Whale Watching in Mauritius

Dinghy sailing: gone with the wind

We've been learning how to sail on our laser 2000 dinghy for the past few weeks now. We love it (more on that on an upcoming post), but as with everything sailing, you have to make due with nature: sometimes there is not enough wind and sometimes there is too much wind!

We had our last sailing lesson on September 14th and knew we wouldn't be able to sail again for at least 10 days after because of too much wind.

That same day of September 14th, J. shares this picture with me:

And so, we immediately thought: if we can't sail in the coming days, we may still be able to go on the water for some whale watching? We started to do some research.

Whale watching in Mauritius: what you need to know

Whales can be spotted throughout the year in Mauritius but you will have most chances to see one during the winter months from May until September. In summer months, many whales will find the Mauritian waters too warm and head south towards the Antarctic.

You can usually encounter 3 types of whales around Mauritius.

Sperm Whales

Sperm whales (also known as cachalot) are the most common in Mauritius where they feed in the deep sea waters around the island. Females usually live with their youngs until they mature and migrate. Adult males live solitary. Females give birth every four to twenty years, and care for the calves for more than a decade!

Those whales are impressive animals as the male is 16 meters long on average and the biggest ones can be up to 21 meters and weight up 50 tons! On their guinness book of records, they are proud to have the largest brain of all animals, are the largest of the toothed whales and claim the prize of the largest predator on earth! Oh and they can plunge more than 2,000 meters for over two hours, no problem.

Humpback whales

Humpback whales are rorquals, the largest group of baleen whales. The humpback has a distinctive body shape, with long pectoral fins and a knobbly head. Their size is somewhat similar to the sperm whales with the adult humpback measuring 14 to 15 meters on average. But contrary to the sperm whales who have teeth, the humpback mouth is lined with 270 to 400 baleen plates (some kind of fringed brushes) on both sides.

Those guys are true globetrotters, they typically migrate up to 16,000 km each year. They feed in polar waters and migrate to tropical waters like Mauritius to breed and give birth, where they like to hang out close to the shore.

Pilot whales

More specifically in Mauritius, you will find the short-finned pilot whale. Pilot whales are part of the Delphinidae family and indeed look similar to dolphins. They are much smaller than the previous two. Adult females reach a body length of about 5.5 meters, while males reach 7.2 meters and may weigh up to 3 tons.

The pilot name is because pods (group) were believed to be "piloted" by a leader. In fact, pilot whales are highly social and may remain with their birth pod throughout their lifetime. Short-finned pilot whales are one of the few mammal species in which females go through menopause.

How to go whale watching in Mauritius?

Most tour operators offering whale watching are located in Tamarin or Black River, in the West. There are a variety of options, from small motor boats to larger catamarans. You can decide to join others in a group or charter your own boat.

Many tours depart in the wee hour of the morning (before 6am!) and last between 2 and 5 hours. The tours will take you to the south of the island, offering you dramatic views on Le Morne Brabant, Mauritius postcard mountain.

IIn winter, it can get a bit cold, wet and windy, so don't forget to take some warm layers and a rain coat. And of course, don't forget sun glasses and sun screen as you will most likely stay in the sun for some time.

Swimming with whales in not allowed in Mauritius to protect the animals (although we'd be lying if we said we didn't see some people in the water when we were there).

We decided to go with Pura Vida on their "Whale wild west" private charter tour, and not only because of the fun pun. Communication with Lynch through their Instagram was very smooth and efficient.

Is it worth it? (spoiler: oh yeah!)

Departure was set at 9:30am from La Balise Marina dock in Black River. As we live in the North, we decided to take that early departure as an excuse to book a weekend away from home. We booked a stay in an apartment right in La Balise Marina. We were also excited to check out that place as it is the only real estate complex built around a marina. Some of the houses there were very nice, but there are not many sailing monohulls or catamaran in the marina itself. Most of the boats were small powerboats.

We met Jérôme and Logan at the pier. Super friendly pair, I could bother them during the whole trip asking many questions about boating and sailing in Mauritius. We were their second tour for the day. The early risers from the first tour had seen humpback whales so we were hopeful to see some too. After some short introductions and some cake, we were on our way, due South.

Once out of the marina we increased the revs of the engine direction the Morne. Sky was grey with the occasional shower, it wasn't too bad but it was a bit chill in the beginning. The wind died as we passed below the Morne but picked up in a fury as we went past it.

The sea was quite agitated, as it is to be expected in this area, with a relatively large swell for our small boat. We joined a group of other boats looking for the humpback whale. We quickly spotted the mother and her young and let the show begin. It was grand!

As we stayed around for a bit, we could see them very up close. They passed and jump a couple of time right in front of us. They seemed to be as curious of us as we were of them. After about an hour of show, the whales decided they had enough and left us.

We moved back North with some good music.

We sailed slowly in the bay along the Hotel Paradis below the Morne. It was beautiful. Then we headed towards l'Île aux Benitiers and its iconic Rocher Crystal. This is where the staff decided the time for perfect for an apero and offered us some local rhum and fruit juice cocktail. A bit early but hey, we're sailors, so why not!

We were back on the docks by midday and got back to the car to ride back home. We had a blast, thanks Pura Vida!

Last updated: September 24th, 2022