What an incredible experience! After going back and forth deciding which trip to book, we were so pleased to have chosen this one.
We knew our chances of seeing a whale and that we may have been unlucky. In fact, we did almost miss out but our pilot was determined and eventually we did see one surface before we had to go back to the airport.
She made turns on both sides and got as close as possible so we could all get some great views of the amazing sperm whale. Whilst we were staring in awe she told us about the whale, the one we saw being a local they track daily, and told us interesting facts.
Honestly looking at the whale watching boats down below I was quite content with not being in those choppy waters. Seeing the entire length of the whale was incredible, and seeing him next to a boat really gave us an idea of the sheer size.

All in all we had a fantastic experience. Always know before going on these flights that it’s not guaranteed to see a whale - we were extremely lucky. Seeing the coast Kaikoura from the air was amazing in itself, and if the chances of seeing whales is slim they do try to find other wildlife such as dolphins.