What No One Tells You About Swimming With Whale Sharks

I got to check something else off my bucket list this past weekend that I have been really looking forward to- swimming with whale sharks off of Cancun, Mexico. I have been so excited for the experience, especially as we didn’t have to pay anything for it by using some of my Chase points. Saturday was finally the big day!

I didn’t feel nervous at all despite these creatures being so huge. I knew they just swim around all day eating plankton and really there was nothing to worry about. Seeing and swimming with them was guaranteed on the tour so I was pretty confident there would be no trouble in finding them either. Our tour guides from Eco Travel Mexico picked us up at our hotel at 7:40am and we were off on our way.

After a short 15 minute bus ride in the van we arrived at the port and were greeted by a nice breakfast spread of delicious fruits and pastries and some water, juice and coffee. We spent a few minutes enjoying the food before boarding the boat to head out to the sharks. The trip out was approximately an hour and we traveled at high speeds the whole time. We saw some flying fish along the way which are always fun as we bumped along through the water. It wasn’t hard to recognized where the whale sharks would be as there were already a few boats circling the one spot, literally out in the middle of the ocean. As we slowed down and got closer I could see the fins swimming through the water; it really looked like a horror movie was about to go down!

Once we slowed, there was a lot of frantic yelling around between the different crew members and this is where the surprises began setting in. Surprise number one: You can’t just get in the water and swim with the whale sharks. Only two people are allowed in the water from the boat at a time (this seemed like a rule for all boats, but I’m not positive). I had been happy that I’d booked a small group tour of only 10 people, but now this quickly seemed like a lot as we had to wait our turns. Definitely a disappointment that I wish we had known about ahead of time so that our expectations were more in check.

Surprise number two: Be ready to jump in the water RIGHT AWAY! We had no warning that they would need us to get in right at the perfect time when the boat was situated in front of the whale shark. This resulted in a lot of hectic scrambling as we’d be waiting and then all of a sudden the crew would yell GO! JUMP! GO! JUMP! Trying to get flippers over the side of the boat and into the water that quickly was stressful and very difficult to maneuver.

Surprise number three: If you don’t jump right away, you’ve pretty much missed your shot. These creatures don’t appear that they’re swimming fast at all, in fact they look like they’re going around at a leisurely speed. But in fact they’re next to impossible to catch up to! Once they’ve moved past you your chances of being able to swim alongside them are pretty much zero. This happened to me one time as there would people in front of me when the crew yelled to jump and I couldn’t get to the edge in time. When I finally made it there the whale shark was already passing by and I knew it would be too late to go. Once they go past you the crew immediately starts yelling at you to get back to the boat so that they can drive over to find another one for the next passengers to jump in the water with. Swimming with them really only lasts about 2 minutes each time for a total of about 3 times each.

Surprise number four: Be prepared to be VERY, VERY sea sick. Pablo and I don’t typically get very sea sick so I hadn’t been worried about it, but it was really bad. At least half the boat was throwing up over the sides into the water. We got into a routine of jumping in, swimming with the whale shark, getting back up onto the boat and then getting sick over the side. Repeat. Over and over again. But the waters out there are SOOOOOO rough. I felt sea sick right away though thankfully didn’t ever actually hurl over the side. There was no shame in it though as almost all the other passengers were also emptying their stomachs during our time out there. One trick we did learn: pour ice cold water over your head and neck when feeling nauseous. I’m not sure if it just shocks the system or what but it actually did help quite a bit and the crew had a huge cooler filled with icy water bottles for everyone to use.

Eventually we left and started the trip back to Cancun and things got much better once the boat started moving. I pretty much had a death look locked on the horizon for the whole time. We found out that we were going to be stopping at Isla Mujeres on the way back to feed some fish as well. I had been wanting to check out the island but didn’t think we’d have time to do it on this trip, so that was a nice surprise to have. We landed at Playa Norte which was absolutely beautiful, filled with a perfect beach area of pristine white sand. We fed the fish some crackers and there were huge schools swimming all around which was pretty cool. The excursion offered a seafood salad back on the boat but I was not feeling like putting anything into my stomach so declined the fruit they offered as well. Another couple on the boat actually opted to stay on the island and take the ferry back to Cancun later that after rather than return with us. I think that was one of the best decisions and now wish we had done the same! If you get the opportunity, I’d definitely take it as the island is just beautiful and it saves you a ferry fare one way (I believe it was around $20 per person round trip).

When we made it back to Cancun we wanted to head to the beach so we asked our driver if he’d drop us off at a nice beach instead of back at the hotel. They graciously agreed and dropped us off at Playa Tortuga along the way. (Read more about that in my post on about the city of Cancun). Overall the whale sharks were an incredible site to see as they creatures are just huge. Watching their gigantic mouths open was a treat. But we were also pretty miserable feeling sick the whole time so I definitely would not do it again. Was it worth it? Well we didn’t have to pay the nearly $200 per person but if we had I think I would have been VERY disappointed. You didn’t get nearly enough time in the water with them to warrant such a high price. However, we’re also learning that any and all of these cool experiences seem to have high price tags attached. It seems that everything cool to do is over priced and if you don’t do it you end up with just beach time instead. So I’d say this is in the ballpark of other high priced excursions we’ve done as well.

I was disappointed with the actual time and manner in which we were able to interact with the whale sharks as well. It was very similar to the rushed aspect of our time at Sting Ray City in Grand Cayman with the sting rays. I think we just got spoiled after visiting Akumal and the sea turtles there completely on our own without a tour. We had as much time with them as we wanted and there was no rush to leave. That’s truly an ideal experience and still tops my list as an all time favorite. These others were good as well just realize that the experience will be different and set your expectations accordingly. Swimming with whale sharks was a good once in a lifetime opportunity and I hope others are able to enjoy it as well.