Playa del Carmen

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Whale Shark Tour from Cancun and Playa Del Carmen

Playa del Carmen, Mexico

Whale Shark Tour from Cancun and Riviera Maya

From $159.00

Select Date and Travelers

up to 24 hours before the experience starts (local time)

7 hours
Pickup offered
Mobile ticket
Offered in: English

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Overview

Swim alongside whale sharks in the Caribbean Sea on this 6-hour tour from Cancun. These gentle giants arrive in large numbers around the Yucatan Peninsula every summer. Slip on snorkel gear and marvel at your proximity to these fish that can grow as long as 43 feet (13 meters)! After your memorable swim, sail to Isla Mujeres’ Playa Norte for a beachside lunch. Hotel transport from Cancun and the Riviera Maya included. Don’t miss this unique experience available from May to September only.

6-hour whale shark tour from Cancun
Snorkel and swim near whale sharks, the largest fish in the sea
Watch whale sharks feed on plankton and small fish
Learn from a knowledgeable guide about marine life in the area
Enjoy a delicious lunch on the beaches of Isla Mujeres
Round-trip transport from Cancun and Riviera Maya hotels included

What's Included

Bilingual Guide
Snacks
Lunch
Water and soft drinks
Snorkeling gear
Hotel pickup and drop-off (not included in without transportation option)

Port & Protected Whale Shark Area Fees ($15 USD per person, cash payment at the port on your day)
Without transportation option does not include the pick-up and drop-off hotel

Meeting and Pickup

You can head directly to the meeting point, or request pickup

Meeting point

77420 Punta Sam, Q.R., Mexico
IMPORTANT: the port fee & whale shark natural protected area entrance are not included, you must pay per person at our stand in cash, there is no ATM in the port. **For the meeting point(no transportation) time is 7:30 AM at Punta Sam port.

Pickup points

Select a pickup point

Start time

06:00 AM

End point

This activity ends back at the meeting point.

Pickup details

Pick-up is available at Cancun, Playa del Carmen & Puerto Morelos, please add the hotel name to the reservation, and we will confirm the pickup time one day before tour day, provide a phone number where we can reach you by WhatsApp message. IMPORTANT: The port fee & whale shark natural protected area entrance are not included in the price, these federal fees must be paid in cash at the port, bring cash there is no ATM in the port.

What To Expect

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Minimum age is 8 years
Children must be accompanied by an adult
Not wheelchair accessible
It is recommended that you bring a swimsuit, a long sleeve shirt and bring sunscreen and a waterproof camera
Pregnant women are not allowed

Seasonal product operating May to September
Not recommended for travelers with back problems
Not recommended for pregnant travelers
No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
Most travelers can participate
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 20 travelers

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.
Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.

Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.
This experience requires good weather. If it’s canceled due to poor weather, you’ll be offered a different date or a full refund.

Traveler Photos

Featured review

Barbara B

Eduardo was our tour guide and made sure my adult daughter and I had the most Amazing experience. My daughter is a natural in the water and a strong swimmer but myself I don’t swim well and was afraid getting into ocean water. With a life vest Eduardo held my hand in water and helped me have the most amazing life experience swimming along with the whale shark. Eduardo continued to support me and made sure I felt comfortable. The whale shark was so beautiful and a gentle giant. Thank you Eduardo and crew for our amazing, life changing experience.

Reviews

4.5

69 reviews

Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews

Reviews by Viator travelers.

We perform checks on reviews

Showing 1-10 of 69 reviews

Fantastic experience. The...

Anna_F, Jun 2023

Fantastic experience. The crew was amazing and so was the experience! I went by myself and still felt very safe and had a blast! We saw about 15 whale sharks. It’s a once in a life time experience!

Amazing! The crew were...

Lyndsey_C, Jun 2023

Amazing! The crew were wonderful I would most definitely recommend taking motion sickness medication before going..

Amazing experience

Katelynn_D, Aug 2022

Amazing experience even the second time around. Felt Very safe. The crew was terrific. Loved it would go again.

Response from Host, Nov 2022

Thank you for the opportunity to take you in this amazing adventure hope to see you soon back in Mexico!

Great tour!

Stevie_M, Aug 2022

Great day out! We were lucky and got to see a few sharks and got really close to them. We were back at the hotel by 2-3 pm (Cancun). It is a very well-organized tour, and Carlos was great. Would 100% recommend it, as the group size is small and they are super accommodating with yummy food on the Island after the sharks. Great information throughout. I would cover up too as you are not allowed to wear sunscreen when swimming with the sharks.

Response from Host, Nov 2022

Thank you for the opportunity to take you in this amazing adventure hope to see you soon back in Mexico!

A once in a lifetime experience!!

Nicole_C, Aug 2022

I cannot say enough good things about our guide Charlie, Jenner, and the rest of the boat crew. While they don’t promise that you will see a whale shark, they do their best to make sure everyone does. We were lucky to have great weather and they did such a wonderful job making sure everyone got to see and swim with the whale sharks while also ensuring no one was touching or hurting them. You can tell that they obviously care so much about these animals and the ocean. They even stopped our boat to pick up trash they saw in the ocean. After swimming, they take you to beautiful isla mujeres where they make you lunch on the water. It was so yummy and isla mujeres is so beautiful to swim around and take pictures at. Some tips—the boat is VERY rocky so make sure you have some tablets for motion sickness. If you forget you can buy them for $1 at the drop off point. They were so sweet even when people did get motion sick. Thank you again to Charlie and crew for making it such a wonderful adventure!

Response from Host, Nov 2022

Thank you for the opportunity to take you in this amazing adventure hope to see you soon back in Mexico!

Unbelievable experience...

David_Y, Jul 2022

Unbelievable experience with my family! Highly recommend! It was a birthday present for my daughter 2 years in the making(Covid)….well worth the money spent!!

Response from Host, Jul 2022

Thank you for the opportunity to takenyou in this amazing adventure!

Foul-up by other customers

Louise_B, Jul 2022

Because of a mixup, we never got picked up at our hotel security checkpoint. The reason given was that the people who were picked up before us were late in arriving at their pickup place. While I realize that things happen, we waited an hour at the place and time which we had confirmed the day before. In my opinion, those people should have been left behind, or at the very least, charged the amount that we paid for recompense to the company for their tardiness. Viator DID refund me the total amount I paid immediately, which is a BIG point in their favor. The rudeness of the people before us caused this whole foul-up, in my opinion. Perhaps you should consider changing your policy to leave behind customers who are more than 10 minutes late at their pickup point. We did schedule a whale shark trip with another company, and it was great.

Response from Host, Jul 2022

We are sorry for the situation, the first pickup clients make us wait for them, at the end they decide not to show up, on the second pickup customers show up late, unfortunetally we didnt coordinate correctly with the van driver to contact you, plus the situation of security check point at your hotel, that they didnt autorize us to access at your lobby, was a complicated situation, thank you for your comments we will consider to inprove our tour operations on situations like this.

Very memorable day.

James_C, Jun 2022

When we first arrived at the site we saw numerous whale sharks at least 10. The boat dropped us off as close to the sharks as possible. While there a group of dolphins came in the area. On the way back we saw the dolphins again and the crew guided the boat toward them. The dolphins then started swimming around the boat. The sea was very calm which made the boat ride and swim with the sharks ideal. The only reason I didn’t give the experience 5 stars was because the time you get to swim with the sharks seems very short but I think that is regulated.

Response from Host, Jul 2022

You where so lucky to spot dolphins in addition to swimming with the whale sharks, thank you for choosing us!

Whale shark tour

Nancy_C, Jun 2022

Actually we did not see any well sharks. The staff however was very helpful and friendly. The ceviche lunch was awesome and The Visit to Isla Mujeres beach was wonderful

Response from Host, Jun 2022

Unfortunately, this is a nature tour where we search for the sharks in the open sea, where we don't have control of them, and sometimes they just don't show up, our boat staff tries their best to find them, thank you very much for your honest comment of the situation.

5 star experience

Aucencio_A, Jul 2021

The crew made this an even better experience. I’d suggest having or renting a go pro because it’s well worth it. Our guide took ours and recorded an amazing video that I’ll have to share down the road at no extra cost. The ceviche and guacamole snack was fantastic. The whale shark snorkel was top notch and I was lucky enough to have one turn in my direction.

Just do it!!!!

Luana_B, Jul 2021

I had an absolute BLAST! Everything was perfect from beginning to end. Great communication for pick up. The crew/guide were super nice and friendly, we saw lots of whale sharks and had the best experience ever. Fresh ceviche and guac at Isla Mujeres just made the tour even better. 100% recommended!!

Not worth it

neetu_c, Jul 2021

The title is scam it’s not a whale shark swimming it’s more like whale shark seeing for two minutes after two hours of being in a boat with choppy waters and a bumpy ride. That’s the only way to get there and once we got there everyone was seasick and throwing up which was horrible experience and no one warned us that this was the trip. It is not worth 660 dollars for 4 people. I wouldn’t even pay 100 dollars for this. The tour guide and the driver were AMAZING!! The service was excellent but the whole tour overall was not worth it. As you only get to see whale shark for two minutes and that too barely clear.

Response from Host, Jul 2021

The whale shark tour is a 100% Nature tour, we can't control the weather conditions and the whale sharks, we do all we can to provide the best experience but unfortunettally some days this is not enought, we have days where dozens or more of whale sharks are sight, but as we mention this is out of our hands.

Long boat trip

Naoyuki_T, Jul 2021

A tour that takes you on a boat for an hour , where you suffer from vomiting in the high waves, see whale sharks for 5 minutes, and suffer on the boat for another hour.I can’t recommend to the family who has child.

Response from Host, Jul 2021

The whale shark tour is a 100% Nature tour, we can't control the weather conditions and the whale sharks, we do all we can to provide the best experience but unfortunettally some days this is bot enought. we have days where dozens or more of whale sharks are sight, but as we mention this is out of our hands.

Whale sharks were amazing!!

Skyler_S, Jun 2021

This was a great tour! Pickup was on time, was a little shop that gave us snacks at the pier and offered sunscreen and water shirts. And the whale sharks were magnificent!! Such an amazing creature to swim with! They fed us sandwiches at first then cooks us some great fish and chips! I would definitely recommend!

Response from Host, Jun 2021

So happy to hear you enjoy this amazing adventure, hope we can see you soon in Meixco again!

The Best Experience

Michael_P, Sep 2020

This was one of the best experiences ever. If you are lucky enough to get Carlos as your tour guide you've hit the jackpot! He made the trip comfortable, safe, and extremely enjoyable. We'd do it again and again!

Response from Host, Sep 2020

Thank you for your comments, this helps us a lot to achieve the goal of having the best guides in our activities, and provide unforgettable experiences!

Let life impress you.

Carlos, Jul 2020

Probably the best experience I've had in 42 yrs of life. I taking my son back to Cancun just to do it next week. I think all 7 people on the boat enjoyed it but probably not as much as I did. Read the other reviews, if you are a strong swimmer this will be YOUR best excursion ever. If your not a strong swimmer it's still worth going but you will feel like you are chasing them instead of swimming with them. The transfer driver, Carlos, was GREAT. He was very informative explaining all sorts of things about these perfect creatures. The boat guide, also named Carlos, was great too and even took lots of photos and videos for me. It was AMAZING from start to finish!! NOTE: When I read that it was mandatory to wear a life vest in the water I was a little disgruntled. But even Michael Phelps would get tired of trying to keep up with these guys without one. No matter how good of a swimmer you are don't be disgruntled about wearing it, it keeps you in the water swimming with these amazing animals longer!

Response from Host, Jul 2020

Thank you for the opportunity to take you on this amazing adventure, we hope to see you again !!

Once in a lifetime excursion!!

Travis_D, Jul 2020

We had a FABULOUS time with Michelle and Pepe during this excursion! It was mind blowing. They truly love what they do, and shared that love with us during this time. Due to the beaches of Isla Mujeres being closed, we ate on the boat and enjoyed the turquoise waters which was AMAZING! Our driver made us feel safe & secure by making everyone wear masks during the transport. THIS IS A MUST DO WHILE IN CANCUN! They catch the fish for the ceviche fresh every morning for your lunch.. and you can tell that it is fresh because it’s so tasted! They made us feel like family. The only recommendation I have is to remind people to take Dramamine before you go. My boyfriend got very sick on the hour-ride to the whale sharks. The waters are choppy and the boat is small (to ensure safety of the wildlife). I’ve traveled the world, and this excursion was one of the best things I’ve ever done! Thank you to the amazing staff!!

Response from Host, Jul 2020

And incredible experience swimming whit sharks, thank you for the opportunity to take you in this adventure, Regards!

too expensive for what it is

Eline_V, Jul 2019

We booked this tour by viator because all te excursion of Tui were too expensive. This tour was not that good. First we got picked up in our hotel, on time. And then we had a one hour drive to Cancun. We got in a speedboat with a small group of 10 people. They keep talking about protecting the environment and the animals and that you only go in the sea for a short time in couples, but then you arrive at the spot and then you see 50 other boats laying there. We were the first couple to go swimming, they told us to sit on the boat and than they suddenly pushed us hard off the boat. My friend was fine, but I got goggles that didn't fit well so i didn't see anything because there was all the time water in my eyes. After only a few minutes, we already had to go back to the boat. The second swim was even shorter. After this disappointing meeting with the whale sharks, we went to Isla Mujeres. We only could swim in the sea and eat on the boat. The overview of the excursion says that you have a lunch on the beaches of Isla Mujeres, but you just sit on the boat. If you would like to go swimming with the whale sharks, we recommend that you book with another company.

Response from Host, Jul 2019

Hello, we have great reviews in all our past tours, we ask to our clients to fill a evaluation form at the end of every tour and we have excellent reviews, probably you didnt book with us we are ContoyExcursions. Please check the name of the company you took the tour, in case is us please let us know the day of your tour and name of the guide to find out what happend.

disaster /excellent

rguillen65, Sep 2018

we have the most amazing trip not because the tour Gide the girls(maria) was a disaster but thanks to the captain and his helper our trip was excellent good job

Snorkeling with Whale Sharks

Barbara B, Aug 2018