Air Kaikoura Aero Club — Attraction in Kaikōura

Didn't see any whales, but that's fine and to be expected of nature tours.

The low rating isn't for the lack of animal sightings but rather the experience after we returned.

I was offered a no whale standby voucher to return for a small fee which I could use within the next 2 days and was told to call back on the day at 9am. At 9am, the recommendation was to call back 1h before their 1 or 3pm flights to check. I was on another tour that ended at 1pm and when I called at 2pm, they shared there were no further flights for the day as they had merged the last 2 flights or something. I think there's no point in offering such an option if the means of honoring it are so tentative.

Having done both whale watching by ferry and now air, I think the ferry may be a more practical option. Not only do you get a partial refund if you don't see whales (I understand this can't be done since airplane costs cost a lot more), they also use different techniques to locate whales which seem a bit more reliable.

With the above context in mind, I recommend you book a slot that leaves after the earlier whale watch tours (ferries or other planes) have left since everyone shares information on where a whale might be and that would increase your chances of seeing one...

Booked directly on their website cuz it was easier for me in terms of enquiry or (just in case) changes. I am sure they are available for booking on GetYourGuide and Viator too.

Instructor/coordinator was very clear with their safety briefing and introduction to the whales. We had to wait for a little while before boarding the plane because the whales just went hunting under the water and takes about 40-50min to resurface for air. After takeoff, we were going around the area in search of the whales, only to see them about 30min into the flight. Manage to see 2 humpback whales. Probably saw some Dolphins too, but they were tiny to be seen on air.

Pilots’ spoke clearly and were informative ok the flight as well. They flew in steep angle in circles to ensure everyone gets pictures of the whale and enjoy the view as long as possible. But until a certain duration, it was torturous to me. Felt like puking with that steep-angled turns non-stop.

Overall, it’s personal preference to choose flight/cruise. We chose flight as there were vacant slot every hour, while the last cruise leaves at 1.15pm which we couldn’t make. Will definitely try the...

Pilot Flight - I highly recommend it if you want to try to fly a fixed wing airplane. Their Eurofox a240 is small but very stable and maneuverable. Compare with other trail flight using Cessna 172, the smaller a240 offers better experience of flying and also better vision angel of cockpit. Just tell the experimented instructor what you want to do and he will show you the real fun of flying.

Whale Watching Flight - Difference view angle from the Whale Watching Cruise. The jet catamaran can get more closer to the whale, but mostly 1/3 only of the whale on the water and it's not easy to know the other parts under water. When you have birdseye view in the sky, you can easily see the entire whale with its tail under water and know it is as long as a catamaran. Whale watching in the sky and on the sea are two different experiences, hard to say which one is better. The whale watching flight...