Explore
the Channel Islands
Southern California Whale Watching at its finest. Welcome to Channel Islands Whale Watching website, the gateway to the beautiful world famous Channel Islands, located in Oxnard, California. We offer whale watching excursions during the annual Gray Whale Migration.
Our Whale Watching tours take place in the pristine waters surrounding Channel Islands National Park and National Marine Sanctuary, just off the coast of Southern California. Our boats depart from Channel Islands Harbor in Oxnard, California, just a one hour drive north from Los Angeles.
There are eight islands that form the Channel Islands chain. Of these eight islands, five make up Channel Islands National Park and National Marine Sanctuary. Anacapa, Santa Cruz, Santa Rosa, San Miguel and Santa Barbara Islands together form this eco wonderland. The islands are an area of unsurpassed natural beauty and are considered the Crown Jewel of our National Park System. Here, life abounds both in and out of the water, with many endangered and protected species calling the Channel Islands home.
Channel Islands National Park and National Marine Sanctuary has become one of the premier whale watching destinations on our planet. Over the past 10 years, the population of Humpback whales and Blue whales in the Santa Barbara Channel has grown tremendously with multiple sightings common during a seasonal whale watching expedition.
The Blue whale is the largest animal roaming the world's ocean. An encounter with this leviathan is an experience that will last a lifetime. Changing ocean conditions and upwellings of nutrient rich water from the depths bring a wealth of food to the region surrounding the Channel Islands. This annual phenomenon serves to attract whales and other marine mammals in great numbers. Due to our location close to shore, Gray Whales pass through Channel Island National Park and National Marine Sanctuary on both their northbound and southbound migrations. Orca (Killer Whales) Whales and Finback Whales, are also commonly observed in the pristine waters surrounding the park and sanctuary.
Vast pods of dolphins call the Channel Islands home and healthy populations of seals and sea lions are often observed leaping and swimming in its pristine waters. Many rare and endangered birds also live in the Channel Islands National Park region.
With its incredible diversity and abundance of wildlife, Channel Islands National Park and National Marine Sanctuary are referred to by many as "The Galapagos of the Northern Hemisphere." Come join us for a truly memorable adventure.