About Bar Harbor Whale Watch Co.
Bar Harbor Whale Watch Co. is the region's leading whale watching operator, running daily excursions from the Bar Harbor Inn Pier into the rich feeding grounds of the Gulf of Maine. Their fleet of high-speed catamarans can reach prime whale habitat in under an hour, maximizing time spent observing humpback, finback, and minke whales that congregate in these nutrient-dense waters from May through October. The company has been operating since the early 1990s and is widely regarded as the most reliable whale watch outfit on the Maine coast.
Their flagship whale watch tour runs three to four hours and ventures out to the Schoodic Banks and other offshore feeding areas where large baleen whales are regularly spotted. In addition to whale watches, they operate lighthouse and nature cruises that hug the coastline of Mount Desert Island, passing by Egg Rock Lighthouse and offering views of seals hauled out on rocky ledges. A dedicated puffin and seabird cruise visits nesting colonies on nearby islands during breeding season. All vessels have heated cabins, onboard restrooms, and spacious observation decks.
What distinguishes Bar Harbor Whale Watch Co. is their team of onboard naturalists from Allied Whale — a marine mammal research group based at the College of the Atlantic in Bar Harbor. These researchers identify individual whales by their fluke patterns and share fascinating insights about each animal's history, behavior, and migration patterns. This partnership between tourism and active research makes every trip both entertaining and genuinely educational, and the company maintains one of the highest sighting success rates on the East Coast.
