Whale Shark Season Closes For Los Cabos Travelers

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Last Updated 6 months ago

Los Cabos tourists looking forward to enjoying a day trip out on the water with the whale sharks will have to wait until later in the year as the season for whale shark excursions has come to a close in the region.

Close of the Whale Shark Season

According to reports, it was another popular season for tourists visiting the waters off of La Paz in search of the gentle giants of the sea—the whale sharks.

Demand for the tour boats was stronger than ever as the popularity and tourist numbers across the Los Cabos region skyrocketed this year to nearly one million travelers in the first three months alone.

It was also a good season for travelers as the season was pretty consistent throughout the entire period.

Good Season for Travelers

In prior years, the whale shark viewing and swimming season was an on-again, off-again exercise as the tour boats are highly regulated from conducting their tours unless a minimum number of whale sharks are present in the bay.

There were some early reports of the season being suspended this year due to the lack of whale sharks for travelers to enjoy on their vacation getaway. But overall, it was still a very positive year for travelers.

Some speculated that the El Niño weather patterns present in the area contributed to warmer-than-normal temperatures in the gulf, which directly contributed to the appeal of the whale sharks to turn up off the coast of Baja California Sur in sufficient numbers.

Celebration Closes Out the Season

Tourists in the area participated in a local celebration honoring the whale sharks and bringing the season to an official close.

For the past six years, it’s been a local tradition funded by tourism providers to close the season with a festival full of music, food, and prizes for participants.

“I’m not from here, but it’s great that they pay tribute to the whale shark,” said a tourist that enjoyed the festival and was quoted in a local report of the event. “It is something very representative of here in La Paz, and it seems very cool to me that they praise their treasures, like what they have here, and the truth is very cool to me.”

More than 100 locals and tourists participated in the end-of-season celebration event.

Prospects for Next Season

The whale shark, swimming and viewing season, will start again in October and run until April 2025.

With the warm water weather pattern shifting, hopes are for another strong season before a La Niña ocean current pattern returns and pumps colder waters into the area.

Whale sharks tend to appear more in the warmer waters, which could mean that beyond next year, the traditional on again, off again, whale shark number issues could return after the next season.

What Travelers Need to Know

Travelers looking to maximize their chances of arriving in Los Cabos and viewing or swimming with sufficient numbers of whale sharks available in the bay need to start their planning now.

Chances are this will be the last consistent viewing year before colder currents return to Baja California Sur and affect the arrival of the whale sharks off the coast of La Paz.

The season will start again in October and close in April of 2025.

Since it is only six months away, travelers will want to reserve cancelable hotel rooms now to lock in the lower room rates and consider shopping for flights to Los Cabos as well.

Booking the flights early, well before the season even starts, should provide the best rates for travel.

If hotel rates were to drop between now and October, visitors looking for a whale shark vacation getaway can always cancel their cancelable room reservation and rebook at the lower rate.