Half day whale tour 4h00
Badge of Excellence
Moorea, French Polynesia
- 4 hours (approx.)
- Pickup offered
- Group discounts
- Mobile ticket
- Offered in: English
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Overview
Animal lovers won't want to miss the opportunity to see humpback whales on their migration through Moorea. Between July and November, there is the possibility of seeing the whales and their young, and even swimming with them if the conditions are good. High-tech equipment allows the crew to listen for whales, increasing your chances of finding them.
- A must for flora and fauna enthusiasts
- Snorkeling equipment will be provided
- Refreshments during this tour are included
- Enjoy personalized attention on this small-group tour
What's Included
- Loan of masks, snorkels and fins
- Drinks offered during the tour
- Lunch
- Gratuities
Meeting and Pickup
You can head directly to the meeting point, or request pickup
Itinerary
1
'Ōpūnohu Bay
Admission Ticket Free
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received within 48 hours of booking, subject to availability
- Infants must sit on laps
- No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
- Not recommended for pregnant travelers
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Travelers should have a moderate physical fitness level
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 12 travelers
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Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Reviews
4.6
based on 182 reviews
Christopher_L, Oct 2025
Extremely misleading. The law is 6 people in the water per time and we had 11 people in our boat and had to do two groups one group at a time of course. It was just as expensive as all the other groups that don’t oversell your boat. Take your money elsewhere to some company that will respect the law and your time.
Response from Host, Oct 2025
Thank you for your feedback. Indeed, we have a boat with a capacity of 12 people maximum, and since this year, we have to make two groups to go in the water. Our team does its best to ensure that everyone can see the whales, whether in the water or from the boat. Launching cannot be guaranteed; it depends on the whales' reaction and the weather. Every day is different, but our team does its best to make sure everything goes as well as possible.
Braxton_D, Oct 2025
Could not have asked for a better day! Our captain Mahai and guide Kevin made the day extremely enjoyable and know exactly how to get as close as possible to the whales. If the weather permits they will get you there. We were lucky enough to get to see a mother whale and her baby extremely close while we were in the water with them it was a breathtaking experience when we would never forget thank you again to our captain and guide.
Response from Host, Oct 2025
Thank you Braxton for your comment and good words🌺
Matilde_C, Oct 2025
It was such an amazing experience! We saw a mom and a baby whale and we managed to swim with them! Magical!
Captain Mahi and Michele were super helpful and knowledgeable people
10/10 experience
Response from Host, Oct 2025
Thank you very much, Matilde, for this feedback and this 10/10. 🐋
See you next time 🌺
Rick_S, Sep 2025
We booked a tour for 6 people in the boat but the tour operator took 11 people. With only 6 people allowed in the water at a time you only get 1/2 the opportunity to swim with the whales
Response from Host, Sep 2025
Thank you for your feedback, if you'd like more opportunity, we do as well private tour. The fact we take 12 people on the boat is noted everywhere, that why we don't have high prices.
Lily_S, Sep 2025
I would highly recommend any of this company's tours. We did both the jetski tour and the boat tour to see the whales. The jetski tour was so fun and the whale tour was unreal. All of the staff here are the best. The guides are the perfect balance of informative to make sure you know everything you need to, while also being super fun and relaxed so that you can enjoy the experience.
We had some rough seas on our boat tour, but Kevin and the captain were persistent in making sure we still were able to see and swim with the whales. I am incredibly grateful for all the work they put into finding the whales, making sure we were all safe, being such a calm and patient presence when we were sea sick and for allowing us to have the most memorable adventure. Seeing the whales that close is an indescribable experience that you must see for yourself.
Response from Host, Sep 2025
Thank you so much for this long and detailed review 🥰. It was a pleasure to welcome you and share all the beauty of Moorea with you.🏝
See you next time.
Carole_J, Sep 2025
Well worth the price. They get right in there with the whales. Respectful to them and I’ve never seen them closer. Wow!! You do need to know how to swim and our day today was really rough waters but turned out beautifully with observing mother and baby several times.
Response from Host, Sep 2025
Mauruuru Carole for your comment🌺
shaked_l, Sep 2025
It was nice
We didn’t swim with the whales.
We saw some at the water but not swimming because we didn’t catch them
Response from Host, Sep 2025
Mauruuru Roa for this comment, the conditions were not optimum to go in the water with them. See you next time🌺
Vanessa_F, Aug 2025
amazinggg!! guide kevin n mahai were entertaining, knowledgeable & all the above. thankyou so much, would come again
Response from Host, Aug 2025
Thank you very much and see you soon then😉🌺
MICHAEL_C, Aug 2025
What an incredible experience! Our guides were entertaining, professionally, and respectful of the whales.
Response from Host, Aug 2025
Thank you for comment and good notes🥰
Ben_G, Aug 2025
We had a very bad experience with this tour.
The weather was windy/rainy. Not too crazy - typical tropical weather for this part of the world. However, this meant the ocean was not calm.
We took our boat out into the open ocean with our tour guide Michele and captain. They asked if we were good swimmers and if we could swim 100m, to which we confidently thought yes - my wife had made her swim team in high school and I wasn’t so bad myself! For a tourist activity we figured that would be enough. They gave a protocol on what to do if there were sharks as well.
We quickly found whales, and a lot of them. They gave us strict instructions for getting in the water and very much rushed us. The tour guide, who does this twice a day every day, assumed a lot of expertise that we did not have and scolded people for getting in the water too loudly or swimming too loudly.
Swimming in the open ocean in choppy water was extremely difficult. There was definitely a risk of me drowning. I’m grateful to have survived.
We did see a whale above the water, but since the water was choppy, you couldn’t see it underneath the water despite me being within 15 feet / 3 meters of the whale.
Of the nine of us who went in on that first dive (regulations say only six are allowed at a time but they sent ten anyway), only four people went in for the second and third swims.
In good weather, I’m sure this is much better experience, but in mid to bad weather, this is seriously dangerous and I’m convinced someone will drown within the next five years on one of these tours.
Response from Host, Aug 2025
Ia Orana,
Thank you for your feedback.
I'm very surprised by your comment because when the weather is bad, we don't go on a tour. We go because it's safe. However, obviously, there can be rain and there can be swell. But it's never dangerous. And even when the weather isn't good, the whales are there. However, we would never force people to go on a tour in bad weather. If someone asks me to cancel the tour because of the weather, I i accept and refund them. So there was no obligation to go on the tour! The same goes for going in the water with the whales; it's not an obligation. The guide and captain do their best to find the whales and get the best view, but you can stay on the boat and watch them from the boat. Not everyone goes into the water during our excursions; it's up to each individual to decide.
It's true that when the whale is there and calm, you have to get in the water quickly to try to see them before they move. Since the group must stay together, it's important to move quickly together. And of course, it's important not to make too much noise so as not to scare them and make them leave.
It's true that you have to swim at least 100 meters, so you need to be in good physical condition, and we warn you about this on our booking sites (but that's also why going into the water isn't mandatory).
you are telling me you couldn't see the whale in the water, It's unfortunate, because watching the video, I see that she got very close to your group, so it's a shame you didn't see her.
It's also unfortunate you couldn't have spoken to us directly if it was so catastrophic; it would have been simpler and more constructive. When I watch the video of your tour, I see that you're smiling at the end of the tour; I hope there were at least some positives things 😉.
Angie_K, Aug 2025
It is a very rocky ride to the ocean so if you get seasick or are not used to boats/sea, make sure to take some medicine beforehand. We did get to see the whales which was unlike I have ever done and definitely a once in a lifetime experience. Don't expect to see the whales up super close--from where we saw the whales I would say they looked about ~6' big so we were prob 10x away from them. However getting to see them in their natural habitat in the Pacific Ocean was unreal and breathtaking vs an enclosed man-made habitat. I definitely recommend this as a once in a lifetime experience!
Response from Host, Aug 2025
Thank you for this feedback 🥰 and these 5 stars ⭐️. See you next time 🐋
Mathew_W, Aug 2025
A once in a lifetime experience! I would 1000% do this again.
Kevin and Mahai were the best duo to captain our boat and take us swimming with the whales. My wife and I are not the greatest swimmers but his knowledge, experience, and leadership made us very comfortable.
Kevin made sure we were all at team before getting in the water, we swam and looked out for each other. We got in the water, swam to 3 humpback whales and a few pilot whales and it was an incredible experience.
It is the ocean so we encountered 2 whitetip sharks at the end. However we had signals and knowledge on exact what to do. No one in our group was phased and we huddled in a tight circle in the Ocean. We followed Kevin’s and Mahai’s to getting back on the boat safely. I never felt uncomfortable and we took off for snorkeling at the lagoon.
Thank you for the amazing experience!
Response from Host, Aug 2025
Thank you for this feedback 🥰 and these 5 stars ⭐️. See you next time 🐋
James_C, Jul 2025
This company operates with a boat of 12 people but can only take 6 people out at a time (as this is the government restriction). If you are in the second group there is a high chance you will never get in the water or swim with whales. I would search for a company that only takes 6 people out to snorkel with the whales, because the chances are the whale will be gone before the second group get in the water. In our case, someone from another group splashed around too loudly, scared off the whale and attracted a shark! Whatever the circumstances, the first group is always at an advantage of seeing something by virtue of being first into the water when you arrive. Kevin is an amazing guide with deep knowledge of all marine life and clearly loves his job, it is just a shame that the company operates in this way as it leaves people disappointed and they offer no compensation (even though everyone paid the same amount but only half the people got to go in the water).
Response from Host, Jul 2025
Ia Orana James,
We tried to adapt as best we could to these new restrictions of 6 people in the water at a time.
It's true that some companies only take 6 people together, but for twice the price.
So we wanted to keep our prices reasonable, knowing that getting in the water with the whales is a plus, but it's never guaranteed.
These weeks, we've done several trips where everyone was in the water, and everyone was able to see the whales in the water, even twice (i.e., 4 insertions in the morning or afternoon). As always, it's different every day, and it mostly depends on the whales and their reaction.
Regarding the group, it can be the second group that sees them very well, while the first group doesn't get a chance to see them. But as you say, our guide and captain will do their best to take you to see them and for those who wish to go in the water when possible, they will also do their best. But this is nature, we are not at the Zoo and cannot guarantee it.
Marc_d, Apr 2025
Wow! Just wow. Absolutely amazing! All of the employees are very knowledgeable. But beware, you must act quickly and you must swim a lot in the open ocean… was fine for us but I could see many people not enjoying that part. Experience of a lifetime!
Response from Host, Apr 2025
Thanks, Marc, for this feedback.
It's definitely like you said : "Wow," but it's not always easy to swim a hundred meters in the ocean. We're glad you enjoyed the experience 🐋.
See you next time 🌞.
Christie_S, Nov 2024
We had a great day with Mo'orea adventure center. We were greated with warmth and friendliness. It was well organized and on time. We were lucky to have just 4 clients in the boat. We saw a bunch of whales and even got lucky enough to be in the water with them 2x! The sharks and stingrays were very special as well. It was a great tour and I would highly recommend doing it.
Response from Host, Nov 2024
Thank you very much😉
Sondra_M, Oct 2024
Being so close to whales saw two, stingrays and the sharks was so amazing. Done couple whale watching be but this was over the top. Crew and Captain were so helpful and great instructions for every part of the adventure.
Response from Host, Oct 2024
Thank you so much Sondra, was a pleasure to meet you and really happy you will keep a magical memory of your tour🌺
Amanda_C, Sep 2024
Absolutely perfect day. Loved this company and highly recommend, you could tell they were passionate about the whales and respected them, and didn't overwhelm them. They provided great information while on the boat and in the water. We heard whales sing, had them come right next to us. One of the best experiences and the guides made it even more magical.
Response from Host, Sep 2024
Thank you Amanda for the kind comment 🥰 and the 5 stars 🌟.
Until next time 🏝
Marcus_T, Sep 2024
Amazingly professional, kind, exciting guides that take you right to the whales. My wife and i looked down into the water and saw the whale slowly coming to up from below us. We ended up swimming with at least 4 whales. I would say that you need to be a strong swimmer to enjoy this activity
Response from Host, Sep 2024
Thank you for your comment 🥰. It's true that it's important to know how to swim well to go meet the whales 🐋 in the water because we are in the ocean 🌊. We're glad you were able to make the most of the experience 🌞.
Frdric_C, Sep 2024
Super efficient staff, we found a whale after 15 minutes on site.
At the end we had enough time to go to the lagoon and swim with sharks and rays
Response from Host, Sep 2024
Thank you for your comment and good note. Hope to see you back soon🌺
tracey_b, Aug 2024
We took this tour on what was probably the roughest ocean swells they have seen in a long time. We did see a whale and some got into the water with the guide for a short period to get better views. Kevin is a 5-Star Guide in a 2-Star Company and our boat driver was excellent at navigating the rough seas. Please note that I have swam with the whales 6 years ago in Moorea so I had experience. When we were each asked if we wanted a life vest, some (including myself) declined as we are decent swimmers. They did not take life vests out for anyone who stated they did not want one. Life jackets should have been mandatory for this trip. Next we had a briefing about very aggressive sharks that attacked the day before our trip that he had to physically kick the shark from attacking someone. That story, coupled with the huge swells and the fact that I had no life jacket - I decided not to join in the water. One of our friends did go in with a life jacket - and her snorkel was missing a piece and she sucked in water and panicked and was able to get to the buoy. If these reasons are not enough to feel unsafe, the boat driver and another girl who they never introduced, were at the back of the boat smoking cigarettes while we could smell diesel and there is a huge no smoking sign on the boat - not that is not obvious the risk. For these reasons - not making life vests mandatory, not providing adequate snorkeling equipment and checking that it functions well and staff members smoking on the boat - I would not ever take another tour with this company.
Response from Host, Aug 2024
Thank you for your feedback. Smoking on the boat is indeed forbidden and it was a mistake on the part of the guide and the captain to let this happen. We will make sure it never happens again.
Concerning the weather conditions, this is beyond our control. They are unpredictable on Moorea and are not the same everywhere on the island. At times, the west coast is really bad, while the north coast is going to be good, which is why we don't systematically cancel every tour. However, when a customer asks me to postpone or cancel a tour because of the weather, we accept it every time.
Life jackets are offered, but are not compulsory, as it's not always easy to swim with a life jacket on (and to see the whales you need to swim a distance of around 100 meters).
As for the snorkeling equipment we lend out, if there's a problem, just let the guide know and he'll change it for you. But we always do a test launch before the whale watching trip, to check the agility of those wishing to go in the water and make sure everything's okay.
jennifer_F, Aug 2024
We did 3 swims and were successful on our 2nd attempt! Kevin was a great tour guide - very knowledgeable and made sure that we all felt safe! Highly recommend!
Response from Host, Aug 2024
Thank you very much for your nice comment, glad you enjoy meeting the Whales🐋🌺
Coral_G, Jul 2024
Seeing and swimming with the Rays was great but swimming with Whales was a non starter. We were not made aware when we booked that we were going to have to swim a great distance before we got to the Whales. It was too far for all but the youngest in the boat who were in their 30's. Very dissappointing. Also the boat driver kept taking us miles out to sea when the whales were nearer to the shore and stayed there. A very disappointing day and would not recommend this tour.
Response from Host, Jul 2024
Thank you for this feedback.
We have country laws to respect regarding safety distances to protect whales.
The boat is not allowed to approach within 100 m of a whale and even less to approach when it is close to the reef. The guide explains all this on the boat so that there are no surprises. This year's season has not yet started and the rules will be even stricter.
If we want to continue to pursue our passion we must respect them.
Don't forget that whales measure around 16 meters and that they are wild animals so we owe them respect like all animals, when we go on these outings we are not at the zoo.
see you soon perhaps for a less physical tour of the lagoon.
QuintessaSmythe, Nov 2023
Coming into such close proximity to these amazing creatures was a memory we will have forever! While it required a good deal of swimming to reach the whales it was well worth it when we got to see a mother and her calf a few different times. Our guides were knowledgeable and even brought us to see reef sharks and sting rays after seeing the whales.
Response from Host, Nov 2023
Thank you Quintessa for your feedback, hope you have great memories🌺
Michelle_T, Nov 2023
My husband really liked swimming with the whales, an experience of a lifetime. However I decided to stay on the boat after we experienced the "test" swim. Which i was not planning on doing and it was disappointing. I did pay for the experience!! The swim out to reach the whales was a long, hard swim in the open sea. Which we were tested on to see if we could quickly swim the length of a football field in the bay before we went out to sea. I only have one hard swim in me and was sad to waste it on a "test". That is after our guide gave us a talk about the experience we were going to have with the whales and scared the crap out of us about sharks coming up while we were out swimming in the sea or other sea creatures. He said the whale hitting us with its tail could kill us with one swoop. So make sure you stay back from it. Oh, and no splashing in the water when you get in, which you just jump off the side of the boat, so I'm not sure how you do that quietly. We were yelled at for swimming noisily with our fins and arms. Yelled at to swim faster. Like the whale was going somewhere. The mommy whale was just floating sleeping and the baby was the one swimming around playing. I wanted to swim at my own pace not in a marathon! I was yelled at for using the ladder wrong. The ladder they had on the side of the boat only had 3 rungs and was so short you could hardly get on it. The description of this tour needs to be written better in detail so you know what you are getting into. It is a very physical tour. And possibly dangerous. And don't think you get a life jacket, cause you dont! The sea swells were rough. Our boat driver was nice and Anna was nice but the male guide was not.
Response from Host, Nov 2023
Thank you for your feedback. I will talk to your guide to understand what happens. Sorry for the bad experience for you.
See you maybe on another day.🌺😉
Brigita_G, Oct 2023
Great experience! Absolutely worth it! Nice people. Everything was very well organized. Will do it again! Thank you!
Response from Host, Oct 2023
Thank you for this kind comment. 🥰
See you next time 🏝
MReza_S, Oct 2023
It was nice to see a couple whales from a distance. But didn't expect to be rushed into the water only for whales to swim away. Felt that more care could have been used to get us ready for the encounters. More opportunity to watch the whales from a distance for longer periods would have been nice. The whole thing felt rushed.
Response from Host, Oct 2023
Thank you for your feedback on the outing. Our guides generally provide fairly comprehensive briefings to prepare you for the encounter with the whales. I'll talk to them about it. Hoping to see you again soon.
Ed_L, Oct 2023
We really enjoyed the opportunity to swim with the stingrays and sharks since we weren't physically able to swim with the whales as others did. Kevin and our captain (wish we could remember his name) were beyond fabulous, with safety being first priority.
We highly recommend this tour, especially for those that have lower body strength. The videos by others of the whales were incredible, as were ours of the stingrays and sharks.
Response from Host, Oct 2023
Thank you for this kind comment 🥰 and these recommendations. The captain's name was Mahai I think.
See you next time 🐳
Martin_P, Sep 2023
Absolutely loved it 😁
Guess there is always the danger you don't see any whales but we went right to the site of mother and calf. Swam near to the mother then saw the calf coming up and diving back down. Just be advised I am a relatively strong swimmer but you are a long way from the boat ( not to scare the whales) and I did struggle. It was too much for my wife who didn't go in the water for the whales.
Afterwards we went to the lagoon and saw turtles and other fish, finished with a swim with reef sharks and Manta Rays - a superb experience thank you.
Response from Host, Sep 2023
Maruuru Roa Martin for this comment and the good note 🐳
strattonsl, Sep 2023
We were very lucky. We got to snorkel with two mama whales and their babies and some male juniors. It was a perfect day, excellent guide, calm waters. We couldn’t ask for more.
Response from Host, Sep 2023
Maruuru Roa for this comment, it was a pleasure to meeting you🌺
Donna_L, Aug 2023
Ari and Mahi found whales in two different locations. They delivered! Ari was attentive with his group of 11 participants. I cannot wait to see the videos.
Response from Host, Sep 2023
Maruuru Roa Donna, for this nice comment 🌞
The video is or will be on our Facebook account or instagram account in the video part with the date of your tour. 🐳
See you nest time 🏝
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