Swimming with the Whales in Tonga

Hi

I am looking at going to Tonga next year and swimming with the Whales. Does anyone have any experience with this?
When is the best time to go?
What are the best companies to go with?
I've had a quick look and the shortest Whale swimming trip it seems possible to take a a full week trip, is it possible to take shorter?
About how much are the Whale swimming trips?

Thanks for any advice

Darren Rice at Happy Ha'apai Divers is a great guy, very knowledgeable, very conscientious, and a he is conventiently close to Matafonua lodge. Highly recommended. Check out his site here: http://www.tonga-dive.com/home.html

His Showreel is absolutely stunning: http://vimeo.com/1801974 It will make you want to leave tomorrow!

Edited by: miketelemark

The best time to go is August to middle of October. The whales arrive in July and trips go out that month, too, but if you go a little later then the calves will already be about 4-6 weeks old, more curious and the mothers will be more relaxed, which usually means great encounters. From the middle of October their numbers gradually get smaller since they start travelling back to Antarctica.

If you book through travel agents or advertised packages they often include accommodation and a set amount of days. However, it is possible to get shorter trips, just contact the companies directly and enquire for what you want. You should bear in mind that this will be a wildlife encounter and you might not get what you look for in just one day. It is better to budget for 2 or 3 days and it's always a good idea to have a few spare days in case the weather is bad.

Globaltrailblazer.

It depends a little on what kind of trip you want and your budget but the protected reef around vava'u makes vava'u the best place to go whale watching. I would go in late october for the same reason as mentioned above.

There are several companies and hotels to choose from. For hotels Mystic Sands has great value and you can prepare your own food if you like and dolphin pacific diving and whale watching give a small free lunch with the tours as well as wet suits.
It is always a good thing to book in advance.
Trips range from 250-300 Pa'anga per day.
happy

I traveled to Vava'u with my wife and stayed at a cheap place in Neiafu. Book ahead because there are not many cheap places here. Email the whale swim operators here directly or call ahead of time and pick three days to go out with them. This will ensure you actually get to swim with them. It should be around 250 Pa'anga or so per day on the water. If you do an organized week long tour then it will cost more as the resorts they put you in will have expensive meal plans. I did both and much preferred staying in the guesthouse and cooking the food I bought from the local market.

I was there for the two months of August and September and people were reporting more interaction and curiosity from the calves in September. I would recommend going then, before they start leaving in October.

I have done both a day out whale swimming and a dive course with Dive Vavau (divevavau.com) and would reccommend them- Paul and Karen are both very knowledgeable and safety conscious. They are also protective of the whales and other sea life. It is possible to swim with whales off any of Tongas main islands- Tongatapu, Eua, Haapai and Vavau. We did a one day trip for whale swimming but would probably reccommend two or three days in case you can not get in with them one day. My sister wasn't able to swim with them when she went out but still had an amazing time. I found it just as fascinating watching the whales from the boat after the swimming as it was swimming with them- they were breaching and putting on a great display.

Hi

I'am going to Tonga in September.
What is the better time to whale watching: middle of September (11-21 of September) or end of September (18-28 of September) or there are no difference between these periods?

Thank you!