America's 8 Beaches With The Most Whale Sightings (And The Best Time To See Them)

At any given time in the United States, you can find whales migrating along the coasts. From easy-to-spot humpbacks to gray whales that favor shallower waters close to the coastlines, each coastal state seems to offer a unique take on whale watching from the shore.

To spot a whale from shore, slowly scan the water, looking for plumes of water erupting from the surface. These occur when the whale exhales, and from a distance they can resemble clouds of smoke. If you can, use binoculars, which you may be able to borrow from a state park or designated whale-watching site.

While the best place to whale watch up close is often on a boat, there are several beaches and coastal lookout points in the U.S. that are places for seeing whales in action as they travel, hunt, play, and care for their young. Discover some of them (and when to visit) in this roundup of America's eight beaches with the most whale sightings. In addition to crunching the numbers on how many cetaceans fill the waters near these locations, each destination was also evaluated for the quality of its whale-watching opportunities.

Monterey Bay is one of the five best destinations to see orcas in the wild, according to research. Part of The Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary (which stretches 276 miles down the shoreline and more than 2 miles beneath the ocean surface), it offers visitors the chance to spot an estimated 20,000 gray whales migrating between December and April and 2,200 blue whales between June and October.

One of the best beaches in Monterey for spotting whales is Point Lobos State Natural Reserve, the "Crown Jewel of the California State Park System."

Depoe Bay is often called the whale-watching capital of the Oregon Coast. Every year, thousands of gray whales stop here while migrating between Mexico and Alaska. For a special whale-watching experience, visit in December or March to see these migrations during Whale Watch Weeks hosted by Oregon state parks. Alternatively, you can heed Whale's Tail Charters' advice and visit from June to September. If you're lucky, you may also see orcas, dolphins, and porpoises.

The Whale Watching Center is one of the best places to see these cetaceans, as it has a large viewing deck and binoculars available to borrow. During peak season, the center reports seeing up to 15 whales per day.

The San Juan Islands are famous for spotting orcas. These highly social and vocal creatures hunt for Chinook salmon together in large, noisy groups. Though you can see whales year-round in the San Juan Islands, the best time to spot orcas is between April and October. You'll also have the chance to see humpback, minke, and gray whales, depending on the season.

For the best views, head to the rocky beaches and overlooks of Lime Kiln Point State Park, considered one of the planet's best whale-watching spots.

Hawaii's "Valley Isle" is such a popular destination for humpback whales that the warm waters off Maui's west coast are referred to as "whale soup." The best time to see them is between December and March, when humpbacks migrate to the archipelago to breed and give birth to their young before traveling to Alaska to feed.

One of the best beaches to spot these magnificent creatures is Ka'anapali Beach, which has 3 miles of white sand and an open-air dining and shopping plaza that's home to the Hawaiʻi Wildlife Discovery Center.

If you're a fan of gray whales, San Diego is one of the best places to see them in their natural habitat, as 70 miles of San Diego coastline lie along their annual migration route. Blue whales can also be spotted during the summer when they come to feed on krill, though they're harder to spot from land.

One of the best whale-watching spots is the Whale Watch Lookout Point, which sits 420 feet above the water at Cabrillo National Monument — a breathtaking spot near San Diego with year-round hummingbirds. Gray whales are more often seen from mid-December through March, while blue whale season runs mid-June through September.

Long Island may be home to millions of people, but it's also home to several different species of whales. They live in the waters just off the coast, making it possible to depart on a whale-watching cruise directly from the Big Apple.

One of the top viewing spots is Montauk Point State Park, where you can enjoy panoramic ocean views from bluffs and may see fin whales, humpback whales, sei whales, and North Atlantic right whales. The ideal time for whale-watching on Long Island is from June through mid-September.

Every year, a large percentage of the planet's whale population migrates to the waters off the coast of Cape Cod because of Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary, an 842-square-mile underwater preserve near the peninsula's northern tip. Humpback, fin, minke, sei, pilot, and North Atlantic right whales gather there to feed on the calorie-rich sand eels living in the banks.

Some of the best shoreline whale-watching spots include Race Point Beach in Provincetown, near the Race Point Lighthouse. Cape Cod's whale-watching season lasts from April through October.

Nicknamed the whale-watching capital of the world, Juneau and Southeast Alaska draw about 600 humpbacks each year. The best time to see humpbacks is between May and the end of September. Orcas, while harder to spot, can be found in the area year-round.

One of the best spots to spy a humpback in Juneau is the small beach along the Rainforest Trail. A little under a mile there and back, the loop trail to the beach is mostly paved and wheelchair accessible. Its difficulty level is ranked as "easy" on AllTrails. Go in the late afternoon to avoid crowds.