Okinawa Whale Watching: Choose from three departure points: Naha / Chatan / Motobu
★ Limited-time winter Okinawa whale watching experience! From December to April each year, the success rate of whale watching is as high as 98%, a must-do experience in Okinawa during winter. ★ Flexible morning and afternoon sessions allow you to freely arrange your itinerary. ★ Departures are available from Naha, Chatan, and Motobu, making it easy to integrate into your travel plans. Whale watching is easily accessible from the north, central, and south areas. ★ [Naha Departure Tour] Offers free round-trip transportation from designated locations.
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What to expect
A whale watching tour in Okinawa is a wonderful experience not to be missed in winter! From December to April each year, humpback whales visit the Kerama Islands waters of Okinawa to find food, mate, and breed their calves. During this period, the number of humpback whales in the Kerama waters can reach 300 to 500, and more than a thousand humpback whales have been identified. This area has therefore become their gathering place, so the success rate of whale watching is as high as 98%!
[Naha Departure (Japanese)] ★ Whale watching guarantee period: 2026/2/1-2026/3/15 ★ Compared with traditional speedboats, a more stable large catamaran is used ★ Free download of whale commentary manual ★ Free download of activity photos of the day and wonderful whale photos taken in the past ★ Free round-trip pick-up and drop-off at designated locations in Naha city ★ In addition to the basic plan, a “motion sickness prevention plan” including anti-motion sickness bracelets, glasses, and raincoats is also available
[Naha Departure (Chinese)] ★ Whale watching guarantee period: 2026/2/1-2026/3/15 ★ Chinese staff accompany you, so there are no communication barriers ★ Multilingual audio guide
[Chatan Departure (Japanese/English)] ★ Whale watching guarantee period: 2026/2/1-2026/3/15 ★ Near American Village ★ Multilingual audio guide
[Motobu Departure (Japanese)] ★ Near Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium ★ Free whale commentary manual provided ★ Welcome drink ★ Free download of activity photos of the day and wonderful whale photos taken in the past ★ Whale watching near Ie Island, only a few ships travel together, the view is clear and not crowded, and the whale encounter rate is as high as 98%










Reviews
Good first experience whale watching - went in early Feb and managed to spot a few whales! Guide’s english vocab was limited but all of them were extremely friendly and passionate, and made sure you knew where the whales were located. Whales were quite a distance away but still could see and capture them with camera. The waters were very choppy and wind was very strong, but thankfully no one was sea sick. Feel that it is not very worth to get the seasickness package as they only provided the glasses, wristband and raincoat and they collected the glasses and wristband at the end of the tour. Reached back to port at around 1130 and they had transport back to hotel as well. Photos were also given to us after the trip, and is as attached. *keep warm as it can be quite cold, especially during winter period (early Feb was still cold). bring along something to cover your face
Pick up was on time and we managed to see the whales. Initially we saw some blows, the tails then the jumps for 3x so lucky. Although the guide only speak in Japanese but their safety instructions comes with various languages for us to read on our own. Sea sick medicine is not provided, you need to bring your own. Quite a few people aren’t prepared and they felt super uncomfortable. It’s super windy so best not to wear caps or sunglasses. Someone dropped their sunglasses into the ocean due to the wave while we are on the deck. They even allowed us to be dropped off from at a different location from our pick up point.
The blue of Okinawa’s sea is really beautiful! But we didn’t take seasickness pills and completely ignored the horror of the waves. The whole family almost vomited. It is recommended that everyone must take seasickness pills 😂😂🐳 Otherwise, it will be a pity that it is almost impossible to watch the whole process! The three children almost wanted to go home🤣🤣 but in the end they saw a small whale in the distance🐳. It's a pity. We originally booked for 1/16 but canceled early in the morning due to poor sea conditions. We were asked if we needed to reschedule. The contact was OK, but the entire tour was in Japanese and had to be accompanied by a text sign. Personally, I would like to take the challenge again and see the big whales next time, but the children said they don’t want to take a boat ride again🤣🤮🫣
A winter-only Okinawa sightseeing tour! Although the order page shows that the service is only in Japanese, there are actually many non-Japanese people participating. Although the on-board commentary is in Japanese, there are notice boards in various languages. In fact, the language is not a big problem with the explanation! The process of enjoying the scenery requires a long wait for the whales to appear. It doesn’t matter if you are not good at capturing and taking photos. The team will also provide photos taken by the crew for downloading at the end of the trip. Overall, it is a very considerate service! In addition, I also went directly to the official website of the shipping company to check the itinerary price, and found that it was almost the same as the price on klook, so please feel free to book this itinerary and you will not be disappointed!
Smooth and easy tour. The vendor contacted me via whatsapp the day before to confirm the tour details. On the day itself, just find the tour guide in the carpark and he will guide you. We managed to spot 2 whales and they were close to the boat! The whole tour took almost 3 hours. Would recommend.
It was so amazing to see whales passing under the boat, spouting water, and even jumping right in front of us! We visited for our baby's first birthday and our older child's 11th birthday, and it was safe and great! There was a Korean staff member who could explain safety precautions and provide necessary information, which was 👍👍. The boat was clean, and the large parking lot right in front made it easy to park our rental car! Boat condition: Great! Guide: Very friendly and we were able to have a safe trip! Schedule: We participated in the afternoon schedule and were happy to see so many whales! Seasickness medicine is a must as the waves are strong!
The pick up was on time and the driver was very friendly. we were brought to the pier for embarkation. Every staff was very polite and welcome us onboard. During the pre-sail safety talk, the guide spoke in Japanese 99% of the time, but there were cards written in a few languages provided to us hence there was no issue in understanding the safety instructions. Nonetheless we had no idea what the guide was explaining about subsequently. We were lucky to be able to sight a few whales that day albeit a bit far to see clearly. Luckily we were able to download the pictures taken by the staff. Overall a good trip to take if you are in Okinawa during this period.
It was fantastic!! Today I saw humpback whales more than 15 times in an hour!! Eventhough the tour is in Japanese but they do provide English guideline as well. The service is excellent. Really recommend!!
I stopped to see the whales and heard their songs. The only regret is that I could only see the side of the whales, and they were far away. Although I took photos and videos, I never saw the moment when the whale jumped out of the water. A little disappointed, the staff also gave the passengers photos of the whales taken with their telephoto lens that day, which was very thoughtful. The boat was very bumpy, and for safety, the staff did not allow passengers to stand, walk around, or change seats at will. Otherwise, I should have been able to capture the whales faster, haha!
Had a fun time watching the whales. Very surprisingly to see them up close even though a bit sad didn’t manage to see their full body!
Good to know
- Pregnant women and drinkers cannot participate in this tour. If found on site, no refunds will be given. Thank you for your understanding.
- Depending on the whale watching conditions on the day, we may return to port early if whales are spotted early. Please be aware of this.
- This tour is a cruise of approximately 3 hours, but due to different whale sighting locations, the return time may be earlier or later by more than 1 hour. We recommend that you allow sufficient time to participate.
- For safety reasons, children or the elderly may be refused participation when sea conditions are poor. Thank you for your understanding.
- The tour may be canceled due to weather, sea conditions, or other force majeure factors. You will be notified by email the day before or on the day of the tour. Please pay attention to your email.
- If the rain does not affect the safe navigation of the boat, the tour will proceed as usual, even on rainy days. If customers cancel the tour on their own due to rainy weather, cancellation fees will be charged according to the regulations.
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