Whale Watching tour
Between the months of june and october, humpback whales travel from antarctics islands to Brazil and give us one of the best natural shows of the world! With a 95% sighting rate during the 2022 whale season, ECOSUL TURISMO takes you on an 3 hours offshore whale watching tour in Ilhéus, Bahia, Brazil..
Our excellent numbers are due to two exclusive advantages of ECOSUL TURISMO: our 100% biologist team, and the exceptional geography of the city of Ilhéus. Here we have the shortest continental shelf of Brazil, with only 12 miles from the shore. A specificity that induce a high concentration of the whales, very close to the coast.
WHALE WATCHING TOUR
BOARDING
We offer tour with small groups with up to 6 passengers. Accessible for children from 55 pounds (25 kg).
Whale Watching tours are available every day from June to October, with two possible boarding times: at 7:30 am or 01:00 pm, for a tour of a total duration of 4 hours, including 3 hours of navigation offshore.
We always advise choosing the morning departure, when the sea is generally calmer.
We meet at the entrance of Ilheus Yacht Club and we continue with a 30 min briefing about navigation and biology of whales/dolphins. We will also put on life jackets (mandatory) and finalize everything we need to do before boarding (going to bathroom, payment completion, clarifying any doubts).
Aboard our boat we have water and fruit available, but you must:
- take the necessary sun protection
- dress in clothes that can get wet
- leave a complete change of dry clothes in the car or backpack.
Other than that, you can bring whatever you like (cameras, phones, seasickness medicine, etc.).
WHALE WATCHING TOUR
NAVIGATION
After the necessary 30 minutes of pre-boarding briefing, we will navigate for up to 3 hours on the high seas of the city of Ilhéus looking for humpback whales and dolphins. The whales stay within a distance of 3 to 12 miles from the coast, meaning that we can reach them in 20 minutes up to 1 hour of navigation.
The observations are commented by qualified biologist guides and we approach whales and dolphins following national legislation and the good practice guide for whale watching in Brazil (document available on board).
We can approach up to 100m from the group. At that moment, it is up to the whale to choose whether to approach us or not. We spent a maximum of 30 minutes with each group of whales (15 minutes if a calf is present).
Of course, as in any activity with Nature, we cannot guarantee the presence of an animal or the observation of a certain behavior.
To maximize our chances of sighting, we work in partnership with many local scientists who study cetaceans and we are always connected to all information available from our communication network from the sea, including fishermen and other sailors.
WHALE WATCHING TOUR
AFTER TOUR
After leaving, an optional souvenir pack can be purchased for R$ 200 on site or at our website store. The souvenir package is made with photos and videos taken during the tour with professional cameras and drone.
When photos allow photo-identification of whales, you can name a whale, which will be entered on the website de citizen science Happywhale. That way we can track the whales if other whale watching operators see the same individuals anywhere in the world.
