One of Cebu's unique tours would be to see the whale shark in Oslob. I was a little terrified at first as our small boat carried us further out sea but that fear/anxiety was gone as soon as I saw these beautiful and gentle creatures. They were huge so cute at the same time there just swimming and eating lol Btw, i understand there are concerns about the pros and cons regarding this activity. I completely understand that and its just such a broad topic to even talk about so please do your own research if you are having second thoughts or just want to know more. This review is really just for the experience that I had. Anyway, we entered from BCD resort which was convenient as we get to park there and we also had a guide to help us navigate were to go first (register, "orientation" etc). You go out in the waters for more or less 30mins which is really enough. Activity starts around 7-11am so the fish can have some time on their own to hunt for food rather than get so used to being fed. I appreciate that the staff reminds guests to have all lotions and sunscreens rinsed off prior for the safety and health of these fishes. It seems to be a little more organized this time around compared to before. There is also same pricing now regardless if your local/foreigner and if you are swimming/staying on the boat. Life jackets are provided and the "bangkeros" give out the food/krill to the Butandings/Whale Sharks so all you get to do is enjoy swimming with them or viewing them from the safety of that small boat. Beautiful experience. read more

See all

A one of a kind experience to swim with the whale sharks for 500 pesos. 30 min in the boat. They provide life vest and swim mask but no snorkel part. You can bring your own if you want to snorkel. You can also bring your own fins. Picture wise, you can bring a water proof case for your phone or a Go Pro. The street vendors were selling water proof cell phone bags there but not sure how good they would have been so opted to leave phone behind. The staff didn't do pre-arranged photos like at other excursions. So something to think about if you really want to get a pic Really fun experience. It was crowded on a Friday and the weekend. Probably less crowded on the weekday. read more

These are amazing creatures. But anyone who has dived or snorkeled in open waters will feel the artifice of this experience. I don't believe the creatures are trapped, but they are goaded with food and paraded across the boats lined up to watch them pass. The morning is quite frenetic as there are hundreds of people waiting to get on boats. If you are not in a party large enough to fill up 12 seats, you will have to wait to be paired off and wait till your number is called. A brief orientation and you wait. If you decide to do this excursion, leave everything in the car. The only thing you might bring is a waterproof camera and your personal snorkeling gear. They provide the later, but no breathing tube. If you bring a towel you will probably leave it on shore as the boats are pretty cramped, and it will probably get wet. read more

They make it really easy to get in and out. They supply life jackets, tour guides, and the world's shortest orientation (don't go in the water with sunscreen on; don't touch the whale shark or go to jail; if it comes near you, don't panic and let it pass; there, that's it.) They are bathrooms on-site and souvenir hockers all around. read more

First time swimming with whale shark scary and fun. They said whale shark are harmful they don't eat humans but I'm still pretty scared. They don't allow putting suns cream or sunblock because its poisonous for the fish and they only allow you to be in the water for 30 mins. Also, tickets for local 600 pesos convert to USD $10-12 and for foreigners' 1000 pesos covert to USD $18-20, which is not bad. They provide life vest and snorkeling gadgets. The only downfall is there's 20-40mins wait to get in the boat because there's a lot of tourist goes here and they only open until 1pm so, better come here early. And once you get on the water it smells bad because what they feed the whale sharks. read more

See all

If you want to get up close and personal with a huge aquatic animal, then embarking on a whale shark trip is probably the safest you will get. It doesn't make it any less scary though! We booked a tour with a local company. Early in the morning (slightly before sunrise), they gave us a quick orientation of what to expect. Oslob is essentially a research park for whale sharks that also doubles as a tourist destination. Scientists supposedly feed the whale sharks regularly for observation purposes so they can be expected to appear consistently every morning. You are explicitly NOT allowed to touch the whale shark (lest you will pay a significant fine), but they may very likely touch you. We were boarded on a canoe and paddled out with life vests and snorkels. The water was super cold but refreshing considering the heat and humidity. You can dive and take pictures with your GoPro or waterproof pictures for a little under 1 hour until they canoe you back to shore. A warning, if you are very noticeably not a Filipino you will be charged at a noticeably higher rate; nothing crazy, but something to keep in mind when budgeting. read more

Oslob Whale Shark Watching - Whale Shark rules - Whale Watching Tours Near Me - Oslob, CEB

See all

How cool is this actually swimming with the whale sharks. My 2 buddies and I took a bus around midnight from Cebu and went about 5 hours south to Oslob where the Whale Sharks are. The whole thing is a little surreal and there is a lot of controversy about the methods used to keep the whale Sharks in the area away from their normal migratory patterns. I wondered how and why the whales remain in Oslob. The whales aren't penned in, but they feed them krill so the whale shark follows the boat like a large dog getting fed krill to cooperate. While the krill is part of their normal diet it's not their only nutritional needs. The different tour operators form a half circle with the boats creating a large pen in the open water. If this is something you want to see you should get there early because after noon they break up the half circle so the whale sharks are free to forage on their own in open waters. To see the whale shark (even though ours wasn't fully grown) was pretty awesome to see. The price of the tours depends on you nationality. If you are a native PI the charge is 500 pesos + an additional 250 pesos for pictures. The tour operator gets 100 pesos/person & the government takes 400 pesos. If your not a national citizen the the price doubles to 1,000 pesos + 250 pesos for picture I WILL POST WHALE PICTURES WHEN I FIND THEM read more

Swimming with whale sharks has never been on my personal bucket list. My wife, on the otherhand, has always wanted to experience swimming with whale sharks. Last week, she finally got that opportunity. There are several places in the world where you can experience swimming with whale sharks, and Oslob, Cebu in the Philippines is one of them. So what is a whale shark? In the national language (Tagalog) of the Philippines, they are called "Butanding". In the region of the Oslob, Cebu, the main dialect spoken is Visayan. So in the Visayan language, whale sharks are called "Tuki". A whale shark is the largest known fish in the world. Some folks call it a gentle giant. It has one really large mouth and thousands of teeth, but their diet is limited to krill, plankton, and tiny microorganisms. They pose no risk to humans. Its name refers to the sizes of some whale sharks. They can be as long as 40 feet which is about the size of a bus!! Okay, that is enough teaching for now. If you want to learn more about whale sharks, then search on the web. Make sure you arrive early for your whale watch encounter!! Not sure what time they start taking people out, but they stop taking people out around Noon time. After noon, the whale sharks leave the area to forage and do their thing. We arrived about 7:45am. Fortunately, our friends made reservations for us so our wait time was very minimal. It appears a bit chaotic and unorganized in the staging/preparation area, but things actually went quite smoothly. It is a 5 step process. Step 1 is Registration. Step 2 is Payment. Note that prices are higher for foreigners and lower for locals (Filipinos). Still a great deal for foreigners despite the higher rates. Step 3 is Orientation. They will go over the rules to follow. If you do not follow the rules, then you will be fined or go to jail. Step 4 is Verification (get your priority number). Step 5 is go to the Waiting Area and wait for your number to be called. Once your number is called, you board a "bangka". Our bangka(canoe) had 10 people, and we paddled out to the deeper waters to join over a dozen more canoes. The whale sharks loved my wife. They were ignoring the other folks and going to her. I did not join her in the water. I enjoyed the encounter from the bangka. So for over 30 minutes, the folks were in the water with the whale sharks. I took a bunch of pics from the boat. The whale sharks come to the surface so you can get some nice photos. Best pictures are taken if you use a waterproof camera or go pro. She loved being with the "Tuki" in the water. It was all she hoped for plus more!! I thoroughly enjoyed watching from the bangka. Highly recommend experiencing swimming with the whale sharks for yourself!! Have fun and remember to follow the rules!! read more

See all

The Oslob whale shark watching experience is undoubtedly the most popular tourist attraction on Cebu island... but at a cost, and not just in pesos but animal welfare as well. I was fairly steadfast in my desire to not participate before our trip (it wasn't on our itinerary), but as COVID was already shutting down most other attractions, I reluctantly agreed to go. Don't get me wrong, I was certainly in awe of these majestic and gentle giants but the experience was so chaotic and, when all was said and done, it was also completely unnatural. Too many snorkelers for ~6 sharks and all of them fiending to get as close as possible for that shot... it's those type of people you don't want to be around, the real shitty people that only this attraction is capable of netting in. The struggle here is arguing for two sides of a coin; the animals suffer as they are lured just off shore the town of Oslob by fishermen feeding them farm raised krill. This behavior is already unnatural as it alters their normal feeding habits -- leading ultimately to overfeeding and reliance instead on unhealthy hands out -- but, most importantly, it disrupts their migratory patterns as well. The attraction, on the other hand, is very beneficial to the small town of Oslob. Entry fees are 1000 pesos/ person and to rent snorkeling gear is another 500 pesos, where you'll have 30 minutes out on the water with them. 1500 pesos for an attraction that shuttles thousands of tourists per day is a TON of money for poverty-stricken Filipinos in the province. Thankfully, the funds are appropriately shuttled to the townspeople. Some of the funds DO go towards conservation efforts of whale sharks in the wild, too. I guess you can be the judge. In my honest opinion, you could judge for yourself but I feel that the impact to the whale sharks and their far reaching environment is much larger than the actual monetary pay out. Because, if you think about it, only the town of Oslob benefits from this detrimental business while a majority of the island still remains impoverished or very much near so. A small town versus a grand species in the vast ocean. Again, you be the judge. We have a duty to protect our world and the irresponsible exploitation of these animals needs to stop. This isn't one of those, "you can't knock it until you try it" moments. I think more and more people need to stop having that type of mentality. The less people think like that, the sooner this can stop. I, on the other hand, feel deep shame for participating in and contributing to this business, which is what it is in the end. There are alternatives for viewing these docile giants, and more spontaneously in the wild. Your chances of seeing them might be lower, but a snorkeling trip to Pescador Island just outside of Moalboal might trigger a meeting. Your best bet is to travel to Southern Leyte during their breeding season where they congregate in droves from October to June. Do your research! Contribute to ecotourism where it exists truly. read more

Oslob Whale Shark Watching - Fishermen boating around feeding the whale sharks farm raised krill; chaos, too many people - Whale Watching Tours Near Me - Oslob, CEB

I was worried that we may have to wait 2 to 3 hours for our turn but thanks our hotel staff ( Ocean View Lodging House) we were one of the first boat out. We got there before 5:30ish am. While I lined up in the registration area, our guide from the hotel lined up for payment. After the short orientation, we were off to the boat. Weather was beautiful and water was really clear. As soon as we got to the viewing area, the whale shark was already there waiting for treats. Our group slowly got out the boat and yours truly was the last one out (island girl that cannot swim :D). The whale shark were magnificent , beautiful creatures. It was a privilege being able to see it this close. There were also other sea creatures aplenty so when the whales left to another location, got to enjoy snorkeling and looking at the fishes. 30 minutes or so later we were ushered back into our boat and back to the mainland. Just a reminder to everyone, these creatures are not there for our entertainment. Please be respectful and treat them well. read more

Oslob Whale Shark Watching - Sunrise - Whale Watching Tours Near Me - Oslob, CEB

See all

Lots of foreigners so all staff speak English well. Their system is chaotic and several misc fees on top of the entrance fees. The park is only open till noon so get there early. Get yourself coral friendly sun screen or else they ask you to shower it off exposing you to the elements. Water shoes are a must!! The rocks are round but they are slippery and can twist an ankle. Make sure you bring waterproof gear/container to protect your stuff. They provide the life jacket & mask. Improvements such as toilets; dump a bucket into bowl to flush some foreigner don't know to do that. Showers are rusting bad and have low water flow. Or a wood bridge to the shore. The entire experience of swimming with the whale sharks was outrageously fun and worth while. They do feed the whale which follows the thrown food around that way you can get yourself a photo with it. When you enter the water hold on to your own boat because the current will take you away quick. Tip the boat guys and they will take care of all the photo ops you want so you can enjoy the adventure and get the perfect InstA/Facebook shots. Super worth it!! By the way if you arrive to the island by transport boat (can bring vehicle) there is a boat transport fee and a (port) fee for landing on the island be prepared for that. read more

I never would've heard of swimming with whale sharks in the Philippines had it not been for IG posts. Thanks to lurking... Er, social media. The Experience Swimming with the whales was amazing. 30 minutes wasn't enough. A whole day around them would've been wonderful. I wished I could breath underwater just to marvel at their size and grace without having to surface for air. I'm not gonna lie; I felt very vulnerable next to them. I felt an ounce of panic each time I saw one of them swimming towards me with their mouth wide open. They are filter feeders, so there was no way they'd eat me but still... Getting There Oslob is south of Cebu, Philippines; that's 2 hours of traveling by bus. Or coming from Negros Oriental, it's an hour by boat/barge followed by a 30 minute drive. The Nitty Gritty *If you don't get there early enough, be resigned to wait for at least 2 hours. We arrived at the beach around 8:30 and didn't get to swim with the big babies till noon. *The whole waiting area is a mess; absolutely zero order. Tips * Get to Oslob early. Like 7 AM early. * Barge leaves at 6 AM from the neighboring island but it gets packed fast. Try to be there by 5 to 5:30 AM * You are not allowed to wear sunscreen while swimming with the whales to avoid damaging their natural habitat. Rinse off before getting into the water * No flash photography * Fee to swim with the big babies is PHP 500 for locals and PHP 1000 for foreigners, coz. $20 to swim with whale sharks is not gonna put a dent on your wallets. I just hope the money is used towards improving the tour area, etc. * Lots of restaurants and independent resorts nearby if you get hungry after the swim. Believe me, you will be hungry. Have fun and bring your GoPro for lots of pics and videos! read more

See all

When I think of Eco Tourism, a distinct vision comes to mind: people seeing and respecting the wilds or enjoying the feature from a distance all the while treading lightly. Not here despite what they say in the briefing. This experience was just as much exploiting the foreign tourists by price gouging (300p/500p), as the treatment of whale sharks. In fact its blatant abuse to the animals. They are being fed farmed krill on a schedule to keep attracting them back to the same spot. This consistent over-feeding deprives them of critical nutrients they would have gotten from the natural foraging they instinctively do. Now, I just want to clarify, I did do the tour, although it was against my better judgment. My two kids were looking forward to the experience and really wanted to swim with a whale. I just wanted to see what the hubbub was all about. Once we paid, watched a briefing, got our number, stood in line, packed into the canoe, arrived at the viewing anchor point, then jumped out of the boat to swim, I realized this was total exploitation. And as soon as several non-swimmers with bright orange life jackets crawled over me in order to touch and get a selfie with the whale shark, narrowly drowning themselves and others, I knew this was abuse of the animals too. The town of Oslob and surrounding area have benefited greatly from this new captive attraction. In this tiny one street seaside village new Restaurants, dive shops, tour companies and destination resorts have popped up. All since an un-natural transient resident is coerced into staying for an easy meal. And all this happened over the last decade. The community has become as dependent on the whale shark as the whale shark on the free food. Now, you will find my other posts more complimentary of locations I visit in the Philippines. That's because they really are great spots. Please visit the southern tip of Cebu for its hospitality, beautiful sights, canyoning and especially the scuba diving. But boycott the Whale Shark attraction. Its harmful to the environment, tourist relations and the local dependence of a non-sustainable attraction. Please visit and read Jilian Hatfield's write up on this attraction. W w w dontforgettomove dot com Also like and follow more great travel photos on my Instagram @Tradewindshd read more

See all

After seeing my cousin's Instagram posts, I absolutely needed to swim with the gigantic whale sharks. We headed to the place early, and got there around 7:00am, but still ended up waiting about 2 hours before we actually got onto the boats to see the whale sharks. There are separate prices for Filipinos and foreigners (foreigners pay double). Fortunately, I pass as Filipino, but prices are pretty cheap anyway. Your fee will get you a boat ride to the whale sharks, a crappy snorkel and goggle rental, and use of a life jacket. You might wanna rent flippers separately, the water is deep where the whale sharks are. It's SUPER CROWDED. There are at least a dozen little canoes out on the water trying to watch these sharks. They're basically captive too since these fisherman feed them daily. But swimming with these giants is still a pretty amazing experience. You're allowed to remove your life jacket once you get to the sharks. Make sure to bring a waterproof camera to capture the experience! read more

Cool thing to do in the Philippines. When in Cebu make sure to go to Oslob it was a fun memorable experience.

oh the chaos that comes with seeing these beautiful majestic creatures. We were shuttled in by the resort we stayed at. At the resort they indicated there were two price points. 300 pesos to sit on the boat to take pictures of the whlae sharks and 500 pesos to swim  for 30 minutes with the whale sharks. Two of us opted to pay the 500 pesos. The front desk indicated reservations are required. So at 6 am the day of, we reserved for our spots. Tip: Do not wear sunscreen or any type of lotion as you will be required to shower it off at the site. Sometimes the lines can be quite long. We went on a cloudy day so sunscreen wasn't necessary. This is for the safety of the whale sharks. The shuttle drove us to the site and only took a few mins to arrive. Once we arrived, the chaos kicked in. Hordes and hordes of tourists standing, sitting, listening to the seminar presentation, wandering around, tryna figure out where to go all happened simultaneously in this "briefing" and shore area. It felt like being at the South Bus Terminal all over again. Whew!! Ok so I guess this is where the reservation had its pros. We didn't have to line up and pay, we just had to wait for our guide from the resort to tell us what to do. She stated to just wait and listen for our group's number. We were number 63. So about an hour later group 63 was called. Our guide showed us down the steps to grab life jackets and snorkels, all included with the reservation fee. We brought our own snorkels, but they were ok with it. no additional fee added. So off we went. There is no "proper" entrance way to get to your boat. You must go down another set of steps then brave your way through the rocky shoreline. In which you will be intercepted by other people yelling group numbers and to which boat your group will get on. Chaotic. Failed attempt at being organized. So we finally got on and were taken just ahead of the shore, not too far off. The whale sharks immediately came after a man was throwing food into the water. We jumped in and stayed at the required 4 meters away per rules. We took vids and pics. The whale sharks were awesome! They didn't mind the tourists at all. Beautiful and profound. They ate the food and us tourists took our photos. Really a must do! Probably one of the only things to do in Oslob. 30 mins later we were taken back to shore and we were on our way. For what they charge they should make improvements in the handling, facilitation and the site itself. Have proper loading and unloading areas that doesn't require people to walk through sharp rocks to get on the boat. After all this is the main tourist attraction of the area. Tip: follow the rules, there are scuba divers or "sea wards" watching to see if you break the rules. Don't touch the whale sharks, don't chase them as they will eventually make their way towards you. If they come really close don't panic just get out of their way. Don't wear sunscreen or any type lotions. Stay atleast 4 meters away from the whale sharks to give them room to feed. They say they'll hand out a fine of something around 2,000 pesos and/or 4-6 months of jail time should you break the rules. read more

See all

We went to see the whale sharks (or "butanding" in Bisaya) on a whim when we saw that this was a possible activity upon arrival in Cebu. My friend contacted a local agency who arranged transportation, and came with us to check it out. After a bumpy (and long!) van trip (we had to leave Cebu before sunrise), we made it in time to have breakfast (rice, hot dog and mango with a cup of coffee or Milo) at a local café. It was a great start to the day, with chickens and dogs meandering about as the sun began its ascent over the sea. Next, we piled into the van and hopped over to the place. It was crawling with tourists in those floppy, fluorescent, waterproof hats. What they didn't advertise is that we would be swimming near the whale sharks so you couldn't wear sunscreen (I was forced to scrub mine off before getting into the ocean), and that the sharks arrived at exactly the same time each day to be fed (it was not so much "watching" for whale sharks as it was paddling around them as they ate). Had I known in advance that the activity was elaborated in this way, I'm not sure I would have participated. The guides led the way in their boats, flinging krill over the sides to usher in the sharks. Then they took us out in small groups, telling us to jump in the water but not to touch the whale sharks. This last rule was not monitored closely enough, and I saw many a tourist reach out a hand to stroke the beautiful bus-sized creatures. After what felt like ten minutes, the guides tried to herd everyone back to their boats but, as you might imagine, this was quite difficult in the water with 20+ people, several of whom made it a mission not to leave without petting a shark. Post-swimming and pre-road trip back to Cebu, we pulled off on a trail to a waterfall, where we crawled onto the backs of thin motorbikes to climb the steep path. The water was chilly and the waterfall and surrounding ponds were full of people, but one of the local guides pointed out some unfrequented shallow ponds a few meters away where we found naturally-occurring nibble fish who tickled our feet. I'm all for the waterfall activity (perhaps in a different place with fewer people--you can find waterfalls all over the islands), but I wouldn't recommend swimming with the whale sharks here. read more

Amazing!! Go later in morning.. 8:30. Lighting is perfect!! Remember NO SUNBLOCK all you need is is your watershoes and GoPro