Pygmy Blue Whales
Join us for our second year in Timor-Leste to meet the largest whale species on the planet.
Expedition Brief
Timor-Leste sits along one of the least studied great whale migration corridors in the world. Pygmy blue whales in the eastern Indian Ocean move seasonally between high-latitude feeding grounds off southern Australia and the lower-Banda Sea in Indonesia, with Timor-Leste lying directly along this little-studied migratory corridor. The country’s north coast offers rare access to deep, pelagic waters close to shore, creating conditions where encounters with the largest animals ever to live on Earth are possible.
What makes Timor-Leste exceptional, however, is not only the presence of blue whales, but the context in which they are encountered. This is one of the world’s youngest nations, shaped by resilience, strong local identity, and a deeply rooted relationship with land and sea. Fishing remains largely small-scale and human-powered, and outside of Dili, vast stretches of coastline remain quiet, undeveloped, and lightly trafficked.
Our Timor-Leste program is designed to reflect this reality. We operate in small groups, follow locally established in-water guidelines, and prioritize encounters built around patience. Time on the water is intentionally balanced with time on land, allowing space to engage with Timorese culture through food, conversation, and everyday community life. This is not a high-volume wildlife product, but an immersive expedition that places equal value on the ocean, the country, and the people who call it home.
ALOR PROGRAM (Indonesia)
Add-on Program: Nov 12–16, 2025
Our time in Alor focuses on community-based fisheries, intergenerational marine knowledge, macro diving, and traditional freediving practices across the Pantar Strait. Each day offers a distinct encounter—with indigenous Abui culture in the highlands, with off-grid island fishers in Pura, or with elder spearfishers maintaining pre-industrial gear and rhythms.
We begin with dugong tracking and a village stay in Takpala, engaging with oral histories and customary dance as evening falls. From there, we shift toward the sea— joining subsistence fishers on canoe-assisted bubu trap checks, and sitting with elder freedivers to understand how handmade wooden goggles and reef intuition once defined survival.
One morning, we visit a shark landing site at dawn, a powerful (and confronting) moment to witness the complexity of shifting ecological baselines. Later that day, we enter the Pantar Strait on scuba, where strong currents reveal dramatic reef systems and possible pelagic encounters. Across the week, we’ll also interview village elders, photograph tools and techniques, and begin assembling an archive of human-ocean interaction at the edge of change.
The Alor portion ends with a private boat transfer to the village of Atapupu in Timor, continuing the expedition into Timor-Leste by land.
DILI PROGRAM (Timor-Leste)
Main Program: Nov 16–22, 2025
From November 16 to 21, we base ourselves in Dili and work daily on the water in the productive corridors off the north coast—an area where blue whales, beaked whales, melon-headed whales, and sperm whales transit during austral spring. We spend approximately six hours per day at sea, launching early and returning mid-afternoon, with boat operations guided by local pilots. Our goal is to find large pelagics for in-water documentation, mainly blue whales and sperm whales.
Afternoons are structured around visual review, photo editing, whale behavior discussions, and knowledge-sharing across the group. We’ll also conduct informal evening workshops on field documentation, pelagic behavior, and storytelling approaches, inviting group members to contribute perspectives and material.
Where possible, we incorporate brief late-afternoon visits to land-based sites—such as artisanal fish markets, cultural institutions, or nearshore ecosystems—in Dili and its outskirts. These remain flexible depending on light, weather, and group energy.
This segment emphasizes visual documentation, long-lens observation, and a light ecological footprint. It is not a commercial whale swim trip. We observe all national and regional regulations regarding marine mammals and work with a local captain and team committed to responsible operations.
PRICING
Full program (11 days): $5490 (SOLD OUT)
Alor Island add-on: 12-16 November, 2025 ($1950)
Timor-Leste main program: 16-22 November, 2025 ($3950)
Strictly limited to 5 guests. (SOLD OUT)
Pricing is based on shared accommodation (twin rooms). Single supplement accommodation is available for an extra $750 for the full trip ($200 for Alor, $550 for Timor Leste). Guests may sign up for the full trip or either component. A pricing discount is available for those signing up for the full 11-day trip (included).
Open Water scuba certification is not needed to participate in the Timor-Leste program, but is required to participate in the Alor program.
INCLUDES
Guides, coordinators, and local fixers.
Accommodation (shared rooms).
Breakfast and lunch daily.
Workshops and photography lessons.
Local transportation.
Private boat transfers in Alor and between Alor Island and Atapupu, Timor (Indonesia).
Border crossing permits.
Private whale boat for 5 days in Timor.
3 tank dives and 2 days of free diving activities in Alor.
EXCLUDES
Flights.
Dinners.
Insurance and personal spending.
Gear (scuba gear is included in Alor).
Upgrades and single supplement rooms.
Gratuities for local staff.