- Trip Outline
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All-inclusive Whale Watching Tour Colombo with South Coast
Go in search of whales on this southern Sri Lanka whale-watching cruise from all hotels on the west coast and Colombo. You will be picked up early in the morning from the hotel and driven to Mirissa. With the life vest, board the 50-foot (15-meter) luxury whale-watching cruise and venture onto the Indian Ocean in search of blue whales with an expert skipper and crew.
A continental breakfast and tea or coffee as you sail to areas frequented by whales. Watch for species such as blue, sperm, killer, humpback, and pilot whales in the waters, snap once-in-a-lifetime photos, and look out for other marine creatures, including dolphins and sea turtles.
After the whale-watching cruise (2-4 hours), start your return journey to the hotel. Stop at Unawatuna beach, the sea turtle conservation center, the spice garden, Hikkaduwa beach, and Bentota beach as you make the return journey to your hotel.
Explore the iconic tourist attraction on the south coast, the Galle Fort, which is a UNESCO world heritage site. You will be doing a guided walking tour with your driver or guide along the labyrinthine of cobbled streets. There are thousands of old Dutch-style buildings hidden in the medieval city that the East Indian company built. Visit There are many hundred-year-old churches, including the Wolvendaal church, moats, temples, and colonial palaces. Jump onto the moat and enjoy the breathtaking view over the wide-open Indian Ocean.
After the Dutch Fort, stop at Hikkaduwa Beach and Bentota Beach to enjoy the mesmerizing beaches. Afterwards, make a stop at the Ariyapala Mask Museum in Ambalangoda. This is the only museum on the island dedicated to traditional masks. Here you can see many hundreds of masks, many of which originated a long time ago.
If the time permits, you will be visiting a sea turtle conservation center on the west coast and learning about endangered sea turtles.
Overview
- 100% safe, super-grade luxury passenger cruiser.
- Licensed by the Government of Sri Lanka.
- You will get one of the most comfortable whale-watching cruisers in Mirissa.
- The spacious upper deck allows everyone on the upper deck a wider and deeper view.
- Specially designed for whale-watching adventure trips, with space around for observation.
- Morning tea or coffee; breakfast; bottled water; fruits and snacks—all these are free onboard.
- We follow international whale-watching guidelines and best practices issued by Whales and Dolphin Conservation in the UK.
- Two licensed captains, six lifeguards with international licenses, and one naturalist are on board for live commentary.
- The whale sighting rate is 99.9%.
- If you don't see whales, you can have the tour the next day for free.
- Your pick-up time is to be informed by phone, on WhatsApp, or by email soon after your booking is made.
Activities available on this trip
- Sail into the Indian Ocean to spot blue, pilot, sperm, and other species of whales.
- Watch for other wildlife, such as dolphins, whale sharks, and sea turtles.
- Enjoy a light breakfast and morning tea or coffee as you sail.
- Life vests and safety equipment are fitted onboard.
- See a collection of hundreds of ancient masks and learn the art of mask carving.
- Visit Moonstone Mines.
- Sea turtle conservation center.
- The walking tour of the Galle Fort (a UNESCO World Heritage Site)
- Family-friendly cruise with hotel pickup and drop-off included.
Trip includes
- Hotel pickup from Colombo, Kalutra, or Bentota
- Breakfast, Tea, and Coffee
- Entire ground transportation as per the tour itinerary in an air-conditioned, luxury, private vehicle
- English-speaking driver or guide (please inquire about other languages)
- A guided walking tour of Galle fortress
- A guided tour of the spice and herbal gardens
- Tickets for the whale-watching boat
- Visit the sea turtle conservation project.
- Hikkaduwa beach
- Highway toll
- All government taxes and insurance fees
Trip excludes
- Lunch
- Gratuities
Cancellation policy
Cancel 24 hours prior to arrival for a full refund.
Choose your payment method.
We offer you mainly three payment options: card payments, bank transfers, or payment on arrival. You can choose whatever is the most convenient payment option for you. If you opt for payment on arrival, we will collect a 25% advance payment from you as a guarantee once the booking is confirmed.
Additional information
- A confirmation will be received at the time of booking.
- It is not recommended for pregnant travelers.
- Pickup and drop-off from more than 140+ hotels on the west coast
Itineraries
Day 1
Time : 4:00 am
COLOMBO / MIRISSA
Meet and greet a Serendipity Tour representative at your hotel (at 04.30 am) and drive to Mirissa harbor.
Board the whale-watching boat at 630 a.m. and set sail for the sea. The whale-watching trip lasts between 3 and 5 hours.
WHALE WATCHING MIRISSA
The warm Indian Ocean of southern Sri Lanka is the best place to spot a wide variety of whales and dolphins. There are 26 different species of whales and dolphins traversing this region, such as blue whales, Bryde´s whales, sperm whales, fin whales, and sometimes killer whales, as well as the well-loved common dolphins, bottlenose dolphins, spinner dolphins, Risso’s dolphins and striped dolphins.
The south tip of Sri Lanka is the easiest place to see blue whales in a very short time. And especially the Mirissa and Weligama areas are the best-known spotting places for blue whales in the entire world. Sperm whales, right whales, killer whales, whale sharks, turtles, and other kinds of dolphins are also spotted in this part of the island all year.
After whale-watching trip, return to hotel, en-route visits,
TURTLE CONSERVATION CENTER
Projects have been launched to conserve the population of turtles that are reaching extinction, and such projects are found along the southern coast of Sri Lanka, where turtles come ashore to lay their eggs. The turtle digs a hole on the beach, lays her eggs, and covers it with sand where it is supposed to incubate in the heat of the sun. It frequently happens that fishermen will dig out the eggs and sell them to consumers.
But now the eggs are bought up by the conservation projects and are hatched the natural way in enclosed areas where the birds don’t have a chance of picking them up, and the babies are let into the sea after two days at night, which offers them a better chance of survival.
SPICE GARDEN
Visit a spice garden at Matale where spices and herbs used for Sri Lankan cuisine and medication are grown. The spices of Sri Lanka attracted the early seafaring merchants who made the long voyages to purchase this precious merchandise.
CITY OF GALLE
Galle is one of the ancient seaports of Sri Lanka and was an anchor point on the Silk Route. It was later discovered by the Portuguese, where they built a fortress, and the Dutch that succeeded them fortified it further. This fortress is today a World Heritage Site.
GALLE FORTRESS
The fort has a colorful history, and today it has a multiethnic and multireligious population. The Sri Lankan government and many Dutch people who still own some of the properties inside the fort are looking at making this one of the modern wonders of the world. The heritage value of the fort has been recognized by UNESCO, and the site has been inscribed as a cultural heritage UNESCO World Heritage Site under criteria iv for its unique exposition of "an urban ensemble that illustrates the interaction of European architecture and South Asian traditions from the 16th to the 19th centuries.
The Galle Fort, also known as the Dutch Fort or the "Ramparts of Galle," withstood the Boxing Day tsunami, which damaged part of the coastal area of Galle town. It has since been restored. The Galle Fort also houses the elite Amangalla resort hotel, located near the Dutch Reformed Church. It was originally built in 1684 to house the Dutch governor and his staff. It was then converted into a hotel and named the New Oriental Hotel in 1865, which catered to European passengers traveling between Europe and Galle Port in the 19th century.
UNAWATUNA BEACH
Unawatuna Beach is located just south of Galle, the main city in the south, and 125 km from Colombo, the capital of Sri Lanka. This 4-kilometer expanse of palm-fringed sand is said by some to rank among the twelve best beaches in the world. This beach is a paradise for all those who yearn to enjoy the silence of the sea and dive deep into the blue waters of the ocean. There is a reef protecting the beach, which makes it a perfect safe haven for bathing. Other major attractions of this southern beach include shallow waters for swimming and diving. Within its reach, there is an accessible, reasonably well-preserved coral reef that serves as the base for snorkeling.
HIKKADUWA
Hikkaduwa is one of the most popular tourist destinations in southern Sri Lanka. It is 98 km south of Colombo, and its beautiful beaches add a lot of glamour to this town. It is the place where you can get a glimpse of the fascinating underwater world and see the creatures that inhabit the unfathomable depths of the sea. The famed coral gardens are located here. Just get hold of a glass-bottomed boat or goggles and flippers and plunge into the ocean.
................End of the whale watching trip.................
Peter ray– :
The trip was very enjoyable with a nice friendly guide. Kids enjoyed the trip a lot. Our guide planned the trip perfectly, giving us plenty of time to dip into the water after the whale-watching tour. We saw few whales from the distance.
Philia romie– :
Excellent trip with opportunity to take look into this fascinating creature. We were lucky enough to spot 3 gigantic whales and 1 small. It seems the crew is very experienced on the job and they were able to find the place where the whales were roaming without wasting time.
Robin saikhem– :
After reading good reviews on their website, we too were not disappointed with our whale watching trip, and one-day Galle trip. All arranged through WhatsApp, very simple and very quick to respond. Great job Seerendipity.
Silvan– :
The whale watching crew was very genuine and honest, they are very caring about the whales. Right at the beginning they told us that whales are wild animals and that they try to located them as much as possible. Time taken for the trip could not be guaranteed. However, we were lucky to spot 3 whales withing a 2 hours of launch of our boat.
Hartic arsama– :
Could not see the whales
Gloria– :
We left the hotel in Colombo very early and started with boat trip at around 7;00 am. We could see a whales, but it was very far from our bot. Galle fort tour was very interesting and we had the opportunity to see many beaches along the west coast.
Nouchi– :
It was a bit hard to spot whales. We have seen many dozens of dolphins and few seaturtles.
remy– :
I really enjoyed this trip to southcoast. We saw whales but a little bit far away from our ship.
Adam– :
We had just a fantastic day with Kusum, he is very flexible and cheerful person. Thank you for experience, we really enjoyed a lot
Clemens– :
We went whale watching from Bentota, which was great since we got to see the whales up close. I also got to see the Galle cricket stadium up close, which was an amazing sight. I’ve been wanting to watch it for a very long time as I adore cricket. Views include the Galle Fort, beaches, marine turtles, and moonstone mining.
Samy– :
Three big blue whales kept swimming around our boat, which was a lucky sight. We had a great time watching them, and the ship’s crew did a great job of telling us where they were. It was a really great tour.
Kars Gebhardt– :
This is the first time I saw blue whales and I never thought I was able to do it because the opportunity is very rare. We saw two blue whales, a sea turtles and a bunch of dolphins. It was a bit of a long boat trip 5 hours. The crew is doing a great job. They do it in a sustainable manner and never disturb the animals. They were always very careful to maintain a healthy distance between the baot and the anumals. Well done, guys.
Parkviaggi– :
I never knew about Moonstones, learned something new and thanks for the opportunity to buy jewellery on an affordable rate
Edward– :
We felt very happy that we booked the trip with Seerendipity tours. They did a great job with oprganizing a tip-top trip for us. The crew of the ship was wonderful and always very conscious about the whales. They never drove the boat closer to the animsl and always maintained a healty distanec between ta animals and the boat (they know what is sustainable toruism is). However, we were able to spot the whales very clearly.
Ridma– :
Our chance to find the whale-watching tour of Colombo was through the serendipity website. We then called them on WhatsApp. We got in touch with them just a few weeks before our trip. They answer questions quickly and are very helpful. They changed some of the plans and made the tour unique for us. Our tour guide, Ladip, showed them all the places I had written down and was always on time. He told us a lot of useful things, which made our trip fun and interesting. If you want to have an amazing trip to south Sri Lanka, this whale-watching tour is the way to go.
Brita Kaufmann– :
We booked a Sigiriya one day trip with a booking portal and Seertendipty organized it on behalf of the booking portal. Afterwards, we booked 2 one day trips (Nuwara Eliya trip and whale watching trip) directly with Seertendipity tours from our beach hotel in Bentota (Centara). The rates went down 35% when we booked tour directly with seerendipity tours. very affordable and the service is also very good and flexible.
Nelisa– :
Good guide, excellent vehicle and very good trip.
Igor Mattio– :
Leaving early morning is the only issue with this trip other I feel this is the best one day program that can be booked from our beach hotels (Centara)
Jude– :
short but nice trip. Super easy to book. just a what’s app call and everything is done.
Rokky– :
It was pity that we were not able to have a closer look into whales, however, we saw 3 0f them from the distance. Interesting trip with many interesting places in southern Sri Lanka.
Mariam Traore– :
Never had such as closer loom into whales in the life time, what a wonderful experience.
Valoe– :
Very happy with Sri Lanka whale watching tour, well worth one day tour. Everything perfect and very experienced staff with spot-on with pick-up timing. We started the trip from Galle face hotel at 04.00 am and we reached our whale watching cruise ship just before it leaves the harbor. We had the opportunity to spot many whales in the sea. We were able to customize our trip and extend our stay in the fort so that we have plenty of time explore ancient monuments.
Rohan– :
It was a nice trip to southern Sri Lanka. Whale watching was the real highlight but leiusrly walk in the Galle fort, exploring Hikkaduwa and visitng temples was also very interesting.
Klara– :
Wonderful Sri Lanka trip with many places to visit along the way. We were lucky enough to see three whales and many other animals such as turtles and dolphins.
It seems the crew is well aware about the value of whales and therefore they were very careful while maneuvering the vessel in the area where the whales were.
Gulmira mednt– :
First time on a whale watching trip. It as fun and very enjoyable. It is amazing how they spotted a whale in the vast ocean. We have seen several whales even babies among them
Ronn– :
Very interesting trip. Whale witching was really a nice experience
Mathew– :
We had a great day with romesh and the whale watching trip in Sri Lanka! well organized trip. We were able to see many giant whales during the bait trip.
Roula– :
We managed to see some dolphins, a blue whale and 3 hump back whales together just beside the boat. Amazing once in a life time experience
Sylvia– :
We were fortunate enough to see three huge blue whales that kept swimming around our boat. We enjoyed watching them very much and the crew of the ship did an excellent job informing us of where they were.. a really great tour!
Dany– :
Multiple opportunities to see the whales. Great experience all around. Very informative and a pleasant day made for an overall wonderful time
Ann– :
The whale watching tour was very convenient, because it includes free pick up from hotel. The crew was very kind and very helpful. They provided us with freed breakfast, all included in the package. We saw around 5 whales including blue whales and Brady whales. There were hundreds of dolphins. Crew members were very good at their job and they knew where the whales to be found. They told us about marine animals while we were on board. Our wonderful did not stop their and we visited many interesting places on southern Sri Lanka with our lovely guide Sam.
Julie– :
We were able to do the trip after postponing the trip for two consecutive day, due to the bad weather. Our effort was well worth. We were able to spot four giant whales on our whale watching tour. I cant believe were juts few kilometers from the show, when we saw the first whale. After seeing few whale the boat turned back to the shore and tour ended very quickly. Since we had lot of time we had refreshing back in the Mirissa. The rest of the trip was also very good with Galle fort, Hikkaduwa beach, sea turtles, and herbal garden. It was a wonderful day.
Lauren– :
This is the second trip we booked with Seerednipity. They did a great job with our first trip to Sigiriya. They never disappointed us. I must say that the whale watching to9ur was a great experience like the earlier trip. Journey started at 6 am. and ended around 10.30 am. Captain said that were lucky to see whales so quickly.
Joseph– :
We thoroughly enjoyed the Whale watching tour. Only the down side of the trip is it starts very early morning.
lionel wendt– :
Excellent guide with a good knowledge of his country and people. He is well educated about the current crisis in Sri Lanka. It could have been an excellent trip if it was not an early morning trip. oevrall picture is good.
jurgen sam– :
Good program with safe and secure cruise ship. It seems the staff is well aware whereabout the whales are. highly recommended.
Rebecca– :
We travelled as a groups (16 persons) and wanted to see whales in south coast. The local company did a great job organizing the tris as we wish. The tour was perfectly organized with many visits to places in south coast like Galle and many beaches. We had to leave our hotel in Colombo at very early morning at 0400 hrs. However, overall expeince is very good.
Rolando – :
Perfect opportunity to see whales. I never thought that Sri Lanka was such a good place to spot. This was my first attempt to see whales in their natural habitat and it was well paid off. The trip was perfectly organized and highly satisficed with teh day trip.
Pooty– :
Amazing day at the Mirissa. Really loved the mix between beach time, Galle Fort, and whale watching. We saw many blue whales, a couple of dolphins as well as few sea turtles. The breakfast was great with a huge variety of many types of food. Only down side was that the boat was a little bit crowded with all of our lifejackets, but all in all I would highly reccomend this tour.
Emmie– :
Day trip was great fun, boat was a little crowded. Plenty of opportunities to spot whales in fact we had one whale very close to our boat, felt very lucky. Breakfast was good with view overlooking the water. Staff/tour guides were great, and informative.
Torano– :
Great facilities, awesome boat, fantastic crew and the best scenery! We had the opportunity to spot a dozen of giant whales the crew said it was very successful tour, I believe. the breakfast served on board was amazing! Highly recommend!
Gulmira– :
This was an excellent tour!!!! The crew were amazing and the sights are breath taking! The tour was well organized and def a most if your in Phuket!!!!!!!
VICTORIA– :
Great tour but boat had way too many people on it. For the three-hour ride in the Ocean, it was bit uncomfortable due to not enough room sitting. Felt squished between others. I also wish the tour company mentioned on the itinerary to bring your own beach towel as I assumed one would be provided. Overall great tour and very organized.
gimbrosa– :
Amazing trip!!!!! Sunny was so good as our tour guide and was very informative. Not too many on the boat so wasn’t overcrowded. We saw about 3 ginat whales and a baby, great experince
Valerie– :
The trip was excellent but the pickup was very very early 905.00) from our hotel and it was exhausting.
Amily– :
Guides were great, very knowledgeable and helpful. Took a lot of time explaining every part of the trip in detail. Breakfast was good, snacks on boat were delicious, hats off to the staff. No scams everything was as billed. A little choppy on the way out but was warned and given anti-nausea pill plus tips for success if you get motion sick. One of the highlights of our trip to Sri Lanka Thank you for everything!
Kolande– :
We did this tour on the second day in Bentota. This was such an amazing way to start our vacation! Our tour guide Gamini was wonderful!!! He was so knowledgeable and very friendly! He kept us smiling all day! The company communicated to us the night before the trip, our driver/guide was on time, and our was great!
Rina mendosa– :
I was on a whale-watching trip in Australia and it was difficult to see whales but this time it was very easy to spot animals in the sea. The entire boat trip lasted only 1 hour. Few hundreds meters off the shore we could spot a pod of blue whales consisting of many dozens of animals. The tour itinerary is very interesting it does not only include whale watching but also many interesting activities like visiting sea turtle centre, spice island, temple.
Eddie melanko– :
This trip was awesome. We booked the trip with Seerendipity. Picked up at 0500 from our hotel to get the boat at 0630. To see blue whales enjoying the ocean was spectacular. We also saw 2 green turtles. Truly wonderful!
Fernando– :
Our first trip after a months-long quarantine. We liked the trip a lot
romanie kaufman– :
It was a good trip and saved a bit of money for us. We wanted to see blue whales and explore south coast beaches as well as Galle from Colombo. Because of this trip, we could do all of them in one journey, otherwise, we should have booked 2 one day trips. Very convenient but early morning pickup.
Sandeep shah– :
I’m very happy with the trip, it is full of experiences whale watching, Galle fort, beaches…fully packed
Reanna– :
My very first whale watching trip and it is truly memorable
Norman– :
Excellent experince
Gerhard– :
Everything perfectly organized, and most importantly I paid only half of the price I was about to pay the same tour with an online popular booking portal.
Jeram peterson– :
I had neven seer whales so closely, great experince
Uraldine gonzales– :
Highly recommended trip
Mohammad– :
Goood
Meenakshi– :
You really can’t appreciate how much seerendipity help you enjoy your holiday. They organised so much at such great prices, and were so wonderful to us.
malan reid– :
All the sightseeing and activities are private except whale watching boat trip, that the beauty of this trip. You have the maximum privacy.
Helen– :
The trip is good woke up at 4.00 AM
Peter– :
Excellent price and great service
Neeraj sharma– :
Galle fort and whale watching bot are very interesting.
Herman fredrick– :
Great trip
Tasheem mishra– :
Nice trip and it was close look into the whales, great experience, worth money and worth time
Pulak boss– :
Woke up very early to leave the hotel at 4.00 am
Anderson– :
Everything is good except the early morning pick-up, Our guide Nihal was very nice and friendly
Reanna– :
A lot of travelling and it should have been a 2 days trip
Rima siddeque– :
We were picked up from our hotel at 4.00 am and saman gave some gas on the drive to whale watching ship. it was a modern very nice vehicle he also drove with cautious and we did not worry. But he told us beforehand he drives a little bit fast because we have to bet at the harbour before the big boat set sail. Rest of the tour was very leisurely and we had plenty of time to spend on our sightseeing. The guide was good and very knowledgeable.
Emma– :
Our driver Jayanath picked us up from the Port Gate, in a car, air con. He was straight away so friendly and we spent a informative day with him in southern Sri Lanka. He was very knowledgable and a truly great guy Would recommend this to anyone much better than the ships trips what we heard when we got back. Many Thanks
Graham– :
Everything perfectly organized, and most importantly I paid only half of the price I was about to pay the same tour with an online popular booking portal. Thanks to this local operator we (me and my wife) saved about USD$ 100.
Sandeep shah– :
We did the whale watching from Bentota and it was very nice and had a very close look into whales, I also had a closer look into the Galle cricket stadium what a wonderful sight. I wanted to see it for a long time because I love cricket. Galle Fort, sea turtle, beaches, moonstone mines many things to see.
Suman chaourdry– :
Walking tour of Galle fort was also very interesting like the whale watching. Our guide Saman was a very nice and friendly guy.
Samantha Gonzales– :
The tour worth every penny what we paid for, an excellent trip to south coast
Chiara De Mattia– :
We have booked the hotel with breakfast and dinner, therefore, did not want to go out for many days. This is a perfect tour program for us. We saw a lot within the day.
Hashem– :
We could do many things within the day it is amazing, had the opportunity to see whales, sea turtles, mangroves birds and walk-in Galle fort.
Mendosa ali– :
We were picked up early morning from the hotel and I felt the driver drove a bit faster than required on the way to harbour from the hotel. However, the overall experience is good.
Gabriela Lima Ribeiro– :
Walking tour in the Galle Fort is a fantastic experience, we saw blue whales too, overall very nice trip
Karsten Gebhardt– :
We had seen a lot within a short period of time, beaches, whales, Galle fort, sea turtle, Mangroves and masks
Kristine Gebhardt– :
We hade encounter the first whale after about 2 hours of boat trips and later the other animal showed up, all the people in the boat saw 5 whales.
Copenhagen Segway– :
I did the tour from Bentota and it was an amazing experience to see blue whales if we could leave at around 6 it would have been excellent
Chiara De Mattia– :
It was amazing experience watching whales so closely
Neelam asaf– :
We did two days after our amazing a Galle Trip from the beach hotel. It was a bit early leave as we supposed to reach the Mirissa harbour at least by 06.30m. It was a nice experience in the ocean on a big boat. Heard it took a few hours to get back on some days, but it was a better day as we returned to harbour by. 10 am. We saw a few whales & more dolphins. The boat crew was so super friendly and always smiling and caring. Kids were a bit tired after the boat trip and we straight return to the hotel. Thank Silva for caring & driving us for two phenomenal excursions also thanks again to Seerendipoity for organising another amazing day for us.