Port Stephens: Whale Watching Cruise

Wonderful Experience Whale Watching

Myself and my wife drove up to Nelson Bay for the day and booked a whale watching cruise on the vessel Ospray with moon shadow cruises. It operated for 2.5hrs being a morning tour. The skipper and the crew were wonderful. Cruised out about 2nm on what they call humpback highway and we were amazed by the amount of whales we seen both breaching, tail slapping, waving their fin in fact one breached just behind the boat it was awesome. Probably saw about 20 whales they were everywhere some close to the boat with in the 100m distance the skipper has to abide by, and plenty just in view. Me and my wife highly recommend going on this tour we went end of June 10/10.

Lovely boat and staff

Friendly staff and informative. Saw lots of whales, seals and dolphins. Staff tried hard to get us a good look and were knowledgeable about the area. Weather was perfect. A good birthday treat for hubby. Felt very safe on the Osprey boat large and lots f space. Only a few steps if you stay downstairs.

Fabulous experience!

The whales were majestic! Our guides were so informative and helpful in seeing the whales! We highly recommend the Port StephWhale watching Cruise!

Great day out

Great day out and the staff were super friendly and informative! Beautiful weather too which made the experience even better!

Great morning Whale Watching

Loved it - we saw a dolphin, a shark and then finally a Whale! Would recommend. Crew were great and gave commentary throughout the tour

Whale watching.... Awesome 😎😎

First whale watching cruise and I'm hooked. The boat was fantastic, heaps of room for everyone. The commentary was fun and informative. Heaps of whales and dolphins not to mention stunning scenery. It was just awesome 😃

Awesome

Absolutely better than expected. Had viewed from land previous day, but this knocked my sox off. I'm sure the whales just had as much fun as I did

Great experience

Easy booking. Punctual boarding. Good commentary & friendly staff. We were lucky we had perfect weather & saw quite a few whales blowing & breaching & they put on a great show for us so we got good value for our money.

A bucket list experience

We saw heaps of whales. Some were breaching. The skipper new exactly where to find them. Two whales even swam alongside the boat for a short while. You could almost reach out your hand & touch them. We also saw dolphins, seals & albatrosses.

Great whale watch

Fabulous outing from start to finish… very professional.. All staff friendly and knowledgeable. Nothing was too much trouble.. Highly recommended.. our 3 grandchildren aged 6, 4 & 3 loved it!,,,

A wonderful time

Great commentary explaining a little about the area, the migration of the whales and dolphins in the area. We were fortunate to see whales and dolphins and fur seals on the way back at Cabbage Tree Island. The crew were friendly and as excited as those on board to see the whales and dolphins. A fantastic trip to be experienced by anyone coming to Port Stephens

Great Views

Great trip and plenty of good whale views. The boat gave everyone ample opportunity for viewing. We got some excellent photos so very happy.

MWH LAWNS

The favourite part for me was to get to see the mother give birth to a little cub while it was most unexpected but . I think the staff for looking after me so well and showing us the great time I would recommend to anybody to go on the Whale cruise and get to see some seals as well which was most unexpected thank you once again to Moonshadow for having such a good team from MWH

Definitely be back

Beautiful day and a fantastic trip. Plenty of whales to see. Crew were great and knew their stuff. Will definitely be going again and sooner rather than later. Thank you

Excellent

Just seeing the humpback whales. Thank you to Ross our captain for maneuvering around to get us the best viewing advantage.

Excellent whale watching cruise

The cruise vessel was very clean and well appointed. The crew were very courteous,efficient and knowledgeable and we saw at least a dozen whales. We also saw dolphins and seals. We have been whale watching before in other parts of nsw but this was one of the best experiences. Thoroughly recommend this cruise.

Half brilliant half disappointing and boring

The first hour was absolutely amazing. We went out and saw the most incredible whales breaching and swimming. There were so many whales and it was so exciting. Just when we were loving the whole awesome experience the guide decided to take us away from the amazing creatures to see seals who weren’t moving and were sleeping on the rocks and then to look for dolphins which we couldn’t find. I don’t know why he took us away from what we had paid for. The first half of the trip was magical. The second half was boring frustrating and disappointing.

Great company. New aht they were doing.

Great people, saw plenty of whales. Had an awesome time. Would definitely go again. May be the October long weekend

A great experience

The whale watching was fantastic and our guide was very informative about the different types of whales and how they react to different circumstances ect, also turning the boat a certain way so we could get better picks and see the Whales easier 🐳. And also cracking a few light jokes on the way. So thank you for making our day out a pleasure. And the cocktails were great too👍

Efficient booking and amazing cruise trip

Easy online booking. I did the online booking on the same day, and they helped me ammended my booking to afternoon schedule because i incorrectly selected morning session. Very efficient booking and phone support process. The cruise trip was amazing, we saw many whales. Commentator throughout the cruise about the to get to know whale, dolphin and also the islands around the area. They made an effort to continue position the ship so we can avoid afternoon sun when taking picture and informing us the position of the whale/dolphin. We were lucky to be able to take picture of whale jumped out the water. Will do this cruise again next whale migration season

Fabulous cruise

We went on the Moonshadow V on Saturday morning 12/6/21. The captains commentary was excellent. He has a great sense of humour. We saw more whales than on any other cruise.

Hale watching

Staff were wonderful. Matt’s commentary w As informative and entertaining. We saw heaps of whales. Magnificent

Moonshadow Whale/Dolphin Cruise

Terrific experience from start to finish. Admitedly we were blessed with perfect conditions for our whale watch. Travelling with my 87yr old mother I purchased tickets in store not online or at wharf which are other options, the staff were lovely, informative & patient. The onboard experience was the same.The crew must produce the same repertoire twice a day, umpteen times a season but they are upbeat, engaging and know their stuff when asked questions, and I can't imagine it's an easy job....nature doesn't guarantee a sighting on the day, and that's why you need patience plus the time to make it out through the headlands and back. The coastline is stunning, and the joy at seeing the magnificent creatures when they emerged above water was worth the wait. Pods of dolphins and a white sea eagle (hope that's what I heard) on the shoreline dining on it's catch of fish were a bonus. Thank you Ben and whale spotter James. Netty & Leila

A wonderful experience to enjoy marine sea life

Excellent crew who made us feel welcome on board, the narration through out the tour was informative and well delivered. The few hours at sea proved to be one of the most exciting whale watch and dolpin tours we have ever been on thanks to the experienced team. Well done to all at Moonshadow thank you for a great whale watch experience, our photos are priceless !

Awesome experience!!

Everything was amazing but finding whales and coming close to them is just a magical experience!! The crew and captain outstanding!!

Saw two whales on the Early Bird cruise

Yesterday we went on the Early Bird Whale Watching Cruise. Being the early bird cruise there was no guarantee of seeing whales. However, we did see two juvenile whales who frolicked around! We were just happy to be on the water on such a beautiful day. To see the whales was a bonus. We saw dolphins and a turtle as well. It can be a quite a few minutes between sightings of the whales. Just sit back and relax. We also saw three fighter jets come over us, from the Williams Air Force base. Another bonus!

Whale and dolphin watch cruise

It was a bit early in the season for whales but saw plenty of dolphins swimming and playing alongside the boat. Great trip!

Moonshadow Dolphin and Whale Cruise

Beautiful calm day to cruise Port Stephens. We saw dolphins near rocks at bay entrance, several sightings of hump backs with young and lazy seals on rocks as well as sea eagles, all in their natural environments. Well worth going, reduced number of people, plenty of vantage points on boat.

Relaxing

First time going on a cruise in Nelson Bay we went on a whale cruise on the Thursday and dolphin cruise on Friday . Very relaxing the staff are great we had a great time will defiantly go back

Great People

Brilliant crew, I too my 6 year old daughter... no whales but we saw dolphins and seals. On the way back the skipper apologised for no whales showing up and gave everybody a free return cruise to use in the next 6 months. Amazing service.

Sensational outing for the family.

The weather was a little grey when we were heading out, which made for a great ride (lots of up & down with the swell). We went well past the other boats. Finally we spotted three whales & followed them for a good hour, getting some great views. then on the way back in, four dolphins were racing the boat, which was entertaining for everyone. We stopped off to see the seal, which the kids loved. My kids were a bit nervous about going out, but absolutely loved it and got some of the best photos & video footage. this is our 5th trip with Moonshadow (Whales or Dolphins) and I can't recommend them enough.

Unforgettable experience!

What an amazing experience. We saw lots of whales and they put on a great show for us. Unforgettable day.

Had potential but.....

We had a nice captain but he (Ben) had his own exploring agenda and decided to go in the opposite direction to where a visible pod of whales were. By the time he (Ben) realised should've gone there initially.. the pod had started to move on and our boat had very limited time with that particular pod. If our captain Ben had followed moonshadow V straight away we all wouldve had a rather extended period of time hanging out with the pod (M.S V)had discovered. The rest of the crew were on point the whole time, Next time we will go with the moonshadow V not the Hinchinbrook and will makesure we don't have the same captain. I write this review because I had sent an e-mail with similar feedback with full contact details provided and they haven't responded in any form.

Great afternoon whale-spotting

Wonderful afternoon out. We followed 2 humpback whales for an hour and also had a a pod of dolphins swim right up to our boat.

Nelson Bay whale watching cruise

Commentary from Matt, the captain, was very amusing and entertaining. The best part of the trip was seeing the dolphins surfing the pressure wave at the stern of the boat - and frequently looking up at us!

Great cruise on a beautiful day

A beaut of a day to go out on a cruise. Comfortable boat, friendly crew. We seen a few big whales, followed the same pair for a while. A few seals, albatross, fab day. Would definitely travel with Moonshadow again.

Wonderful Whale watching tour.....

Seeing a huge pod of whales and one of them breaching a number of times....!! The crew are fabulous and loads of information about the wildlife, the surrounding coastline and local history

Great fun

It’s a great thing to do. We had to delay our trip due to I’ll was and the company rebooked is without any hassle.

Best day ever

An absolutely brilliant day out. It’s the second time I’ve been and I’ve been lucky enough to get an amazing show from the whales both times. The staff are fantastic, so helpful talking to us all the time making sure we didn’t miss a thing. Loved it and will definitely be back.

Fantastic

Fantastic views and very informative captain. We went out as a family and all of us had such a wonderful day. Great experience to be able to get up closer to the whales

Good Afternoon Activity

Good sized boat with plenty of room. Commentary was good . Our captain was very informative. Seating available inside with a television that screens from what is happening in front of the boat . I thought this was good for the elderly who may find it a little unstable outside. Only negative - Don't drink the complimentary coffee - Yuk

Good experience

Good vessel, good selection of drinks and snacks. Lucky to have seen a few whales jumping out of the water

Doesn't get much better than this

We were blessed with a near perfect winter's day - sunshine and calm seas. Lot's of space on a well equipped and cleanly presented vessel, plus a friendly crew. All capped off with a fabulous close encounter with whales and dolphins - lot's of action with water plumes and breaching. Great first sea outing for the young ones - hope future adventures can match this.

Whale watching in winter

What a woderful couple of hours spent with moonshadow whale watching cruise - Staff were very friendly and knowledgeable. You can sit inside , good in winter or outside . The swell wasnt to bad and there is free tea & coffee . The music could be updated however. I felt like i was on hold to a government service the whole trip .

Excellent trip!

We had the pleasure of doing both the whale watching and dolphin cruise with this company. We had such a lovely experience, the crew were brilliant, the hot pumpkin soup hit the spot on a cold day and we got to see whales and dolphins. This is a wonderful value for money experience and my 4 year old loved every second of it. Would highly highly recommend.

Wonderful seascape and amazing whales.

We were spoilt for choice with so many whales which the thoughtful skipper anticipated and tracked. The real magic was missing as staff were not really engaged with the subject matter or the ethos behind ecotourism. Local wildlife and cultural knowledge was minimal. The minimum of complimentary tea with biscuits would have been normal on similar cruises.

Magical experience

During difficult times with COVID19 restrictions in place, the crew provided us with an outstanding trip. We did a morning cruise and the weather was beautiful. I would suggest considering consulting a chemist to provide some relief from the ocean swell so you can enjoy the trip without feeling sea sick. We followed a group of 3 whales and were able to hear them exhale it was incredible. Towards the end of our trip we were joined by a pod of Dolphins who were curious about us and were interacting with the whales. It was so unexpected and made this a magic experience. Support small business, enjoy the majesty of the Whales as part of a small group of whale watchers.

Wonderful experience!

I have absolutely no complaints - only praise for our whale/seal & dolphin watching boat trip with Moonshadow. I would recommend to anyone!

Fantastic time

Great day out. Smooth sailing. A good 3 hour trip. Crew were very helpful. Saw a lot of mother with their babies. One of them was having a lot of fun doing all the splashes which was great. Then we saw dolphins as we were coming back in. A must do if in port Stephens.

Hard day at sea

We did a morning trip was calm not wind, but once out of the headlands things changed, 1.5-2mtr swell and it was not much fun. My 7year old nephew spewed out the window and my 12 year old son went white, I couldn’t take my eyes of the horizon or I would have been in the sick bag to. This totally ruined the experience half the boat was on the bottom level spewing in vomit bags. Staff were ok but I felt this should have been cancelled. We did see whales about 2hours into the 3 hour trip so right as we turned back. I was just grateful to get off the boat.