Swimming with whale sharks guide

...you want to touch them. Whale sharks are easy-going and can be inquisitive, but that doesn’t mean you should get too close and you should never try to touch or hang onto them, as this causes the sharks stress. …you’re not excited about other wildlife. There’s no guarantee that every day will come with a new whale shark sighting, but in the meantime you can be spotting manta rays in the Maldives, grey whales in Baja Mexico, sea turtles around Isla Mujeres and corals or maybe even monkeys and bushbabies on Mafia Island. …if you’re not confident in the water. You’ll be spending a lot of your time beneath the waves, out in the ocean, alongside wild marine animals – this is not the best time to discover you don’t get on with your snorkelling equipment.

On conservation biased trips, you’ll learn how to record their behavior, spot their sex and take underwater photographs. As unique as a human fingerprint, the pattern of spots on a whale shark allows each individual shark to be identified and catalogued. If you want to put your newfound knowledge to good use, you can book a longer, two or three week conservation volunteering holiday in Tanzania or the Maldives, where you’ll work with visiting tourists. In addition to the positive impact conservation has on this endangered species, it’s also beneficial for the people who live alongside them. Some volunteering holidays also include local community projects, such as teaching English and promoting whale shark conservation at schools on mainland Tanzania, or running a Whale Shark Festival in the Maldives.

If you’re an experienced diver, or simply want the freedom to choose the right excursions for you, there is also the option to book an all-inclusive accommodation on Dhigurah Island in the Maldives and choose from a range of different diving trips on offer nearby. If you have less experience in the water, or simply want to spend more time above the waves, you can book a multi activity trip, such as a sea kayaking expedition, and discover a greater variety of local marine species. Sea kayaking in the Sea of Cortez, Mexico, is a fantastic way to get a closer view of the enormous, barnacle-covered grey whales that come here to mate, spot exotic birds among the mangroves and snorkel with sea lions and, of course, whale sharks.

“Practice snorkelling beforehand if you're not used to it, but if you are, then you'll be fine. If seasick in the slightest, bring the necessary medicine; you don't want to waste boat time being ill. If sensitive to the sun, be prepared to put on lots of sunscreen frequently, and take covering up against the sun seriously.” – Nuraini Arsad, on a whale shark conservation holiday in the Maldives