We’re excited to share a review of our experience with Tenerife’s Whale Wise Eco Tours, which allowed us to get up close and personal with aquatic wildlife in a fun and responsible way!
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🌏 WHALE WISE ECO TOURS
- Address: Marina Los Gigantes, Pontoon 1. Tenerife, Canary Islands.
- Website: https://whalewise-ecotours.com/
- Duration: 2.5 hours
- Boat Capacity: 10 tourists
- Sighting Rate: 99.9% for whales or dolphins. If none are spotted, another tour free of charge or half your money back is offered.
- Price: 75€ per adult, 55€ child (ages 2-12)
We recently visited Tenerife, Canary Islands—located off the coast of North Africa but governed by Spain. Tenerife is one of the world’s most thriving and eco-friendly whale and dolphin watching destinations. We wanted to enjoy Tenerife’s ocean life in a responsible way and chose Whale Wise Eco Tours due to their commitment to environmental welfare. Best yet, they operate within one of the world’s four Whale Heritage Sites. (The other three are located in Dana Point, California; The Bluff, South Africa; and Hervey Bay, Australia).
🐋 WHAT IS A WHALE HERITAGE SITE?
The Whale Heritage Site designation recognizes the efforts that non-profits, government organizations, whale watching operators, and the scientific community in Tenerife have undertaken to ensue that local marine life and their environment are not overexploited and to put a cap on the excessive tourism.
The Ternerife La Gomera Marine Area became Europe’s first Whale Heritage Site in January 2021, which is no surprise. Tenerife has a unique resident population of short-finned pilot whales living alongside a diverse array of other whales and dolphin species within a designated Special Area of Conservation. In addition, the area is located along many species’ migration paths. If you’re lucky, you might see rare and transient species like sperm whales, humpback whales, or orcas!
🎉 OUR TOUR EXPERIENCE
Whale Wise was founded by Mercedes Reyes, a marine biologist passionate about the conservation of marine wildlife and their habitat. (By the way, she’s also a vegan!) Ms. Reyes played an integral role in securing the Whale Heritage Site certificate for Tenerife. She has worked to ensure that Whale Wise puts a premium on responsible whale watching, research, and conservation efforts. Whale Wise tours meet all the locally established whale watching regulations and international criteria, putting animal welfare first.
⛵ SAILS FROM LOS GIGANTES HABOR
We checked into our tour on the west port of Tenerife, at Los Gigantes (“The Giants”). As we approached the harbor, we saw breathtaking views of giant rock formations rising 1600-2600 feet up from the ocean. The Whale Wise boat was docked at Pontoon 1, and we received an email with the exact location prior to our tour.
🚤 OUR TOUR BOAT
Time to set sail! We set sail with 8 other tourists and two crew members aboard an eco-friendly hybrid boat with two electric engines. As we approached wildlife, the crew switched to an electric engine, which research has shown to disturb animals less than gas engines.
🎯 SUSTAINABILITY FEATURES OF THE BOAT
- -Tours are free of plastic and other inorganic waste.
- -Picks up of floating plastic or derelict fishing gear encountered.
- -Participation in a carbon-neutral program to compensate for the tour’s emissions.
- -Solar panel usage on the boat.
- -Exclusive use of biodegradable cleaning products.
- -Donation to NGOs that help the oceans in ways beyond our reach.
🐬 ANIMALS WE SAW
The crew was very professional, and their passion for the ocean and its creatures was evident. When the boat took off, they gave us a lecture on the resident animal species in Tenerife. They were very eager to answer all of our questions.
Pilot Whales
The Canary Islands is home to one of the largest pilot whale populations in the world. In spite of their name, pilot whales are actually dolphins. Pilot whales are drawn to volcanic islands (like the Canaries), that have deep underwater topography, where their favorite prey (giant squid) live!
Atlantic Bottlenose Dolphins
Did you know that dolphins have their own names (a particular whistle) given to them at birth? They introduce themselves and answer to that whistle.
Loggerhead Sea Turtles
Whale Wise assists injured sea turtles when possible, but calls in professional rescuers in severe cases. Plastic waste is the usual cause of their injuries 🙁
📷 ONBOARD PHOTOGRAPHER
Whale Wise tours include an onboard photographer, who snaps photos and video for guests. This was a was a huge plus for us, because we didn’t have to haul around our expensive camera equipment. They email you a gallery of photos as part of the price of the tour. They even take beautiful portraits of their guests with the towering cliffs in the background.
🍪 SNACKS AND REFRESHMENTS
Included with our tour was an assortment of snacks and refreshments. Vegan options included fresh and dried fruit and nuts, soda, coffee, tea and water.
Overall, our experience with Whale Wise Eco Tours was one of the highlights of our trip to Tenerife. Not only was it eco-conscious, fun and informative, it was a great value considering it came with refreshments and an onboard photographer. Thanks for joining us! Do consider booking a tour with Whale Wise Eco Tours if you find yourself in Tenerife.
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