the fast ones's like Ocean Riders and the catamarans like Pez Gato & SeaRiders. I'd pick the catamarans any day. All of the larger catamarans will have at a minimum drinks and some snacks. The larger ones like EcoCat and SeaRiders will have regular bathrooms and the older catamarans like Pez Gato (still great, and a personal favorite) will still have smaller (single person) bathrooms. Smaller still means 40-80 passengers. Don't remember any music on our whale watching catamaran trips. It's more about seeing the whales, etc. Sunset Cruises - that's dinner, drinks, and party music.

 

If you really want to tailor your experience, you probably need to charter a sailboat. There are many good ones in Cabo and you could just tell them what you want. Food, drinks, music would probably all be available. Just need to be willing to part with a larger pile of pesos.

[SDPadreFan]

And dad - take this in the right spirit. 3 hours on a boat won't kill your kids. Be the adult in the group and tell them how this experience is going to go. They may whine and pout, but they may also have the experience of a lifetime. And you will have been the one who provided them with that. And you can take pride in that.

[CruiserBruce]

We have taken small boat whale watch trips many times. Particularly in Maui, but also at Cabo. They are fairly action packed 2 or 3 hours. As mentioned, they don't usually, in the true "small boat" operations, have bathrooms. We love these whale watch operations and seek them out when and wherever we go. A bigger vessel doesn't mean better whale watching.

[Nike4000]

We're heading to Cabo in February and are also looking for a whale watching cruise that has a bathroom. My wife has a medical issue that necessitates a potty break every 75 to 90 minutes. As such, we're looking for recommendations for a whale watching boat that has a clean bathroom.

 

@SDPadreFan - you mentioned EcoCat and SeaRiders. Is it better to book those in advance? Or, can we find them once we're in port?

 

Also, I greatly appreciate what @RCCL Fan is asking. As someone who might be situated on a small boat with some bored & fidgety kids, I'd prefer that they take a larger boat where the kids can move around a bit if they get antsy. A bigger boat means I can move away from the kids if they're preventing me from enjoying the majesty of all the sights. Kids having access to bathrooms, snacks, and movement tends to make the experience more enjoyable for all involved. 

[SDPadreFan]

18 minutes ago, Nike4000 said:

We're heading to Cabo in February and are also looking for a whale watching cruise that has a bathroom. My wife has a medical issue that necessitates a potty break every 75 to 90 minutes. As such, we're looking for recommendations for a whale watching boat that has a clean bathroom.

 

@SDPadreFan - you mentioned EcoCat and SeaRiders. Is it better to book those in advance? Or, can we find them once we're in port?

 

Also, I greatly appreciate what @RCCL Fan is asking. As someone who might be situated on a small boat with some bored & fidgety kids, I'd prefer that they take a larger boat where the kids can move around a bit if they get antsy. A bigger boat means I can move away from the kids if they're preventing me from enjoying the majesty of all the sights. Kids having access to bathrooms, snacks, and movement tends to make the experience more enjoyable for all involved. 

Made a small error in my post. The other large Catamaran is SunRider (not SeaRider). The company does have a smaller catamaran called SeaRider (and it does claim to have a full bathroom as well), but I have no direct experience with that smaller boat. SunRider 100 is an excellent large boat and we have sailed it twice for sunset dinner cruises. The SunRider 100 can hold a lot of people (up to 250 according to their website). I've never been on it with that many (maybe 100).

 

The SunRider 100 Whale Watching tour is 2.5 hrs long and it is currently priced at $98 (and it includes a nice lunch. They have a whole grill area setup back aft on the main deck. One hint - if you do go on this boat, maybe stay on the main deck until the food is served (or at least keep an eye on things if you decide to sit topside). That way you are ensured of getting the food you want when it first comes off the grill. If you are topside, it's easy to get distracted with the sights and miss out on the food when it is first set out. Not a biggie, you will still get fed, but... So go upstairs for the great seats if you want, but peak downstairs every 5-10 minutes.

 

EcoCat is priced at $80 for 2 hours and DOESN'T include any food.

 

Both provide an OPEN BAR.

 

In a perfect world - I'd say to book ahead of time. February is prime time for Cabo whale watching so the ships will be in demand. But the problem is Cabo is a tender port and there is the potential for the marina to close due to rough water (tenders can't approach the cruise ship safely). I would contact sunridertours.com and caboecotours.com directly and find out what their cancellation policies are and if they have a "no port, no pay" policy or something similar for cruisers. Also be sure to discuss your wife's needs to make sure they understand your situation.

 

Hope you have a great cruise.

[Nike4000]

@SDPadreFan - that is precisely the type of insightful and helpful content I visit this site for. I cannot thank you enough for all of the fantastic information you provided. My wife and I can make an educated decision using your reply. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

 

Also, great tip about the port conditions. I'd hate to book the excursion and then have to fight to get a reimbursement should the weather conditions prevent us from going. Hadn't thought about that - we usually go with cruise-line affiliated excursions to avoid that type of thing.

 

Awesome, thank you again. We'll be reaching out to both!

Edited November 17, 2022 by Nike4000

[Mike45LC]

If you book in advance through the ship (it tends to cost a bit more than booking independently), if the ship does not make port, you get a refund.

 

The Zodiac/Small Boat experience induces in me a need to visit the very bathroom that they don't have --- too much sharp bouncing for my system!  So I am limited to the catamaran experience, and I verify that a bathroom is available.  

 

I prefer not having an open bar, but most of the ships have one.  I don't like the "party boat" experience.  I thought most of the boats have party music on the way back into port, but it might not be to the taste of your kids.  

 

Enjoy, whatever you select!

[RCCL Fan]

2 hours ago, Nike4000 said:

Also, I greatly appreciate what @RCCL Fan is asking. As someone who might be situated on a small boat with some bored & fidgety kids, I'd prefer that they take a larger boat where the kids can move around a bit if they get antsy. A bigger boat means I can move away from the kids if they're preventing me from enjoying the majesty of all the sights. Kids having access to bathrooms, snacks, and movement tends to make the experience more enjoyable for all involved. 

 

Thanks for understanding.  We're dealing with first graders,   I want them to be comfortable, and happy.   Access to snacks, bathrooms, and movement around the boat are critical when you have little humans like that. 

 

 

[RCCL Fan]

12 minutes ago, Mike45LC said:

If you book in advance through the ship (it tends to cost a bit more than booking independently), if the ship does not make port, you get a refund.

 

I prefer not having an open bar, but most of the ships have one.  I don't like the "party boat" experience.  I thought most of the boats have party music on the way back into port, but it might not be to the taste of your kids.  

 

 

 

We're looking for a private boat charter, just our group, no one else.

[Mike45LC]

1 minute ago, RCCL Fan said:

 

We're looking for a private boat charter, just our group, no one else.

Good call!  Expensive, but you should be able to get what you want!

[RCCL Fan]

6 minutes ago, Mike45LC said:

Good call!  Expensive, but you should be able to get what you want!

 

Yes I should have been clear, i was looking for recommendations on a private charter. 🙂

[SDPadreFan]

I would also look on the Cabo forum board on TripAdvisor (parent company of CruiseCritic). It is located here:

 

https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowForum-g152515-i84-Cabo_San_Lucas_Los_Cabos_Baja_California.html

 

You can do a simple search of the forum or join for free and ask more specific questions.

 

Other resources for whale watching.

 

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g152515-Activities-c61-t167-Cabo_San_Lucas_Los_Cabos_Baja_California.html

 

and

 

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g152515-Activities-c61-t188-Cabo_San_Lucas_Los_Cabos_Baja_California.html

 

REMEMBER: Cabo is a TENDER PORT and it can shut down due to rough seas. We're talking the Pacific Ocean here and not the fairly tame Caribbean or the Gulf of Mexico. Make sure you understand the cancellation policy clearly before booking. Best policy would be "No port, No pay".

 

I might add there are also forums for Mazatlan and Puerto Vallarta

 

https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowForum-g150792-i257-Mazatlan_Pacific_Coast.html

 

and

 

https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowForum-g150793-i46-Puerto_Vallarta.html

 

Hope you have a great cruise. We leave in 1 week for our Carnival Panorama cruise doing Cabo, Maz, and PV. We were just in Cabo 3 weeks ago at our timeshare. Our 20th straight year spending at least a week (sometimes two) in Cabo.

[Nike4000]

Our cruise is coming up next month, and taking @SDPadreFan's advice, I reached out to the company offering the SunRider 100 lunch tour via their website at sunridertours.com and have heard nothing back. I was specifically asking for details on their cancellation policy and guidance on how to get from the cruise port to their dock. I've reached out multiple times using the contact form since November and haven't gotten a response (yes, I've checked my spam folder).

 

Anyone have any suggestions on ways to contact them or have the answers to the questions? We've got a whale watching excursion booked through the cruise line, but it's on a zodiac and I am not confident my wife could make the full 2.5 hours without a bathroom break due to health issues. I'd much rather not have to worry about that and spend our time enjoying the sites and experience.

[SDPadreFan]

Getting to the dock is pretty easy. From the tender pier you would just walk along the marina boardwalk till you got to the correct dock. There may be a small additional fee to enter that particular dock area. It's just a small additional fee the marina charges each user/guest to help maintain the marina and the docks.

 

As far as getting a reply from SunRider, it's possible they have a contract with the cruise company. Perhaps try EcoCat and see what they say. They may not offer lunch but they will have full size bathrooms. Can always grab lunch at one of several great marina restaurants. Our favs are Solomons Landing and Tiki Bar but Captain Tony's is also supposed to be great.

[Nike4000]

11 hours ago, SDPadreFan said:

Getting to the dock is pretty easy. From the tender pier you would just walk along the marina boardwalk till you got to the correct dock. There may be a small additional fee to enter that particular dock area. It's just a small additional fee the marina charges each user/guest to help maintain the marina and the docks.

 

As far as getting a reply from SunRider, it's possible they have a contract with the cruise company. Perhaps try EcoCat and see what they say. They may not offer lunch but they will have full size bathrooms. Can always grab lunch at one of several great marina restaurants. Our favs are Solomons Landing and Tiki Bar but Captain Tony's is also supposed to be great.

 

Thank you so much! I've reached out to Sun Rider again, this time via email directly. I'll give them a call this week if I don't hear back in a few days - I still have some time. From their booking app, it looks like there are plenty of seats available for the day we'll be in Cabo, which is good.

 

Also, I checked EcoCat and they don't have any whale watching tours scheduled while we're in port. I'm going to reach out to them as well, I just thought it was a bit odd. 

[Nike4000]

@SDPadreFan - You have the mojo working! It was not more than 2 hours after I posted my most recent response to your helpful post that I got an email from Nancy with SunRider Tours answering the questions I posted a month ago! 

 

Basically - they said we need to be at their dock by 10am to make the 10:30 departure of the lunch whale watching cruise. Our PAT is 9am, I think that is do-able, even with the tender chaos.- - assuming their dock is as close to the drop-off point as both you and Nancy indicated.

 

As for refunds due to inclement weather, you have to cancel 24 hours in advance to get a refund. Otherwise, you're losing the ticket fee. Not a major deal breaker in my mind. What was very interesting was that Nancy shared that if the port is closed for security reasons (i.e. in the case of cartel violence) you can get a full refund or a credit towards a future cruise. Glad they already have a policy in place for cartel violence! 😮

 

Lastly, Nancy confirmed what you shared, their dock is right next to the tender drop-off point.

 

So, I think we're going to give it a go! Thanks again for all of your help!

[SDPadreFan]

Always happy to help. We love cruising the Mexican Riviera and we also have a timeshare in Cabo that we spend a week or two at every year. Been there every year since 2002 (even the COVID years). Our timeshare is on the Pacific Ocean side just south of lighthouse mountain. When we are there in Oct/Nov timeframe, we sit on our balcony in the morning enjoying our coffee and watching the cruise ships sail by. It's a tough job.

[SDPadreFan]

Nancy is correct. You should make 1 right turn after you exit the cruise ship control area and the first couple of docks have the big catamarans. Don't forget to have $2 each to enter the dock area for SunRider. It's not part of the tour cost and is collected seperately by the Marina Authority.

Edited January 15, 2023 by SDPadreFan

[Nike4000]

17 hours ago, SDPadreFan said:

Nancy is correct. You should make 1 right turn after you exit the cruise ship control area and the first couple of docks have the big catamarans. Don't forget to have $2 each to enter the dock area for SunRider. It's not part of the tour cost and is collected seperately by the Marina Authority.

That is invaluable information! I don't usually carry much cash on me when cruising - at least very small bills like that. I will be prepared thanks to your sage guidance!

[SDPadreFan]

Using U.S. cash in Mexico is fine, but there is a small disadvantage. When you pay for something in dollars, most small businesses will give you a slightly less favorable exchange rate in converting to pesos. So if the official exchange rate is say 19.50 pesos to 1 dollar, the business might exchange your dollars at say 19 or 18.50 per dollar. So you lose a little on that side of the transaction. Then - when you get change, 99.9% of the time you will be getting pesos back at the same lower exchange rate so you lose a little more. It's not a big deal when you are just there for a day, but if you are there for a week or longer, then it can start to add up. We always try to pay in a countries currency (pesos in this case) as a sign of respect. We are fortunate to live less than 25 miles from the border so it's easy to get pesos.

 

Also know that Mexico uses the same $ that we use so a $200 price on a t shirt probably is in pesos (@ $11 US).

[debway]

We got to Cabo at least once a year, and we always enjoy the sunset cruise on the Rissalena. I don't know if they do specific whale watching tours, but the food is excellent, not a huge party atmosphere, and not too many people. You can also charter the catamaran for just your party if you choose.