The Great Whale Count on Maui
Maui’s shore whale count is the Great Whale Count, run by Pacific Whale Foundation. Since 2019 it has been held on the same Saturdays as the Sanctuary Ocean Count, which has no Maui sites; in 2027 that’s January 30, February 27 and March 27. We are independent of both programs. Registration, the site list and the official results are on Pacific Whale Foundation’s Great Whale Count page.
How the Great Whale Count differs from the Ocean Count
Pacific Whale Foundation dates the Great Whale Count back to 1995 and held it in one month a year until 2018. Its headline figures are whole-day whale totals, not the Ocean Count’s island average per 15-minute period, so don’t set them beside the other islands’ averages. A whale seen from two sites or at two times can be counted twice. Each joint release since February 2023 notes that its totals “may represent duplicate sightings of the same whale.”
Maui figures, 2019 to 2026
Each row comes from the joint Ocean Count and Great Whale Count release for that count, on oceancount.org, except the last column: the whale total on the summary card Pacific Whale Foundation posted after the count. Where the release also gives a Maui total, the card matches it, or matches Maui plus Lānaʻi where the card includes the Lānaʻi site.
A dash means the source gives no figure. On January 28, 2023, heavy rain meant only one of 12 Maui sites reported. The CSV file has the release sentence behind every row.
| Count | Sites reporting | Busiest 15-minute period | Maui, whole day | Lānaʻi, whole day | Pacific Whale Foundation’s card |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January 26, 2019 | 12 | 72 whales, 8:30–8:45 a.m. | 359 | – | 359 |
| February 23, 2019 | 12 | 94 whales, 8:30–8:45 a.m. | 774 | – | 774 |
| March 30, 2019 | 12 | 36 whales, 10–10:15 a.m. and 10:30–10:45 a.m. | 219 | – | 219 |
| January 25, 2020 | 12 | 135 whale sightings, 9–9:15 a.m. | – | – | 840 |
| February 29, 2020 | 12 | 70 whale sightings, 9:30–9:45 a.m. | – | – | 536 |
| January 30, 2021 | 12 | 71 whale sightings, 10:30–10:45 a.m. | – | – | 424 |
| February 27, 2021 | 12 | 34 whale sightings, 8:30–8:45 a.m. | – | – | 250 |
| March 27, 2021 | 12 | 35 whale sightings, 9:30–9:45 a.m. | – | – | 202 |
| January 29, 2022 | 12 | 122 whale sightings, 9–9:15 a.m. | – | – | 650 |
| February 26, 2022 | 11 | 94 whale sightings, 8:30–8:45 a.m. | – | – | 729 |
| March 26, 2022 | 12 | 56 whale sightings, 9:30–9:45 a.m. | – | – | 299 |
| January 28, 2023 | 1 | – | 41 | – | – |
| February 25, 2023 | 12 | 105 whales, 11:30–11:45 a.m. | 596 | – | 596 |
| March 25, 2023 | 12 | 55 whales, 9–9:15 a.m. | 313 | – | 313 |
| January 27, 2024 | 12 (Maui and Lānaʻi) | 141 whales, 9–9:15 a.m. | 821 | 53 | 874 |
| February 24, 2024 | – | – | 948 | 39 | 987 |
| March 30, 2024 | 12 (Maui and Lānaʻi) | 72 whales, 11:30–11:45 a.m. | 367 | 20 | 387 |
| January 25, 2025 | 11 (Maui and Lānaʻi) | 113 whales, 10–10:15 a.m. | 702 | – | 702 |
| February 22, 2025 | – | – | 802 | – | 802 |
| March 29, 2025 | 12 (Maui and Lānaʻi) | 61 whales, 9–9:15 a.m. | 307 (11 sites) | 26 | 333 |
| January 31, 2026 | – | – | 694 | 49 | – |
| February 28, 2026 | – | – | 847 | 53 | – |
| March 28, 2026 | – | – | 141 | 11 | – |
Notes on these figures
The releases call the busiest-period figure “whales” in some years and “whale sightings” in others; the table uses each release’s own word. For the February 2024 and February 2025 counts and all three 2026 counts, the releases name a busiest period only for all islands together, so that cell is empty. For January and February 2020, all three 2021 counts and all three 2022 counts, the releases give no Maui day total, and the card is the only figure. The card for January 2023 lists the count as canceled.
Some cards misprint a date or a percentage change: the dates on the 2023 cards, the January label on the February 2025 card, and the percentages on the February 2020, March 2021 and February 2022 cards. The table holds only their whale counts.
Maui next to the sanctuary islands, season by season
The chart puts the two programs one above the other on the same season axis: the sanctuary islands’ average whales per 15-minute scan (Hawaiʻi Island, Oʻahu and Kauaʻi pooled) and Maui’s whales counted per season. They measure different things, and Maui counted in one month a year before 2019 and in three after, so read the shapes, not the heights. Both series have their lowest season in 2018, dip again in 2021 and 2023 and are higher in 2024 and 2025.
Show the numbers as a table
| Season | SOC whales per scan (3 islands) | GWC whales counted (Maui) | GWC figure type |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | 3.77 | – | – |
| 2008 | 2.70 | – | – |
| 2009 | 2.97 | – | – |
| 2010 | 3.27 | 1,209 | season summary |
| 2011 | 3.44 | 1,612 | season summary |
| 2012 | 2.74 | 1,057 | season summary |
| 2013 | 3.79 | 1,126 | season summary |
| 2014 | 3.73 | 1,331 | season summary |
| 2015 | 4.46 | 1,488 | season summary |
| 2016 | 3.00 | 732 | season summary |
| 2017 | 2.34 | 984 | season summary |
| 2018 | 2.03 | 529 | season summary |
| 2019 | 2.86 | 1,352 | per-count cards |
| 2020 | 2.46 | 1,376 | per-count cards |
| 2021 | 2.19 | 876 | per-count cards |
| 2022 | 3.28 | 1,678 | per-count cards |
| 2023 | 2.33 | 909 | per-count cards |
| 2024 | 3.41 | 2,248 | per-count cards |
| 2025 | 3.46 | 1,837 | per-count cards |
| 2026 | 3.01 | – | – |
For 2010 to 2018 the orange bars come from the foundation’s summary images, which print each year’s totals of whales, pods and calves but give no date or hours.
Yearly totals, pods and calves, 2010 to 2018
We copied the printed totals only. The image for 2009 prints the 2013 figures, so we leave it out. The 2014 image prints 9%, although its own totals give 11.6%.
| Year | Whales | Pods | Calves | Whales with calves |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 1,209 | 779 | 149 | 12% |
| 2011 | 1,612 | 901 | 191 | 12% |
| 2012 | 1,057 | 651 | 102 | 10% |
| 2013 | 1,126 | 629 | 83 | 7% |
| 2014 | 1,331 | 752 | 155 | 9% (as printed) |
| 2015 | 1,488 | 898 | 99 | 7% |
| 2016 | 732 | 464 | 83 | 11% |
| 2017 | 984 | 544 | 88 | 8.9% |
| 2018 | 529 | 335 | 62 | 11.7% |
The Maui count sites
Pacific Whale Foundation’s page lists 11 Maui sites, and the joint releases add one on Lānaʻi from 2024. Check the foundation’s page for the current list before you register. The foundation’s 2025 site guide says reaching Puʻu Olaʻi (Red Hill) in Mākena in time for the start takes a steep uphill hike of about 40 minutes at a brisk pace, and that the site is not for people with mobility or joint issues.
Sites with access and facilities notes
| No. | Site (PWF’s name) | Access and facilities |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Ritz-Carlton Maui, Kapalua | Not in the 2025 guide. |
| 2 | Pohaku Park | Kahana, at the S-turns. Near a bus stop; showers, a portable toilet and parking. |
| 3 | Ho’okipa | Hoʻokipa Beach Park on the north shore, off Hāna Highway about 2 miles east of Pāʻia. Car only; parking, lifeguards, showers, pavilion, picnic tables and portable toilets. |
| 4 | Marriott’s Maui Ocean Club Lahaina & Napili Towers | Kāʻanapali. Parking, no public transport, no facilities open to the public. |
| 5 | Launiupoko Beach Park | Southeast of Lahaina. No public transport; parking, restrooms, a sandy beach and picnic tables. |
| 6 | Maalaea Harbor | At the Māʻalaea Harbor Shops. Near a bus stop; parking and public restrooms. |
| 7 | McGregor Point and Lighthouse | Along Honoapiʻilani Highway. No public transport; free parking that can be crowded, no restrooms. |
| 8 | Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary Visitor Center | Kīhei. Near a bus stop; parking and public restrooms, and wheelchair accessible. |
| 9 | Kihei Surfside Resort | Near a bus stop. Gravel public parking at the Mana Kai and Days Inn; showers and a portable toilet. |
| 10 | Polo Beach | Wailea. No public transport nearby; public restrooms, showers and free parking. |
| 11 | Puu Olai Beach | Puʻu Olaʻi (Red Hill), Mākena. The guide says reaching the site in time takes a steep uphill hike of about 40 minutes at a brisk pace, and that the site is not for people with mobility or joint issues. No facilities; parking on a dirt road, no public transport. |
Taking part in 2027
Pacific Whale Foundation requires volunteers to arrive by 8 a.m. and stay until noon, and says registration opens December 14, 2026, on its Great Whale Count page. To count on Kauaʻi, Oʻahu, Molokaʻi or Hawaiʻi Island instead, see how the Ocean Count works.