Are you ready to experience the craziest adventure of all time? Indeed, swimming with sharks cage-free in the Hawaiian waters is, without a doubt, a once-in-a-lifetime experience! Here is all you need to know to be able to check this unforgettable encounter off your bucket list!
TABLE OF CONTENTS
What about sharks in hawaiian waters?
Our oceans are home to hundreds of different shark species, with most of them harmless. You may have not realized yet it but sharks play an essential role to regulate the marine food web so that the ecosystem structure can stay in balance. Indeed, sharks are considered the apex predator, meaning the top of the food chain. Having said that, you may not see how it can impact our planet directly, but if these predators continue to be killed (by humans), it will notably result in a greater level of prey animals and therefore higher overall levels of carbon dioxide, which amplify global warming.
Did you know that approximately 100 million sharks are killed every year because of human activities?
Several shark species can be seen around the shores of the Hawaiian archipelago, but you will most likely see (to name a few) sandbar sharks, scalloped hammerhead sharks, white-tip reef sharks, and the (terrifying) tiger sharks.
Where to swim with sharks in hawaiian waters?
Alright so as mentioned above, the coasts of the Hawaiian archipelago are home to several shark species. But one island stands out from the others to encounter safely with these amazing creatures: Oahu island! The tour operator ocean diving founded by the well-known diver Ocean Ramsey is located on the North shore of the island. The reason why I can’t recommend enough going on a tour with them is that they are the first and only one offering a cageless experience with sharks around the Hawaiian islands.
I know that saying out loud that you are going to swim with sharks without a cage sounds like a completely crazy adventure and yes, it is, but it is also a unique experience! Above all, swimming with sharks cage-free allows you to respect the animals by encountering them in their natural element and not appease them with food (as is mainly the case when you dive in a cage).
“I hope you would be able to experience this crazy adventure once in your life and that you will enjoy it as much as we did! See below for more details!”
Our experience with sharks cage free
Frankly, this crazy idea of swimming with sharks cageless in the middle of the Pacific ocean was coming from my husband Damien. You will quickly understand that he is the person in the couple who is more adventurous than our couple.
Anyway, he put this crazy idea in our heads to join the group of one ocean diving to swimming with these big creatures cage-free. I was a little bit reluctant at first because I was afraid to transmit my anxiety to sharks. But I think Damien didn’t give me much of a choice though: it was either he was going alone or with me, if I wanted. Som in no time at all, we had booked our spots with Ocean Ramsey’s team.
We started boarding the small boat in the first hour of the morning. We were only 6 people and 3 professional guides. On board, we quickly learned a lot about sharks and it was fascinating and truly eye-opening. We were devastated to hear that millions of sharks were killed each year because of human activities.
The place they are taking you is located about 10 minutes off the shores. When we arrived at the spot, we could see dozens of fines on the water, following the boat. I have to say, it was a scene straight out of a movie. I was tense!!! The crew told us that sharks were just here to say hello and then they would go back into the deep water quickly. And that was true! A few minutes later, we couldn’t see fines anymore, so we got the green light to get off the boat.
As we were in the open ocean and we were protected by nothing other than the trust of our professional diver guides! Therefore, we were not supposed to leave the boat’s surroundings (which is marked by a line) without close supervision by the team. In other words, one by one we could, if we felt comfortable with it, get closer to the sharks by diving down (but always keeping the hierarchy, which is the most important thing to do so that the sharks don’t feel threatened). Before getting into the water, the crew informed us that if they saw tiger sharks, they would give us the signal to go back on the boat quickly (I don’t have to tell you that tiger sharks are one of the most aggressive sharks with humans unfortunately).
During our amazing dive, we met dozens of Galapagos sharks (which can be up to 12 feet / 3,6 meters) and Sandbar sharks (which can be up to 8 feet / 2,5 meters)! We were speechless and we didn’t expect to encounter so many sharks at once. They were everywhere below us! How crazy!!! We could come and go into the water for more than an hour. We didn’t realize what we were doing until we were back on the ground and check our videos!
Frankly, you probably have lots of questions right now, but I have to say that we felt safe during the whole experience and I highly recommend it to anyone!
“It was such an unforgettable and eye-opening experience! Indeed, during our dive, we saw a shark with a fishing hook in its mouth. I was so sad about it!”
TOUR OPERATOR
One ocean diving
PRICE
US$ 150 per person
DETAILS
1:40 duration
In conclusion
To summarize, if you are looking to check one of the craziest adventures off your bucket list, you should head out to Oahu and book a tour with this amazing team of ocean diving!
Swimming with sharks cage-free was a true highlight of our trip to the Hawaiian islands and we are super proud to say that we have done it! Above all, I hope this once-in-a-lifetime experience will change your mind about sharks and ocean conservation.
Moreover, note that the Hawaiian islands are the ideal places to experience bucket-list experiences like swimming with wild dolphins or manta rays. Click here to read more!
Finally, feel free to contact me at any time, if you have any questions. It would be a great pleasure to share with you!
Sending you lots of love,
