Humpback whales leave Murmansk region; when to see them again

Humpback whales, the main «showmen» of the Barents Sea, have left the Arctic region. Certified guides in the Murmansk region told 51.RU about this.

— About two weeks ago, the last humpback whale swam away from us. Based on observations over the past five years, we can assume they won«t be back until spring next year. Usually they return in April and stay within a 2-4-6 hour boat ride from the piers of Ura-Guba or Teriberka. But there have been cases when they come in November or December, — said guide Vladimir Onatsky.

His colleague, Dmitry Orekhov, confirmed that humpbacks are not currently spotted at sea.

— Yes, our beauties have left. We hope they come back to us in winter. The chance is small, but it exists. Otherwise, we expect them at the end of April.

However, tourists should not be upset: they can see minke whales, belugas, dolphins, killer whales, and seals.

Earlier, we wrote about what tourists need to know when traveling to the Murmansk region in search of whales. A year ago, we also tried our luck — read how it went.

A guide from Murmansk captured a touching scene — a baby whale learning to jump from its mother. Also, off the coast of Teriberka, a huge pod of belugas was spotted.

Additionally, the Murmansk region has introduced rules for safe whale and bird watching.

And here we told you how much a trip to Teriberka costs in summer 2026.