The 5 tours described below are the highest rated whale-watching tours departing from the marina in Cabo San Lucas.

A Cabo whale watching tour not only provides you with the opportunity to meet humpback and grey whales, you will also see many other sea creatures, such as sea lions, turtles, dolphins, and manta rays.

Some even offer extra special features, like hydrophones, so you can hear the whales singing, underwater cameras, so you can see even better, and food and drinks.

Be sure to see our reviews of Cabo ATV Tours, Sunset Cruises and Snorkeling Tours.

Best Whale Watching Tours in Cabo San Lucas

	Cabo: 2-Hour Whale Watching Boat Ride with Free Pictures	Cabo 2-Hour Whale Watching Adventure	Cabo San Lucas: Luxury Catamaran Whale Watching Experience
Departure:	La Terminal de Cabo	Hotel pickup and drop off	Hotel pickup and drop off
Start:	9:00 AM, 12:00 & 3:00 PM	Between 8:00 AM & 3:00 PM	8:00 AM, 11:00 AM, 3:00 PM
Duration:	2.5 hours	2 hours	3 hours
Includes:	Cruise on a small whale watching boat,  marine biologist on board, hydrophone to listen to the whales singing, guaranteed whale sightings	Cruise in an inflatable boat, professional guide, hydrophone to listen to the whale songs, snacks, bottled water	Cruise on a luxury catamaran, experienced guide, snacks, drinks, water, and soda
	Tour Information & Booking	Tour Information & Booking	Tour Information & Booking

Quick Answer: The 5 Best Rated Cabo San Lucas Whale Watching Tours For 2024

1. Cabo: 2-Hour Whale Watching Boat Ride with Free Pictures
2. Cabo 2-Hour Whale Watching Adventure
3. Cabo San Lucas: Luxury Catamaran Whale Watching Experience
4. Cabo San Lucas 2½-Hour Whale Watching Tour
5. Cabo San Lucas Whale Watching Breakfast Cruise

Cabo San Lucas Whale Watching Tour Reviews

1. Cabo: 2-Hour Whale Watching Boat Ride with Free Pictures

This Cabo San Lucas whale watching tour is an incredible opportunity to observe whales in the wild while speeding through the waves at 40 knots aboard a purpose-built, whale watching boat.

Out at sea, you will be amazed by the turtles, dolphins, manta rays, and grey and humpback whales. This is a fantastic way to go whale watching in Cabo.

After leaving the marina aboard a unique boat and relax into a specially designed, high-tech suspension seat, which will protect your knees and back.

You will pass Lover’s Beach along Land’s End and see El Arco, a natural sea arch which is the most famous landmark in Cabo San Lucas.

Watch out for the sea lion colony that frolics in the warm water around the arch. After that, look forward to seeing lots of whales in Cabo.

This custom-made boat is very comfortable so everyone feels intimate and friendly. The small size allows you to get close to the whales without spooking them and you will be able to hear them with the hydrophones.

Book early for the whale season in Cabo and rest assured that you won’t lose your money because the tour operator offers a full refund for cancellations within 24 hours of the time the tour starts.

Tour Information & Booking

100% refund for cancellations within 24 hours of tour experience

2. Cabo 2-Hour Whale Watching Adventure

Have you ever set out to sea on an inflatable boat? This is your chance to go whale watching in Los Cabos aboard a blow-up boat!

Meet up at the Cabo Adventures office in the marina and board one of these safe and environmentally friendly boats for a 2-hour cruise through the seas surrounding Cabo San Lucas. Because these unique boats are soft, they are the most whale-friendly you will find.

The enthusiastic and experienced crew will answer all your questions and provide you with an opportunity to hear whale songs by using the onboard hydrophone listening technology.

Snacks and bottled water will be provided for your comfort while you sit back and watch the whales and dolphins frolic through the ocean waves only a few feet away.

Book early to avoid disappointment, but don’t worry about losing your money. Free cancellations are standard up to 24 hours before the tour starts.

This popular tour achieved an extremely high approval rating of 4.9 out of 5 stars from past customers, so you will have an amazing and unforgettable experience watching whales in Cabo San Lucas.

Tour Information & Booking

100% refund for cancellations within 24 hours of tour experience

3. Cabo San Lucas: Luxury Catamaran Whale Watching Experience

If you want to observe whales in their natural habitat while relaxing in a comfortable, 500HP-engine boat, this is the tour for you during Los Cabos whale watching season.

After meeting at the marina, you will board a boat custom made for whale watching and sit in one of the high-tech suspension seats designed to protect your back and knees while you speed through the water at 40 knots.

Your guide will point out Lover’s Beach and the famous El Arco natural sea arch, where you may see a colony of sea lions. Out in the Ocean, watch out for dolphins, turtles, manta rays, and, of course, grey and humpback whales.

With only 14 passengers, you will feel comfortable chatting with the experienced crew and asking all the questions you want about the life cycle of whales or other forms of marine life.

Drinks, water and soda are provided for your comfort but no food. For your peace of mind, free cancellation of this tour is permitted up to 24 hours before the tour commences.

Tour Information & Booking

100% refund for cancellations within 24 hours of tour experience

4. Cabo San Lucas 2½-Hour Whale Watching Tour

Are you curious about whale songs? Would you like to hear them from the “horse’s” mouth? Here’s your chance on this unforgettable 2½-hour cruise during the Cabo San Lucas whale watching season.

After meeting at the Tesoro Hotel in the marina, board a large powerboat for an intimate, small-group tour of the waters around Cabo. You will pass the famous El Arco, where colonies of sea lions love to frolic.

Out at sea, a qualified marine biologist will help you to understand the life cycle of whales and even help you to hear them sing on the hydrophones provided.

An inbuilt underwater camera system allows you to not only watch the whales on the surface but also simultaneously to get an underwater view of the same majestic creatures.

Bottled water is provided but no food. The focus of this tour is to offer you as comprehensive as possible an introduction to the marine life around Cabo San Lucas.

You will see not only humpback and grey whales but probably also turtles, dolphins, manta rays, exotic fish, and other marine creatures.

If you seriously want to know about the habitat and habits of humpback and gray whales, this is the tour for you. If you wish to book early to ensure your place on this tour, don’t worry about your money.

The operator offers free cancellation up to 24 hours before the tour begins.

Tour Information & Booking

100% refund for cancellations within 24 hours of tour experience

5. Cabo San Lucas Whale Watching Breakfast Cruise

If you would love to eat a buffet breakfast aboard a twin-level catamaran and drink from an open bar during whale watching season In Cabo, this is the tour for you.

The cruise begins in the marina next to Hotel Breathless. The power catamaran will collect you from the pier and take you past the famous El Arco natural sea arch at the tip of Land’s End, where you should watch out for the sea lions.

While sailing along the coastline, enjoy your Mexican buffet breakfast, including scrambled eggs, bacon, pancakes, chilaquiles, cheese, and bean burritos, egg and chorizo burritos, egg and bacon burritos, fruit juice, and coffee to wake you up.

The open bar also provides juice and soda for the kids along with margaritas, mimosas, Bloody Marys, and cool beer.

The cruise will take you into the Pacific Ocean and also the Sea of Cortez where the onboard marine biologist will explain the actions and antics of the whales you encounter.

The professional crew members are trained to respect wildlife viewing ethics and “Whale Watching Guidelines”. To avoid disappointment, it is advisable to book in advance, but free refunds are given for cancellations up to 24 hours before the cruise begins.

Coming face-to-face with a humpback whale is an experience you will remember your whole life. There are no better whale watching tours in Cabo San Lucas.

Tour Information & Booking

100% refund for cancellations within 24 hours of tour experience

Cabo San Lucas Travel Guide

• Airports & Entry
• Planning Tips
• Restaurants & Eating Out
• Nightlife & Entertainment
• Getting Around
• Accommodations
• Weather
• Attractions

There are many good reasons why TripAdvisor rated Cabo San Lucas one of the best tourist destinations in Mexico for 2019. Where else can you combine mountain views with a vibrant nightlife and then jump on a boat to watch whales in their natural environment?

But what you choose to do in this versatile city, locally known as Cabo, is entirely up to you. In the region surrounding Cabo, you can do anything from scuba diving in the Pacific Ocean to ziplining over the beautiful landscape of a national park.

Have you ever dreamed of watching whales in their natural environment? Whales are the most magnificent mammals on Earth, and from December to April, you can see them swimming off the coast of Cabo San Lucas.

Winter is the best time to whale watch in Cabo. Every year, approximately 10,000 humpback whales migrate through the Baja California Sur region.

A Cabo San Lucas whale watching tour is the best opportunity you will ever have to get up-close and personal with the largest mammals on the planet.

Don’t miss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to join one of the Cabo San Lucas tours and come face-to-face with Mother Nature’s most fascinating creatures.

It is in your best interest to carefully research the local conditions and attractions to ensure you get the most out of your stay in Cabo. This guide can help you start that journey of discovery.

Airports & Entry

Despite being a small city with a population of only 81,000 people, Cabo San Lucas boasts two international airports and is a frequent port of call for pleasure cruises.

If you’re flying into Cabo, you will most likely land at Los Cabos International Airport, which serves the wider metropolitan area of Cabo San Lucas and San José Del Cabo, which is known as Los Cabos.

This busy airport has three terminals and four concourses. Most international flights arrive at Terminal 2, but it is possible your flight could land at Terminal 1.

Inside the airport, you will find a good selection of shops and places to eat as well as ATMs and foreign exchange desks in the arrival areas.

However, note that most shops and the foreign exchange desks only operate from 9 am to 8 pm and the food outlets from 4 am to 7 pm. For free Wi-Fi, connect to the “GAP FREE” network, and charging outlets for your cellphone are located throughout the airport.

For a fee, you can experience the luxury of one of the first-class lounges. Several car rental agencies operate out of the airport.

It is possible but extremely unlikely your flight would arrive at Cabos San Lucas International Airport, which is a much smaller facility than Los Cabos International Airport and does not provide any amenities for tourists.

The downtown marina is a popular stop for all cruises along Mexico’s Riviera. If you arrive on a cruise ship, you should check to ensure your stay in Cabo will be long enough to allow you to enjoy tours like the ones above.

Planning Tips

You deserve to have a really great time in Lanzarote, so here are 6 tips to help you make the most of your visit.

Tip #1: If You Want To Whale Watch, Go In Winter

Humpback whales and gray whales congregate in the Sea of Cortez from mid-December to mid-April each year and are often visible from the shore.

They arrive in this region after completing a 6,000-mile migration from Alaska so the pregnant cows can birth their calves in the warm waters near Cabo.

Humpback whales are especially curious about people, so they will frequently approach and circle boats that come close to their pods.

Tip #2: Take Your Time To Enjoy All The Attractions Of Los Cabos

Maybe you only want to watch the whales or laze on the beach, but there is a lot more to Cabo than sun and surf. Don’t miss the opportunity to climb a mountain, clamber around some ruins, or zipline across a desert.

And if it’s Nature you love, there are sea lions around El Arco and turtles below the old lighthouse. Check out the brief list of attractions below.

Tip #3: Book Tour Tickets In Advance, Especially During Winter

Because Cabo is a popular destination, you will find the tours and attractions busy, especially from October to May when the climate is ideal.

To ensure you don’t miss out, book in advance. This applies not only to the tours described above but any attractions. It would be a shame if you missed your opportunity to come face-to-face with a humpback whale because the tours were fully booked.

Because many tours offer a 24-hour-in-advance free cancellation, you take no financial risk booking before you fly. Ask about free cancellation before booking.

Tip #4: Book Your Ride From The Airport In Advance

The taxis at Los Cabos International Airport are expensive, especially if you’re headed to Cabo San Lucas, which is 30 miles away. However, some hotels operate a shuttle service.

If you haven’t yet arranged your hotel, look out for this feature. Alternatively, pre-booking a vehicle with an independent company, like All Ways Cabo Transportation or Cabo Shuttle Services, would be more affordable than jumping in a cab.

Tip #5: Buy Local Craft Souvenirs

If you want to buy your friends and relatives something unique, check out La Coyota. It’s a shopping village specializing in local arts and crafts, like local art, hand-crafted glass, Mexican ceramics, and hand-embroidered clothing.

Restaurants & Eating Out

Because Cabo San Lucas is a seaport, it’s only to be expected that many of the local foods are seafood based.

The fish tacos from the Baja California Peninsula are world-famous, and smoked marlin is especially popular in Los Cabos. Other popular foods include squid, crab, stingray, abalone, lobster, and shrimp, to name but a few.

An unusual marine dish is the Chocolate Clam (Almejas Chocolatas). The freshly harvested shellfish is covered in a locally-sourced herb called romerito and cooked on a stone bed.

You eat the herb as an aperitif while the clam is cooking. Another strangely named dish is Comida de Pobres (Food for the Poor), which is seafood soup, rice, and beans, eaten alongside corn flour tortillas.

Chicken tamales fajados, made with chicken, olives, raisins, and olive oil, and tamales de Guemes, also prepared with chicken or pork, are popular.

It is traditional to serve Damiana Liquor (brewed from the Damiana plant using sugar cane) or Clamato (a clam and tomato drink) with food.

Damiana Liquor is reputed to be an aphrodisiac and was originally used by the Guaycura Native Americans in their ritual ceremonies.

There are many popular restaurants around Cabo serving traditional foods, but one that stands out is The Office On The Beach, which you can find on Medano Beach.

This busy establishment offers traditional foods, like Mexican steaks, Baja-style shrimp, and burritos, especially for tourists, and is literally on the beach.

This famous restaurant was established in the 1970s before tourism began to flourish. As well as local food, it offers live entertainment in the evenings and a beautiful view.

However, because this restaurant specifically caters to tourists, you will find it expensive compared to other, less well-known food outlets.

Nightlife & Entertainment

Given that TripAdvisor rated Cabo San Lucas the 3^rd best tourist destination in Mexico for 2019, it’s not surprising to discover Cabo boasts a vibrant nightlife.

It also offers a wide variety of exciting activities, such as scuba diving, snorkeling, parasailing, boat charter, horse-riding, popular beaches, and, of course, whale-watching cruises.

There is even a bi-weekly, English-language newspaper called Gringo Gazette, which provides information about what’s going on for tourists.

If you love the clubbing scene, you’ve hit gold in Cabo. In this tiny city, you will find more nightclubs than you can visit in one holiday, including El Squid Roe, Hard Rock Café,

The Jungle Bar, Tiki Bar, Giggling Marlin, Pink Kitty, and the famous Cabo Wabo Cantina founded by Sammy Hagar, a former member of Van Halen. Note that the legal drinking age is 18! There’s a good reason Cabo San Lucas is dubbed Cabo San Loco.

However, if you prefer a quiet life, there are many late-night cafés and low-key bars for a relaxed ambiance and fun night.

Getting Around

Because most attractions are clustered around the downtown area, it’s easiest to get around on foot and take taxis to visit places further afield. However, taxis in Cabo are expensive.

If you plan to visit places outside of downtown, car-hire or local buses would be more economical. For something a little more adventurous, take a scenic water taxi from the marina to one of the beaches. The small local buses are super cheap,

Accommodations

Most tourists visiting Cabo stay in one of the hotels along the Los Cabos Corridor, which is a stretch of the southern coastline of the Baja California Peninsula between Cabo San Lucas and San José del Cabo.

The standard and cost of the hotels vary from the affordable Hyatt Place Los Cabos up to the plush Grand Velas Los Cabos, with its infinity pools, whirlpool tubs, and 8 restaurants.

Outside of the Los Cabos Corridor, a good number of hotels are scattered to the west of Cabo in Paraiso Escondido.

Many of the hotels with a reputation for being quiet and relaxing are found around there, like the adult-only Pueblo Bonita Pacifica Resort and Spa and the child-friendly Pueblo Bonito Sunset Beach Resort and Spa.

In the center of Cabo are several small and affordable, quiet hotels, like The Bungalows Hotel, which has only 16 rooms but is within walking distance of the marina and downtown.

Weather

If you love the sun, you’ll love Cabo, which averages over 350 days of sunshine every year. Realistically, all you need to worry about is using enough sunscreen.

The geographical position of Cabo on the end of the peninsular also means that during summer you’ll find the Sea of Cortez coastline and San José Del Cabo approximately 5⁰F warmer than the Pacific coastline and Cabo San Lucas.

The average temperature ranges from 64⁰F in January to 85⁰F in August. And if you plan on taking a dip in the Pacific Ocean or the Sea of Cortez, you’ll be delighted to hear the average water temperature ranges from a warm 71⁰F in February up to an impressive 85⁰F in September.

Cabo lacks the unpleasant tropical humidity of some other Mexican resorts because it enjoys an arid tropical desert climate.

However, it is north of other tourist hotspots so expect cool evenings and pack accordingly, especially during the winter months. Check the weather forecast before planning your trip because Cabo sometimes experiences hurricanes.

Hurricanes result in long periods of heavy rain, though the usual summer thunderstorms don’t come close enough to Cabo to bring rain.

The peak tourist season in Cabo is from October to May because the weather is neither too hot nor too cold and rain is rare.

Attractions

The whales swimming in the Pacific Ocean are not the only attraction around Cabo San Lucas. Beyond the beautiful beaches and popular nightclubs, you will also find a range of natural and man-made attractions to tempt you away from the poolside.

The most famous landmark in Cabo is El Arco, a three-stories-tall sea arch formed by natural seawater erosion of the cliffs. El Arco de Cabo San Lucas stands on the end of a promontory know as Land’s End to the east of the marina.

This natural rock formation is so well known that its image is utilized in advertising by local businesses. Because it is scenic and frequented by sea lions, it has become a popular sightseeing spot.

The two popular beaches nearby are dubbed Lover’s Beach and Divorce Beach.

You can snap breathtaking, panoramic photographs of Los Cabos from the summit of Mount Solmar. Hiking to the top takes 30 minutes.

If you time yourself to arrive at sunset, you can take amazing photographs over the Pacific Ocean that your Instagram followers will love. The climb is steep but relatively easy. However, wear sensible shoes rather than sandals, because it can be dusty and rocky, and apply sunscreen and carry plenty of water.

Three miles from Cabo stands the abandoned lighthouse of El Faro de Cabo Falso (Lighthouse of the False Cape). This fascinating ruin may only be visited by foot, horseback, or in a 4×4 vehicle.

This guardian of the port of Cabo San Lucas was built in 1890 and protected ships from 1895 to 1961. The ruin stands on a base 500 feet above the sea, providing a spectacular view of the ocean and a shipwreck. Turtles lay eggs on the beach below.

But if an adrenaline rush is more your scene, look out for the many zipline adventures around the Los Cabos area, including the Superman Zipline, reputed to be Mexico’s fastest, highest, and longest zipline ride.

The Superman zips you 1,800 feet over the top of UNESCO monitored Boca de Sierra National Park.

Tours are available to many of the local attractions. Watch out for “Tours en Los Cabos” signs around the city.