Whale Sharks Info. needed.

[nuts4corals]

Hello all,
I will be in MX mid July and understand Whale sharks frequent the waters there near Cancun. I was hoping to get recommendations of snorkeling charters that take you to see the sharks. any and all info. would be appreciated. thanks so much in advance.

 

[Dan]

I went with http://www.mexicodivers.com/ to snorkel with whalesharks in July & to snorkel with swordfish in February around Isla Mujeres. We also stay in Isla Mujeres, not in Cancun to save time.

 

[NDL_Diver]

Isla Mujeres for Whale Sharks not Cozumel.

 

[DandyDon]

There are Operators who will meet your ferry in PDC, take you to the ferry to Isla Mujeres, then take you out, then return - but it'd be a very long day. We did it out of Holbox island once, staying three nights to go out two days. Finding the ferry dock to Holbox before google maps knew, before the new toll road shortcut, etc. was a challenge never to be forgotten, but it made the adventure great since it worked without mishaps. Isla Mujeres is probably better.

 

[nuts4corals]

Thanks for all of the info so far... Yes I did mention "sharks frequent the waters there near Cancun". Isla Mujeres it is. can anyone tell me what my chances are in actually seeing one on one of these trips in mid july? thanks

 

[Dan]

Check these drone pictures, below. Those white specks are boats. The rests are the whalesharks. Some of them are as big as the boats. So, what do you think your chances seeing them there are?

Holbox tends to have murky & greenish water due to the plankton upwelling. Isla Mujeres has blue water. The whalesharks there are gulping snapper eggs during snapper spawning seasons. I got snapper eggs on my wetsuit, hairs too while swimming with them.

 

[Dan]

Here’s a video clip I took on July 4, 2017

 

[nuts4corals]

OMG that is some amazing footage and pics. thanks so much for sharing. i read that its best to go when the sun is out. if thats true is it best to just wait until you are there or book in advance. i doubt it will rain in july but i guess you never know.

 

[dberry]

I just finished making arrangements to spend 2 nights on Isla Mujeres to snorkel with the whale sharks after a week SCUBA diving in Cozumel. Here's a link to the thread I started for advice on this; I summarized our plans towards the end of the thread:

Cozumel with Whale Sharks from Cancun

This operator seems to be one of the main ones; many others are just booking agents who take a cut. Communications have been excellent (replies to questions in just a few minutes). They run trips from Isla Muertes (cheapest @ $125), Cancun, and Playa. They seem very professional.

https://www.mexicowhaleshark.com

FWIW, they mentioned that their prices are going up March 31, unless you put down a $50 deposit before then.

(1) trips from Coz make for a very long day, so we decided to spend 2 nights in an AirBnB on IM before flying back home from Cancun. There are also some very nice hotels for about $150 / night.

(2) the ferry to Isla Mujeres is only 15min, and the ride from the ferry to the Cancun Airport isn't very long (30-40min), so we'll have plenty of time to get to the airport.

(3) we arranged a private car for 3 legs - Cancun Airport -> Playa del Carmen ferry to Coz; PDC Ferry -> Isla Mujeres ferry (Gran Puerto); IM ferry -> Cancun Airport. We will use the car service so highly recommended by many on SB:

www.americantransferscancun.com

I hope this helps.
-Don

 

[dberry]

Check these drone pictures, below. Those white specks are boats. The rests are the whalesharks. Some of them are as big as the boats. So, what do you think your chances seeing them there are?

View attachment 508799 View attachment 508800

Pictures: Biggest Whale Shark "Swarm" Found
My very clever daughter tracked down the source of those aerial photos; FYI the pictures of the swarm posted are from 2009, which was a particularly large grouping of whale sharks (largest observed at the time).

We'll be happy to see half as many whale sharks this coming July!