Of all the wildlife in water and on land in Costa Rica, one of the most spectacular animals are the whales. On both sides of the coast, Pacific and Caribbean, are over 25 species of dolphins, porpoises and whales in Costa Rica.
Whale watching opportunities are available and during the peak months of migration, it is easy to see these magnificent beasts roaming the waters. Costa Rica’s waters are blessed with good health, temperature and location, so whale species come here year round to mate, give birth and raise their young before heading back to feed on krill which are rich in the colder waters.
So if you’re coming to Costa Rica hoping to see some whales, you’re in luck!
There are many spots around the country to see these majestic marine mammals and you’ll probably pair that with many of the other animals you can see out at see like dolphins, manta rays and turtles.
Whales in Costa Rica
- Whales That Can be Seen
- The Best Time To Go
- Best Place to go
- Mom and baby whale
- Whale Watching Tours
Click the section to skip to it.
Whales That Can be Seen
Many of the species that pass through are deep water dwellers and are hard to see such as the blue whale, fin whales, the endangered Sei whales and some species of sperm whale. They can be seen off the Pacific coast in the deep sea occasionally.
The biggest animal on earth, the blue whale is another whale that passes through Costa Rica. During the winter months they migrate for warmer waters to feed and reproduce at the Costa Rican dome, the south Pacific side of the country.
One species in the order of Cetacea, the Orca has been seen more frequently in Costa Rican Pacific coast even though they are not common here and it is not their normal habitat as they prefer colder waters.
If you’re lucky, you’ll get a glimpse of pilot whales, which are actually the second largest oceanic dolphin. Short-finned pilot whales live in warm waters so they pass by Costa Rica. We were lucky to see some hunting while we were out boating in the Gulf one day! A big pod of them just swimming alongside our boat.
This is a video of us boating in the Gulf of Papagayo. Skip to 3:18 to see the whales!
The Best Time To Go
The best time to go whale watching in Costa Rica is December to April and August to December, almost all year round. This is due to the migration patterns of the humpback whales, of which both Northern and Southern hemisphere humpbacks pass through Costa Rica. The humpback whales are the prized jewel for whale watching in Costa Rica.
Southern Hemisphere humpback whales travel from Antarctica to Costa Rica from late July through early November. This migration route is 11,500 miles (18507.5 kilometers). Northern hemisphere whales head to Central America from Alaska from the months of December to March. These long routes make them one of the farthest migrating animals on Earth.
Between the months of October and November, it is common for both sides to pass through Costa Rica at the same time and this could serve as an advantage for males, increasing the genetic diversity during mating. Because of this, Costa Rica has the longest humpback whale season in the world.
Best Place to go
The most popular place for humpback whale sightings are at Parque Nacional Marino Ballena in Uvita and Drake Bay in the Osa Peninsula.
They are found all along the Pacific coast (some places more than others) and here in the Gulf of Papagayo we have had many whale sightings.
Mom and baby whale
During these months, it is very common to see mom and baby. This is the time where mothers nurse their young and teach them how to breach, dive and feed. The babies are very playful and sometimes when you see them they are splashing their fins around and eagerly jumping out to practice.
These whales are fairly easy to spot because they spend much of their time at the surface and close to shore. Humpback whales have a distinct hump, a black dorsal fin and can range in length from 12 – 16 meters long.
Whale Watching Tours
There are many tours available in Drake Bay, Uvita and Manuel Antonio for whale watching. There are a couple laws surrounding whale watching and all the tour operators should know and respect them. No one can swim with dolphins or whales except for scientific researchers and these laws are instated to protect these animals.
Humpback whales are endangered and they are protected internationally by the government.They were almost extinct due to whaling up until 1966 when a law was put into place to stop hunting and have since recovered greatly. Some countries still hunt them such as Japan but there is ongoing pressure to end their whaling practice.
If you are going out whale watching, make sure to have a full charged battery for your camera and that you have a good zoom lens if you have a DSLR. There are so many other animals out there in the ocean that you’ll want to have it handy to catch it on film.
If you love animals and the ocean, then going whale watching in Costa Rica will be an activity you definitely shouldn’t miss out on. It’s an amazing experience to see these impressive creatures and reminds us just how much we need to protect our nature and earth.
If you’d like to read more in depth information about the various whales in Costa Rica, check out the Mammals of Costa Rica: A Natural History and Field guide book.
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Hi Regina, specific whale watching tours aren’t really available in GUanacaste, they are offered down in Uvita and some companies (I think there is one in Flamingo) offers a whale/dolphin watching tour. Depending on where you are in Guanacaste, the Gulf of Papagayo is the best place to see them, but in December it is overlap month of both NOrthern and Southern so there is a very small possibility to see them up in Guanacaste. The best opportunities to see whales is down by Uvita and Marino Ballena Natoinal Park.
Hello, my husband, two young children & I are staying at a resort in the very northern part of Guanacaste in December–doing a whale watching excursion is on my bucket list but I am having a hard time finding any tour groups that offer tours that are less than a 2hr drive from Guanacaste–any tips? Thanks!
So, do whale watching tours still run from May-July? Are there no whales or just fewer whales then? I’m going to be there in early May. Am I SOL?
You can contact the tour companies to get the current situation on the whales because that’s off season for whales so they may not run any tours until Julyish. Unfortunately May isn’t a great month as you’ll just miss the Northern Humpbacks and it’s a bit early for Southern Humpbacks. Sometimes there are stragglers who come early/are late but it’s never a guarantee during those months.
Hi Suze! I would definitely avoid Jaco beach in your case as it is not the cleanest since it’s very touristic. For snorkeling, the Caribbean beaches like Cahuita are excellent as there aren’t many boats or people going through there. The only good place to snorkel in the South (Uvita/Dominical/Osa) is Cano Island. There aren’t very many other good beaches or areas to snorkel in the south. You can read more about Cano Island here: Cano Island snorkeling
THe only thing I would make note is that Cano Island is extremely popular so there are always several boats that go there for snorkeling tours and when we went, there were at least 50+ people in the water at once so I’m not sure if that’s clean enough since a lot of boats go around the island every day.
The Gulf of Papagayo has excellent snorkeling and very clean water/beaches and because the Papagayo Gulf is so big, you can have beaches to snorkel all to yourself (especially in early NOvember as it’s still low season). There are handfuls of boats that go through Papagayo Gulf but since the area is so spread out and everyone goes to different beaches (since there are so many), you’re never surrounded by more than 1 or 2 boats at a time and every time we’ve gone, we’ve always been the only ones.
Hope this helps!
We are attending a wedding in Jaco for a few days in early November, with our grown daughters. I’ve been reading about the ocean being so polluted there in that area, that you should not swim or even go on the beach there. I have Lyme disease, which lowers your immunity, and makes you more susceptible to infections so I protect myself from exposure to polluted waters. It has also affected my strength, so I have some challenges in big surf. As a passionate snorkeler and swimmer in the ocean water, where would you recommend I go to swim/snorkel in the least polluted waters? Looked like Uvita area, Cahuita and that southern coastal area might be a good place for us to go spend our time, snorkeling and swim. What would you recommend? Thanks!!
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Hi!
Im traveling to Costa Rica on late August and early September, which place do you recommend for me so I can watch the whales?
Thanks!
Hi, it says in the article where are the best places to see whales 🙂 Enjoy your trip!
Hi there,
I saw a pod of whales from the plane just off the coast before landing in Liberia. What kind do you think they were? I’m guessing humpbacks but it was January 22!
Thanks,
Maggie
Most likely humpbacks, especially if they were pretty big. In nature, there are always exceptions to the rules. Just because it’s technically not “whale season”, doesn’t mean it’s impossible to see them. They’ve seen humpbacks down in Uvita beginning of January, so you never know with nature.
Hi Lauren, there are no specific whale watching tours from this area. If you really want to see humpback whales, and want a more of a “guaranteed” chance to see them, you should go to Drake Bay or Uvita. That is the best place to see humpback whales nearly all year long and they have specific dolphin and whale watchhing tours. In Playas del Coco, humpbacks commonly pass through August-November and it’s not very common to see them in the other months. We’ve gone boating in the Gulf quite a few times in Dec/Jan/Feb/March and never saw one, we’ve only ever seen them in Aug/Sept in the Papagayo Gulf. I highly suggest if that’s on your bucket list, to take a trip to Parque Nacional Marino Ballena especially since you’re coming in January: Marino Ballena National Park
Hi, staying near playa coco in January. Seeing humpbacks would be a dream come true for me. Do you know of any tours from this area?
Many thanks
Lauren
Hi! I know this post is a little older, but is it possible to see any whales in June? I’ll be thereto June12-22 and I’m considering going on a whale watching tour. Not sure if I’ll have any luck though?
Hi Kimi!
Even if the post is old nature will do the same cycle ;), and June is not the best time but you never know. Happy travels!
Great article, thanks for all these informations.
I never heard nothing about Orcas in Costa Rica, do you have a link or more informations about it? I’m interesting to know where some people have seen Orcas in Costa Rica ? South, Central, North ?
Hi! I haven’t seen them myself sadly but they have been spotted along the Pacific Coast near the Marino Ballena National Park and then on the Southern Caribbean side. They’re not as common as the other whales and I’ve only ever heard of a few people who have seen them versus the big handful who have seen humpbacks.
Hoping to be an ex-pat in C.R. Someday soon. Serve the people, preserve the land. My dream!
It’ll happen! 🙂 Costa Rica’s the best place to help preserve the land