Is Socorro worth the $$$?

[nippurmagnum]

Friends, I am on the fence about doing a first Socorro trip. My main hesitation is this: does the quality of the diving justify the money?

I ask because I have seen just about everything that Socorro advertises (mantas, in Hawaii; oceanic white tips and dolphins, in the Red Sea; hammerhead sharks, in Gordo Banks; whale sharks, right off of Cancun; tiger, silky, and dusky sharks, in Florida). A lot of these encounters were on day charters, or even shore dives, and none of them cost more than $200 a day.

Socorro is billed as having more frequent and more intimate encounters with large animals, and that certainly has its appeal. I also feel that I've heard so much about Socorro from repeat visitors that I should give it a try, at least once. And I have nearly $3,000 that I got from participating in the Moderna vaccine trial, and I'd like to put that towards diving.

So is Socorro really worth the $$$?

 

[O-ring]

Best person I can think of off the top of my head that can give you an informed answer to this question is @Dan. He's been pretty much everywhere and Socorro a bunch of times.

 

[Dan]

So is Socorro really worth the $$$?

I think so. Socorro is the cheapest of the Eastern Pacific diving destination (Galapagos, Malpelo, Cocos & Socorro). I try to show people my diving experience in Socorro through my trip videos, below.

 

[nippurmagnum]

Thanks Dan. You make a good point, this may be the cheapest of the "Big 3 Eastern Pacific" destinations, and I'm reasonably sure that I will not go to either Galapagos or Cocos, the price is just prohibitive for me.

I have a reservation for January 2023, so I looked at that video of yours with particular interest, to try to figure out what is "in season." So you saw whale sharks on your January 2021 trip? I thought that wasn't the season for whale sharks, but maybe nobody told the whale sharks that.

 

[davehicks]

Oh yes, you should go to Socorro! You might have seen Mantas before, but not like in Socorro. You will see multiple giant oceanic mantas at a time, 3-6 are common. And they don't just buzz by and disappear, they will come to you and circle around and around. You'll swim alongside them, over them, underneath. Socorro is mostly about the Manta in my mind.

You will see lots of sharks, hammerhead, silky, silvertip, galapagos, etc. Whale Sharks are often seen, but I've not seen one there on my 4 visits. Humbacks and Orcas are also seen there some of the time. Playful dolphins a very common. One year we heard nonstop humpback song on every single dive.

It's an amazing place to visit, and cheap too compared to Coco's and Galapagos. Totally worth the money.

 

[nippurmagnum]

Oh yes, you should go to Socorro! You might have seen Mantas before, but not like in Socorro. You will see multiple giant oceanic mantas at a time, 3-6 are common. And they don't just buzz by and disappear, they will come to you and circle around and around. You'll swim alongside them, over them, underneath. Socorro is mostly about the Manta in my mind.

You will see lots of sharks, hammerhead, silky, silvertip, galapagos, etc. Whale Sharks are often seen, but I've not seen one there on my 4 visits. Humbacks and Orcas are also seen there some of the time. Playful dolphins a very common. One year we heard nonstop humpback song on every single dive.

It's an amazing place to visit, and cheap too compared to Coco's and Galapagos. Totally worth the money.

View attachment 702819

Beautiful picture! And I appreciate the insights. You sell it well!

 

[donhealy]

OMG, YES, YES, YES. This location is simply amazing. You might see more hammerheads at Cocos but the shear bio-diversity can't be matched. You might get some current at Socorro but certainly not the kind you will experience at Cocos. You get to fly into Los Cabos. This is truly a bucket list trip that will never dim in your memory bank. You do not need to spend the big bucks with Vortex though.

 

[Dan]

Thanks Dan. You make a good point, this may be the cheapest of the "Big 3 Eastern Pacific" destinations, and I'm reasonably sure that I will not go to either Galapagos or Cocos, the price is just prohibitive for me.

I have a reservation for January 2023, so I looked at that video of yours with particular interest, to try to figure out what is "in season." So you saw whale sharks on your January 2021 trip? I thought that wasn't the season for whale sharks, but maybe nobody told the whale sharks that.

I did not see Whaleshark in December 2018. May be Whaleshark population is rebounding in Eastern pacific corridor recently (my wild guess as I saw 4 Whalesharks in Malpelo last July too).

The reason for high price is related to the fuel cost. It takes 24 hour crossing from Cabo to Socorro.

 

[Dan]

Oh yes, you should go to Socorro! You might have seen Mantas before, but not like in Socorro. You will see multiple giant oceanic mantas at a time, 3-6 are common. And they don't just buzz by and disappear, they will come to you and circle around and around. You'll swim alongside them, over them, underneath. Socorro is mostly about the Manta in my mind.

You will see lots of sharks, hammerhead, silky, silvertip, galapagos, etc. Whale Sharks are often seen, but I've not seen one there on my 4 visits. Humbacks and Orcas are also seen there some of the time. Playful dolphins a very common. One year we heard nonstop humpback song on every single dive.

It's an amazing place to visit, and cheap too compared to Coco's and Galapagos. Totally worth the money.

View attachment 702819

Nice shot!

Talking about manta & divers interaction, they apparently like our bubbles, so we give them the bubbles whenever they hover above us, as shown in my video, below:




Socorro Dolphins are also playful. They’ll swim vertically to imitate us. However, watch your depth. They might take you down beyond your MOD.

 

[NAUI Wowie]

Good lord, I hit Cebu and P.I. for lots of diving real cheap but im now convinced. I have to do Socorro. A definite plus im in California so the plane flight to Cabo is about 2 1/2 hours only