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Best time for dolphin watching

Dolphins can be found around the world - from the warm waters of the Ionian Sea off Greece to the chillier climes of the Azores and Scotland. The best time to see them depends on their behaviour, the climate and the ocean conditions, so our handy chart below helps you pick out when and where to have your wild dolphin encounter.

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Best time for dolphin watching

Dolphins tend to be fairly permanent residents of the seas they inhabit, meaning that, in theory they can be observed year-round.

In practice, being wildly exposed in the open ocean leaves boats at the mercy of Mother Nature, who conspires with cyclones, rough seas and downright miserable weather to make some seasons thoroughly unsuitable for sailing. On the flipside, choosing your departure date carefully means you can combine your dolphin watching tour with seeing other creatures such as humpback whales or puffins, or enjoying tropical flowers in bloom, while in some destinations you can time it to tick off the greatest number of dolphin species.

Take a look at our chart for the best times to watch dolphins in each destination, as well as the worst times to watch them, to help you avoid storms and sighting-free trips.

Call us for the best time to go on a Dolphin watching Vacation

Dolphin watching, month by month

If you’re traveling in January, February and March then you should look out for dolphins in New Zealand, Hawaii, Western Australia, Baja (in Mexico), Central America, Belize and Sri Lanka. April is the start of dolphin watching season in Egypt, Scotland, La Gomera (in the Canaries) and both the Ligurian and Ionian seas. May, June and July are the best months to watch dolphins off the coastlines of the Azores, Ireland, Egypt, Madeira, Fiji, Newfoundland and Jersey with several of these locations still providing ideal conditions into August and September. In the Azores, pods tend to be largest in these months, and you may also see a few cute calves. New Zealand’s and Western Australia’s dolphin watching seasons start in October and November whereas Belize and Sri Lanka typically pick up the binoculars around the end of the year in December. You can see dolphins in Namibia’s Walvis Bay pretty much all year round, while the best time for dolphin conservation vacations in Greece is definitely between June and September. Basically, avoid rough seas and crowded destinations, particularly around the school vacations.

Our Dolphin watching Vacations

When & where to see dolphins: Azores - Central America

When & where to see dolphins: Egypt - Ireland

When & where to see dolphins: Jersey - Mauritius

When & where to see dolphins: Newfoundland Western Australia

Travel Team

If you'd like to chat about Dolphin watching or need help finding a vacation to suit you we're very happy to help.

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Best time to watch dolphins in the wild

Amanda Stafford, from our supplier Dolphin and Whale Connection discusses the best time to swim with dolphins in the Azores: "You can swim with dolphins here, but it very much depends on the time of year and on sea conditions – so for this reason it’s best to go in May to September. The islands are in a very isolated location, there’s no other landmass nearby, so when the weather comes in the sea can be pretty treacherous. So it very much depends on the sea conditions being calm and safe enough for us to let people swim. It’s done on a per-trip basis – as with any wildlife encounter, you can’t guarantee it."

More about Dolphin watching

Dolphin watching travel guide

Dolphins are incredibly intelligent, delightfully playful and able to inspire happiness in anyone who sees or swims with them.

Best place to watch dolphins

The best place to go on a dolphin watching vacation depends as much on the other activities you want to enjoy as on the dolphins themselves.

Dolphin watching - other activities

Most dolphin watching vacations will also include plenty of time in between boat trips, so here are some of our top activities you can enjoy when not looking out for these marine mammals.

Dolphin watching in the Azores

Dolphin watching vacations in the Azores, as scores of these beautiful and intelligent creatures swim around you, is not an experience to be quickly forgotten.

Dolphin watching vacations in Greece

Dolphin watching vacations in Greece tend to focus closely on conservation research when you travel with responsible providers – there are several species in these waters and they face a wide range of threats.

Dolphin watching in Scotland

If you’re dying to swim with dolphins in Scotland then this page isn’t for you. Dolphin watching in Scotland takes time, patience, and an awful lot of luck and local knowhow.