Where is the best place for Whale Sharks

[touch of energy]

:06: I am looking to take a trip around March or April, where is the best place to have an encounter with Whale Sharks? If that time of year isn't the best I am willing to change to whenever is best....any advice from the fellow diver's out there?
Thanks M

 

[Mike Veitch]

Darwin's Arch Galapagos Islands from mid June to mid November

Other places have em too (read following) but this is by far the best for scuba as opposed to snorkelling


Honduras not sure of time of year
Ningaloo Oz not sure of time of year
Bohol Philippines not sure of time of year

 

[alcina]

Ningaloo Oz not sure of time of year

Expected to begin arriving very end of March or beginning of April - Easter this year is most likely too early. Two towns offer tours - Coral Bay & Exmouth. Coral Bay's season tends to start a bit earlier and finishes usually around the end of May; Exmouth's season tends to run a lot longer with steady sightings the past four years through July and even some into August.

Best time IMHO (been here since 96) late May or anytime in June. HTH

 

[lara1018]

hi! whale shark watching season in donsol (philippines) is generally between feb-may. but i'd check with local resort operators first. there are plenty of them. there's a local marine reserve set up because of these whale sharks. plus it's only in the past few years that this area has been attracting international tourists more. so it's relatively new to outsiders. a quick google search on it should yield plenty of links. but if you need help beyond that, feel free to PM me.
lara

 

[diversteve]

:06: I am looking to take a trip around March or April, where is the best place to have an encounter with Whale Sharks? If that time of year isn't the best I am willing to change to whenever is best....any advice from the fellow diver's out there?
Thanks M

Hi,

This was recently discussed in another post on this board:

http://www.scubaboard.com/t83185-.html

I'm expecting to find them off Utila in the Honduran Bay Islands and/or Ningaloo Marine Park in Australia based on some research I did last year. It also seems like they must migrate in the southwestern Caribbean as there are sightings - and dive ops specializing in Whale Shark encounters in Honduras, Belize and Isla Holbox near Coz.

Some other info and pictures of Whale Sharks can be found at the EcoOcean Whale Shark research site at: http://www.ecocean.org/index.html. The site somewhat reflects that they're based in Ningaloo though.

If you google Whale Shark Diving Trips, you'll get 142,000 links for review.

We were talking of doing that this summer, but we're now probably filming Mantas off Kona instead.

Steve (from AZScuba)

 

[caymaniac]

Hi,

This was recently discussed in another post on this board:

http://www.scubaboard.com/t83185-.html

I'm expecting to find them off Utila in the Honduran Bay Islands and/or Ningaloo Marine Park in Australia based on some research I did last year. It also seems like they must migrate in the southwestern Caribbean as there are sightings - and dive ops specializing in Whale Shark encounters in Honduras, Belize and Isla Holbox near Coz.

Some other info and pictures of Whale Sharks can be found at the EcoOcean Whale Shark research site at: http://www.ecocean.org/index.html. The site somewhat reflects that they're based in Ningaloo though.

If you google Whale Shark Diving Trips, you'll get 142,000 links for review.

We were talking of doing that this summer, but we're now probably filming Mantas off Kona instead.

Steve (from AZScuba)

We were on the Island of Hawaii to see the Mantas the summer before last and we never saw them even though you're supposed to have a 80% chance to see them. We were there in the beggining of July and latter we were told they had a two and ahalf week dryspell. I also have a friend that lives on Kuai, he has gone 3 times to see the Mantas and has yet to see them. I hope you see them but you should know what the reality is of seeing them.....it's hit and miss.

 

[diveprn]

:06: I am looking to take a trip around March or April, where is the best place to have an encounter with Whale Sharks? If that time of year isn't the best I am willing to change to whenever is best....any advice from the fellow diver's out there?
Thanks M

Hi From June to October you can see them closer to you in La Paz Baja.
If fact they are there right now according to the Cortez Club www.cortezclub.com
Valerie

 

[diveprn]

We were on the Island of Hawaii to see the Mantas the summer before last and we never saw them even though you're supposed to have a 80% chance to see them. We were there in the beggining of July and latter we were told they had a two and ahalf week dryspell. I also have a friend that lives on Kuai, he has gone 3 times to see the Mantas and has yet to see them. I hope you see them but you should know what the reality is of seeing them.....it's hit and miss.

Hi, I was in Kona in January and they weren't there. "No Plankton" They said that they usually are there in June.
Valerie

 

[t0by]

I saw whale sharks daily on dive trips in Tofo, Mozambique.
Several times they were sitting there hanging out with us on safety stops.
The boat would have to dodge them some times.
"Anyone want to snorkel with a whale shark" the captain would ask..
"Again? No. Can't be bothered"

Lots of Mantas too ;-)

 

[Johnny Kain]

We stayed at Laguna Beach resort (Utila) last March and saw whale sharks multiple times. Early in the week winds were a bit high which made it harder for the capt to spot boils but once it calmed down he found them every day.

Overall, LBR is a very good operation and I would highly recommend it unless you want top notch food.