Whale watching cruises in Newfoundland, Maine & Nova Scotia

country:	Canada
departures:	2008: 26 Aug, 17 Sep, 29 Sep, 6 Oct, 13 Oct, 17 Oct
price:	From US $1000 (3 days) - US $3999 (12 days) excluding flights. Please note that due to the nature of this operator they may be at sea for lengthy periods and therefore replies to emails may take a while at certain times of the year

Canada holidays

Whale watching holidays

Wildlife cruises

the amazing things you'll be doing

Come with us on a sea adventure to explore the scenic coasts of Maine, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Labrador, with your hosts Captains Rick and Karen. Share our dream of life on the sea on our renovated 90-foot Dutch fishing vessel. Enjoy a comfortable, intimate setting - only 12 passengers per cruise, beautiful yacht-style furnished cabins and homemade gourmet food and pastries. Get away from it all and enjoy the splendor and serenity of nature with us.

We offer eco-tourism cruises that reflect our great reverence for the natural world and its creatures. Join us in photographing and logging the position of whales and seabirds; -and listening to and recording whale songs! We share the wildlife information we gather with several conservation and research organizations.

Whale Watching:
On a Whale Watching excursion we concentrate on the places and times where whales congregate, in their historic areas of the Maritimes and off Nova Scotia. We aim to balance observation, underwater listening, and photography with a supreme respect for and noninterference with these amazing creatures.

Below are the dates of all our cruises in 2008:

May 19: Spring on the Bay 3 Day US $1400
May 26: Island Hiking Cruise 6 Day US $1400
Jun 02: Pelagic seabird cruise 6 Day $1500
Oct 6: Island Hiking Cruise 6 Day US $1500
Jun 9: Mothership Kayaking Cruise 6 Day US $1600
Jun 16: Photography cruise 4 Day $1199
Jul 1: Expedition Cruise from Port Aux Basques, Newfoundland to St John's Newfoundland 12 Day $3600
Aug 26: Expedition Cruise from St. Anthony, Newfoundland to Goose Bay Happy Valley, Labrador 10 Day $3999
Oct 13: Wines of the Maine Coast 3 Day, US $1000
Sep 29: Coastal Islands Whales, Seals and Seabirds 6 Day US $1500
Sep 17: Lighthouses of the Maine Coast 6 Day US $2500
Oct 17: Fabulous Fall Colors Cruise 6 Day US $1500

The Vessel
We invite you to join us aboard this extraordinary vessel. We have drawn from our experience of carrying passengers on a traditional rigged sailing ship to create a custom design for your safety and comfort. The vessel is a combination of several elements: a traditional ketch auxiliary sailing rig, interiors with classic yacht design, a gourmet galley, the strength and integrity of a working fishing vessel and capabilities for off-shore adventure.

Amenities

Intimate Setting - 12 Passengers Aboard Our 90 Foot Vessel
Varnished Woodwork in Galley, Library, Dining Area & Deck Salon
Large Spacious Decks
Spacious, Bright & Open Galley
6 Cosy and comfortable double cabins
Private Head & Shower in Each Cabin
Observation Deck & Teak Steamer Chairs
Two Small Boats for Shore Side Adventures

The below-deck salon is laid out in the typical style of a 19th century pilot schooner, with a warm comfortable wood interior. It was designed for educational films and natural history demonstrations, and can double as an informal classroom. At night, the salon is filled with lantern light, song and stories. Musical instruments are always welcome! Cabins are cozy and comfortable - public areas are spacious! The topside observation decks provides amazing views for birdwatching or stargazing. Relax in one of our classic teak steamer chairs.

Food
Our breads and pastries are homemade from scratch & baked fresh daily. All of our meals are prepared with fresh natural ingredients (some from our own gardens), so we have complete control of the ingredients that go into them! Our goal is to present delicious, healthy, high quality cuisine and all meals are served with a heaping helping of down home hospitality!

We can accommodate special diets with advance notice - Vegetarians and Vegans always welcome, and one of our specialties is vegetarian group charters!

how this holiday makes a difference

Rick and Karen are both from seafaring and fishing backgrounds, and feel strongly connected to the ecology of the Maine coast and Grand Banks. We are both active conservationists and hope to support conservation through low-impact tourism, research, education and awareness. Our Eco-tourism cruises reflect our great reverence for the natural world and its creatures.

To offer you a true natural history eco-tourism experience, we combine informal education and interactive wildlife research projects, with an on-board library and instruments.Here are some of the activities you may experience:

Whale watching and logging whale sightings and positions
Bird counts and logging
Wildlife photography
Listening to and recording whale sounds

We share the wildlife information we gather with several conservation and research organizations.

All projects are conducted with the well-being of the wildlife and environment as our primary consideration.

Our code of ethics include:

Lowest possible impact on the environment.
Guaranteed personal attention.
To support research through tourism.
Treat all life forms with love and respect.

Tourism can be good and bad for destinations & local people.

We carefully screen every holiday against our criteria for responsible travel.

'Look behind the brochure' to find how each holiday makes a difference (see left).

We don't claim to be perfect - there is no global accreditation - but we've led the way since 2001 and screened 1000's of holidays.

We invite every traveller to write a review about their experiences and responsible tourism.

This valuable feedback is sent to the people who run the holidays. We keep a very close eye on it and take off holidays that don't live up to our standards.