Orcas are the largest animal most people will ever get in the water with, and the encounter is nothing like diving with sharks or whales. It happens on snorkel, in cold water, usually in winter, and it depends entirely on finding a hunt in progress. This guide covers the handful of places where in-water orca encounters are legal and realistic, the season in each, the cold-water skills you actually need, and the rules that keep the whales - and you - out of trouble.
Orcinus orcaMales 6–8 m, 6,000 kg; females 5–7 mSurface snorkelling — almost no scuba operations worldwide4 top destinations