CasaSandra, a small luxury hotel on Holbox Island, Mexico, has added a whale shark tour that lets travelers swim with the creatures that the hotel describes as "gentle giants."
Hotel owner Sandra Perez said the package takes advantage of the mid-June to mid-September period when large aggregations of whale sharks, which have an average size of about 32 feet with a weight of 20,000 pounds and are usually solitary creatures, come to the area to feed on the water's rich plankton, krill and fish eggs.
"It is an incredible phenomenon because it's one of the few places on Earth where the whale sharks are not in the deep but rather on the surface of the ocean," she said. "When you swim with these enormous and magnanimous creatures, you experience all kinds of emotions: freedom, fear and sense their great spirit and interior beauty. There is so much we can learn from these animals, attempting to become more like them."
The Art of Whale Shark and Fishing Experience package includes a private fishing and whale-watching excursion, a picnic at Cabo Catoche, a tequila tasting hosted by a tequila master and a private beach dinner.
Rates start at about $3,000 per person for a two-night stay, based on double occupancy.