Advice on Shark Diving/ Whale Watching Operators in Cape Town/ Hermanus/Gansbaai?

Question

My boyfriend and me are both greatly looking forward to our vacation in Cape Town, particularly to the wildlife but there is an overwhelming amount of activities on offer!

We definitely want to go shark watching/diving, whale watching and see the penguins and fur seals as well. I know it is possible to see the whales from land but we would also like to go on a boat tours as well to see some of the smaller cetacean species and all the other animals as well :D

Just wondering if anyone had any advice on the best and most eco-friendly tour operators.

We would prefer longer tours (2 hours +), possibly smaller groups and obviously operators that put the needs of the animals first and have a responsible approach to the whole thing, (ie. don't approach beyond limits, leave if animal gets agitated etc etc.), preferably as informative and knowledgeable about the local wildlife as possible.

If at all possible going with people actually involved in research/ conservation would be the absolute cherry on the cake- we are both recent graduates from degrees in Marine Bio/Zoology and would like to meet some people actually working in the field!

Oh and we would require pick-up from Cape Town if the tour is based anywhere but there.

Any advice?

Thanks :)

Answer 1

I would recommend Apex operating from Simonstown in False Bay.  It is run by Chris Fallows and is where the Nat Geo great white documentaries were filmed.

It is smaller and less commercial than Gans Baai, but it is the real deal.

Likewise to see whales, you can go with Simonstown Boating co-- they operate the only licensed vessel in False Bay and are a small, personal operation.

If you are set on Hermanus and Gansbaai, best to look up their tourist info pages.

Answer 2

Try these:

http://www.apexsharkdiving.com/about.htm

http://www.aboutcapetown.com/hermanus.ht...