CAPE TOWN DIVING
Cape Town has some great seasonal and year-round diving. with Great White sharks, Mako and Blue sharks, Seven-gill Cowsharks, Shysharks, and Fur Seals.
January to September is excellent for Great White cage diving, and this can be done by people without a diving qualification as you are just below the surface in a cage on a surface-supplied air source. The action from the back deck of the boat can be even more exhilarating.
Mako and Blue Sharks can be dived with offshore from October to June. The sea conditions have to be good as it's a 2 to 2.5 hour ride out to the where these amazing fish like to hang out. The views of the continent as you head 40-odd kilometres offshore are superb too.
Cape Fur Seals are around throughout the year, and diving with these playful pinnipeds is great fun, either on snorkel or on SCUBA. This is a shallow dive, they hang out on a rock in the bay near Simonstown and jump in for a splash and play.
Seven-gill cowsharks are often found throughout the year in the kelp forest close to Simonstown, where a number of endemic small shyshark species also make their homes. Combines perfectly with the Fur Seal dive for a fun-filled morning.
GREAT WHITE SHARK TRIPS
Provisional Daily program:
What to bring:
Rates 2020
Gansabaai
Gansbaai is only 2 hours from Cape Town and door to door transfers can be arranged. Dyer Island and Shark Alley in Gansbaai has become known as one of only two unique areas in the world, where the chances to view the great white shark is exceptionally high. Gansbaai focuses on cage diving and it is unlikely to see the breaching behaviour here.
A colony of approximately 40000 Cape Fur Seals inhabits the smaller Island (Geyser Rock). Other wildlife species such as Cape Gannets, Cape Cormorants, African Penguins, whales and dolphins are also likely to be sighted. So if you’re shark cage diving in Gansbaai you are assured to have an all-round experience. It is also important to note that there is a huge variety of other marine wildlife in False Bay and many of these animals can be sighted at certain times of the year whilst on our Great white shark cage diving trips. There are also good months for seeing multiple species together but these may be out of peak months for special behaviour.
Please note that as the sharks are found close inshore so water visibility can be poor. Even though water visibility can be low the surface view is still fantastic and offers great close up views of the sharks.
December and January is generally considered low season in Gansbaai but there is still a 95% chance of sightings. The quality of the shark sightings do depend on your luck on the day.
Provisional Daily program:
- Meet between 6h15 and 6h45.
- Board boat and receive boat safety briefing and general information.
- Leave pier between 6h30 and 7h00.
- Arrive at island between 6h50 and 7h25.
- Brief clients on shark hunting behaviour and what they can expect.
- View natural predatory interactions between sharks and seals.
- Tow a seal decoy to entice a breach so clients can get a picture.
- Anchor boat at 9am and start chumming to get sharks to boat.
- Drop cage and brief clients on the cage dive and shark behaviour around the boat.
- Cage dive and view sharks from 9h00 to 12h00.
- Return to Gaansbai harbour.
- Back by ca 13h00
What to bring:
- Warm Jacket
- Sun block
- Polarised Sunglasses
- Camera
Rates 2020
- ZAR 2,430 per adult
- ZAR 1,380 per child under 12 years
- Children under 5 years go free
Gansabaai
Gansbaai is only 2 hours from Cape Town and door to door transfers can be arranged. Dyer Island and Shark Alley in Gansbaai has become known as one of only two unique areas in the world, where the chances to view the great white shark is exceptionally high. Gansbaai focuses on cage diving and it is unlikely to see the breaching behaviour here.
A colony of approximately 40000 Cape Fur Seals inhabits the smaller Island (Geyser Rock). Other wildlife species such as Cape Gannets, Cape Cormorants, African Penguins, whales and dolphins are also likely to be sighted. So if you’re shark cage diving in Gansbaai you are assured to have an all-round experience. It is also important to note that there is a huge variety of other marine wildlife in False Bay and many of these animals can be sighted at certain times of the year whilst on our Great white shark cage diving trips. There are also good months for seeing multiple species together but these may be out of peak months for special behaviour.
Please note that as the sharks are found close inshore so water visibility can be poor. Even though water visibility can be low the surface view is still fantastic and offers great close up views of the sharks.
December and January is generally considered low season in Gansbaai but there is still a 95% chance of sightings. The quality of the shark sightings do depend on your luck on the day.
MAKO & BLUE SHARKS
When searching for the mako and blue sharks they are generally found in the warm Agulhas Current.
During the months October to June the current generally moves closer to the Cape Point area making this the high season for finding these sharks.
The Mako shark is the great white of the open ocean and it is out there that we cage dive with them, giving you an opportunity to glimpse briefly into the life of these beautiful cobalt blue warriors. Our success rate is around 85% in seeing sharks on these pelagic trips, either Blues or Makos, and on many of these shark diving trips in South Africa, we also dive with huge Yellowfin Tuna and other species. These trips allow you to see the majestic Mako and Blue sharks up close and personal. The Mako is not only the fastest shark in the sea but is also the king of the open ocean, a realm that few ever experience. Warm currents and inky blue waters greet you as you dive into water that is 1000m deep and more.
It is also an excellent month for combining great whites, mako and blues, and then an inshore dive with seven-gills, endemic cat sharks and shy sharks.
The Season is October to July 2020 - ZAR 3,650 per person
When searching for the mako and blue sharks they are generally found in the warm Agulhas Current.
During the months October to June the current generally moves closer to the Cape Point area making this the high season for finding these sharks.
The Mako shark is the great white of the open ocean and it is out there that we cage dive with them, giving you an opportunity to glimpse briefly into the life of these beautiful cobalt blue warriors. Our success rate is around 85% in seeing sharks on these pelagic trips, either Blues or Makos, and on many of these shark diving trips in South Africa, we also dive with huge Yellowfin Tuna and other species. These trips allow you to see the majestic Mako and Blue sharks up close and personal. The Mako is not only the fastest shark in the sea but is also the king of the open ocean, a realm that few ever experience. Warm currents and inky blue waters greet you as you dive into water that is 1000m deep and more.
It is also an excellent month for combining great whites, mako and blues, and then an inshore dive with seven-gills, endemic cat sharks and shy sharks.
The Season is October to July 2020 - ZAR 3,650 per person
CAPE FURSEAL & KELP FOREST TWO TANK DIVE TRIP
The masters of the kelp forests, the cow sharks, are present all year round at Pyramid Rock and although the success of the dive does depend on the conditions it is quite rare not to see them.
This is a world class shark dive, only 10 minutes boat ride from the moorings in Simon’s Town, and can easily be combined with a great white shark cage dive with us in the morning and then a sevengill shark dive in the afternoon allowing you to make the most of your day.
The Seven-gill cow shark, or Spotted cow shark, is a prehistoric apex predator and the king of the kelp forest. This dive site is one of the few places in the world where you have a great chance of diving with this rarely-seen shark (an 85% success rate). Thick kelp forest fringes the channel making this ideal habitat. A variety of small endemic cat shark species (brown shy shark, puff adder shy shark, striped cat shark and leopard cat shark) and spotted gulley sharks may also be encountered.
The Cow shark is a social feeder and can be observed in large groups of up to 18 individuals. The size of the sharks range from 1 meter to 3 meters with the females generally being larger than the males. Distinctive features include their seven gill slits and the absence of the front dorsal fin.
The dive boat is positioned in a channel approximately 12m deep. Divers descend to the sandy bottom and wait for the Cow sharks to approach. The sharks swim slowly up and down the channel, which runs roughly north/south and as the sharks are very confident they can pass at arms length from the divers. It’s a great opportunity for underwater photographers and by the end of the dive, you may recognize the individual cow sharks by distinctive bites, scrapes or coloration.
The kelp forest is also an excellent place to see several endemic shy shark species.
All Year Round 2020 - ZAR 2,200 per person
The masters of the kelp forests, the cow sharks, are present all year round at Pyramid Rock and although the success of the dive does depend on the conditions it is quite rare not to see them.
This is a world class shark dive, only 10 minutes boat ride from the moorings in Simon’s Town, and can easily be combined with a great white shark cage dive with us in the morning and then a sevengill shark dive in the afternoon allowing you to make the most of your day.
The Seven-gill cow shark, or Spotted cow shark, is a prehistoric apex predator and the king of the kelp forest. This dive site is one of the few places in the world where you have a great chance of diving with this rarely-seen shark (an 85% success rate). Thick kelp forest fringes the channel making this ideal habitat. A variety of small endemic cat shark species (brown shy shark, puff adder shy shark, striped cat shark and leopard cat shark) and spotted gulley sharks may also be encountered.
The Cow shark is a social feeder and can be observed in large groups of up to 18 individuals. The size of the sharks range from 1 meter to 3 meters with the females generally being larger than the males. Distinctive features include their seven gill slits and the absence of the front dorsal fin.
The dive boat is positioned in a channel approximately 12m deep. Divers descend to the sandy bottom and wait for the Cow sharks to approach. The sharks swim slowly up and down the channel, which runs roughly north/south and as the sharks are very confident they can pass at arms length from the divers. It’s a great opportunity for underwater photographers and by the end of the dive, you may recognize the individual cow sharks by distinctive bites, scrapes or coloration.
The kelp forest is also an excellent place to see several endemic shy shark species.
All Year Round 2020 - ZAR 2,200 per person