Whale Watching in Puerto Vallarta: Our Experience
Looking for information on whale watching in Puerto Vallarta?
Puerto Vallarta is a magical place in the winter. Not only is the weather warm and sunny, but the area becomes a temporary home for humpback whales. Every year, these magnificent creatures migrate to Banderas Bay to give birth and raise their calves in the calm waters. We had the incredible opportunity go whale watching in Puerto Vallarta on a small boat excursion.
From spotting spouts on the horizon to hearing their unique songs underwater, the experience was unforgettable. If you’re visiting Banderas Bay in the winter, we highly recommend whale watching!
When can you go whale watching in Puerto Vallarta?
Humpback whale season in Puerto Vallarta runs from December through March. Most whale watching in Puerto Vallarta runs during this entire period.
Peak whale watching in Puerto Vallarta is in the heart of winter, in January and February. We did our tour in January and saw a lot of activity! We also got to see calves, who are born in Banderas Bay in the winter. It’s really special to see the mother and baby whales together!
Can you see whales from the shore in Puerto Vallarta?
Yes, you can see whales from the shore in Puerto Vallarta during the winter months. In our experience, you need to be looking carefully to spot them, but if you’re patient, you’ll see them!
One trick to whale spotting from the shore is to look for clusters of boats. This isn’t a hard rule, but often, if there are boats close together out on the bay, they’re stopped for something — and in the winter months, it may be whales.
Another tip is to scan the horizon for spouts. These water sprays are one of the easiest indicators of whale presence.
One of the best places we found for spotting whales is Mirador de la Cruz in the Centro neighborhood. We know, we know, it’s a lot of steps. But the fabulous views and potential for whale spotting (and spouting!) in the winter months make it worth the burn.
We also often spotted whales while walking along water. Whether you’re walking along the Malecón or doing a coastal beach hike, keep an eye out for whale spouts!
Is whale watching in Puerto Vallarta worth the cost?
While you can spot whales from the shore, if you really want to see whales up close and learn about them, getting off shore and onto a boat is ideal. While watching from the shore is free, we think whale watching in Puerto Vallarta is totally worth the cost.
The cost for whale watching in Puerto Vallarta can range quite a bit depending on the tour type. If booking with a larger group tour, you can expect to pay about $100 per person. Small group and private tours are generally more expensive. In our experience, that higher price is worth it if you can afford the splurge.
For our Puerto Vallarta whale watch, we chose to book a small group (4-person) tour with Tagalong Excursions. When we did our excursion in January 2025, we paid $150 per person (plus gratuities).
About Tagalong Excursions
Tagalong Excursions is a small husband/wife business run by Larry and Krisy Bennett.
Larry has spent decades in Puerto Vallarta as a marine photographer, photographing whales on the bay. Larry told us about different places he’s traveled around the world over the years because of his photography expertise.
Now in retirement, Larry and his wife Krisy run Tagalong Excursions as a way to share the experience of seeing whales up close with others. They emphasize that their excursions are not traditional “whale watches” as most people know them. Instead, they invite small groups aboard their own photography excursion, and educate you on whales while they do so. It’s all quite personal and made our experience that much better.
Larry and Krisy love these whales. You can feel it, and that makes it really special. Yes, you’re paying them for this excursion, but you can tell they’re doing it because they just love being on the water with whales and sharing it with others.
On that note, Larry and his boat captain are careful not to harass the whales, which unfortunately can happen on whale watching tours. They will let the whales come to the boat if they choose to, but they never approach the whales too closely. We appreciate this as it shows respecting the whales is more important than getting the best shot or experience for guests.
What to Wear
There’s no need to get dressed up for this occasion. You’ll be out on the water, after all!
We recommend sensible shoes (sneakers or secure sandals) and comfortable clothing. Watch the weather and dress appropriately. Because whale watching in Puerto Vallarta happens in the winter months, you may want to bring a jacket or sweatshirt.
Also, if you’re wearing a hat and it doesn’t have a strap, hold onto it tight when the boat is moving!
What to Bring
If you’re going whale watching in Puerto Vallarta, you don’t need to bring much with you. We recommend packing the following:
- Smartphone/Camera: This is one of those activities where you’ll be tempted to snap way on your camera the entire time. We recommend taking some time to take it all in the old-fashioned way, with your eyes and nothing else. We actually ended up just watching the whales more than snapping pictures. But don’t worry, you’ve got plenty of time to do both!
- Sunscreen and sunglasses: You’ll be out on the bay exposed to the sun for about 4 hours, so sun protection is key.
- Small towel and change of clothes: We didn’t need either of these, but we had them just in case things got wet. We recommend you do the same.
- Snacks and water: We ate breakfast before leaving, and packed crackers, energy bars, and water for the boat. Larry and Krisy had soft drinks and snacks (including homemade muffins) for us on board the boat.
- Dramamine or other motion sickness medication: We took dramamine as a precaution before getting on the boat, but we may not have needed it. It really depends on the roughness of the water on that given day, and your own body. Do what’s best for you.
Getting There
If you’re going whale watching in Puerto Vallarta, you’ll likely leave from one of two marinas in the area. One is in Marina Vallarta, just north of Puerto Vallarta. The other is in La Cruz de Huanacaxtle, about 45 to 60 minutes north of Puerto Vallarta. Our tour left from the marina in La Cruz.
From Puerto Vallarta, La Cruz de Huanacaxtle is about a 45 to 60 minute drive, depending on traffic. Fortunately, Larry and Krisy drove us from their condo in Marina Vallarta (included in the cost of our excursion), making logistics simple. We left our rental in Versalles around 7am, and we were at the marina in La Cruz de Huanacaxtle an hour later.
If you book a whale watch leaving from La Cruz de Huanacaxtle and don’t have transportation, Uber is probably your best bet. While you can take a bus from Puerto Vallarta to La Cruz de Huanacaxtle, whale watching departures are often early in the morning. The buses in Puerto Vallarta get you where you need to be, but not always on time!
Whale Watching on a Small Boat
We’ve done whale watches on big boats before, but this outing was nothing like that. Larry and Krisy take you out on a 12-passenger boat, led by a captain that Larry has been working with for decades. You can tell Larry and his captain have been together for a long time by the way they communicate, using hand signals to note what they’re seeing and where they need to go that the rest of us don’t understand. In addition to the three of us, one other person joined the excursion. In total, there were 8 of us on the boat.
We were a bit nervous about being out on Banderas Bay in such a small boat, but it was never a problem. In fact, moving along the water was quite soothing!
One thing to note on small group whale watches such as the one we did is that there is no toilet on the boat. Go before you go! That said, Krisy had a portable toilet we could use if needed.
The boat was plenty comfortable for the morning we spent out on the bay. There was plenty of seating along the sides and front of the boat for good views, and we could even take turns sitting in the captain’s chair.
Learning About Humpback Whales in Puerto Vallarta
At the beginning of our excursion, Larry and Krisy made sure to tell us about humpback whales in Banderas Bay, and their behaviors. We liked that they did this near the beginning, so we knew a bit about the whales we were seeing during the excursion.
Some of the most interesting things we learned were:
- Migration patterns: Humpback whales in Puerto Vallarta migrate from North Pacific waters as far as Alaska, where they feed in the summer months. They swim thousands of miles along the Pacific Coast to reach the warmer waters of Mexico in the winter months (and then they do it all again the next year!).
- The role of Banderas Bay: Banderas Bay is an important birthing and breeding ground for humpback whales. Calves are generally born earlier in the winter season, with mating generally happening later in the winter season.
- Tale uniqueness: Just like a human fingerprint, no humpback whale’s tale is the same. The white marking on their tales is unique and can be used to identify whales.
- Oil rings: When you’re close to humpback whales, you can track where they’ve been by looking for oil rings (like the one in the image below) on the surface of the water. This indicates where whales have been.
We think humpback whales, their history, and habits is fascinating to discover. If you’re interested in learning more, NOAA is a great resource.
Our Experience Whale Watching in Puerto Vallarta
Chasing whales
We spent a little over 4 hours on Banderas Bay. The boat left the marina in La Cruz at about 8:15, and we were back on land by about 12:30. Looking back, that time went by incredibly fast.
We cruised all over the bay during that 4-hour period, chasing whales wherever we spotted them. Whale spotting was a total team effort, which made things really fun. Anyone could alert the captain that they’d spotted whales, and we’d zoom off to get a closer look.
Whale watching is unpredictable—you never know what you’ll see, so it’s important to be open minded. Two days before our tour, Larry and Krisy saw whales so close they bumped into the boat! While we didn’t experience that, we did see an incredible number of whales.
Our whale watching adventure started a bit slow. We were seeing some whales, but many of them seemed to be on the move that morning, so we were doing quite a bit of chasing. We sort of circled the bay in the first hour we were out there!
Listening to the whales
After a bit of chasing, the captain stopped the boat and dropped a hydrophone into the water so we could listen to the whales underwater. It’s pretty special to hear whale songs out on the water, knowing they’re somewhere beneath you!
Larry and Krisy explained that each whale has its own unique sound, and you’re hearing them talk to each other. What’s most impressive is that Larry has so much experience on Banderas Bay that he knows the whales by their sounds. One of them sounds like a door opening, which they affectionately nicknamed, Creaky Door.
A whale of a time!
As the morning progressed, the whales became more active. We found ourselves surrounded by more than 10 whales, and a pod of dolphins.
It felt like a full-on marine celebration!
A little after noon, we began making our way back to the marina. Though we didn’t witness any full breaches, we saw an estimated 20 whales—so many that keeping track became impossible.
Jumps, slaps, and spouts were happening all around us for a good 60 to 90 minutes of our excursion. You could tell the whales were having a fun morning on the water! Every day on the water is unique, and we were really happy with the whale activity we got to observe on Banderas Bay.
Getting Back
Once we were back on land, we packed into Larry and Krisy’s SUV and started our journey back to Puerto Vallarta. They were kind enough to offer to stop at a place that does local shrimp lunches, but we declined since Liz is allergic to shrimp (way to ruin the fun, Liz).
On the drive back, Larry and Krisy gave us a long list of food recommendations in the area, which was much appreciated given that we still had another week to wander around Puerto Vallarta.
We made our way back to Marina Vallarta, where Larry and Krisy are based. While we only spent about 6 hours with them, Larry and Krisy were incredibly gracious hosts and we really felt like we got to know them well during that short period. From Marina Vallarta, we parted ways with Larry and Krisy, grabbed a quick coffee in Marina Vallarta, and made our way back to our home base Versalles.
Final Thoughts: Whale Watching in Puerto Vallarta
Whale watching in Puerto Vallarta was an unforgettable experience—one that left us with a deep appreciation for these incredible creatures and the dedicated people who share their world with us. From the thrill of spotting spouts on the horizon to listening to their hauntingly beautiful songs beneath the water, every moment of our excursion felt special. Whether you choose a large or small group excursion, we think whale watching in Puerto Vallarta is a must if you’re visiting in the winter.