Mirissa

Mirissa

The blue whale surfaces sixty metres away. Everything stops.

Mirissa is the departure point for one of the great wildlife encounters available to any traveller anywhere on earth. The blue whale --- the largest animal that has ever existed --- feeds in the waters off the southern coast between November and April. The whale watching boats depart at 6am and return by noon.

Experiences at this stop

• Blue whale watching --- November to April

Ophiro uses a responsible operator --- a smaller boat, a biologist on board, no chasing or circling. The blue whale surfaces for three to five breaths, then dives for fifteen minutes. At sixty metres' distance, it requires no superlatives.

• Spinner dolphins --- open water

Schools of several hundred dolphins ride the bow wave. The spinner dolphin's aerial display appears to be done for pleasure.

• Mirissa beach

A curved bay with a small rocky island at one end and coconut palms along its length. The afternoon after a whale watching morning, with fresh grilled cuttlefish at a beach table.