We booked our tour through Expedia over the phone, and I had to drive to their office in Lahaina to pick up the tickets, and of course, get my arm twisted to book something else in addition. Despite that inconvenience, we found Pacific Whale Foundation to be just what we wanted in a tour company.
We checked in at their Front Street store, then the group gathered at a specified corner of the Banyan Tree Square. Our guide led across the square and to the staging area at the harbor. Here is where I had trouble - she walked too fast. I am mobility impaired and had great difficulty keeping up. They need to have an alternate plan. Another guide briefed us, and we were photographed before boarding.
At first, it seemed like we weren’t destined to see any whales. The guides continued to tell us about this humpback population, their schedule of migration, their behavior in these waters, the rules of encounter… but no whales in sight. Suddenly, a whale breached near us. Shortly after, her calf followed doing a breach. He was so pleased with himself that he did at least 12 more breaches of varying skill. What a show! The skipper turned us around to avoid rough waters rolling in from Molokai. We outran that and found another group of whales south of Lahaina. This was a pretty good show for April.
As a bonus, we could see how pretty Lahaina is snuggled up to the West Maui Mountains. The three- or four-person crew was very knowledgeable and pleasant.