Whale Watching Worldwide

The whale watching that does occur in Réunion is undertaken off the country’s west coast, with dedicated
and opportunistic tours running out of Saint Gilles and opportunistic trips being run out of Saint Leu. Trips
are generally available through charter operators or diving operators. Vessel capacities range from ten to 30
passengers and include catamarans, motor‐boats and yachts. Between June and October, dedicated
humpback whale watching trips are offered. Indo‐Pacific bottlenose dolphins and spinner dolphins are seen
opportunistically throughout the year. Whale watching activities in Réunion are currently unregulated.
Main species: Large cetaceans:
humpback whale
Small cetaceans:
Indo‐Pacific bottlenose dolphin, spinner
dolphin
Tourists:
International 90%
Domestic 10%
Land‐based whale watching:
N/A
Acknowledgements:
Violaine Dulau, Laurent Mouysset (GLOBICE)
Types of tours: Boat‐based, dedicated, opportunistic
Average adult ticket price: N/A
Estimated employment
numbers:
17
Main whale watch season: June to October
References:
Mazier, Laurène, ‘Reunion Island – Internet Tourism Portal of the Island’, accessed March 2009, available online at:
http://reunion.runweb.com/lang‐EN‐page‐929‐2V‐page,Whale watching.html
Dulau‐Drouot, V Boucaud, V & Rota, B 2008, ‘Cetacean diversity off La Réunion Island (France)’, Journal of the Marine
Biological Association of the United Kingdom, vol 88, pp. 1263 – 1272.
70