A Bay To Remember
WEBSITE: www.baytoremember.co.uk
TELEPHONE: 01239 623558
EMAIL: tony@baytoremember.co.uk
ADDRESS: Cardigan (Ceredigion)
1 to 2 hour dolphin watching trips from the town of Cardigan. Our operating Area includes Cardigan Island, Mwnt and Aberporth, some of the best places in Cardigan Bay’s Special Area of Conservation to see our resident bottlenose dolphins. Our purpose built 10m RIB allows us to cover a large area with ease and is extremely manoeuvrable allowing us to also explore sea caves.
Likely species include bottlenose dolphins, harbour porpoises, Atlantic grey seals, guillemots, razorbills, gannets, variety of sea gulls, oystercatchers, fulmars, choughs, peregrines, cormorants and shags to name a few.
Dolphin Spotting Boat Trips
WEBSITE: https://newquayboattrips.co.uk/
TELEPHONE: 01545 560800; 01545 560375 (evenings)
EMAIL: newquayboattrips@gmail.com
ADDRESS: New Quay (Ceredigion)
We have large, stable, purpose built passenger boats departing daily between (April and October) offering one and two hour trips, with all-weather canopies and seating designed to give the best view for all passengers. The two hour trip boat is fitted with w/c and cushioned seating and ventures five miles along the spectacular coastline. Operating from New Quay for over 60 years our experience of providing safe, enjoyable and informative trips for all ages is unrivalled. Our qualified skippers and guides are professional and friendly and put your enjoyment and safety first, we will help you to identify and appreciate the varied wildlife along the coast in addition to some interesting local history and geology of the area. All of which brings generations back to us year after year.
During both our one and two hour trips the Bottlenose Dolphins are regularly spotted but remember they are wild and free here in Cardigan Bay. Dolphins socialise and hunt together and frequently approach the boat in pairs and small groups. Less frequently but more spectacularly they can be spotted breaching 5 meters into the air. It’s estimated that between 250-300 bottlenose dolphins are semi-resident in Cardigan Bay and the best time of year to see them here is between May to September. Bottlenose dolphins are frequently spotted but harbour porpoise less often being locally are much more reserved. Atlantic Grey seal are resident all year and can be seen when hauled out both when basking on sloping rocks in summer but more frequently on beaches with their pups in Sept/Oct. Depending on the duration and season of your trip many birds can be spotted including guillemots and razorbills, cormorants, shags, kittiwakes, fulmars, oyster-catchers, gannets, Manx Shearwaters, turns, choughs, many gulls but also birds of prey including Red Kites, buzzards, kestrel and peregrine falcon much higher up on the headlands so bring binoculars for them’’. N.B. The local Auk colony needs to be viewed before late July.
Falcon Boats
WEBSITE: www.falconboats.co.uk
TELEPHONE: 07494 141764
EMAIL: info@falconboats.co.uk
ADDRESS: St Davids (Pembrokeshire)
We provide a range of professionally guided wildlife boat tours in Britain’s only coastal national park. Our vessel is a purpose built 10m rigid hull inflatable boat. Join us to experience unforgettable close encounters with seals, porpoise and dolphins as well as myriads of nesting seabirds and spectacular scenery. Likely species to be seen include common and Rissos dolphin, harbour porpoise, minke whale; Gannets, shearwaters, storm petrels, guillemots, razorbills, puffins, kittiwake, fulmars as well as lots of resident birds; Atlantic grey seals, sunfish, basking shark, jelly fish. Due to our remote location on the western tip of Wales we also often sea migratory birds such as skuas, terns, sooty shearwaters and many other species.
Gower Coast Adventures
WEBSITE: www.gowercoastadventures.co.uk
TELEPHONE: 01792 348229
EMAIL: dave@gowercoastadventures.co.uk
ADDRESS: Swansea (Glamorgan)
We provide a breath-taking, interactive tour of the South Gower Coast, leaving our passengers with unforgettable memories. Guided by professional qualified crew with excellent local knowledge, you will encounter a wealth of marine wildlife, fascinating local history (from prehistoric bone caves to tales of smugglers) and a unique thrill as we skim across the open water. Likely species to be seen include seals, harbour porpoise, common dolphins and lots of sea birds.
North Wales Power and Sail
WEBSITE: www.northwalespowerandsail.co.uk
TELEPHONE: 07983997004; 01352720018
EMAIL: mike@northwalespowerandsail.co.uk
ADDRESS: Y Felinheli (Gwynedd)
Established in 2001 we welcome you to the beautiful Menai Straits and North Wales Coast where you can sail and power boat in some of the most fabulous cruising grounds in the UK. Based out of Dinorwic Marina on the Menai Straits, North Wales, the school offers the complete range of RYA Sail Cruising and RYA Power Boat courses together with boat charter, site seeing, dolphin and whale watching amongst many other water based activities.
Likely species to be seen include common dolphins, bottlenose, harbour porpoise; Atlantic grey seals; herons, gannets, curlews, oyster-catchers, puffins, gulls, fulmars, razorbills.
Sea Kayaking Wales
WEBSITE: www.seakayakingwales.com
TELEPHONE: 07899662043
EMAIL: info@seakayakingwales.com
ADDRESS: Anglesey and Llŷn Peninsula
We offer a wide range of sea kayaking trips from beginner to advanced and single day to multi-day. Observing nature is a big part of our journeying. As we have small boats (sea kayaks) we can venture close to the shoreline, experiencing the full range of North Atlantic coastal ecosystems, including: rocky shorelines and their diverse habitats. Our sea kayaks are also very seaworthy and make offshore trips to sometimes distant islands. The SKW guides/coaches are all highly competent sea kayak providers and nature guides.
Likely species to see include marine mammals like harbour porpoise, bottlenose and Risso’s dolphins, Atlantic grey seals; seabirds like peregrine falcons, chough, Arctic/common and sandwich tern, Manx shearwater, guillemot, razorbill, puffin, oyster-catcher, herring/black-headed/black-backed gulls and kittiwake, fulmar, gannet, heron, curlew etc. Other species include Sea squirt chordate, spider/shore crab, sponge, barnacle, limpet, dog whelk, periwinkle, dead men’s finger, various anemone and jelly fish, and 600+ species of sea weed/algae
Seekat Marine Charters
WEBSITE: www.seekatcharters.co.uk
TELEPHONE: 01407 830040; 07770816460
EMAIL: info@seekatcharters.co.uk
ADDRESS: Amlwch Port (Anglesey)
Sea life spotting mammal and bird surveys aboard 11mtr Catamaran with elevated viewing platform. Likely species to be seen include various bird life, seals, harbour porpoise and occasional dolphins (bottlenose dolphin, Risso’s dolphin) and whales.
Thousand Islands Expeditions
WEBSITE: www.thousandislands.co.uk
TELEPHONE: 01437 72721; 07791917011
EMAIL: sales@thousandislands.co.uk
ADDRESS: St Davids (Pembrokeshire)
Marine wildlife boat trips on a 40 seater traditional pleasure boat or a 23 seater jet boat. The jet boat ventures offshore and we only take 12 passengers so there’s plenty of room to move around and she’s a great platform for photography. We visit the RSPB island of Grassholm, home to over 39,000 pairs of breeding gannets, offshore reefs and the Smalls Lighthouse. During this trips we see a wealth of seabirds and seals and a good chance of sighting common and Risso’s dolphins, harbour porpoise and minke and pilot whale.
Voyages of Discovery
WEBSITE: www.ramseyisland.co.uk
TELEPHONE: 01437 721911
EMAIL: info@ramseyisland.co.uk
ADDRESS: St Davids (Pembrokeshire)
We offer a variety of wildlife watching boat trips on 10m rigid hulled inflatables which are custom built by us, specifically for this purpose. They all have internal seating with unrestricted views for all passengers and offer the safest and smoothest rides, ideal for photography and getting the best sightings. The boats are skippered by highly experienced skippers and the trips are guided by our friendly, knowledgeable and professional crews. Head to our website to find out about our longer, staple and other trips.
Species often seen include harbour porpoise, common dolphin, Risso’s dolphin, minke whale, Atlantic grey seals, puffins, razorbills, guillemots, manx shearwaters, gannets, plus lots of resident seabirds, other recent sightings include; leatherback turtles, sunfish, basking sharks, sooty shearwaters, great skuas, scoter and many more.
