Quebec City Full-Day Whale Watching Cruise

373 Ratings

Québec City

Save

View All (5)

Embark on a thrilling full-day whale watching cruise from Quebec City to witness Canada’s incredible wildlife. Spot whales, belugas, seals, and more amidst stunning scenery!

Duration: 11 hours

Cancellation: 1 day learn more

Highlights

Baie-Sainte-Catherine - Escape Quebec City for a day, and experience an exciting adventure on the water. Meet us at the central departure point. Meet your guide and board a deluxe motor coach. Travel along the picturesque mountainous coastline of the St Lawrence River to reach Baie-Sainte-Catherine, where you’ll board either the AML Grand Fleuve observation boat or a speedy zodiac for a memorable afternoon of whale-watching.

You will have 2 boat options for your whale watching: The Grand Fleuve is a large, three-level boat with a glassed main deck, covered upper deck, a bistro/bar. A naturalist will share illuminating facts during your journey. The Zodiac is a small, open-air boat that allows you to zip through the water to enjoy super-close access to whales and marine life. Your captain will provide live commentary on your journey.

Both vessels depart from the north shore of the St Lawrence for an exciting encounter with whales, seals and belugas! Discover the many faces of the St Lawrence River, including the Saguenay–St Lawrence Marine Park, a lighthouse, fascinating islands and an amazing diversity of marine life.

What's Included

2.5-hour or 3-hour whale-watching cruise
In-vehicle air conditioning
Guided panoramic bus tour
Certified naturalist-captain

What's Not Included

Gratuities
Food and drink
Pick-up and drop-off from home addresses / private residences / Air B&Bs.

Additional Information

When you visit Quebec City, seize the opportunity to witness Canada’s impressive wildlife through a whale-watching seafaring adventure! Your journey will commence with a road trip to Baie-Sainte-Catherine where you’ll embark on either a big three-tiered observation vessel or an intimate, open-air zodiac craft. Embark on this thrilling hunt for whales, belugas, seals, and an assortment of sea creatures. The splendid backdrop is an added delight on this adventurous day expedition from Quebec City.

Meals are not included. Passengers on the AML Grand Fleuve cruise may purchase food on board; passengers on the zodiac cruise are recommended to bring a lunch or snacks
Please dress warmly, as it can be quite cold on the river. An insulated jacket, hat, gloves and closed-toes shoes are highly recommended.
Minimum age is 6 years for the zodiac boat

Location

fontaine de Tourny

Please arrive at 8h30 as the Bus depart at 9h00.

Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings

4.2

(373 Ratings)

5 stars

4 stars

3 stars

2 stars

1 star

Georgia_f

Jul 12, 2024

Whale Owhale - Watching for whales and seeing the seals. Making new friends. The scenery was breathtaking. We saw parts of the country we have not seen before.

Review provided by Viator

Susan_g

Jun 15, 2024

Long Drive with Refreshing Experience - The ride from Quebec City was longer than we expected, since no details were given about where the boat would be boarded. Also, we needed more info about where/when we could buy something for lunch. We were on the big boat and we did see 3 species of whales, porpoises, and sea birds. It was really scenic and refreshing. We enjoyed it very much.

Review provided by Viator

Linda_h

Jun 12, 2024

Fantastic day! - We had a beautiful day watching whales! We saw beluga, fins and minkes. It was fantastic! We really appreciated how the guide told us where to look. Very nice crew on the boat.

Review provided by Viator

Tamsin_b

May 23, 2024

Great day out and a super naturalist - Great day out in the a marine Park. You drive in a coach through Quebecs beautiful countryside and a national park. The boat was a good size, not too big so you could easily see from all sides. The naturalist on board was very well informed and gave good insights. If you travel on the boat you spend ca 1.5 hrs in the bay and then travel a portion of the St Lawrence Fjord. It was a fantastic day out and we saw 3 whale types. Two considerations- there is some food for sale on the boat, but not sure what those on the zodiacs could access; it is a full day out and we were back in QC at ca 7 pm. But well worth it.

Review provided by Viator

Sandrineba1524vx

Oct 23, 2023

Unforgettable experience - Viewed several whales on a beautiful sunny day. A big thank you to our guide Gabriella 🙏 for showing us the tourist places on the Saint Laurent route.

Review provided by Tripadvisor

Diana

Jul 11, 2024

Worth it! - Logistics were handled very well and we were well informed throughout the day. The guide, driver and crew were excellent. We did see whales and seals and beautiful scenery. What made it a 4 rather than 5 for us was that it was crowded on the boat, we didn’t have an opportunity to purchase access to the top of the boat, and food was limited to one sandwich choice (which one of us is allergic to).

Review provided by Tripadvisor

Lorrie_s

Jul 4, 2024

Splashing Whales - The most memorable was seeing the seal and whales. The zodiac was a cool experience. The boat goes fast and can get very cold. Bring an extra sweater even in the summer.

Review provided by Viator

868victor

Jul 1, 2024

Nice, but guide should start in english and than french language - 3 hour trip by bus from Quebec. The closer you get to the river the more beautiful the scenery becomes. I was the first in line for the boat, but than a family arrived and the guide let them go first and asked me and others to step aside. Did not know you could book priority boarding... On the boat the guide talked French first but way too long. She than talked english but that info was way shorter. Why don't you talk in english first with several people from Europe and also Americans and Chinese people on board?

Review provided by Tripadvisor

Llfrakes

Jul 3, 2024

Would not recommend - The weather was spectacular, and we were able to see or almost see several species of whale. Very difficult to identify as we only saw the top of the backs of anything that was near the boat. I don’t think that I would recommend someone invest six hours of travel to see the limited viewings of whales that we saw. And while the tour guide was very friendly, I don’t believe that I understood one complete sentence that she said for the entire three hour trip up. She was going back-and-forth between French and English and was very difficult to understand. Very frustrating.

Review provided by Viator

Megan_b

Jun 10, 2024

Not great. - The trip would’ve been fine however we were planning on going in the little boat to be closer to the whales and were told that the boat might not even be able to break the waves. We rode 3 hours in a bus only to do what we weren’t planning on doing. Also they should stop at a place where you can get an actual meal instead of just assuming everyone will bring their own. I just think it took way to long in a small bus for something that didn’t need to be that long.

Review provided by Viator

From $179

Select Date and Tickets

up to 10 guests

1 Adult