Scuba Diving The Catalinas Island, Costa Rica (Can you dive with Manta Rays?)

One of the reasons I wanted to visit the Pacific Coast of Costa Rica was for the opportunity to scuba dive with Manta Rays at the Catalina Islands. It was hard to find information online but I did find some youtube videos taken by scuba divers of encounters with these beautiful rays so I decided to go for it. My experience turned out to be a little different however.

The Dive Shop

Since I was staying in Tamarindo (which I don’t recommend because it is very overpriced and full of trashy tourists), I booked with a dive shop called Tamarindo Diving. They were very friendly and confirmed my booking right way. They also contacted me via WhatsApp to coordinate the pickup time. The dive shop sent a van to pick us up the morning of our dive. I was very pleased that they showed up right on time. We arrived at the shop to try on some rental gear. After completing my Advanced Open Water certification a few years ago, I decided to buy some basic gear for scuba diving so I always bring my own budget dive computer, fins, wetsuit from Amazon and my mask so that I don’t need to try on much at the Dive Shop. I usually just need to try on a BCD. Getting your own gear does not have to be expensive and I highly recommend you build your own collection over time. My dive computer, fins and wetsuit have lasted for years although the wetsuit is showing signs of wear. Once every one was ready and signed their waivers, we drove back a few blocks away to Tamarindo beach. If you have your own rental car, you can follow behind the Dive Shop’s car.

Note that they have now moved the location of their dive shop and it's located walking distance to the boat near the beach. We boarded a small canoe-sized boat to transfer us to their larger dive boat where the crew helped set up all of our equipment. After a quick briefing, we headed towards the Catalina Islands! The ride took about an hour.

The Catalina Islands

As we approached our first dive site, we suited up and split into two groups, one consisting of advanced divers who went off separately from the less experienced divers. We descended to around 18 meters at the first site. There were plenty of fish around but unfortunately due to the visibility being so poor, it was hard to observe them. Our group followed the Divemaster and soon we came across a trio of sleeping whitetip reef sharks. As we passed over them, they suddenly moved around, presumably because they don't like the presence of a large animals above them as it makes them vulnerable. We took a quick break on the boat in between dives (surface interval). Our friendly crew handed out some snacks and juice. Throughout both dives, we continued to encounter several whitetip sharks. There wasn't much to see in terms of corals or large pelagic life so the sharks were the highlight of the dives.

Whitetip Reef Sharks at the Catalina Islands

Swimming over them seemed to make them uncomfortable

So, can you see Manta Rays in the Catalina Islands?

I never quite got a clear answer as to when Manta season is since some people mentioned it was during the dry season whereas others mentioned that the dry season wasn't the time to see them. Either way, even if there were Manta Rays around us, we wouldn't have seen them due to the poor visibility. Mantas are wild animals after all so as it often goes in scuba diving, it is largely up to luck. February is the time for the mobula migration though but we must've been unlucky since we never spotted any. In short, it may be possible to spot Manta Rays but I wouldn’t suggest coming here just to see them. Rather it’s a good place to dive if you already happen to be vacationing here! I did have the chance to go freediving on this trip and while the visibility was very poor, I could hear the songs of the humpback whales underwater!

After the second dive, we headed back towards Tamarindo. During the ride back, we were surrounded by dive bombing birds hunting fish on the sides of the boat. It was a beautiful spectacle to see. The cliffs on the coast made for a nice view as we approached the shore. Overall I wouldn't recommend going out of your way just to come dive here but if you're already planning to visit the area then do allow yourself an extra day to dive with some reef sharks!

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Where To Snorkel With Reef Sharks in Fiji

For my last trip to Fiji, I chose to stay at Barefoot Kuata Island just to get the chance to snorkel with reef sharks and scuba dive with bull sharks. After an amazing morning dive with the bull sharks, I arrived back on the island and had just enough time to get ready for the reef shark snorkelling activity.

I wrote a full review of Barefoot Kuata Island below if you are thinking of visiting.

Barefoot Kuata Island

A serene getaway in the Yasawa Islands surrounded by sharks.

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Reef Shark Tour

The tour starts at 11 am but unfortunately that's also the time that the ferry stops at the island so plan accordingly because you won't have enough time if you need to take the ferry on the same day to go to another resort. You can sign up at the dive shop located on the beach. You can’t miss it, you will see it when arriving on the Island.

After a short boat ride from the resort, we arrived at the snorkelling site. Equipment (masks, fins and lifejackets) were provided by the friendly crew. The water is deep here so you need to be a comfortable in deep water. There were several families with young kids on the tour and it looked like they enjoyed it so it not that difficult but just keep in mind if it’s your first time in deep water (you can see the ocean bottom here). One dressed, we all jumped in the water and spotted the sharks right away. You can observe the sharks from the surface but they tend to keep their distance from humans so they are usually several meters below.

This is an awesome place for freediving as you can descend to around 20m or so in some areas and come face to face with the sharks as you explore the area. Keep in mind that if you went scuba diving earlier in the morning then you shouldn't be mixing freediving right after.

In total, I saw around 5 reef sharks. There were both white tip and black tip reef sharks. In case you are wondering, reef sharks are not dangerous to humans. They hunt mostly fish and keep our oceans healthy. I highly recommend bringing a waterproof camera if you have one, I used my Akaso EK7000 for all the pictures in this blog post that I bought for less than $100.

After everyone had a great time snorkelling, we headed back on the boat. This was also a great time to speak to the crew who live and work on the island and are often from nearby villages. We headed back to the resort and with a big smile on our faces. If you love sharks, I think this is a must do when visiting Fiji!

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