Ivanhoe Sea Safaris

Ivanhoe Sea Safaris We offer unparalleled opportunities for close encounters with Southern Right whales during their season. Gps co ordinates
S -34.584007
E19.34857
(1)

With recognition in Trip Advisor's Hall of Fame and ranking as number 1 in the area, coupled with their ability to witness the highest volume of...

04/09/2026

Sound on. 🔊

This was our boat this month.

A Southern Right cruised past close enough to hear breathing. Nobody had to lean, nobody had to zoom. Engine in neutral, the whole rail watching a whale decide how long to stay.

This is what a trip with us actually looks like, not the marketing version, the real one.

Southern Rights are on the coast until early November. That's roughly 10 weeks left. Mother-and-calf pairs are still hugging Walker Bay right now, and every trip we run out of Gansbaai has a chance of a moment like this.

If you've been waiting for the right time to book, this is it.

📍 Departing daily from Gansbaai Harbour
🎟 whaleviewing.co.za
📞 082 926 7977

Gansbaai Tourism Platteland Overberg Tourism Silvertree Africa

The Ivanhoe is licensed to carry up to 40 passengers. Every trip, we take 25.Why? Because a whale watching boat isn't a ...
03/09/2026

The Ivanhoe is licensed to carry up to 40 passengers. Every trip, we take 25.

Why? Because a whale watching boat isn't a commuter ferry. When a Southern Right surfaces beside the vessel, we don't want anyone stuck behind three rows of shoulders. Capping numbers at 25 means every guest gets a seat, an unobstructed view, and room to move to whichever side of the deck the action is on.

It also keeps things calmer for the whales — less noise, less movement, more of them choosing to stick around.

Small boat, big experience.

Book your trip: whaleviewing.co.za
📞 082 926 7977

Roughly one in twenty Southern Right calves is born this colour.Our crew photographed this one in 2021 — a rare white mo...
28/08/2026

Roughly one in twenty Southern Right calves is born this colour.

Our crew photographed this one in 2021 — a rare white morph, breaching in Walker Bay, right off our regular route.

Most of these calves darken as they grow. Some stay speckled for years. A handful stay this pale for life. Researchers use images like this one to track individual whales across seasons and across oceans — callosity patterns, pigmentation, scars, all read like fingerprints.

Every trip we run out of Gansbaai is a chance to see a whale nobody's photographed before.

Some days it's a routine sighting.

Some days it's this.

📍 Departing daily from Gansbaai Harbour
🎟 whaleviewing.co.za
📞 082 926 7977

Book this weekend — season is in full swing.

27/08/2026

Yesterday the ocean around Gansbaai was just showing off! We were treated to magnificent sightings.

Join us this weekend 🐳
☎️ 082 926 7977
📧 [email protected]
www.whaleviewing.co.za

📍Gansbaai, South Africa

Why is the seal colony so loud?You'll hear them before you see them.The Cape Fur Seal colony on Geyser Rock — right next...
27/08/2026

Why is the seal colony so loud?

You'll hear them before you see them.

The Cape Fur Seal colony on Geyser Rock — right next to Dyer Island, about 15 minutes from where we launch — is home to around 60,000 seals. Not a typo. Sixty. Thousand.

When we drift in with the engine in neutral, this is what you get:

Barking. Bickering. Mothers calling pups. Males defending patches of rock they've decided are theirs today. Pups screaming for mothers who, from any distance, look identical to every other adult on the rock.

And the smell. We're not going to lie to you about the smell.

But this is what a healthy South African coastline sounds like. You don't get to stand this close to 60,000 wild animals arguing with each other anywhere else on the Cape.

📍 Departing daily from Gansbaai Harbour
🎟 whaleviewing.co.za
📞 082 926 7977

She didn't speak English. Neil made sure it didn't matter.Irene flew in from Spain and booked with Cape Town Day Tours. ...
25/08/2026

She didn't speak English. Neil made sure it didn't matter.

Irene flew in from Spain and booked with Cape Town Day Tours. Here's what she wrote on TripAdvisor. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

"Perfect! Although we had to turn back on the first day, an hour and a half into the trip, because the boat was cancelled due to wind, the excursion was rescheduled for the next day and it was fantastic! Especially the attention from our guide, Neil. We didn't speak English, and he explained everything to us with the help of a translator. We went along the coast, in addition to seeing the whales, and it was all wonderful!"

Two things worth pulling out.

The first day, the wind picked up ninety minutes in. Our skipper called it — turned the boat around, brought everyone back to the harbour. Safety before spectacle, every trip. Irene and her group were rebooked for the next day. Weather clean. Whales showing.

The second — a guide who won't let a language barrier stand between a guest and the coast they came halfway around the world to see. That's Neil.

📍 Departing daily from Gansbaai Harbour
🎟 whaleviewing.co.za
📞 082 926 7977
Coming from Cape Town? No problem. Chat to Cape Town Day Tours
WhatsApp Anneen | 076 130 4638

Comment below — which country are you tuning in from? 👇

Cape Town Day Tours Gansbaai Tourism

Yes, dolphins really do surf the boat. 🐬It's called bow-riding, and it's a favourite pastime along our coastline. The pr...
21/08/2026

Yes, dolphins really do surf the boat. 🐬

It's called bow-riding, and it's a favourite pastime along our coastline. The pressure wave that builds at the front of a moving boat gives them a free ride — they can travel faster while spending less energy. But watch them for a minute and it's clear it's more than energy-saving. It's play.

Around Gansbaai we most often see Common Dolphins doing this, sometimes in pods of hundreds. They'll dart in from the sides, spend a few minutes weaving under the bow, then peel off just as quickly as they arrived.

If you're standing at the front of the Ivanhoe when it happens, it's an experience you don't forget.

📍 Departing daily from Gansbaai Harbour
🎟 whaleviewing.co.za
📞 082 926 7977

She stayed in Hermanus. She drove 50km anyway.Dawn came from the UK, based herself in Hermanus, then made the call to bo...
18/08/2026

She stayed in Hermanus. She drove 50km anyway.

Dawn came from the UK, based herself in Hermanus, then made the call to book with us in Gansbaai instead. Here's what she wrote after. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

"Experience of a lifetime — We stayed at Hermanus and played with the idea of doing a trip from there, but then saw all the good reviews and decided to book with Ivanhoe, even though they were in Gansbaai, 50kms away. The trip started at 10 and we arrived at 9 to be welcomed with coffee… We were fortunate enough to have perfect weather of a windless 27 degrees today. The whales did not disappoint. Can't put into words how wonderful it is to be up close and personal with them. To have them so close you can hear them breathing and see the hairs on their chin. There is a whale Safari guide both upstairs and below so you hear everything they have to say. The trip is over in the blink of an eye and it's time to return to shore. Loved every minute and wish tomorrow would be today again… Pay the extra. You will not be sorry."

If you're staying in Hermanus or Cape Town and weighing up the drive — Dawn's answer is pretty clear.

📍 Departing daily from Gansbaai Harbour
🎟 whaleviewing.co.za
📞 082 926 7977

Comment below — which country are you visiting from? 👇

The drive from Cape Town is 2 hours. Here's why guests keep telling us to make it.The N2 out of the city, past Sir Lowry...
16/08/2026

The drive from Cape Town is 2 hours. Here's why guests keep telling us to make it.

The N2 out of the city, past Sir Lowry's Pass, down into the Overberg, along the R43 to Gansbaai. If you leave at 7am, you're at the harbour by 9. Coffee in hand by 9:15. On the water by 10.

By 10:20, most trips have their first whale.

Dawn from the UK put it plainly in her review: "We stayed at Hermanus and played with the idea of doing a trip from there, but then saw all the good reviews and decided to book with Ivanhoe, even though they were in Gansbaai, 50kms away… Pay the extra. You will not be sorry."

Here's the geography your Google Map isn't telling you. Gansbaai Harbour sits right next to Walker Bay — Southern Right Whale nursery grounds. We don't drive out looking for whales. We launch beside them.

That's why the extra 50km matters.

📍 Departing daily from Gansbaai Harbour
🎟 whaleviewing.co.za
📞 082 926 7977

Planning a Cape Town trip? Save this for later. Tag whoever's driving 👇

Address

Gansbaai Harbour
Gansbaai
7221

Opening Hours

Monday 09:00 - 17:00
Tuesday 09:00 - 17:00
Wednesday 09:00 - 17:00
Thursday 09:00 - 17:00
Friday 09:00 - 17:00
Saturday 09:00 - 17:00
Sunday 09:00 - 17:00

Telephone

+27829267977

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Ivanhoe Sea Safaris posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Business

Send a message to Ivanhoe Sea Safaris:

Shortcuts

Share

Category