FIFTY SHAPES OF GRAY
Every year, gray whales travel all the way from the Arctic to the Pacific to go on dates, make babies, or have one. While the fathers normally don't stay, the young ones like to be with their mothers until they're old enough. Don't miss out, meet up with the grays in Mag Bay this season!
Encounter rowdy groups driven by hormones and competing for dominance. Witness a tender moment between a mom and her calf. Or find yourself laughing at the antics of an adolescent. Enjoy these possibilities for 3 days from your base camp conveniently set up on Magdalena Island.
BEST TIME TO GO
January and February
We recommend that you book this trip at least 6 months in advance.
PRICING
USD 1,060 per person, min. 6 people
Add round-trip van transfer:
USD 2,140 from Los Cabos;
US$ 1,340 from La Paz;
US$ 1,460 from Loreto.
Pricing based on an exchange rate of USD 1 = MXN 16.50.
You will be charged in MXN.
WHAT'S INCLUDED
A captain and a bilingual guide;
3 whale watching sessions with nature excursions;
1 boat tour with nature excursion;
3 nights’ tent accommodation (dbl occ) on Magdalena Island;
Lunch in town on day 1;
6 meals at camp, from dinner on day 1 to lunch on day 3;
Beverages and snacks;
Round-trip boat transfer to camp.
Ground transfers and gratuities are not included.
Touching Whale Encounters at Camp Mag Bay
It takes around 3 months for gray whales to complete the southbound leg of their annual migration. Join them for 3 days in Magdalena Bay to celebrate a successful journey and the beginning of new life. Mag Bay is one of the few places in the world the grays approach whale watching boats and allow humans to touch them.
Your days in the gray whale watching camp
Enjoy a local lunch when you arrive to the fishing town of San Carlos. Your boat will be waiting at the dock to take you on your first whale watching session. Together with your bilingual guide and your local captain, watch gray whales roll, breach, spyhop, and tend to their young. Before day 1 ends, settle in to your tent accommodations on Magdalena Island, where a close-knit community of locals have been living for generations.
Head out after a hot breakfast next door on your second day of whale encounters. In the afternoon, we’ll take you on a boat ride for a different experience—see a variety of birds en masse (keep your eyes peeled for ospreys, ibises, the endemic gray thrasher, and even bald eagles), explore the mangroves, and go ashore on the beautiful white sand dunes.
Your last day in camp finds you on the water for one whale watching session and one last nature experience by boat in the morning. A hearty lunch caps off your stay in the whale watching camp. Then it’s time to say ‘fare thee well’ and return to San Carlos.
Round-trip ground transfer to San Carlos is available at an additional fee.
Insider Notes
You can’t help but be impressed when you think about the long journey that gray whales embark on to continue their species. This annual migration of around 20,000 km (12,500 mi) round trip is believed to be the longest of any mammal.
Even more noteworthy are the whales that make it all the way down to Magdalena Bay. If they were human, they would be considered ultramarathoners or ninja warriors. It’s not surprising that the season here is shorter compared to that in the northern calving lagoons.
