No whales off Madeira today? Your second chance
Most whale and dolphin trips from Funchal find something, but none can promise it, and some days the sea stays quiet. Two operators give you another trip free when that happens, and three make no promise at all. This guide covers what each one offers and how to plan around an empty morning.
No boat can promise a whale
Whales and dolphins off Madeira are wild animals that move with their food and the weather, so no operator can guarantee what you will see. Most trips do find something, but no species is ever certain.
Reviews on every boat describe days with dolphins only, and days with whales but no dolphins. A trip that finds a single pod of bottlenose dolphins counts as a sighting, even if you were hoping for a sperm whale.
Blue Safari's listing claims 98% of its tours see cetaceans, and Xpoint's claims an annual average of 99%. Those are the companies' own figures, and they count any whale or dolphin rather than the one you came for.
Why most trips find something
The sea gets deep close to Madeira, so cetaceans can turn up a few miles from Funchal Marina. Boats do not have to travel far to reach water where pilot whales and dolphins often feed.
The island also has a long habit of watching the sea. Madeira hunted sperm whales until 1981, and the spotters on today's cliffs carry on the work of the old whalers' lookouts.
These spotters scan the water from high ground and radio the boats when they see a blow or a fin. Magic Dolphin and Blue Safari both mention them in their listings, and they are a large part of why so few trips come back empty.
What each operator promises
| Tour | From | If nothing is seen | Bad weather |
|---|---|---|---|
| VipDolphins (our pick) | ~$88 | No promise in the listing | Check with the operator |
| Blue Safari Madeira | ~$67 | Another ticket free | Check with the operator |
| Magic Dolphin | ~$39 | No guarantee; the listing says it will do its best to make you happy | Rescheduled or refunded |
| Xpoint Madeira | ~$67 | Another trip free within a year, subject to space, non-transferable | Check with the operator |
| Gaviao Madeira | ~$45 | No guarantee | Another day or a full refund |
Separately from all of this, every trip cancels free up to 24 hours before departure on GetYourGuide. That covers you if the forecast looks poor, but not once the boat has sailed.
Blue Safari's free second ticket
Blue Safari from ~$67 books you onto another trip at no charge when nothing surfaces. It is the clearest promise among the five, and it pairs with a short 2-hour trip that is easy to fit into a second morning.
The fast boat takes 18 people at most and carries a naturalist or marine biologist as guide. It scores 4.9 from 2,000+ reviews on GetYourGuide, and the listing calls it the first WCA-certified operator in Funchal.
A second go if the sea stays empty
Blue Safari's listing gives you another ticket free when no whale or dolphin shows up, on a fast boat for 18.
Xpoint's free trip within a year
Xpoint from ~$67 gives you another trip free within one year if no cetacean is seen. The offer depends on space on the boat, and it cannot be passed to someone else.
A year sounds generous, but it only helps if you are still on Madeira or coming back. Booking Xpoint early in your stay is what turns that promise into a usable second chance.
The three that promise nothing
Magic Dolphin from ~$39 offers no guarantee. Its listing says only that it will do its best to make you happy, and it does not spell out what that means, so do not count on a free trip.
VipDolphins and Gaviao make no promise in their listings either. Read the small print before booking, and ask the crew on the day if the trip comes back without a sighting.
Both also spend part of their three hours on a swim at Cabo Girão and the coastal cruise. So a morning with few animals still gives you a swim and the cliffs, which softens the blow somewhat.
When the weather calls a trip off
Wind and swell cancel more sailings than empty seas do, mostly in the cooler months. When the operator calls off a trip, you are not left out of pocket.
Magic Dolphin's listing says it reschedules or refunds, and Gaviao offers another day or a full refund. Ask the other three operators directly, and lean on the free cancellation if the forecast looks bad the day before.
A sea too rough to sail also makes sightings harder. Whitecaps hide blows and fins, so a rescheduled calm morning is usually the better trip. Our guide to the best months for whales covers when calm days come most often.
How to give yourself a second chance
- Book in your first days on the island so that a cancelled or empty trip can be repeated
- Use reserve now, pay later on GetYourGuide to hold a seat without paying yet
- Pick Blue Safari or Xpoint if a free second try matters most to you
- Budget for a second paid trip on the other boats, which our price guide makes easy to compare
It also helps to know what you might see before you go. Our guide to whales and dolphins off Madeira covers the usual sightings, and the boat guide helps you pick a hull for the second outing.