Whale sharks like the pictures show

[Dan]

Utila for snorkeling in early Spring.(March-April)or Gladden Spit (Southern Belize) for diving with them right after the Cubera Snapper spawn (around the full moon May-June) Both have really clear water all the time.

Some links
Utila Official Site - Utila, Bay Islands, Honduras - Tropical Island Paradise
Best time for Whale Shark Season around Utila in Honduras 2018 & Map
Whale Shark Dive Trips | Splash Dive Center | Placencia Belize

We snorkeled with 8 over 3 days a few years ago in Utila. Saw one vertically feeding and one seemed to like the attention and made multiple passes around us. My buddies were able to dive with them on every Splash trip they took there during a week of diving.

I was in Utila in August 2007 for a week & saw none. Got my legs chewed badly by sandflies (no-see-um). That’s the last time I ever want to go to Utila.

 

[Dan]

Off of the Yucatan Peninsula, there are two known hotspots for whalesharks: Holbox and Isla Mujeres. I've never been to Holbox, but I've seen pictures, and the water tends to be peasoup green, which is to say that when you see the head, you cannot see the tail. I would say that it is a similar experience to La Paz, which I did for one morning in Nov 2016 from the Solmar V liveaboard. But I did Isla Mujeres in 2010, and at least when I went, we typically went out 10-15 miles into blue waters. Isla Mujeres is just off Cancun by ferry. It is here that an annual aggregation of over 200 whalesharks spread over let's say a one-mile diameter occurs, usually between June and maybe late August, coinciding with the spawning of little tunny or bonito (I think). The only detriment to visibility is the presence of a lot of fish eggs, which is what brings the whaleshaks to this area in the first place. If this is of interest to you, shoot me a private message.

I was in Holbox in July 2011 & saw several whalesharks & mantas in the murky greenish cold water. I won’t go back there after seeing those tons of whalesharks in the clear, blue, warm water of Isla Mujeres.

 

[Dan]

Whale Sharks Exmouth | Ningaloo Reef Dive Exmouth

Snorkelling with Humpbacks is also now available....just a bit further than the Phillipines or Cenderwasih Bay.

We can dive (not just snorkeling) with whaleshark in Cendrawasih Bay. That was a fun trip. I like to do it again.

Check out this video:

 

[Trevor JC Brown]

Speaking for Mexico
I have worked in both areas for years, I wouldn't say either place is better.
Visibility depends on a lot of things and changes daily in both locations. Bad whale shark experiences in La Paz are most likely from going at low tide and/or with an operator that was simply lazy and doesn't feel like taking customers far from the channel.
Here are two photos, believe it or not taken about 150 meters from each other and about 20 minutes apart.
In La Paz the visibility is reduced due to the plankton (food) in the water, it reproduces in cycles and the density of plankton in the water changes and affects the visibility from day to day.
Simply put to get those crystal clear days you might have to go more than once.

 

[jonhall]

Great video/pics @Dan_T.

Simply put to get those crystal clear days you might have to go more than once.

That can get expensive!!

 

[ibj40]

Great video/pics @Dan_T.



That can get expensive!!

And we were staying in Cabo when we went to La Paz (and granted, it was a combination Whale Shark and Los Islotes Seal Lion dive), but it also made for a long day.

When we did Mujeres, we were staying in Puerto Aventuras, and while we left our condo at 5:00 a.m., the expectation and end result were much more consistent than the La Paz trip.

 

[CWK]

I’ve seen them in the Maldives - diving, snorkelling and from the boat.

 

[Joneill]

We got buzzed by a juvenile whale shark (~18 ft) during a safety stop on a dive while I was in Aruba in February. It swam right past at our depth and only about 15 feet away - it was heading right at us until it was about 20 feet away and then turned slightly to go around us. A very rare sight there. Of course, I did not initially see it coming towards us (was looking the other way) and the Gopro was clipped off and turned off - so I only got a tail shot as it swam away.

 

[Wingy]

Lol Dan - Have done Cenderwasih - we can also dive with Whale Sharks at Ningaloo - have done so for 30 years - the difference is when you encounter them diving you need your own boat - they're just there. Unlike Cenderwasih your encounters are random, the organised tours are due to distance and logistics. Most tourists don't have the time to either drive 1700km towing a boat or a handy ship to steam 3 days north out of Freo. I've never done the tourist option at either - lucky enough to have first hit Ningaloo around 48 years ago thanks to growing up with a diving father - and Cenderwasih 15 years ago thanks to crewing on yachts and tall ships.

Should you be diving at Ningaloo your chances of bumping into a whale shark are reasonable during the right season - ditto humpbacks - also dugongs. The laws on the organised tours are for conservation reasons I fully support but it's up to the animal if you're diving and have a chance encounter. A humpback overhead in the cleanest water you could hope for casts a shadow like a school bus - absolutely magic.

I shake my head at my 5 year old self chucking a tantrum at Ningaloo because where my father forced us to spend weeks camped in the middle of nowhere is a protected bay allowing a resting spot for a lot of species. I can still remember whining about not being able to swim because of humpbacks and their calves taking up residence for a few days, big annoying whalesharks vacuuming the bay and the worst - being woken up and dragged down to watch Mantas mating in the shallows. Wasn't a bad childhood I guess.

 

[jonhall]

And we were staying in Cabo when we went to La Paz (and granted, it was a combination Whale Shark and Los Islotes Seal Lion dive), but it also made for a long day.

When we did Mujeres, we were staying in Puerto Aventuras, and while we left our condo at 5:00 a.m., the expectation and end result were much more consistent than the La Paz trip.

Agree the drive from Cabo to La Paz is a good trek and wouldn't (and didn't) do it more than once for the experience - and we were there for 2 weeks.

Have only been along the Riviera Maya stretch when it was not whale shark season. One day we will get to Isla Mujeres.