Samaná Bay has the rare distinction of being one of the best locations internationally to observe the well known and popular whale species, the Humpback (Megaptera novaengliae) .

Each winter Humpbacks migrate anywhere from 2000 to 4000 miles, from distant northern feeding grounds in the Gulf of Maine, the east coast of Canada, Greenland and Iceland, to the warm Caribbean water of the Dominican Republic to reproduce.

Almost the entire North Western Atlantic Humpback whale population spends the months of January, February and March utilizing several offshore areas: Silver Bank and Navidad Bank as well as Samaná Bay. Like singles bars on a single's bar circuit, males look for females and vice-versa, courting and competing for the opportunity to mate.

Pregnant females give birth and nurture their offspring, preparing their calves for the long return journey north and adolescent Humpbacks learn by example their future reproductive roles.

The presence of whales in Samaná Bay has been recorded historically with pictographs left by indigenous peoples on cave walls, in Los Haitises National Park and written records beginning with the ships log of Christopher Columbus in January 1493.

The Dominican Republic has historically been a non whaling nation, and with the development of whale watching in 1990 continues this ethic, promoting whale watching as a sustainable economic alternative to whaling on an international level.

To protect this species and ensure for future generations that Humpback whales continue to return to these waters every winter to reproduce.

We take our responsibility very seriously and recommend that all whale watchers intending to visit Samaná Bay, consider the following:

• Ensure that your chosen vessel has a permit to enter the whale watch area.
• Be aware that some vessels have naturalists on board and some do not.
• Whale watching requires a certain degree of patience. These are wild animals and their behavior is based on whale - whale interactions.
• Humpback whales are an endangered species and Samaná Bay is an important breeding and nursery area.
• Familiarize yourself with the whale watching regulations.