%3Amax_bytes(150000)%3Astrip_icc()%2FTAL-header-diving-sperm-whale-dominica-untold-story-travel-DIVESPERMWHALES0625-d638daccc4b94f47a778bd1149fab15a.jpg&w=3840&q=100)
This Caribbean Island Offers a Once-in-a-Lifetime Wildlife Experience
Whale-watching operators take visitors to areas where the whales are commonly sighted, but for those looking to get to know these large creatures in a more intimate way, tour company Untold Story Travel offers something extraordinary: the chance to observe and, when conditions allow, enter the water with these calm, colossal creatures in their vast and wild ocean home.
The company's six-day experience, called Diving with Sperm Whales, gives travelers several chances to see, photograph, and swim with sperm whales. The experience includes a dedicated skipper and guide, who analyze the weather and movements of resident sperm whales, which can be hard to find since they are known to dive to depths of 1,000 meters (over 3,280 feet). The resident whales can often be found in the sheltered bays along Dominica's western coastline where they like to breed and calve.
If conditions are right, guests may slip quietly into the water and come face-to-face with a creature that can reach 50 feet in length. The whales often appear unbothered, turning gently toward swimmers or drifting by in slow, graceful passes. For many, swimming with a whale is a deeply humbling experience, a moment of connection where scale, sound, and silence all take on new dimensions.
While the sperm whales live off the coast of Dominica year-round, they are most commonly seen between November and April, with the highest odds in November, February, and March.
The Diving with Sperm Whales experience has an educational component. Local researchers and conservationists share the island's long-term sperm whale studies and each booking contributes to the CETI Project and the island's marine resources division, which conduct marine research and lead protection efforts.
The six-day Diving with Sperm Whales experience starts at $9,000 per person. Inquiries can be made at: untoldstorytravel.com.
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Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
I've been to more than 35 all-inclusive resorts. Here are 10 mistakes I always see first-timers make.
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Yahoo
13 hours ago
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Donald Trump orders entry fee, DEI changes at national parks. How it affects Michigan
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Forbes
15 hours ago
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An Archaeological Expert's Top 5 Lesser-Known Destinations In Turkey
Knidos, on Turkey's turquoise coast, is one of the few places where you can cruise into an ancient city's harbor Peter Sommer Turkey is reveling in a tourism boom at the moment as travelers seek out flavors that pack a punch in Istanbul, the Instagram ideal of a hot air ballon ride over Cappadocia, and seaside luxury on the glittering coast of Bodrum. But while these destinations are soaring in popularity, many of Turkey's archaeological treasures remain under-the-radar. Archaeologist and travel company founder Peter Sommer—who has trekked 2,000 miles across Turkey retracing Alexander the Great's route—shares five sites that offer tourists millennia-old history, unblemished landscapes, and intrepid hikes - all without the crowds. Perched right on the Carian coast, about halfway between the modern towns of Bodrum and Göcek, stands one of the best preserved fortifications from the ancient Greek world, more than 2,300 years old. 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Explore The Ruined City Of Kyaenai Like Indiana Jones On a rocky ridge high above a rustic valley, east of the resort town of Kaş, are the ruins of Kyaenai. 'Look up as you're driving and you'll see a tomb with a Greek temple façade carved into the cliff face, the first indication that there are antiquities in this seemingly remote spot,' says Sommer. He recommends heading into the little village of Yavu at its base and asking one of the hospitable locals to escort you up to this remarkable archaeological site. Your path, an hour's climb, will mainly be on a roughly 2,400-year-old road gouged out of the bedrock, winding its way through a seemingly endless series of sarcophagi. On a rocky ridge high above a rustic valley, east of the resort town of Kaş, are the ruins of Kyaenai. Peter Sommer Finally, on high, with mountain and sea views in all directions, you'll face the city walls, with Corinthian columns and decorative arches lying asunder in the undergrowth. 'You'll need a guide, for Kyaenai has the spirit of Indiana Jones,' Sommer adds. Breaching the fortifications, you'll find the city's interior, once replete with temples, then churches, Roman baths, public squares filled with altars and statues, now completely engulfed by trees and vegetation. On the slopes outside the city center is its ancient theater, shattered by earthquakes. Climb to the top, gaze around in wonder and the eons will dissolve as you are transported into the past. 'Getting to Kyaenai isn't easy, but I couldn't recommend it high enough—it's a true archaeological adventure,' says Sommer. Discover Underfloor-Heated Bathhouses In Arykanda Heading inland from the Lycian coast at Finike, up a river valley into the mountains, you'll discover Arykanda. 'There won't be many other people there, which means you'll have one of the prettiest historic spots practically to yourself, terrace after terrace of the most picturesque and splendid ancient Greek and Roman buildings marching their way higher and higher up the hillside,' says Sommer. Heading inland from the Lycian coast at Finike, up a river valley into the mountains, you'll discover Arykanda. Peter Sommer Turkish archaeologists have spent decades removing vast amounts of debris from landslides to reveal a stadium, a theater with a magnificent vista, grand bathhouses with underfloor heating systems, Byzantine churches floored with mosaics and monumental tombs adorned with sculptures and gouged out with ancient graffiti. 'Birds of prey circle the peaks above, the river flows fast far below and the air is full of the prayers of the past—to the pantheon of Olympian deities that were once worshipped here,' Sommers says. Stroll An Ancient City Beneath Pine Trees In Priene While Ephesus receives millions of visitors each year, just an hour's drive to the south is the little-visited ancient city of Priene. Priene is considered one of the best preserved truly Greek cities, where you can walk on paved stone streets through ancient fortifications and admire temples, gymnasia and houses from around the time of Alexander the Great, some 2,300-plus years ago. Devastated by earthquakes long ago, archaeologists have been uncovering Priene's once grand architecture for centuries. They have kept it as a place of natural beauty, so you stroll by council houses, agoras and steep-stepped streets under shady pine trees with a soundtrack of cicadas. While Ephesus receives millions of visitors each year, just an hour's drive to the south is the little-visited ancient city of Priene. Peter Sommer One highlight is the temple of Athena bearing an impressive dedicatory inscription from Augustus, first of the Roman emperors. In the almost perfectly preserved theater, you can take a seat in one of the magnificently carved VIP thrones swathed with icons of Dionysius. After the cultural riches, Sommer suggests taking a short drive west to meet the Mediterranean at the hamlet of Karine, where you can eat at one of the rustic fish restaurants and paddle in the sea. Cruise Into The Ancient Harbor Of Knidos Knidos, on Turkey's turquoise coast, is one of the few places where you can cruise into an ancient city's harbor, drop anchor and tie up in the very same place ancients did well over 2,000 years ago. As you sail in on a traditional wooden gulet, the whole Greek-Roman city surrounds you with tombs, temples, colonnades, and theaters. With a double harbor set at the tip of a long and sinewy peninsula on a highly strategic coastline, Knidos grew rich from its favorable natural position and from trading wine, olive oil and vast quantities of amphorae.
