Dive with Great White Sharks - Top 6 reasons

Thanks to Jaws, great white sharks are one of the most feared predators to patrol the ocean. In reality, these misunderstood marine animals are critical to the ocean’s health and are incredibly humbling to witness in the flesh. Located off the coast of Baja Mexico in the Pacific Ocean, Guadalupe is home to the best great white shark cage diving on the planet. Perfect for divers and non-divers alike, discover the top reasons you should dive with great white sharks.

1. Challenge Your Perception

Seeing your first great white can be a spine-tingling experience. These predators can reach a whopping six metres in length, which is about one-and-a-half times as long as a Volkswagen Beetle. But once you’ve become accustomed to their size, you’ll start to notice their beautifully streamlined movements as they power through the water.

There are currently 366 sharks identified in Guadalupe, and each shark has been named (two of our favourites are Lucy and Joker, you can read more about their personalities here). Look closely and you might be able to identify each one by their unique characteristics; you might even be lucky enough to make eye contact – white sharks have startling blue eyes.

2. See the Ocean’s Top Predator in Action

One of evolutions great success stories, great whites torpedo-shaped bodies help propel them through the water in quick bursts, they have 300 teeth arranged in seven rows, can detect tiny electromagnetic signals given off by animals and can even smell a single drop of blood in 100 litres of water, making them the perfect predators. We offer unlimited time in our surface cages, and up to four dives a day in our submerged cages, meaning virtually unlimited opportunities to see these sharks in action.

White sharks usually position themselves beneath their target, often breaching out of the water as they catch their prey, so you can also get a front row seat to the action onboard our liveaboards.

3. Unique Animal Behavior

Between May and late-June, male great white sharks start returning to Guadalupe. Visit between July and August, when all the males have arrived, and you can be a fly on the wall as sharks of all ages and size compete for dominance. Comparable to a rowdy gang of teenage boys all jostling for position (read: Spring Break), witnessing this fascinating behavior is an extraordinary experience. Come September, female sharks start to show up, and if you visit between October and November, you’ll have the opportunity to see these awe-inspiring massive females (only defeated in size by whale sharks) dominate all the other sharks.

4. Incredible Photo Opportunities

Guadalupe has all the right ingredients for the perfect photo, with beautiful, topaz blue water and visibility up to 150-ft. We anchor in a calm, protected bay (no seasickness here!), and with such still water it’s like looking through a glass window to the action. Insider tip: keep you camera on hand when on deck and follow the sharks movements below as they shoot up through the water and breach.

Stop by SeeCreatures Cabo before your trip and we’ll give you our top tips for capturing the perfect shot on our Backscatter photography workshop.

5. Become a Citizen Scientist

While we’re on the topic of photography, you can use your snaps to help towards these sharks’ conservation. Despite being a top predator, white sharks are classified as vulnerable. Great white conservation is critical for the ocean health, and you can help in their protection by photographing your encounters. Your photos can be used to identify and document the sharks that visit the bay, which helps scientists better understand their movements and therefore how to protect them. If you identify a new shark in the area, you may even be able to name it! Read our blog on white sharks to learn more about how great white conservation is integral to the ocean.

6. The World’s Best Great White Diving

By now you’ll know that Guadalupe’s gin-clear, calm waters make it perfectly suited to dive with great white sharks. But what makes this corner of the world so incredible is the sheer number of great white sharks you can see. We’ve seen as many as 13 at once, and our record is 50 different individuals over three days diving! The icing on the cake? Our surface and submerged cages make this trip is perfectly suited to both divers and non-divers, so everyone can experience unforgettable encounters with the world’s greatest predators.