Churchill, Manitoba, is the top destination in the world for getting in the water with wild beluga whales. Every July and August, thousands of belugas migrate into the Churchill River and Hudson Bay to breed and nurse their calves, and several licensed tour operators offer kayaking, paddleboarding, and a unique experience called AquaGliding that puts you right at the water’s surface alongside them. Outside of Churchill, your options narrow considerably, and in the United States, swimming with wild belugas is illegal under federal law.
Churchill, Manitoba: The Premier Destination
Churchill is a remote town on the western shore of Hudson Bay, accessible only by train or plane. There are no roads in. A flight from Winnipeg takes about two hours, while the Via Rail train departs Winnipeg on Sundays and Tuesdays and covers 1,697 kilometers over roughly 48 hours. Despite the remoteness, Churchill has built an entire tourism infrastructure around its beluga population, which can number in the tens of thousands during peak season.
Several operators run water-based beluga tours. Sea North Tours offers zodiac boat rides, kayaking, paddleboarding, and an ice floe tour available in June when conditions allow. Lazy Bear Lodge and Expeditions provides kayaking and AquaGliding, which involves lying on an inflatable platform towed behind a boat so you’re face-down at the water’s surface while belugas swim beneath and around you. Sup-North specializes in paddleboard tours, and Churchill Custom Tours offers customizable excursions. Belugas are famously curious animals, and they often approach kayakers and paddleboarders on their own.
Beluga season runs from late June through August, with July and August being the core months. Lazy Bear Lodge’s Beluga Whale Dream Tour, a two-night package running in June and July, starts at $590 USD per person (double occupancy), with add-ons for kayaking and AquaGliding. Single-day excursions through other operators vary in price. Spots fill quickly during peak weeks, so booking months in advance is common.
Why Not the United States
Beluga whales live in Alaska’s Cook Inlet and other Arctic waters, but swimming with them there is not an option. The Marine Mammal Protection Act prohibits the public from harassing, pursuing, or attempting to interact with protected marine species. NOAA Fisheries is explicit: do not swim with, pet, touch, or attempt to elicit a reaction from marine mammals in the wild. This applies to all U.S. waters, and violations carry significant fines. You can watch belugas from shore in places like Turnagain Arm near Anchorage, but in-water encounters are off limits.
Russia’s White Sea: A Remote Alternative
Near the Solovetsky Islands in Russia’s White Sea, belugas gather every summer at Cape Beluzhiy to breed and nurse calves. This is the most popular beluga-watching site in the Russian North, and the gathering can be reached on foot along a tourist route, by all-terrain vehicle across the tidal flats, or by boat. The whales visit the area daily from June through August except during storms, with their arrival and departure following the tidal schedule. Groups typically appear during the ebb tide, reach peak numbers at low tide, and thin out as the water rises.
Both organized tours and independent local boat operators bring visitors to the gathering area. However, accessibility for international travelers has become extremely limited due to geopolitical restrictions, and the infrastructure is far less developed than Churchill’s. This is a destination for adventurous travelers with flexibility, not a straightforward tourist experience.
Captive Beluga Encounters
If you want a guaranteed, close-up beluga experience without cold Arctic water, SeaWorld Orlando offers a Beluga Whales Up-Close Tour starting at $99.99 per person (ages 3 and up). This is a poolside experience, not a swim. You participate in a training session with the whales, going behind the scenes at the Wild Arctic habitat. The tour involves kneeling, standing, and walking alongside the pool. Spots are limited and sell out during busy seasons.
Other marine parks and aquariums in North America and Asia have historically offered beluga interaction programs of varying levels, though many have scaled back or discontinued them in response to shifting public attitudes about cetaceans in captivity.
Canadian Regulations to Know
Even in Churchill, where beluga tourism thrives, Canadian law sets clear boundaries. In the St. Lawrence Estuary, where a separate endangered beluga population lives, Fisheries and Oceans Canada requires all vessels to maintain at least 400 meters of distance from belugas. Kayakers who encounter belugas must keep paddling until they’re at least 400 meters away. Boats must maintain a steady speed between 5 and 10 knots and avoid sudden direction changes. These rules exist because even well-meaning human presence can disrupt feeding, resting, and nursing.
Churchill’s regulations are different because the tourism there operates under specific provincial and federal permits that allow guided, controlled encounters. This is why going with a licensed operator matters. You can’t legally just grab a kayak and paddle into a pod on your own. The tour companies know the rules, manage group sizes, and follow protocols designed to minimize stress on the whales.
What the Experience Is Actually Like
Belugas are sometimes called “canaries of the sea” because of their complex vocalizations, and in the water, you can actually hear them clicking and whistling around you. The Churchill River water is cold, typically requiring a drysuit or wetsuit even in midsummer. On kayak and paddleboard tours, belugas frequently approach within arm’s reach out of sheer curiosity, surfacing alongside your vessel and sometimes swimming directly underneath. AquaGliding gives you a snorkel-mask view of them gliding below, which many visitors describe as the highlight.
Tours typically last a few hours, and group sizes vary by operator. Weather and tidal conditions can shift plans on short notice, so building a buffer day or two into your trip helps ensure you don’t miss out. Churchill also offers other wildlife draws during beluga season, including polar bears, Arctic foxes, and hundreds of bird species, so extra days rarely feel wasted.