Today my wife and I swam with the whale sharks just off Holbox. We left Cozumel this morning about 8:30am and were back in our condo at El Cantil by 4pm. FABULOUS day.
This is how we did it:
Whale Shark Tour
Great flight in a Cessna 206 direct from CZM to the 3600' dirt strip on Holbox. About a 30 minute flight, no higher than 3500' altitude. Great views of the channel, Playa, jungles and the Gulf. For a private pilot like myself, what a kick it was to fly in the single engine panga of the skies. The young pilot even let me take the stick for a bit, and just like the diving in Cozumel it was so smooth and comfortable it was almost boring. The 206 seats 6, so with the pilot and tour leader there is room for 4.
We were joined by another very nice couple from Ohio and our tour leader Chantal. Doing the math, we were IN the boat on the Holbox dock in the same time it would taken us to get off the ferry in Playa if we had even attempted to do this tour by land. My understanding is that even after arriving in Playa there is a 3+ hour van ride to Holbox, EACH WAY. Doing this tour in a day is nearly impossible, or at the very least miserable.
As for cost, the tour was only $24 more per person to fly than to do it by land. This does not include the $30 airport tax per person, but even at $54 more you save something like 7 hours of travel time.....usually not the first choice of how I want to spend my vacation, especially in August on the Yucatan. The views and experience of the plane ride is worth the extra $54 in my book. Not having to leave your Cozumel lodging and stay in Holbox overnight would also cost more than $54, so all the way around this is (in my opinion) the ONLY way to swim with the sharks from Cozumel.
As far as the sharks go, it took us about an hour and forty minutes to find the sharks and get in with them. My wife and I first jumped in and looked down and only saw the bottom of the ocean......but then the bottom moved. GEEZ, the bottom IS the shark :shocked2: Like diving with a spotted school bus! It was tough to get used to the snorkel after diving for a few days, so the first experience had a bit of coughing and hacking included. We all had 3 or 4 turns to get in with the big beasts and swim with them as they dove and surfaced. Easily they came within 5 or 6 feet of the surface, it was tempting to grab their dorsal fin and go all "Sea World" on them. (no touching). Of the 2 sharks we swam with, the second larger one had a tail that was taller than me, and I'm 6'5". It was really a good time. On the way back the captain busted out foil wrapped cheese/ham sandwiches, fruit and water/sodas. Another hour or so back to the dock, buy some t-shirts and onto the golf cart for the 3 block putt putt to the airport. 40 minutes later we're hailing a cab outside CZM.
:banana:
Here's a couple of hints if you're thinking of doing it:
Don't bring your wetsuit, you're in the water for about 5 minutes at a time, you won't get cold.
You must wear a life jacket, so you won't be diving down at all, they won't let you claim that your wetsuit is your buoyancy.
We brought our own masks, and wish we had brought our own fins. The fins this particular boat operator provided were a bit sketchy.
Cameras are actually a huge hassle, unless you find a shark that is virtually still. The ones we saw were moving pretty fast and it takes all you've got to keep up.
Bring cash for t-shirts, credit card machines were not available where we were.
Biodegradable sunblock.
No bugs on the water, in town or at the dock, but huge mosquitos at the airport.
Bring a camera for some great views from the airplane.
This is how we did it:
Whale Shark Tour
Great flight in a Cessna 206 direct from CZM to the 3600' dirt strip on Holbox. About a 30 minute flight, no higher than 3500' altitude. Great views of the channel, Playa, jungles and the Gulf. For a private pilot like myself, what a kick it was to fly in the single engine panga of the skies. The young pilot even let me take the stick for a bit, and just like the diving in Cozumel it was so smooth and comfortable it was almost boring. The 206 seats 6, so with the pilot and tour leader there is room for 4.
We were joined by another very nice couple from Ohio and our tour leader Chantal. Doing the math, we were IN the boat on the Holbox dock in the same time it would taken us to get off the ferry in Playa if we had even attempted to do this tour by land. My understanding is that even after arriving in Playa there is a 3+ hour van ride to Holbox, EACH WAY. Doing this tour in a day is nearly impossible, or at the very least miserable.
As for cost, the tour was only $24 more per person to fly than to do it by land. This does not include the $30 airport tax per person, but even at $54 more you save something like 7 hours of travel time.....usually not the first choice of how I want to spend my vacation, especially in August on the Yucatan. The views and experience of the plane ride is worth the extra $54 in my book. Not having to leave your Cozumel lodging and stay in Holbox overnight would also cost more than $54, so all the way around this is (in my opinion) the ONLY way to swim with the sharks from Cozumel.
As far as the sharks go, it took us about an hour and forty minutes to find the sharks and get in with them. My wife and I first jumped in and looked down and only saw the bottom of the ocean......but then the bottom moved. GEEZ, the bottom IS the shark :shocked2: Like diving with a spotted school bus! It was tough to get used to the snorkel after diving for a few days, so the first experience had a bit of coughing and hacking included. We all had 3 or 4 turns to get in with the big beasts and swim with them as they dove and surfaced. Easily they came within 5 or 6 feet of the surface, it was tempting to grab their dorsal fin and go all "Sea World" on them. (no touching). Of the 2 sharks we swam with, the second larger one had a tail that was taller than me, and I'm 6'5". It was really a good time. On the way back the captain busted out foil wrapped cheese/ham sandwiches, fruit and water/sodas. Another hour or so back to the dock, buy some t-shirts and onto the golf cart for the 3 block putt putt to the airport. 40 minutes later we're hailing a cab outside CZM.
:banana:
Here's a couple of hints if you're thinking of doing it:
Don't bring your wetsuit, you're in the water for about 5 minutes at a time, you won't get cold.
You must wear a life jacket, so you won't be diving down at all, they won't let you claim that your wetsuit is your buoyancy.
We brought our own masks, and wish we had brought our own fins. The fins this particular boat operator provided were a bit sketchy.
Cameras are actually a huge hassle, unless you find a shark that is virtually still. The ones we saw were moving pretty fast and it takes all you've got to keep up.
Bring cash for t-shirts, credit card machines were not available where we were.
Biodegradable sunblock.
No bugs on the water, in town or at the dock, but huge mosquitos at the airport.
Bring a camera for some great views from the airplane.
