Whale Watching Funchal: Dolphins and Whales Off Madeira

Why the animals are here

Madeira is the summit of a volcano rising from the ocean floor, and its flanks keep going down at much the same angle below the waterline as above it. The practical result is that the seabed passes a kilometre deep remarkably close to the harbour, which is not true of most coasts anywhere.

Deep water close in means deep-water animals close in. Bottlenose and common dolphins are resident and live here year round rather than migrating through. Beyond them, Madeiran waters have recorded a long list of cetaceans: short-finned pilot whales, sperm whales, Bryde's whales and rarer beaked whales among them. That range is why the operator can say honestly that whatever month you come, something is passing through.

What a sighting is actually like

The boat works along the coast at a moderate pace while the crew scan, and when something is found it slows and holds. Guests describe slowing after around forty minutes and then having dolphins swimming alongside for a good twenty-five, which is a fair picture of a good day.

Dolphins frequently choose to come to the boat and ride the pressure wave off the bow, and from the netting between the hulls you are looking almost straight down at them. Whales are a quieter event: a back and a blow at the surface, sometimes a fluke lifted before a dive. Both are worth the trip, and neither can be promised.

Watching to the rules

This operator states a commitment to responsible dolphin and whale watching, and that shapes the day in ways worth understanding before you book. Madeira regulates how boats behave around cetaceans: how close they may come, how many may be present, and crucially how long they may stay with a group.

One guest recorded exactly that constraint, noting a ten-minute limit alongside a pod. It reads as a complaint and it is actually the system working: a queue of boats each taking a short turn is what stops a pod being followed all afternoon. A boat that hangs back and then leaves is doing the right thing rather than cutting your trip short.

The catamaran

The boat is a large sailing catamaran, and its width is what makes the day comfortable. Two hulls set well apart resist the roll that a single hull cannot, so the deck stays level enough to walk around on even with Atlantic swell running underneath.

There is netting stretched between the bows to lie on, open deck to move about, shade under the bimini and seating in the cockpit. Guests describe it as big enough not to feel overcrowded, which matters on a three-hour trip where everybody wants to reach the rail at the same moment.

The swim stop

During the summer season the boat stops for a swim, and snorkelling equipment is available on board so you can look at what is under you rather than only at the surface. The gear requires a deposit and that deposit is cash only, which is the sort of detail that is annoying to discover at sea rather than in advance.

The stop tends to happen near Cabo Girao, where the water is clear and deep beneath an enormous cliff. It is regularly the thing guests mention last and most warmly, and for families with children it is often the part that turns a boat trip into a day out.

Getting there, and the thirty minutes

There is no hotel pickup. You make your own way to the operator's office at Funchal Marina, where your ticket is exchanged for a boarding card, and they ask you to arrive thirty minutes before departure so that everyone leaves on time.

The rule attached to that is unusually firm and worth reading twice: if you miss the boat, you are not eligible for a refund. The marina is central and walkable from most of Funchal, so this is easy to get right, but it is not a deadline to treat casually.

Who it works for

It works particularly well for families. Reviews mention crews who are good with children, and a wide steady deck with nets to lie on is a much easier environment for a child than a fast boat with a single row of seats. The three-hour length is about right before restlessness sets in.

Seasickness is the other honest caveat, and one guest mentions feeling a little of it. A catamaran is the steadiest small boat you can be on and most people are entirely fine, but there is usually swell running off Madeira. If you know you are susceptible, take something an hour before departure rather than once you are out there.

Two exclusions are published and both are firm: the tour is not suitable for wheelchair users, and not suitable for people with mobility impairments. Boarding a catamaran at a marina and, in season, using a ladder into open water are the reasons. If that affects you, it is much better known now than at the office.