Whale Shark Encounter Full-Day all inclusive Tour from Riviera Maya

Posted By : 974brittanye
Jane was an amazing tour guide and the crew were fantastic. It was truly a magical day on the water after finding multiple sharks feeding.

All the crew showed great respect for the animals, which was important to us to see from an operator. And lunch - prepared on board - was delicious.

One word to the wise -- it will be hard sitting and waiting for everyone to dive for upwards on an hour on the waves so take the Gravol offered if you are even slightly prone to sea sickness.
Rating :
Posted On : 2024-06-29 13:03:01

Posted By : MeganMHarris
Whale Sharks 10/10!! The transportation and communication 3/10. Would do it again just for the experience with the whale sharks. It's incredible and a once in a life-time chance. DO IT!!! The captain and crew did a great job making sure everyone got to see the sharks and pulled the boat up and told us to jump at the perfect time, even though the sharks were hard to find that day. I am greatful for skilled crewman. They had lots of drinks and water bottles onboard, and I appreciated showers to rinse at the end. Note: we did not get to go ashore at Isla Mujeres, as I thought, they served us lunch on the boat and we got in the water on the beach, but had to stay in the boat area away from shore.

However, this company has quite a bit to learn about customer comfort. The tour was full with a group total of 10 plus staff. We were squeezed into the back of a van with NO airflow. The seat was completely upright and the equipment was under our legs so we were cramped. The ride was long, and bumpy and we both got car sick before we even got there. We left from Playa but they detoured an extra 3hrs round trip to pick someone up from Cancun. The breakfast they provided was bad. We had no time to eat it before being rushed onto the boat. The sea was rough that day, no fault of the crew, but the boat was small for the number of people on it and there was no choice as to where to sit. My partner and I were both seasick the entire trip, about 8+ hours, and my partner never gets motion or seasick, but this did it for him. I was too sick to eat, but my partner said the food choices were bad. We didn't get to go ashore at Isa Mujeres, and unfortunately, the sea was so choppy that there wasn't much to see when we did the reef snorkel because it was murky (again that's not their fault). At the end of the day, we had to get back in the too-small back seat of the burning van with no airflow for a very long drive with traffic. A smoother and shorter ride in a larger van, and larger boat (or less people) would have made this a much better day.
Rating :
Posted On : 2024-06-26 02:29:01

Posted By : Landry_J
Great trip swimming with gentle giants. Equipment was good and food was great.
Recommended for those looking to do something out of the ordinary. I wouldn’t recommend for younger children as it requires some fast swimming to keep up with the sharks.
Rating :
Posted On : 2024-06-16 14:06:37

Posted By : G5869GGstevem
Long story, but we went on a whale shark swimming adventure with a different company the day before this one. This one, the one with EcoTours was much better. Our tour guide Jane rode with the van driver to pick us up, (she texted 5 minutes before arriving to also keep us aware of when she’d for sure be there). (The other company didn’t do this). On the van ride, she described the process of what it would be like when we arrived and got on the boat. One thing I would like to see is an ability to use card to pay for things. I wanted a t-shirt, but they didn’t take card, only cash, which meant some of my intended tip money went to the shirt.
The ride was a little rough on the way out, but they had offered motion sickness medicine, which helped my wife. There was Coke and water available on the way. Our captain was able to find an amazing location for us, where there were over 50 whale sharks (there were only 2 the day before on the other trip). We each got two dives with the whale sharks, and got what felt like an extra long amount of time each jump.
After that we went to Ilsa Mujeres and got to snorkel (again, didn’t get to do that the previous day’s trip) on the reef. While the boat was then anchored we got to float and walk on the beach while the sailor and captain made ceviche for us.
The experience of swimming with whale sharks is an amazing experience and would highly recommend. More so, if you’re going, go with Ecotours and request Jane as your guide.
Rating :
Posted On : 2024-06-14 18:32:20

Posted By : Amy M
This was by far the highlight of the trip for us! We swam with the whale sharks the day before (different company) because of the weather was not cooperating. We kept our booking with EcoTours and we are so glad we did. Our captain found an area with 50-100 whale sharks! The day before we only saw 1-2. Our guide Jane and our PADI said this was the best all season! Jane allowed us to spend more time in the water than other companies. She was very knowledgeable as well. Our Captain was also amazing, but we didn’t catch his name. We also were able to snorkel next to Isla Mujeres. Then our PADI guide made fresh guacamole and ceviche. PS just take the motion sickness pills! It makes your trips sooooo much better!!! 100% recommend using this company.
Rating :
Posted On : 2024-06-14 18:27:27

Posted By : madisongQ2174PP
This was amazing, me and my family couldn’t believe how cool and awesome this opportunity was. Our tour Guide Jane made the experience 10 times better. She was very happy and joyful the whole time and was always making sure we were safe and happy!
Rating :
Posted On : 2024-06-09 17:44:50

Posted By : Explorer05273717863
Viewing whaleshark has been a long life dream of mine. Our tour guide, Alexandra, provided an awesome memory for this experience. She's attentive and jumping in the water with you every time. She will guide you and tow you as need to get the best experience. The captain also drops you off at the perfect spot every time.
Highly recommend asking for Alexandra as your guide.
Rating :
Posted On : 2024-06-08 13:41:05

Posted By : jameswj2017
Very positive experience. People were all very friendly and supportive and personable. Alexandra was wonderful. It was a lot of driving in the boat, which was long and less than great. But the team were all amazing.
Rating :
Posted On : 2024-06-06 17:07:22

Posted By : E6327DV_
I recently joined an amazing excursion in Mexico, where we swam with whale sharks. It was incredible! Our guide, Alexandra, was exceptionally attentive and helped everyone who felt unwell. She especially supported our little traveler, who quickly trusted Alexandra and enthusiastically went to swim with the sharks. We are very grateful for the wonderful experience and the excellent care we received.
Rating :
Posted On : 2024-06-03 21:10:57

Posted By : Tour99333
Amazing tour and was able to swim with so many whale sharks. Be ready to swim hard and fast as these giants although look to be moving slow are actually moving very fast.
Rating :
Posted On : 2024-03-29 23:27:09