Whale Watching Worldwide

industry expand from the first operators in the early 1990s to a point where there are approximately 14
licensed operators undertaking tours in Tongatapu, ‘Eua, Ha’apai and Vava’u. Vava’u accounts for the
majority of the industry, including ten of the 14 licensed operators in 2008.
As the industry has grown, it has matured and now includes a representative industry association, the
Tongan Whale Watch Operators Association (TWWOA), which has seven members (representing around half
of the industry, and approximately 75% of the whale watch episodes in 2006) as well as a marine awareness
and education centre in Vava’u, which is managed by a local IFAW representative. Further formalisation of
the industry has come through government‐administered regulations regarding licensing and the
development of whale watching guidelines. The guidelines were first implemented voluntarily and there
was broad stakeholder (government, operator and NGO) input into their development, trial and evaluation
in the late 1990s. The whale watching guidelines have recently been passed as legislation.
An element of the industry in Tonga that is uncommon in whale watch operations globally is the ability to
swim with the whales, which is permitted as part of whale watch license conditions. This occurs in very few
places globally, but a majority of the operators in Tonga offer it as part of their tour. One licensed operator
explicitly states that it does not swim with whales. Most other operators report that they do not guarantee
‘swim‐with whale’ experiences, but they do offer the possibility.
Main species:
Tourists:
Large cetaceans:
humpback whale
International 100%
Domestic 0%
Types of tours: Boat‐based, half‐day and multiple‐day trip,
dedicated.
Average adult ticket price: $100
Estimated employment
numbers:
28
Main whale watch season: July to November
Acknowledgements:
Tongan Visitors Bureau, Allan Bowe, President of the Tongan Whale Watch Operators Association and other operators
References:
Economists at Large 2008, ‘Whale Watching Tourism in the Kingdom of Tonga’, a report for IFAW and Opérations
Cétacés.
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