Donsol, which is best reached via Legazpi, became famous for the whale sharks that naturally cavort in the bay. The best season for whale shark sightings is from about February to May. For divers, a trip to the nearby Ticao Island is especially suitable, where besides the whale sharks, sometimes big manta rays can be seen.
The sea is a fascinating habitat inhabited by the most beautiful, bizarre, eerie, and incredible creatures on earth. One of them is the whale shark - a giant of the sea whose sight alone takes your breath away because of its size. In the Philippines, several spots attract tourists from all over the world every year: Donsol, Leyte, and Oslob.
Unfortunately, the peaceful giants are on the red list of endangered species, as their population has been reduced by more than half in the last 75 years. In the waters around the Philippines, the hunting of whale sharks is not allowed, but in other countries, unfortunately, this looks differently: In China, Taiwan, and Oman, for example, they are considered a delicacy. Whale sharks also perish again and again as by-catch in trawls. Many animals are already killed before they have even been able to reproduce because a whale shark - which is estimated to be up to 100 years old - only becomes sexually mature between 15 and 30 years.
Whale sharks are omnipresent in the Philippines and dives that promise encounters with these huge fish are advertised a lot. In principle, there are whale sharks everywhere where the sea is pleasantly warm 20 to 25 degrees. But in the Philippines, there are three places where whale shark swimming is offered with professional guidance: Donsol, Leyte, and Oslob. While Donsol and Leyte have been less well known for a long time, but are all the more respected by animal welfare activists, Oslob is a true "Whale Shark Mecca", which however works with questionable methods regarding animal welfare. And exactly therefore we decided not to organize trips to the whale shark swimming in Oslob, but to support the spots in Donsol and Leyte.
Donsol is a small village in Sorsogon province and is known by travelers interested in the underwater world, nature lovers, and Philippine connoisseurs as the best spot for whale shark diving. Here everything happens very naturally. The approximately three-hour tours include looking for whale sharks, as soon as one of the animals appears, the group jumps into the water under the guidance of a guide and if you are lucky, you can swim up to a few minutes next to one or even several whale sharks. Unfortunately, the opposite can also happen, namely that not a single whale shark shows up during the whole tour.
The registration takes place at the Whale Shark Centre, which is easy to find since whale shark swimming is in principle the only attraction of Donsol. Before the trip starts, each participant will be trained in the morning of the trip on how to behave during the whale shark swim and how to handle the animals, which includes for example keeping a safe distance and a touch ban.
Whale sharks are around Donsol mainly between November / December and May / June, the highest chances to meet the mysterious creatures are in March and April. What an incredible feeling it is to swim with a whale shark!
The Philippine province of Southern Leyte is rarely mentioned when it comes to whale shark swimming. In principle, this is not a well-known diving area, but it is all the more beautiful because mass tourism is completely absent here. Also, whale sharks visit here regularly, the main season is from January to April.
Swimming with whale sharks here is - similar to the one in Donsol - completely dependent on the favor of nature. There were already weeks, there the probability to meet a whale shark was up to 90%, on the other hand, there were phases, in which the animals had made themselves extremely rare even during the main season. If you are lucky, you can swim with one or more whale sharks in Leyte under completely natural and animal-friendly conditions.
As already mentioned, under natural conditions - i.e. without feeding - it is never exactly predictable whether you will encounter a whale shark or not. This can be disappointing in the end, but it is also a great attraction and if you bring enough time and money to try again and again, you will have your whale shark experience sooner or later.
The chances of seeing a whale shark also increase the better the weather and the calmer the sea is. Sometimes it even happens that the sea is so stormy that a planned trip cannot take place and must be postponed.
By the way, you don't have to be able to dive to see the remarkable fish, snorkeling is enough and is usually what is offered on the whale shark trips. Additional dives are usually possible for an extra charge.
Concerning safety during the trip, one thing can be said with a fair amount of certainty: A whale shark will not attack or even eat you on its own. However, whale shark swimming is not completely harmless, because given the power a whale shark has simply because of its size, it can be very painful and cause injury if this creature accidentally hits you with its fins.