Film Humpback Whales in the Pacific Ocean
Tonga Hump Back Whales Dive Trip
Underwater Photo & Video Expeditions
Posted May 21st, 2021 by Elisabeth
Dive Expedition Outline
Join us as we head to Tongatapu, in the beautiful Kingdom of Tonga, for 5 amazing days in the water with Humpback whales. This trip is 7 days in total, but Sundays are dry days in Tonga which gives us time to explore some caves and the island.
It’s time again to organize a fun trip! This time Davey and I are organizing an amazing trip together… to Tonga (more specific, to the less crowded Tongatapu), to swim with the Humpback whales. As some of you know maybe already, Davey worked for a couple of months in Tonga photographing the whales and I went on a freediving trip to swim with the whales. We were there at the same time, but in different areas and we both agree, its definitely one of the most spectacular things we have seen and interacted with.
So we put our heads together and decided our friends/students need to do this too! And we managed to block off the boat for us for 2 six-day trips. That means 5 days of swimming with whales and Sundays are off, because Tonga is a very Christian country. But that’ll give us a day to explore other stuff! We have 7 hours per day on the boat and we will be maximum 8 people including Davey and I, so lots of in water experience (always max 4 people with a whale in the water). Lunch and water/snacks are included.
Because of the abundance of shallow water in Tongatapu there are lots of resting mothers and calves. The deeper waters are about a 40-60mins boat ride out. Being on a private charter, we can of course decide between us how far out we wish to go.
The town we’ll be looking to stay in is Nuku’alofa. This is also where the airport is. This airport is cheaper to fly to than Vava’u and has regular direct flights from Fiji, Australia and New Zealand. Transfer is provided by the whale swim operator to and from the accommodation daily. We are currently in the process of trying to find a house we could all share to make it cheaper still, so stay tuned, but if you want your own accommodation, let us know and have a search in Nuku’alofa.
The price pp. for the whale swim trip for 6 days is 1855 AUD. If you wish to join us, we will need a deposit of 730 AUD.
Group size: 6 divers and Davey and I.
Included: 7 nights of accommodation on twin shared basis, lunch and snacks on the boat, transfers boat|house
Humpback Whale Expedition FAQs
There are a few places in the world where you can see Humpback whales. The most chance of encountering some is in the Polynesian kingdom of Tonga, Silver Banks in the Dominican Republic, Mo’orea, French Polynesia and La Reunion.
Take the bare minimum for your camera! You will have to swim fast and freedive down so cumbersome equipment will make it difficult to get great shots. You will need a wide angle lens because oftentimes these whales come very close.
It all depends on the whale. You will have to keep your distance, but sometimes you will get a curious calf checking you out from up close or encounter a “crazy whale”! Thy will act like a puppy, be super excited and thrashing the tail and fins to invite you to play. This is a very exciting experience!
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