Can You Swim With Whale Sharks In The Galapagos Islands?

The Galapagos whale shark is on many scuba diver’s bucket list. But as with many places where you can swim with whale sharks, there are better times to go. Which is why it’s important to know whether you can swim with whale sharks in the Galapagos Islands, and when is best to see them?

You can swim with whale sharks in the Galapagos Islands and the best time to go is from July to November. The best way to see whale sharks is from on a Galapagos scuba diving liveaboard on a trip to Wolf and Darwin Islands. Most Galapagos whale sharks are huge and some measuring up to 12 metres.

The best way to dive the Galapagos Islands, and especially Darwin Island and Wolf Rock, is by a scuba diving liveaboard. You can check the latest and best deals on Galapagos liveaboards using the following window:

Please keep reading for more about the Galapagos whale shark together with some interesting whale shark facts.

Where can you see whale sharks in Galapagos?

Your best chance to see Galapagos Whale Sharks is in the waters around Wolf and Darwin Islands in the north. Your only way to do this is to book at Galapagos scuba diving liveaboard trip. The distance from Santa Cruz or Baltra Island to Wolf Island is about 270 kilometres (169 miles). Darwin Island is a further 45 kilometres (28 miles).

This makes the distance to Darwin Island from Santa Cruz about 315 kilometres (197 miles). This distance is too far for day boats.

Handy Galapagos liveaboard comparison chart - Table of Galapagos scuba diving liveaboards (Scroll table right for more info.)

Galapagos Scuba Diving Liveaboard	Review Rating Out of 10	Cost Per Day (From price)	Enquire	Nitrox	Flexible Booking	Dietary Requirements	Logged Dives/Min Dive Certification	Darwin & Wolf Islands	Land Excursions	Internet Cost	Available for Charter	Sidemount/Rebreather Diving support	Length	Max Guests/ Cabins/Bathrooms	Family Friendly
Galapagos Aggressor III Liveaboard	9.1	£447/$608/€501	Enquire	Paid	No	Specific dietary requirements catered for.	000 - OW*	Yes	Yes	Paid	Yes	No	31/100f	16/8/11	No
Galapagos Aqua Liveaboard	9.0	£161/$219/€180	Enquire	Paid	Yes	Vegetarian. Specific dietary requirements catered for.	050 - AOW	Yes	Yes	No	No	Sidemount	26m/85	16/9/9	No
Galapagos Astrea Liveaboard	8.2	Enquire	Enquire	Paid	No	Vegetarian. Vegan. Specific dietary requirements catered for.	Enquire	Yes	Enquire	No	No	Tech diving support	27m/89f	16/8/8	No
Galapagos Blue Spirit Liveaboard	0.0	£524/$713/€587	Enquire	No	Yes	Enquire	050 - OW	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	No	32/104f	16/10/12	Yes
Galapagos Calipso Liveaboard	9.3	£243/$331/€273	Enquire	Paid	Yes	Vegetarian. Vegan. Specific dietary requirements catered for.	100 - OW	Yes	Yes	Free	Yes	Sidemount	35m/115	16/8/9	No
Galapagos Humboldt Explorer Liveaboard	8.8	£343/$467/€384	Enquire	Paid	Yes	Specific dietary requirements catered for.	100- AOW	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	No	34m/112f	16/8/8	No
Galapagos Master Liveaboard	9.0	£308/$419/€345	Enquire	Paid	Yes	Vegetarian. Specific dietary requirements catered for.	050 - AOW	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	No	32m/105f	16/9/10	No
Galapagos Nortada Liveaboard	8.3	£415/$565/€465	Enquire	Paid	No	Vegetarian. Specific dietary requirements catered for.	Enquire	Yes	Enquire	No	Yes	Tech diving support. Rebreather.	26m/85f	10/5/5	No
Galapagos Sky Liveaboard	9.5	£536/$729/€601	Enquire	Free	No	Vegetarian. Vegan. Specific dietary requirements catered for.	060 - AOW	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	No	31/100f	16/8/8	Yes (Per customer review)
Galapagos Tiburon Explorer Liveaboard	0.0	£406/$552/€455	Enquire	Paid	Yes	Vegetarian. Vegan. Specific dietary requirements catered for.	100 - AOW	Yes	Yes	Paid	Yes	Sidemount	38/125f	16/9/9	No

Galapagos liveaboard comparison chart notes:
1. The exchange rate used for GBP to USD 1.36 and GBP to Euro 1.12.
2. If you love one of these Galapagos scuba diving liveaboards, but the price is above your budget, please always check the most up to date cost of the trip by clicking on the "Enquire" link, as there may be special offers or a significant price change for a specific Galapagos liveaboard not yet reflected in the above table of Galapagos liveaboards.
3. The 'Cost per day' column will make it easy to sort these Galapagos liveaboards by cost, but these prices may vary when you visit to book. The prices listed are a cost guide and were correct at the time of compiling this table.
4. Under review rating '0.0' means no rating received at the time of compiling the table.
5. To scroll on desktop select table and use arrow keys. On touch screen including mobile devices scroll the table using the screen.
6. Min dive certification: OW = Open Water Diver. AOW = Advanced Open Water Diver.
* Please note the Galapagos Aggressor III minimum logged dive requirement is no dives. However, your diving will be restricted to the beginner dives. You won't be permitted to dive in strong currents experienced at Wolf and Darwin Islands.

Galapagos whale shark facts

A few Galapagos whale shark interesting facts include:

• The Galapagos Islands is one of the most reliable places in the world to see whale sharks on their migratory journey, during the Galapagos whale shark season.
• The Galapagos whale shark season is best between July and November every year. Some consider June as the starting month of the Galapagos whale shark season, but you are more likely to see more whale sharks from July onwards.
• The peak Galapagos whale shark season is August to September, which is when the waters around the Galapagos Islands are at their coolest (see table below).
• Galapagos whale sharks congregate in open water around Darwin and Wolf Islands.
• The reason why whale sharks congregate near Darwin and Wolf Islands is due to the many upwelling currents that create the perfect place for whale shark food.
• The main current to bring nutrient rich water to the Galapagos Islands is the Humboldt Current. It is this current that is responsible for cooling the waters around the Galapagos Islands.
• Whale sharks are the largest fish on the planet measuring over 12 metres (39 feet) in length. The record whale shark is said to be 18 metres (59 feet).
• Whale sharks are easy to recognise, as they have white spots on their skin. They also have very wide mouths (up to 1.5 metres wide) with small eyes on either side of the mouth.
• The Galapagos whale sharks tend to be large pregnant females.

For more interesting facts about whale sharks, please take a read this article about whether a whale shark is a mammal or a fish with a few fun facts.

The Best Time To Dive The Galapagos Islands chart (Scroll table right for more info.)

Month	Weather	Average daily max temperature/ sunshine	Average Sea Water Temperature	Average rainfall mm/In	Best chance to see Hammerheads, Galapagos sharks	Best chance to see Whale Sharks	Best chance to see giant manta rays	Comments
01. Scuba diving Galapagos in January	Wet season. Daily rain likely. Cloudier skies.	27°C (81°F) - 4hrs	25°C (77°F)	90 (3.54)	Best time	No	Best time	Best time to see mantas. Hammerhead schools generally larger.
02. Scuba diving Galapagos in February	Wet season. Daily rain likely. Cloudier skies.	27°C (81°F) - 5hrs	26°C (79°F)	114 (4.5)	Best time	No	Best time	Best time to see mantas. Hammerhead schools generally larger.
03. Scuba diving Galapagos in March	Wet season. Daily rain likely. Cloudier skies.	27°C (81°F) - 6hrs	26°C (79°F)	107 (4.21)	Best time	No	Best time	Best time to see mantas. Hammerhead schools generally larger.
04. Scuba diving Galapagos in April	Wet season. Daily rain likely. Cloudier skies.	27°C (81°F) - 6hrs	25°C (77°F)	60 (2.36)	Best time	No	Best time	Best time to see mantas. Hammerhead schools generally larger.
05. Scuba diving Galapagos in May	Wet season. Daily rain likely. Cloudier skies.	27°C (81°F) - 7hrs	25°C (77°F)	26 (1.02)	Good time	Less chance	Best time	Best time to see mantas. Hammerhead schools generally larger.
06. Scuba diving Galapagos in June	Dry season. Blue skies. Mid-day showers.	25°C (77°F) - 6hrs	24°C (75°F)	21 (0.83)	Yes	Best time	Less chance	Best time to see whale sharks. Rougher seas at times.
07. Scuba diving Galapagos in July	Dry season. Blue skies. Mid-day showers.	23°C (73°F) - 6hrs	23°C (73°F)	10 (0.4)	Yes	Best time	Less chance	Best time to see whales and dolphins. Best time to see whale sharks. Rougher seas at times.
08. Scuba diving Galapagos in August	Dry season. Blue skies. Mid-day showers.	23°C (73°F) - 6hrs	23°C (73°F)	12 (0.47)	Yes	Best time	Less chance	Best time to see whales and dolphins. Best time to see whale sharks. Rougher seas at times.
09. Scuba diving Galapagos in September	Dry season. Blue skies. Mid-day showers.	24°C (75°F) - 6hrs	22°C (72°F)	88 (3.46)	Yes	Best time	Less chance	Best time to see whales and dolphins. Best time to see whale sharks. Rougher seas at times.
10. Scuba diving Galapagos in October	Dry season. Blue skies. Mid-day showers.	24°C (75°F) - 6hrs	23°C (73°F)	85 (3.35)	Yes	Best time	Less chance	Best time to see whales and dolphins. Best time to see whale sharks. Rougher seas at times.
11. Scuba diving Galapagos in November	Dry season. Blue skies. Mid-day showers.	26°C (79°F) - 6hrs	23°C (73°F)	74 (2.71)	Yes	Best time	Less chance	Best time to see whales and dolphins. Best time to see whale sharks. Rougher seas at times.
12. Scuba diving Galapagos in December	Dry season. Blue skies. Mid-day showers.	26°C (79°F) - 5hrs	24°C (75°F)	16 (0.63)	Good time	No	Best time	Best time to see mantas. Hammerhead schools generally larger.

The best time to dive the Galapagos Islands chart notes:
1. Average daily max temperature, daily sunshine and sea water temperature are courtesy of https://www.holiday-weather.com/galapagos_islands/averages.
2. To scroll on desktop select table and use arrow keys. On touch screen including mobile devices scroll the table using the screen.

Galapagos whale shark

The Galapagos whale shark is not really any different to any other whale shark. But the benefit of swimming with whale sharks in the Galapagos Islands is you can also enjoy hundreds of schooling scalloped hammerheads at the same time. These schooling hammerheads are found around the waters of Darwin and Wolf Island as well. In fact it is the hammerhead sharks that bring most scuba divers to the Galapagos Islands, with the Galapagos whale sharks being the icing on the cake.

That’s not to mention the land excursions to see the giant tortoises, the opportunity to dive with Galapagos sea lions, penguins and marine iguanas too.

Is it safe to swim with whale sharks?

A Galapagos Whale Shark may sound like it might be dangerous, as it’s a shark after all. But Galapagos whale sharks are gentle giants that mostly feed on eat krill, plankton and other small fish. So it’s safe to say it’s not dangerous to swim with whale sharks, but see below about why you should not touch any whale shark.

The best Galapagos scuba diving liveaboards to swim with Galapagos whale sharks include the Aqua, Galapagos Master, Galapagos Aggressor III, Calipso, Humboldt Explorer, Galapagos Sky and Tiburon. For the best features on each of these liveaboards take a look at the above Galapagos liveaboard comparison chart.

Why should you not touch a whale shark?

There are two reasons why you should not touch whale sharks, firstly it is illegal to touch them as they are a protected species. But secondly, and even though they are gentle giants, you don’t want to get too close not upset one as they have large powerful tails. So when you swim with the whale sharks in the Galapagos Islands, watch and enjoy from a safe distance and let them slowly swim past.

Table of Galapagos liveaboards

This list of Galapagos liveaboards is in descending customer rating order, followed by Scuba Diving Luxury Rating (SDE Lux Rating, see below), so the liveaboards with the highest customer rating and the best SDE lux rating will be at the top of the list. If you want to change the list order, use the “Sort by” dropdown below.

The Scuba Diving Earth Luxury Rating (SDE Lux Rating) is explained on each liveaboard review when you click the “Discover Liveaboard” link, and is my own Liveaboard Luxury Rating I’ve assigned to all liveaboards. Choosing between liveaboards is helped by customer scores, and if you get stuck choosing between two or three liveaboards, where each one has a high customer score out of 10, you can use the SDE Luxury Rating to help narrow down your choice.

Think about it like using Booking.com when searching for the best hotel. Booking.com also use a customer score where each customer rates hotels out of 10. This is similar to the liveaboard customer rating, which is also rated out of 10. But let’s say you only like to stay in hotels rated 8 and above on Booking.com, but you also want the hotel to have WIFI or parking, or to have a swimming pool etc. The features each hotel has is usually secondary to the score out of 10.

I hope you enjoyed this page about can you swim with whale sharks in the Galapagos

If you have more questions either about snorkelling or scuba diving (or specifically about can you swim with whale sharks in the Galapagos), please comment below with your questions.

Please share your experiences, plus dive sites, resorts and liveaboards you recommend. Share the time of year of your trip together with what you saw, the visibility, currents and dive operator, as this will help others who read this page.

There will also be many more pages and articles about scuba and scuba diving safety tips (and on snorkelling too) for you to read and learn about this fabulous sport.

Have fun and be safe!