Wetpixel Expeditions: Ultimate Whale Sharks, Cancun, Mexico, August 2012.

It doesn’t get much bigger than this. Your chance to see the largest known aggregation of the largest fish in the ocean.

In August 2012 Alex Mustard will be running two whale sharks trips to Isla Mujeres in Mexico for Wetpixel. This location is amazing for two reasons. First the sharks are feeding on transparent fish eggs at the surface, so can be seen in beautiful clear Caribbean waters. And second, the sheer number of sharks. To quote Eric from the previous WETPIXEL trip here: “There’s no other way to put it: our first day of photographing the whale shark aggregation was absolutely epic. Within an hour of leaving port, we found a group of over 300 whale sharks”. There are plenty of places in the world you can see whale sharks, but there is not another whale shark experience like this. You can see Eric’s pictures from this year’s Wetpixel trip here.

This is one of the hottest experiences in underwater photography at the moment, which, as Jeff Hartog put it on the Wetpixel forums, is “a trip that certainly lives up to it’s reputation”. A total must do. And this is your chance to get one up on Jacques Cousteau, who said he only saw two whale sharks in his whole life.

The deal. WETPIXEL has two 6-pax boats running side by side for the following dates:

• Trip 1: July 31 - Aug 4, 2012 (7 day trip, 5 full days in the water: arrive July 30, depart Aug 5)
  1 SPOT LEFT Please get in touch soon if you are interested.
• Trip 2: Aug 6 - Aug 10, 2012 (7 day trip, 5 full days in the water: arrive Aug 5, depart Aug 11) FULL

The cost of the trip is $2,550 USD per person, which includes:

Private boat charter with experienced captains, and plenty of space and shade, simple lunch on boat + non-alcoholic drinks, golf cart rental to get around the island (group rental), airport transfers in Cancun to ferry terminal (from and to), tip, hotel, dual occupancy (7 days, 6 nights: 1 day before to 1 day after). single accommodation available for supplemental fee. You are responsible for airfare to and from Cancun, ferry cost (not expensive), breakfast, and dinner.

A 50% deposit secures your space, and is refundable only if we re-book your space (minus a $200 cancellation fee). The balance is due 4 months before the trip start date. To book, please email Dan Baldocchi.

Please note that this is a snorkeling trip and therefore suitable for non-divers too. This is also a wildlife focused trip and there can be no 100% guarantee the sharks will turn up. Although we are running two trips, most people will see more than enough sharks by coming for just one week.

Ok, and one final video from Eric: count the sharks in this 30 second clip.