The 15 Best Whale Watching Tours in Australia

Sydney: Whale Watching Adventure Cruise - The ride beyond Sydney Heads

★★★★★★★★★★4.2 · 1,790 reviews · 2h 45m · from $63Our pick

Review Sydney’s 165-minute whale watching cruise, with practical advice on whales, sea conditions, value, views, timing, and what to bring.

“So So happy to have booked this activity. Actually, after landing in Australia, I got a mail informing me that the original booking (for 28 Oct) was being cancelled due to a bad weather forecast. Luckily, the operators offered a slot a day before, when I had a separate GYG activity booked. Thanks to both GYG and the activity provider/operator, that helped me juggle the scheduling and have the Whale Watching moved to 27 Oct. Was a perfect day, bright & sunny, to go out on the waters. We were lucky enough to spot a massive blue whale teaching the calves how to breach the water. Watching them, especially that…”

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Boat Tours in Brisbane, Brisbane Tours, Cruises & Boat Tours, Tour Reviews, Whale Watching

Brisbane Whale Watching Cruise from Redcliffe or Sunshine Coast

2.Brisbane Whale Watching Cruise from Redcliffe or Sunshine Coast

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 997 reviews · from $114Top rated

Review of Brisbane whale watching from Redcliffe, with humpbacks, lunch, hotel pickup, seating upgrades, value, and practical tips.

“This company is really well organised. They’ve got an excellent boat which is designed for watching whales up close. The staff are friendly and a lot of information about whales is relayed. We saw many of these magnificent animals up close - it was truly awesome.”

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Exmouth & Coral Coast Tours, Tour Reviews, Whale Watching, Whale Watching Trips in Exmouth, Wildlife & Zoo Experiences

Swim with Whale Sharks in the Ningaloo Reef: 3 Island Shark Dive

3.Swim with Whale Sharks in the Ningaloo Reef: 3 Island Shark Dive

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 919 reviews · from $444

Swim with whale sharks at Ningaloo Reef from Exmouth, with reef snorkelling, manta rays, meals, photos, and hotel transfers.

“The crew was so wonderful and so funny!! huge shoutout to Robbie, Hannah, mareika and Annabelle for making the day so special and fun. Truly a great experience”

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Gold Coast Tours, Tour Reviews, Tours, Whale Watching, Whale Watching Trips in Gold Coast

Whale Watching Tour with Spirit of Gold Coast

4.Whale Watching Tour with Spirit of Gold Coast

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 884 reviews · from $53

Review of Spirit of Gold Coast whale watching, with marine biologist commentary, whale guarantee, practical tips, pricing, and honest drawbacks.

“Sit back relax and enjoy the Captain and crew. Professional. Funny, and passionate about their work and committed to an awesome customer experience”

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Sydney Whale-Watching Cruise Including Lunch or Breakfast

5.Sydney Whale-Watching Cruise Including Lunch or Breakfast

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 878 reviews · from $74

Sydney whale-watching cruise with harbour views, breakfast or BBQ lunch, live commentary, and free return trip if no whales appear.

“Lunch was really good and plentiful. Whale watching was fabulous! David was very informative and helpful with locating the whales and helping us find/see them. Highly recommend!”

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Sydney: 2-hour Express Whale Watching Cruise

6.2-hour Express Whale Watching Cruise

★★★★★★★★★★4.2 · 756 reviews · 2 hours · from $63

Review of Sydney’s 2-hour Express Whale Watching Cruise from Circular Quay, with practical tips on views, motion sickness, value, and whale sightings.

“Lovely views, unfortunately we did not see any whales”

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Gold Coast Tours, Tour Reviews, Tours, Whale Watching, Whale Watching Trips in Gold Coast

Spirit of Gold Coast 2.5-Hour Whale Watching Tour

7.Spirit of Gold Coast 2.5-Hour Whale Watching Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.2 · 703 reviews · 2h 30m · from $52Best value

Review of Spirit of Gold Coast’s 2.5-hour whale tour, with practical tips on sightings, seasickness, access, value, and what to expect.

“Loved Deans (captain) knowledge boat was great. Really good value for money. Would definitely do again . One small thing that could be improved is allowing everyone to see rather than keeping the boat in the same position whilst briefing g the whales. , could have manoeuvred the boat around more.”

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Hervey Bay & K'gari Tours, Tour Reviews, Whale Watching, Whale Watching Trips in Hervey Bay

Hervey Bay: Ultimate Whale Watching Experience

8.Ultimate Whale Watching Experience

★★★★★★★★★★4.8 · 656 reviews · 3 hours · from $84

Review of Hervey Bay’s 3-hour whale watch with marine scientists, live whale songs, small-group boat views, snacks, and conservation support.

“Amazing!!! The quality of the crew and unbelievable whales seeing and playing around the boat simply amazing!!!”

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Whale Watching Boat Trip in Sydney

9.Whale Watching Boat Trip in Sydney

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 571 reviews · from $99

Review of Sydney’s Whale Tales cruise: small-group whale watching, harbour views, expert commentary, pricing, tips, and honest drawbacks.

“It was epic. We enjoyed the ride and the staff was great explaining what we might see and when we did see the whales they made sure to point them out. Highly recommend.”

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Hervey Bay & K'gari Tours, Tour Reviews, Whale Watching, Whale Watching Trips in Hervey Bay

Hervey Bay 4-Hour Whale Watch Encounter

10.Hervey Bay 4-Hour Whale Watch Encounter

★★★★★★★★★★4.9 · 562 reviews · 4 hours · from $109

Review of Hervey Bay’s 4-hour Tasman Venture whale watch, with catamaran details, whale sightings, food, transport, value, and practical tips.

“Fabulous day out, the crew were all very friendly and engaging, the guide very knowledgeable. We saw lots of whales that swam right up to the boat, awesome experience, highly recommend it.”

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Hervey Bay & K'gari Tours, Tour Reviews, Whale Watching, Whale Watching Trips in Hervey Bay

Hervey Bay Whale Watching Experience

11.Hervey Bay Whale Watching Experience

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 557 reviews · from $111

Review of Whalesong Cruises in Hervey Bay, with whale encounters, meals, pickup, boat details, value, tips, and booking advice.

“It’s everything you would want it to be. The whales were amazing we had 7 whales around our boat. They just played around the boat for well over an hour. They looked they enjoyed it as much as we did. You have to see it to believe it. Weather was great, captain and staff were great. Would recommend this to everyone.”

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Hervey Bay Whale Watching Cruise

12.Hervey Bay Whale Watching Cruise

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 553 reviews · from $111

Review of Tasman Venture’s Hervey Bay whale-watching cruise, with whale sightings guaranteed, family-friendly features, food, pickup, and practical tips.

“I’ve never seen so many whales in one place. It was like watching tennis, having to look back and forwards. Saw dolphins and flying tuna too! The staff are amazing on this outing”

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Hervey Bay & K'gari Tours, K'gari (Fraser Island) 4WD Tours, Tour Reviews, Whale Watching, Whale Watching Trips in Hervey Bay

Fraser Island Whale Watch Encounter

13.Fraser Island Whale Watch Encounter

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 466 reviews

Spend eight hours whale watching from Hervey Bay to K'gari, with a small catamaran, hydrophone, lunch, and a submerged viewing platform.

“Peter is amazing at his job, he told us finding a whale is easy but finding a good whale is key, one(s) that will pec slap, tail lob, breach and even sing all come down to right place, right time and Peter with all of his knowledge and experience cerRead more”

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From Fremantle: 2-Hour Luxury Whale-Watching Cruise

14.2-Hour Luxury Whale-Watching Cruise

★★★★★★★★★★4.8 · 455 reviews · 2 hours · from $67

Review of Fremantle’s luxury whale-watching cruise, with vessel details, whale sightings, sea-sickness tips, price value, and booking advice.

“it was fantasic the boat trip was great saw so many whales loved every minute and the staff were very friendly.”

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Boat Tours in Hervey Bay, Cruises & Boat Tours, Hervey Bay & K'gari Tours, Tour Reviews, Whale Watching, Whale Watching Trips in Hervey Bay

Spirit of Hervey Bay Whale Watching Cruise

15.Spirit of Hervey Bay Whale Watching Cruise

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 452 reviews · from $111

Review of Spirit of Hervey Bay whale watching cruise, with Platypus Bay views, expert commentary, boat details, value, and booking tips.

“We had a great afternoon So many whale sightings The crew were great in finding the whales and positioning the boat for the best viewing and photographs.”

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