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Vancouver Island Whale & Wildlife Adventures

Highest Orca Sightings in British Columbia!

Vancouver Island’s Best Whale Watching Tours Departing From Cowichan Bay & Parksville B.C. 

Highest Killer Whale Sightings on Vancouver Island! Ocean EcoVentures is the most centrally located Whale Watching Company on Vancouver Island with locations in Cowichan Bay and Parksville. Small intimate whale and wildlife adventures with no more than 12 guests on our vessels. Marine Wildlife Photography Specialists. Longer Tours to ensure Maximum Viewing Time with the whales and wildlife. We focus on the whole Salish Sea ecosystem. Passionate, certified captains and an exemplary safety record.

Ocean EcoVentures is a marine eco tourism company that focuses on marine conservation, public outreach and education since 2003. Ocean Ecoventures also provides scientific and logistical vessel support for marine research operations.Whales are our passion! We love sharing Vancouver Island’s marine ecosystem and all that inhabits it. We are dedicated to responsible and ethical whale watching and wildlife viewing.

 

Sustainability, Conservation, Education & Research

We don’t just claim to be Sustainable, we ensure all of our day to day operations and wildlife viewing is sustainable. Our mantra is “People protect what they love and love what they understand” so we are here to help make that happen. As a proud member of 1% for the Planet Ocean EcoVentures donates annually to local not for profits supporting whale and wildlife conservation efforts. We also support local researchers to help their conservation and research efforts. The vessels we operate have the quietest sound footprint in the industry for the whales and marine mammals we view! Learn More

Year-Round Guaranteed Sightings

Ocean EcoVentures Offers Guarantees Whale Sightings Year-Round. If you do not see a whale on one of our whale watching tours we invite you to come again for free.  Our sightings record for 2023 was 98%. We extend a free stand-by tour to the few passengers who do not see whales on their tour. Our whale guarantee is a complimentary, non-transferable and on a stand-by basis. Our Whale Guarantee is not species specific.

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Latest Sightings.

Our Knowledge & Experience

Ocean Ecoventures’ Captains and Naturalists are in this job for the long haul! We are not part time summer staff like you see with a lot of other companies. This really shines through on our trips in the form of expert interpretation on the wildlife and landscapes encountered. When our passengers see whales, they get to know exactly who that whale is, their siblings, their mothers and their personalities!

View Our Team

Commitment to Conservation

Our mantra is “People protect what they love and love what they understand” so we are here to help make that happen. Ocean EcoVentures donates $3 from every passenger’s fare directly into whale and wildlife conservation efforts. We also support local researchers to help their conservation and research efforts. The vessels we operate have the quietest sound footprint in the industry for the whales and marine mammals we view.

Conservation Details

World-Class Photography

We are Vancouver’s Whale and Marine Wildlife Photography Specialists! Our Captains’ photos have been published in magazines such as British Columbia magazine, National Geographic, Canadian Geographic and more. Our guests compliment us on our ability to put the boat in great positions to get perfect photos. Furthermore, we are thrilled to send passengers photos from their trip.

View Wildlife Galleries

Testimonials

We read about this company on trip advisor and made our reservations.The tour certainly lived up to the worthy praise that preceded it. We saw a pod of something like 30 whales!! Plus a smaller pod of 3 before that. Also porpoises, seals & eagles. It was beautiful and the guide was absolutley excellent. He was organized, informative & friendly. The boat was also great: an inflatable just like what the coast guard uses. It skips right over the water & enables you to feel far fewer rock & rolls than an ordinary boat does, which is really good for someone like me, who does get seasick! Also really appreciated that there were just 8 of us instead of a whole mob of people as we saw on other whale watch boats. This really is worth a trip no matter where you are on the island and it is suitable for children.

Clarke Family, Coburg, Ontario

We would like to take the opportunity to say a big thank you for the trip on the 25th August, it was just fabulous. We ploughed through all the tourist information available in Victoria BC and especially the whale trips and we did not see any advertisement for your company. You need to get your company ‘out there’, what you offer, no one else does, i.e., the small capacity and willingness to provide your customers with truly amazing memories. If any of our photos turn out any good, we will email them to you, if you like. We do not get home until late September, so it shall be a while. Thank you again so much and we wish you much success in your business and we shall be recommending your trip to anyone we encounter who may be interested in whale watching trips.

Kind regards, Kris and Maree

We had such a great time on this trip. The scenery here is fantastic and our captain was very knowledgeable about local history and wildlife. It was nice to have our own set of binoculars through the boat ride. A nice touch.

Julie Harris, Seattle, Washington

A whale breaching 100 yards from the boat – what more can we say?

Conni and Chris Jensen, Colorado Springs, Colorado

I don’t know how to swim, so I was nervous to even go on the boat. But the friendly and professional attitude of the Captain and the comfort of the boat put me at ease. I can’t wait to go again and see even more beautiful BC coastline.

Kathy Parks, Picton, Ontario

Our boating trip was well beyond what we expected – fun, educational, and exciting. We’ll definitely be back

John and Catherine Sanderson, Calgary, Alberta

We just wanted to thank you again for the excellent service your outfit provided us. Your excursion was the highlight of our trip. We are already planning our next trip to see our “new friends of the sea” Keep in touch and let us know when you start offering “frequent whale watching rewards program” haha! Thanks again!

Jen and Joe, Colorado

You went out of your way to make the day a real experience, and you succeeded 150%! I think Evan is trying to find a way to get ourselves and the rest of our team back to the West Coast so that we can do it again! I honestly don’t think I could think of one negative thing to say, because both Evan and I walked away almost speechless (which for the two of us, is tough!). Thank you so much for spending the day with us, and accommodating our schedules-we both appreciated how you went out of your way to make the day great. We had an amazing time, and would do it again in a heartbeat! If there is anything that we can do for you, please let us know! All the best!

Valerie @ YUM Canada

This was our first trip to B.C., and we’re thrilled to have discovered this great company. We saw orca whales, humpback whales, beautiful scenery, bald eagles, and sandy beaches. This boat ride was a highlight of our trip to this beautiful island.

Sam and Carrie Johnston, Ottawa, Ontario
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