Grenada_hummingbird_01
GRENADA HOTELS

My Grenada Grenadines Beach, Gecko and Grenadian girl

Activities    Beaches    Calendar    Diving    Ecology    Exploring    Geography    History   Home  Restaurants & Nightlife    Tourist Offices    Grenada Tours    Travel Tips    Grenada Weddings
Whales & Dolphins    MDDM    Carriacou    Carriacou Hotels    Grenada    Grenada Hotels  Grenadines    Petite Martinique    Petite Martinique Hotels    Grenada Video


WHALES AND DOLPHIN WATCHING IN GUADALOUPE


Guadeloupe & islands (France) (including St.-Martin and St.-Barthélemy)
Population: 450,000.
Land area: 1,373 sq km.
Tourist arrivals by air: 660,000 (+5.6% on prev. yr.)
Tourist arrivals by cruise ship: 470,054 (-20.3% on prev. yr.)
Total Tourist Expenditures: $371.5 million USD.
Tourism Budget: $4.5 million USD.
GDP at factor cost: Not reported.
1994 figures on whale watching: Minimal.
1998 figures on whale watching: 400 people and total revenues of at least $22,000 USD.
Whale-watching ports (current or potential): Bouillante, Guadeloupe; Gustavia, St Barths.
Land-based viewing sites: west coast of Basse-Terre, Guadeloupe.
Whale-watching potential: Moderate (St.-Barths) to considerable (Guadeloupe); minimal (St.-Martin).
(Figures above are latest figures for 1997, except as noted.)

Guadeloupe, a French overseas department, consists of seven main islands: Grande-Terre and Basse-Terre form the main part of Guadeloupe. Nearby, to the south and east, are Marie-Galante, Les Saintes, and La Désirade. Some distance to the northwest are St.-Barthélemy, 125 miles (200 km) away, and St.-Martin, 145 miles (233 km) away, both of which are considered dependencies of Guadeloupe. Martinique, also part of the French West Indies, is dealt with in a separate section.

Guadeloupe
From Guadeloupe, a fisherman's cooperative in the fishing town of Le Moule on the Atlantic coast of Grande-Terre began a pilot project on whale watching in 1994. The plan was to offer trips from November to April, using 22- to 25-foot (7-8 m) 'yoles' with twin outboards, the local fishing boats. The day trips offered the near certainty of dolphins within the offshore barrier reef which forms a protected lagoon. As well, possible sightings included sperm whales, pygmy sperm whales, humpback whales and pilot whales. Despite support from the town, the trips have not really taken off. In April 1998, whale watching on a 38-passenger catamaran began from Basse- Terre, the western wing of the Guadeloupe butterfly. The whale watching has included sperm whales, pilot whales and spotted dolphins, although common and probably spinner dolphins may also sometimes be seen. The whale watch runs from a highly regarded dive centre popular with English speakers called 'Les Heures Saines'. It's located in Malendure which is 2.5 miles (4 km) north of Bouillante; this is in the Réserve Cousteau area, located at Pigeon Island a half mile (1 km) off the west coast of Basse-Terre. This is the top diving spot in Guadeloupe, so the whale watching has received a lot of publicity. The whale watch guides (who are also working on turtle conservation) are Caroline and Renato Rinaldi and their group is called Evasion Tropicale. The trips cost 200 FF for adults, with discounts for families. In 1998, approximately 400 persons went on the 10 tours that were offered, and the prospects for 1999 seem very good indeed. In 1999, the operator Les Heures Saines began offering one trip a week itself, with Evasion Tropicale providing the naturalists.
If these tours are successful, there are other Basse-Terre towns which might support further development of whale watching including Bouillante itself, Pointe-à-Pitre, and Trois Rivières, among other ports on the leeward (west) coast. Land-based whale watching may also be possible from the many excellent high vantages along the west coast of Basse-Terre.


WHALE AND DOLPHIN PAGES
Anguilla   Antigua   Barbados   Bonaire   Cayman   Cuba   Curacao   Dominica
Dominican Republic   Grenada  
Guadeloupe   Haiti   Jamaica   Martinique   Montserrat  Netherlands Antilles   Puerto Rico   Saint Martin   St. Kitts & Nevis   St. Lucia   St. Vincent  Trinidad & Tobago   Turks & Caicos   UK Virgin   US Virgin

Activities   Beaches   Calendar   Diving   Ecology   Exploring   Geography   History   Home  Restaurants & Nightlife   Tourist Offices   Grenada Tours   Travel Tips   Grenada Weddings
W
hales & Dolphins   MDDM
   Carriacou   Carriacou Hotels   Grenada   Grenada Hotels  Grenadines   Petite Martinique   Petite Martinique Hotels   Video



ANTIGUA  BARBADOS  GRENADA  ST KITTS  ST LUCIA  TOBAGO
FLORIDA   GOSPORT   KENYA   NERJA