Swimming with whale sharks in the Philippines is one of many travelers’ dreams. Some even plan to travel to the Philippines just to see them. Imagining yourself next to the largest fish in the world (did you know it can reach 12 meters in length?) is enough to send a thrill through your whole body. However, as with any activity that involves animals, it is essential to inform yourself about the impact that interacting with them can have and, of course, which places are respectful.
We’ll tell you up front that you can swim with whale sharks in several places in the Philippines, but one of them is truly harmful for this endangered species. Please, with all our affection, we ask you to keep reading and be a responsible traveler.
Whale sharks in the Philippines
Whale sharks are migratory animals, meaning they travel countless kilometers in search of food, breeding opportunities, and other reasons researchers still don’t fully understand. This means you can find them in the waters off Australia, Honduras, the Maldives, Mexico, Mozambique, Panama and, of course, the Philippines.
It is estimated that almost half of the world’s whale sharks have disappeared over the last 75 years, which is why, in 2016, they were declared an endangered species. That same year, the LAMAVE institute (the Large Marine Vertebrates Research Institute) identified whale shark number 1,000 in the Philippines, leading to the conclusion that the archipelago’s waters host the third-largest population in the world and the largest in Southeast Asia.
Whale sharks are found along all Philippine coasts; however, in certain places and at certain times of the year their presence is much more common. Mainly due to high concentrations of plankton rising to the surface, sightings have been easy for decades in places like Donsol or Pintuyan.
And if tourism to swim with whale sharks has grown exponentially around the globe, the Philippines is no exception. This means there are better and worse places to get in the water with them.
Is it safe to swim with whale sharks?
Absolutely! Whale sharks feed mainly on plankton or phytoplankton, though they can also eat some small fish. There is no danger to people unless you ignore distance rules and, of course, common sense.
Although they may seem a bit clumsy, a single tail stroke can hurt you. That’s why it’s recommended to stay at least 3 meters from the shark’s body and 4 from its tail.
The most dangerous part of this activity is, in the rush and excitement, hitting or cutting yourself while getting on/off the boat or on nearby coral. This is yet another reason why we always stress how important it is to have travel insurance. The one we’ve been using for years, unlike others, also covers activities like diving and snorkeling. In “Best travel insurance for the Philippines” we talk about all of this and, as a reader of our site, you get a 5% discount if you get it through this link. Besides paying less, you help us keep this project going—which we run with great care:
Humans are the danger to whale sharks.
Is it possible to scuba dive with whale sharks in the Philippines?
As we mentioned, it’s possible to swim with whale sharks in the Philippines, but you CANNOT scuba dive in most places where this animal is respected. In other words, in Donsol, Padre Burgos/Pintuyan or Puerto Princesa you cannot dive within the protected area where sightings occur.
However, if you want to dive with whale sharks in the Philippines, you can do dives in areas near these points:
- In Donsol and Pintuyan, outside the designated area, there are occasional sightings while diving.
- Sometimes (rarely—don’t think it’s super common) whale sharks show up near Moalboal or Panglao (Bohol).
- In Tubbataha, one of the most remote diving destinations in the Philippines, they’re commonly seen. Keep in mind this reef can only be visited in season (roughly February to May) on a liveaboard cruise lasting 7–10 days.
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Where NOT to swim with whale sharks in the Philippines: Oslob (Cebu) and Lila (Bohol)
If you want to swim with whale sharks in the Philippines, we absolutely cannot recommend doing it in Oslob. Although it’s the best-known and most accessible place, what has been done there since 2011 is a true aberration against such a wonderful— and endangered—animal.
Years ago, in the barangay of Tan‑Awan in Oslob, in the south of Cebu, fishermen decided to feed the whale sharks roaming nearby with uyap, a mix of shrimp and crustaceans. The goal was to keep them away from their fishing nets, but soon they noticed tourists were coming to Oslob to swim with them, which brought more income. What started with just a few has now turned into a huge industry bringing in more than 1,000 people every day. This is causing enormous problems for whale sharks for several reasons:
- Uyap does not provide the nutrients they need (whale sharks mainly feed on plankton), but it keeps them captive. Several LAMAVE studies show that, unlike other places where they stay only seasonally for short periods, in Oslob some whale sharks have remained for more than a year, showing up every morning.
- LAMAVE also indicates this feeding method affects the animals’ position, as a whale shark naturally feeds horizontally, whereas in Oslob they’re observed feeding vertically.
- When whale sharks don’t migrate, their migratory—and therefore reproductive—patterns may be affected. What does this lead to? It accelerates their extinction. Many of the whale sharks in Oslob are juveniles, i.e., young sharks learning how to live in the sea. What happens if this is what they learn?
- The whale sharks in Oslob are associating the presence of a boat with getting food. A pattern has been identified where a shark approaches a boat outside Oslob and receives blows or cuts from propellers. In addition, migratory patterns are altered.
- The interaction code established in Oslob is not followed in 97% of cases. There is a rule that you cannot get closer than a meter and a half to the animal or touch it, but LAMAVE showed in its studies that in 64 hours there were 1,823 physical contacts—more than 29 per hour. What does this cause? Stress.
- If more than 1,000 people bathe with whale sharks every day in an area no larger than 20 meters by 50 meters, it doesn’t take much to guess the result: exposure to human bacteria and sunscreens that damage their skin—as well as the inevitable bumps and cuts caused by people and boats.
- Not only that—recent reports show the poor quality of the water where these animals are, which even causes skin allergies in swimmers.
Finally, from the (selfish) traveler’s point of view, seeing a whale shark like this—surrounded by hundreds of people, knowing you’ll see it because it’s being fed and harmed—is the least exciting and “romantic” thing you can do. Seriously, the thrill and adrenaline of a wild whale shark encounter is indescribable.
More info about whale sharks in Oslob
Likewise, since late 2019, the same activity has been promoted in a place in Bohol called Lila. The process is exactly the same: the sharks are fed by the bucket and no distance regulations are enforced. In fact, images have been seen of people directly touching the shark. The governor of Bohol urged the mayor of Lila to stop this activity, and the LAMAVE foundation also expressed its discontent, as you can read here. Please, if you’re offered this in Alona Beach or anywhere in Bohol, let them know you don’t support this irresponsible tourism.
Fortunately, since early 2025, all activity related to whale sharks has been banned in Bohol (Lila and surrounding areas) precisely because of the harm to this animal we described above. Hopefully they’ll do the same in Oslob soon.
The best (and most respectful) places to swim with whale sharks in the Philippines
After telling you where not to go, here are other spots in the country where you can see whale sharks in the Philippines in a natural way.
Swim with whale sharks in Puerto Princesa (Palawan)
For the past few years, sharks have been sighted in Honda Bay, in Palawan, a few kilometers from Puerto Princesa (the island’s main gateway, since it has a large airport). If you’re traveling to El Nido or Port Barton between April (usually from mid or late month—there’s no way to know) and the end of October, you have a great chance of seeing these giants of the sea in complete freedom and in a respectful manner. Tours depart from Puerto Princesa itself, where the couple of agencies offering them pick you up at your accommodation.
Typically, departures are at 7 a.m., and a couple of hours later you reach the area where the sharks usually are. Small fishing boats are usually there to help spot them. As soon as there’s a signal, travelers jump in alternating groups to enjoy such a huge animal. You’re usually back in Puerto Princesa by 14:00.
Your chances of swimming with whale sharks in Puerto Princesa, Palawan, are higher if you also time your visit with the full moon periods. The week before and after the full moon is best. This, of course, doesn’t guarantee a sighting, as, like we said, it’s completely natural.
At the moment there are two agencies running this tour. So far, everything suggests they put the animal’s well‑being ahead of profit, and readers keep telling us they come back thrilled. We’d like to ask that, if you choose them, you let them know you’re there because you respect whale sharks, you didn’t want to go to Oslob, and you preferred to do it with them. If you see any odd behavior, we’d appreciate it if you told us so we can stop recommending them right away.
Price to swim with whale sharks in Palawan: 2,500 pesos per person (including lunch and gear). They refund 25% of your money if you don’t see any shark.
2025 update: the season in Puerto Princesa started in early April. You can already book this activity but, as you know, this is pure nature. Sightings are never 100% guaranteed.
Swim with whale sharks in Padre Burgos (Leyte)
Our favorite place to swim with whale sharks in the Philippines is the same place LAMAVE describes as the most sustainable in the country. In the south of Leyte there’s a huge bay known as Sogod Bay. This little corner of the country—specifically along the coasts of Pintuyan and San Ricardo—offers whale sharks high concentrations of plankton.
In addition to generally having better visibility than Donsol (and often Puerto Princesa), it’s a quiet and, above all, respectful place to see these animals. While around 30,000 people visit Donsol during the season, only between 600 and 2,000 do so in Padre Burgos/Pintuyan. On the days we did this tour, we only saw our own boat with about 10–12 passengers.
The season to swim with whale sharks in Padre Burgos runs from November to the end of April. As of today (June 2025) there have been no sightings in Sogod Bay, but looking ahead to next season, be aware that since around January they dropped a lot. It seems the plankton is deeper and they aren’t seen as frequently, and, on the other hand, since the start of the year there have been more sightings off the coasts of Liloan, a town a little north of Pintuyan.
If you decide to try your luck in Liloan, you can ask us for a contact in the comments.
A quick clarification: from Padre Burgos, boats head toward Pintuyan, so you can choose between 2 options:
- Go to Padre Burgos and take a one‑day tour to Pintuyan with one of the Padre Burgos dive centers. The good thing here is that although it’s more expensive, if they know the sharks are in Liloan, they’ll divert there instead of heading to Pintuyan.
- Go all the way to Pintuyan (more transfer time) and hire spotters. We’ll talk about this in the next section.
How to get there? If you choose the first option (faster but more expensive), getting there is very simple, so there’s no excuse. You can fly to Cebu and from there take a boat to Maasin. Oceanjet operates daily at 7:00 and arrives in Maasin at 10:00. You can buy your ticket here.
Another way to get from Cebu to Maasin is by Cokaliong Shipping Lines boats. They are a bit slower and less frequent. The ticket costs 350 pesos.
If you can’t find boats to Maasin, another option is to go to Hilongos. Roble Shipping Lines departs daily at 12:00 and 21:00. The ticket costs about 300 pesos; depending on the class, the most comfortable is a bed. The journey takes 4 hours. Gabisan Shipping Lines operates daily at 14:30 (arrives 16:00) and at 21:00 Friday to Sunday (arrives 3:00). Prices start at 240 pesos, depending on the class you travel in. Once there, take a bus or van to Maasin (a couple of hours), then a jeepney to Padre Burgos (20 minutes).
If you want to go from Bohol to Padre Burgos, you can take one of the boats from Ubay to Hilongos or Bato. The most reliable company from Bato is Medallion Transport, which shows schedules on its website. To go to Hilongos, Leopard has a boat at 10:00. In both places, you won’t have trouble finding overland transport to Padre Burgos.
It’s also possible to fly to Ormoc or Tacloban and travel from there to Padre Burgos, which will take 3 or 4 hours.
☀️ You can find everything explained in detail in How to get to Padre Burgos.
Update: the season in Pintuyan/Padre Burgos began in mid‑October 2024 after sightings. As we warned, the pace dropped considerably from January. In any case, we recommend contacting the companies operating there, as these tours are usually full.
What is it like to swim with whale sharks in Padre Burgos? As we mentioned, tours to Padre Burgos depart from the dive centers, which take you to Pintuyan/Liloan (depending on where sightings are happening). The boat trip from Padre Burgos takes 2 hours. You depart around 8:00 and return around 14:00–15:00.
The procedure is really interesting. Before entering the protected area, there’s a stop in front of the town, where those in charge of regulating the interaction, a LAMAVE volunteer (they conduct the whale shark study in Padre Burgos), and the small bangkas of many spotters are waiting. These fishermen tie up to our boat and, upon reaching the indicated place, they release and start looking for whale sharks, dipping their heads into the water. It’s very simple—once they see one, they move the paddle and the swimmers’ boat approaches.
The process for jumping in is strictly regulated and done gradually so as not to scare the shark or cause people to bump into each other.
The maximum time you can stay in the area is also regulated: 3 hours per boat. During this period you can jump into the water as many times as you like, depending on how many whale sharks are seen. And not only that—we also saw turtles and mantas! It truly is an amazing experience.
On the other hand, Padre Burgos is one of the best places to dive in the Philippines. We suggest spending at least 3 days in the area: 1 for whale sharks, 1 to dive in Napantao, and another for the night dive at the pier (one of our favorites in the Philippines) or to try for whale sharks again if you didn’t see them the first time (or to repeat, like we did).
Price to swim with whale sharks in Padre Burgos: 3,750 pesos per person including fees and snorkel gear rental (less if you bring your own).
Swim with whale sharks in Pintuyan (Leyte)
The second option we mentioned above is to head to Pintuyan, in Leyte, and hire a boat there to swim with whale sharks.
In Pintuyan you’ll find boats to hire for sightings. Our advice is to follow the rules and support KASAKA, the organization authorized to conduct the activity. Through the Pintuyan Tourism Office, located in the municipal hall, they organize the boat, guide, and spotters you need. The maximum authorized time at sea is 3 hours. You don’t need to book in advance—just go to Pintuyan Municipal Hall and they’ll arrange everything.
In our opinion, this is the most respectful option. The last time we were in Pintuyan we were the only tourists there and the only boat that went out to look for them. Everything is fully regulated.
How to get there? You can take a ferry from Cebu to Hilongos. Roble Shipping and Gabisan Shipping run several times a day. You can check How to get to Pintuyan. Then take a bus to Sogod (any bus to Tacloban), which takes about an hour and costs 50 pesos, and then a van or bus to San Ricardo, getting off in Pintuyan (about 100 pesos).
You can also go from Surigao to Pintuyan, which makes it a good option if you’re visiting Siargao. Just take the Montenegro ferry from Lipata Port in Surigao to Liloan; the one from Surigao to Benit (Fast Cat, schedules here) or the one from Lipata to Benit (San Ricardo Shipping Lines, see here). Several run daily roughly from 8:00 to 12:00, though it’s best to confirm with the shipping line. Once there, take any bus or van toward Pintuyan. It won’t take more than 20–30 minutes.
☀️ In any case, you’ll find everything clearly explained in How to get to Pintuyan.
There are a few guesthouses in Pintuyan. We recommend D&G Lodge and, if you’re looking for more comfort, a dive resort called Pintuyan Dive Resort.
Price to swim with whale sharks in Pintuyan: the price varies according to your group size. The boat costs 1,200 pesos in total (maximum 3 people); on top of that, add 300 pesos per person in fees. In addition, you must hire a guide for 600 pesos (total), and it’s mandatory to have 2 spotters per boat, at 500 pesos. If you don’t have snorkel gear, it’s 150 pesos.
This is just a short summary—you’ll find everything in Swimming with whale sharks in Pintuyan.
Update: the season in Pintuyan/Padre Burgos began in mid‑October 2024. However, since January 2025 sightings dropped a lot due to plankton moving to deeper waters. Also, as mentioned above, more sightings started in Liloan. That said, they were seen here again in early March. What should you do? Since this is completely natural, we can’t say. Perhaps your best option is to ask the Pintuyan Tourism Office on Facebook.
Even so, if you want to head straight to Liloan, where odds seem higher, write us a comment and we’ll share our contact.
Swim with whale sharks in Donsol (Luzon)
For many decades, the largest whale shark population in Southeast Asia has gathered in Donsol Bay. There, in 1998, an ecotourism project supported by WWF‑Philippines was born, thanks to which strict interaction rules for swimming with them were implemented.
The season to swim with whale sharks in Donsol runs from December to May, with the best time between March and May, when plankton concentrations are higher.
You’ll need to head to the Donsol Whale Shark Interaction Center. Traditional Filipino bangkas depart from there toward open water, and advance booking isn’t necessary. After watching the interaction rules video, you’ll see that part of the crew are spotters. If they see a whale shark, they’ll be the ones to direct swimmers to enter the water gradually.
Although the number of tourists has increased over the years, and there are more people on weekends, in Donsol they do not feed whale sharks and the interaction rules are followed. That said, travelers tell us that sometimes (especially on holidays and weekends) the rules aren’t followed exactly as designed by WWF and, despite the one‑boat‑per‑shark regulation, crowds can be excessive when it’s been a while since a sighting. However, other travelers told us everything was done “by the book” and it was indeed very respectful.
How to get to Donsol? To swim with whale sharks in Donsol, take a flight to Legazpi (available from destinations like Manila or Cebu). From there you can take a bus or van to Donsol. The trip takes about 90 minutes. The good thing about going to Donsol is that you can combine swimming with whale sharks with visiting Legazpi and Mayon Volcano (read What to do in Legazpi for more info) and even venture to Caramoan and the little‑known island of Ticao (great diving).
Price to swim with whale sharks in Donsol: boats carry a maximum of 6 people and cost 3,500 pesos (total). In addition, you need to pay 300 pesos per person in fees.
We hope we’ve helped you fulfill the dream of swimming with whale sharks in the Philippines. Please, when you return, tell us about your experience so we can keep guiding more travelers to practice responsible tourism.
