Whale Shark Encounter: Swim with Gentle Giants

Swim with whale sharks in the protected area of Cancun, followed by a visit to the stunning Playa Norte beach in Isla Mujeres. An unforgettable adventure awaits!

Duration: 5 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Contoy Adventures - Our Whale Shark Encounter begins early in the morning where, depending on the hotel or condominium you’re staying at, our experienced van drivers will pick you up right at the lobby or entrance to take you to our new marina located in the ferry terminal in Punta Sam in Cancun. All of our vans are comfortable A/C units in…
What's Included
  • Hotel pickup and drop-off
  • Professional guide
  • Use of snorkeling equipment
  • Breakfast
  • Tea and coffee
  • Snacks
  • Sodas & bottled water
What's Not Included
  • Dock fee and Federal Tax
Additional Information

Come join us in this once in a lifetime experience and live the most incredible adventure swimming beside this ocean’s gentle giants. Your encounter will be supervised by our very experienced guides not to mention you’ll be wearing our snorkeling gear certified by National Geographic Snorkeler.
We start the adventure picking you up from any hotel in…

Location
Contoy Adventures
Our marina is located right next to the Punta Sam Ferry terminal to Isla Mujeres and next to the Villa del Palmar hotel.
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.8
(433 Ratings)
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Summerm905
Jul 11, 2026
YES - NATE and JULIAN are awesome! loved everything!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Sleepyvet
Jul 8, 2026
Amazing experience!!! - Nay was our fantastic guide and Julian our captain on the Alma Luisa (best boat). Weather was good and although the sea was a little choppy this was the most amazing experience. 100% recommend, photos and videos don’t do it justice. We saw whale sharks and Manta rays and got in up close to all of them with help from the captain and guide. A must do.
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Vacation45103253379
Jul 6, 2026
A great time! - Nate (guide) and Javier (driver) were both tremendous! They made us feel safe, and made sure we enjoyed everything to its fullest!!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
446shwetav
Jul 6, 2026
BEST EXPERIENCE EVER - So so amazing! One of the most unreal experiences of my life! Highly recommend Nate as your guide and Julian as your captain. So amazing
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W8920wwjessicab
Jun 30, 2026
Wonderful whale shark snorkel - Wonderful experience. Our guide Nate was wonderful and so was our Captain Julian-getting us close to the whale sharks. Amazing experience. FYI 3 out of 10 got seasick so pack some meds.
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39averic
Jun 23, 2026
Whale Shark experience - It was an awesome experience! We had Nae and I think the driver was Julian? I don’t remember but it was a great experience. We got to enjoy the beautiful ocean atmosphere while swimming with the whale sharks and Nae did his best to guide us to the best spots to see the whale sharks and get the best possible experience. We were there at around 6:50ish and got back around 12:30. Seeing whale sharks is something I wanted to do for a while and i’m glad I chose the right program to book with! There’s a perfect amount of people on the boat and everyone gets along with each other because of that. Nae and Julian made the best food and made sure to keep offering us water and food to make sure we weren’t dehydrated. So fun and I 100% recommend!!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Teofilan2026
Jun 23, 2026
Nancy from XPO tour customer service was wonderful. - Was one of the best tours we ever did, from the snorkeling with the whale sharks to the nice north beach on the island everything was wonderful. There are so many options and at first didn't knew where to book, but after dealing with with Nancy the most friendly customer service I ever had we booked through xpotours.com
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Amoraffie
Jun 16, 2026
Whale sharks - This was a fabulous experience. Fyi boat ride in was pretty long (1 to 1.5 hrs) and can be rough so take something if you get seasick. Saw 3 whale sharks they were beautiful, water was warm and the guide was great! We went with Ney and Julian. Julian drove excellently , Ney was really helpful. Cerviche was yum drinks were nice and cold. Water was crystal clear and warm at Isa De Mujeres. Would definitely recommend!
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Thedavi
Jun 15, 2026
My experience - The experience was amazing. The tour guides were great. I really recommend the tour.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Powder80
Jun 25, 2026
Whale Shark Excursion - The experience of swimming with Whale Sharks is amazing. It's hard to compare it to anything else. You start the excursion by being taking by a transport to the pier/dock in Cancun. When you get there, you are given a light breakfast consisting of different types of breads or fruit. From there you take a one-hour boat out in the ocean. You begin searching for whale sharks by looking for fins on the surface. Once your boat, or another boat finds them (no way to tell how long that will take) your boat heads to where they are located. Our trip had about twenty or so whale sharks, which sounds great. The bad part of the trip and the most stressful is that there are about fifteen to twenty other boats that have to do a circle dance around the whale sharks to get you in the water. Your captain will maneuver the boat within about ten feet of the whale shark and you and a partner jump into the water with your guide. You IMMEDIATELY have to start swimming fast to spot the whale shark and keep swimming with it, they are fast! You land in the water within about six feet or so of the whale shark. After swimming a few minutes with it, you circle back to your boat and get picked up and then the next couple gets ready to jump in. This cycle continues until you swim about three times per couple on the boat. You are free to bring your own waterproof camera. Make sure the camera is strapped to your wrist and secure. The experience is AMAZING. The only downside and nerve wrecking part of the excursion is all of the other boats and the "dance" they have to do to maneuver to drop off their divers and pick them up and reposition to find another whale shark. That part was not fun, but that's just part of it I suppose. Definitely a worth-while experience though. After the experience, they took you to Isla Mujeres in the beach area and let you in the water for about twenty minutes to either swim or eat some food they prepare for you. After that you end up back in the port area to await your transport back to your hotel/resort.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
From $220
up to 15 guests
1 - Adult
Cancellation: Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start of your experience (local time).