Avila Beach Whale Watching has been providing safe, educational boating adventures on San Luis Bay for 13 years and in that time we have taken over 20,000 folks out to see the animals and whales that live here. To our great advantage we are blessed to have an abundance of wildlife in the bay with sightings of whales, dolphins, porpoises, sea lions, sea otters, harbor seals and a variety of sea birds on our whale watching trips. This place really is a hidden gem on the central coast of California. If you are not interested in whale watching we also offer a one hour "Coastal Explorer' private group tour for those that would like to go boating and see some of the animals that live close to shore without the commitment of going offshore to see whales. We also offer custom / private tours and ash scattering burials at sea. 

We are the most experienced whale watching company in the area which is why we find whales on over 90% of our tours from May through October. Our 5 star reviews on Google, Yelp and Tripadvisor have us rated as the best whale watching tour in the Avila Beach area every year for the past 13 years. 

Unlike most whale watching tours on larger boats with as many as 100 people on board, our tours are unique in that we only take 6 passengers at a time. This ensures that everyone can enjoy an unobstructed view of the whales  and other wildlife that we encounter with no crowding. We also have the advantage of being able to move quickly to a new location if we see something exciting going on. Catamarans with 2 hulls offer a much smoother ride through the waves which helps us get to the whales faster. Catamarans are also very stable which is a big help when taking pictures of the whales and other wildlife we encounter on these adventures. Personally, our favorite part of the smaller boat with only 6 passengers is that we will have the opportunity to talk about the animals as we observe them and we are available to answer questions about what we are seeing. 

Local experience matters when looking for whales.  We are the only company in the area to have been in continuous, year round operation on the waters of San Luis Bay since 2012. Captain Mark Kocina the owner has worked as a boat captain / naturalist / adventure travel guide / white water rafting guide for over 45 years in many countries around the world. He will bring all of that experience to bear on these trips. Captain Frank Orazio has been fishing these waters for 21 years and is an excellent boat captain with a good background in wildlife sighting. In our combined time at Port San Luis, we have taken over 19,000 guests out onto these waters to see the whales and other animals that frequent this area. If you are looking for a knowledgeable, friendly captain to escort your family out for a safe, educational and memorable whale watching experience please join us for a tour. 

We have very good whale watching from February through November here on the central coast of California and on average we will find whales on most of the trips. April and May we expect to find whales on 80 percent of the trips and June through the end of November where we expect to see whales on over 90 percent of the trips! Please check the "recent sighting" page for more information on what we are seeing currently. The past 3 years of trips notes are listed there if you would like to compare your dates with what we saw from 2022 up to today. Every year is a bit different and these are wild animals that are free in the ocean so please have realistic expectations and understand that we are offering you a chance to see something special and not a guarantee that you will. 

What time of the day to go?

Departure times for whale watching trips are 9:00 am and 11:30 am. The earlier trip usually has more potential for calmer sea conditions and the mid day trip has more potential for sunshine. The whales activity levels are about the same but do vary from day to day. There will be periods of calm and clear weather when we will be able to add more trips for private groups. These private trips typically go at 6:30 am or 2:00 pm. Please call me if you are interested in adding a private trip at a special time.

All ages are welcome

We love having kids on the whale watching tours but there are a few things to consider. All children under 13 years old must wear a life jacket for the entire trip. Infants can become very unhappy with this, so we recommend that folks with children under 2 years of age consider booking a private trip so we can return to port if things are just not working out.

Physical requirements

To board the boat you must walk down a flight of stairs, 10 steps and then out onto a dock that does move a bit with the waves and step over or sit on the side of the boat and swing your legs in. The side of the boat is about 2.5 feet higher than the dock and also slightly moving. There is no toilet on the boat so you will have to hold it for 2 hours.

Weight limit

Due to the smaller nature of our boat we do have a weight limit of 275 lbs per person. You are welcome to book 2 seats and join us but we do find that getting onto the boat for folks over 300 lbs is difficult. Everyone is different so please give us a call to discuss options for getting you on the boat.

Dress for possible cold conditions 

The central coast of California has some cold water upwelling just offshore making our waters very cold year round. This is instrumental in producing the huge amounts of plankton and small fish  that the whales are here to eat and why whale watching is so good here. It does mean we must be prepared and dressed for very cold conditions even if it is hot on shore. Please bring a warm jacket, long pants and some type of windbreaker or rain coat if you want to be warm on the boat. Please click the " What to wear / bring" tab for a more detailed breakdown of what to expect on a tour at different times of the year.

Bad weather and canceling trips

We will cancel trips when the weather is not cooperating, such as for rain, dense fog or very windy rough conditions. You will receive a full refund if this happens. This sometimes happens at the dock at the start of the tour and we apologize for any inconvenience this may cause for you. We want our trips to be enjoyable and not dangerous. We will do our best to go out if it is reasonable to do so.

Our departure dock is located very close to Avila Beach, Ca. on a quaint, historic pier known as the Harford Landing at Port San Luis. This is just 15 minutes from Pismo Beach, Ca. and 20 minutes from San Luis Obispo, Ca. If you are staying near Paso Robles, Ca. we are only 45 minutes away and in the summer 20 degrees cooler! 

The short answer is no as this is not a zoo. Please understand that we are offering you a chance to see wild animals that live freely in the real world and that is the beauty of this experience. We will always use every bit of experience we have to find them for you but no one on earth has control over mother nature.  While the whales do present themselves for us to see on the majority of our tours there will be trips that they do not.  Unfortunately our expenses are higher when we do not find whales as we search more, so we do not offer refunds or credits for future trips when we do not find whales. We appreciate your understanding as we are not in control of the weather or the animals.  

PLEASE NOTE: If the ocean becomes too rough or foggy on the day of your trip to safely go out to the whales we will give you the option to either get a  full refund or go on a coastal explorer tour and you will receive a 50 percent refund.

We will observe the animals from a safe and respectful distance. NOAA rules now stipulate that the safe distance for us to approach whales is 100 yards, Sea Lions and Dolphins is 50 yards.  At these distances we will be able to see the animals clearly and more importantly the animals will be safe and able to go about their day undisturbed by us. On occasion the whales will become curious and swim right up next to the boat!

There is no toilet on the boat. Please use one of the public toilets in the port area before boarding. The most convenient toilet is found on the right side of the roadway as you enter the port area. It is located on the ground floor level of the Coastal gateway building