Book Your Ocean Safari

With Trinity Eco-Tours, you'll join a small group on a guided two- to three-hour ocean safari aboard a Zodiac RHIB with Skipper Bob Bartlett, a certified marine naturalist with over 30 years on Trinity Bay. Depending on the time of year, you can see humpback, fin, minke, sperm whales, icebergs, bald eagles, atlantic puffins, gannets, shearwaters, dolphins, and the occasional orca.

This is also a helpful resource for more whale watching related questions: Everything You Need To Know About Whale Watching in Newfoundland.

We also always recommend following our Facebook and Instagram pages to give you an idea of what we are seeing. We try to post daily in season.

Honestly, there isn't one. Whales on Trinity Bay are active around the clock. They feed on capelin day and night, and our sighting rate doesn't vary meaningfully by time of day. Morning tours often have calmer seas and better light for photography, but an afternoon or evening tour is just as likely to put you alongside a feeding humpback. We monitor conditions daily and schedule departures around weather and tide, not the clock.

Whale season on Trinity Bay runs from late May through September. Peak activity is July and August, when humpbacks arrive in force following the capelin (the small fish they feed on). That said, June is special: it's the one month when whale season and iceberg season overlap, so you can genuinely see both on the same tour. September is quieter but still very good, particularly for fin and minke whales.

Here is a guide on the Best Time to See Whales in Newfoundland.

Trinity Bay is one of the most biodiverse marine environments in the North Atlantic. The whales you're most likely to encounter are humpbacks, famous for breaching and tail-lobbing, followed by fin whales (the second-largest animal on earth), minke whales, and sperm whales. Seabirds are almost guaranteed: Atlantic puffins, northern gannets, bald eagles, razorbills, and guillemots are regular visitors. Keep your eyes open for Atlantic white-sided dolphins, which often ride our bow wake, and on rarer occasions, orca.

Both appear in Trinity Bay, though neither is as predictable as humpbacks. Atlantic white-sided dolphins are encountered fairly regularly and are a delight! They're fast, playful, and will often surf the pressure wave off the bow for 20 minutes at a stretch. Orcas are rarer and tend to appear later in the season, from late July through September. When a pod of orcas visits Trinity Bay, it's one of those days nobody forgets.

A few reasons, and they all matter. Our Rigid Hull Inflatable Boats (RHIBs) sit low on the water, so you're at eye level with the ocean. We take a maximum of 11 passengers, which means you have an unobstructed view from anywhere on the boat and direct access to Skipper Bob throughout. The Zodiac can maneuver quickly when a whale surfaces unexpectedly; a large vessel can't. And because a RHIB doesn't produce the slow rolling motion of a larger boat, seasickness is significantly less of an issue. The same type of boat is used in offshore rescue operations, they're among the most stable small vessels on the water.

Very unlikely. The slow, rolling motion that causes seasickness on larger boats doesn't happen the same way on a RHIB as the boat cuts through the water differently. In over 30 years of running tours, very few guests have been seasick aboard our Zodiacs, including many who have been sick on large whale watching boats before. We do keep Gravol available on board if you want to take a precaution before departure. If you're particularly prone to motion sickness, taking something before you board is worth considering. Talk to your pharmacist ahead of time.

We provide a full one-piece neoprene immersion suit for every guest, the same type used in offshore rescue operations. These suits keep you warm and dry even in rough conditions and are one of the things that genuinely sets our tours apart. Underneath the suit, wear warm layers (a fleece or thermal base layer is ideal), sturdy waterproof footwear, and thermal socks. Even on warm summer days, the ocean temperature on Trinity Bay stays cold and the wind can cut through when you're moving at speed. You will not regret an extra layer. Sunscreen and sunglasses are also worth bringing as the glare off the water is intense and easy to underestimate.

Yes, families are very welcome! The immersion suits we provide are available in adult sizes for most guests; younger children are equipped with personal flotation devices. We recommend dressing younger children in waterproof layers and boots underneath. The open-boat environment is exciting and exposed, so children should be comfortable on a small moving boat. We usually recommend that children be at least 6 years old to fully enjoy the tour. Many families tell us the ocean safari is the highlight of their entire Newfoundland trip.

Safety is always the priority. If conditions are unsafe with strong winds, heavy swell, dense fog, we will contact you in advance to reschedule or offer a full refund. We monitor the marine forecast daily and track conditions closely, so we will generally know the night before if a tour needs to move. Newfoundland weather can change quickly in both directions: a foggy morning can turn into a spectacular afternoon. We do our best to find the right window and will work with you to find a time that fits your schedule.

Absolutely! Trinity Bay is one of the best places in the world to photograph humpback whales, and many of our most-shared photos have been taken by guests on our tours. A few practical tips: always use a neck strap and keep your camera around your neck rather than in a bag, since the boat moves quickly when we reposition for a whale. Set your camera to burst mode and a fast shutter speed (1/1000s or faster) to capture breaches. Telephoto lenses are useful but not essential. At times, the whales are close enough for a smartphone. Leave the tripod at home; both hands need to be free.