Pursuit, a Colorado-based attractions and hospitality company, has taken over the Victoria whale-watching company
A Colorado-based attractions and hospitality company with a substantial presence in the Canadian Rockies has acquired Victoria whale-watching company Eagle Wing Tours for $23.85 million.
Pursuit, a multinational that formerly operated in Canada under the name of Brewster Travel Canada, closed the deal with Eagle Wing co-founders Brett Soberg and Don Stewart on Tuesday.
Soberg, who has been with the company since 2005, will remain as general manager while Stewart will leave the company in the coming months.
Soberg, who also works as a ship captain at Eagle Wing, said he and Stewart decided to sell the company to Pursuit, after weighing several offers from companies that had expressed interest in acquiring the whale-watching firm.
“Pursuit rose to the top exponentially above everybody else because of who they are, how they conduct business, and their values align seamlessly and harmoniously with what our values are,” he said in an interview.
“For us, it just felt like the timing was right. We’ve done well over the last 22 years, so what does that next 20-plus years look like? We’re not getting any younger.”
Soberg, who is 53, said the whale-watching sector looks very different from when he helped start Eagle Wing with a single 12-person boat.
“There used to be 12 companies in Victoria. There’s now only four.”
Much of the downturn occurred in the early 2000s, but two smaller-scale companies went out of business in the past six or seven months, he said.
Eagle Wing employs 18 year-round employees, a number that swells to about 50 during the whale-watching season, and is among the busier and more active whale-watching companies in the Victoria area, Soberg said.
The company sees about 50,000 customers a year, according to a Pursuit investor presentation about the acquisition.
Pursuit expects Eagle Wing to generate about $3.5 million in earnings within its first full year of ownership.
Stuart Back, chief operations officer of Pursuit Canada, said the process of acquiring the company from Soberg and Stewart took several years.
Back said Pursuit has more than 130 years of presence in the country, dating back to the Brewster brothers who started a guiding company in the Canadian Rockies. The company also operates in the U.S., Iceland and Costa Rica.
The company has lodging and attractions in Banff and Jasper national parks — including the Banff Gondola and the Jasper Skytram — but Eagle Wing is its first whale-watching company acquisition.
About US$244 million of Pursuit’s US$452 million in annual revenue was generated from its Canadian operations in 2025.
Back, who is based in Banff, said the company believes in local leadership and Soberg will still have major responsibilities at Eagle Wing.
Eagle Wing’s commitment to community, conservation and education is in line with Pursuit’s company values, and “we’re really happy it’s joining our collection,” he said.
“Over time, we’ll see how we can support the future of Eagle Wing and their growth where it makes sense in this market,” he said.
Paul Nursey, CEO of Destination Greater Victoria, said the acquisition is a vote of confidence in Victoria as a tourist destination.
A company of Pursuit’s size making moves in Victoria is proof that the city is a globally recognized city that punches above its weight, he said.
Pursuit’s most recent major acquisition prior to Eagle Wing was the US$111-million purchase last year of the 570-acre Tabacón Thermal Resort & Spa in Costa Rica.
The share price of Pursuit Attractions and Hospitality, Inc. rose by 0.71 per cent to US$52.19 on the New York Stock Exchange as of closing on Wednesday afternoon following news of the purchase.
Prior to 2024, Pursuit was known as Viad Corp. and was headquartered in Arizona.