shark cage dive

[halfmonkey]

We're interested in doing a shark cage dive for the first time while on our trip to HI this Sept. There's 7 of us on the trip but only 5 of us will be going into the cage. DH, DW, DS11, DS 9, and DD5. We found two companies and both seem to have good reviews. We're wondering if anybody here has had any experience with either of them and if you'd recommend one over another. The companies are sharktourshawaii.com and hawaiisharkencounters.com.

Also, if you have tips, please share since this will be our first time doing this.

 

[MelissaMartinez]

Bump

 

[southerngirl528]

Sorry I can be no help, halfmonkey. Hopefully someone will chime in with good input for you. I am not a fan of this type of activity since they almost always "chum" to attract the sharks. Good luck and stay safe!

 

[Hannah nz]

Hi. I did this a few years ago. I did the Hawaiian Shark Encounters one and it was good.
They do chum the water even though the website said they didn't so that was a tad disappointing. I will say there were no children on the boat with us. My stepsister aged 16 was the youngest.
The water is rough both when you are on the boat and in the water. We split into two groups so one group went in the cage while the others waited on the boat. It was better to go in the water first so you don't sit on the boat feeling sea sick and then feel sick before you get in the cage.
The water in the cage is rougher than you think ( it felt like a washing machine at some point) and the water does bang you around the cage as the cage is anchored and the waves want to push you around. Also, you have to be strong to grab on to the bars and have your body float in the cage. Others in the cage may bang into you on accident. You also need to be comfortable wearing a snorkel and mask to see in the water. You also can't get out of the cage until your time is up as you will be some distance from the boat maybe 10 - 15m at times.
Sorry if that sounds negative I just wanted to share some things I didn't think of before we went so you can be sure all your family will have fun and be safe.

Make sure you take seasickness tablets if you are even slightly prone to seasickness. Also take the first trip of the day as the water is calmer.
If you feel the cold wear a wetsuit or rash shirt.

Overall I think it was a good experience but I probably wouldn't do it again based on the ecological impact of chumming for sharks that I learnt more about later.

I hope this helps.

 

[halfmonkey]

Hi. I did this a few years ago. I did the Hawaiian Shark Encounters one and it was good.
They do chum the water even though the website said they didn't so that was a tad disappointing. I will say there were no children on the boat with us. My stepsister aged 16 was the youngest.
The water is rough both when you are on the boat and in the water. We split into two groups so one group went in the cage while the others waited on the boat. It was better to go in the water first so you don't sit on the boat feeling sea sick and then feel sick before you get in the cage.
The water in the cage is rougher than you think ( it felt like a washing machine at some point) and the water does bang you around the cage as the cage is anchored and the waves want to push you around. Also, you have to be strong to grab on to the bars and have your body float in the cage. Others in the cage may bang into you on accident. You also need to be comfortable wearing a snorkel and mask to see in the water. You also can't get out of the cage until your time is up as you will be some distance from the boat maybe 10 - 15m at times.
Sorry if that sounds negative I just wanted to share some things I didn't think of before we went so you can be sure all your family will have fun and be safe.

Make sure you take seasickness tablets if you are even slightly prone to seasickness. Also take the first trip of the day as the water is calmer.
If you feel the cold wear a wetsuit or rash shirt.

Overall I think it was a good experience but I probably wouldn't do it again based on the ecological impact of chumming for sharks that I learnt more about later.

I hope this helps.

Thanks for the tips. We ended up booking with North Shore Shark Adventures. We're looking forward to the experience. We booked for 8am so hopefully it's not too rocky but we will expect it to be and will be taking motion sickness pills as well as wearing seabands at least while on the ride out to the cage dive site and on the way back.

 

[socakitty]

Thanks for the tips. We ended up booking with North Shore Shark Adventures. We're looking forward to the experience. We booked for 8am so hopefully it's not too rocky but we will expect it to be and will be taking motion sickness pills as well as wearing seabands at least while on the ride out to the cage dive site and on the way back.

We did a tour with North Shore Shark Adventures in 2015. They do not chum the water but the area they go to was a fishing spot for years so the sharks still come when they hear boat engines. We saw a lot of sharks and it was an experience we will never forget. Also, we took Dramamine but we still got seasick as well as most people on the boat, the sea was just too rough. But it was well worth the money and I am really glad we did it!

 

[Jamesmom7]

Thanks for the tips. We ended up booking with North Shore Shark Adventures. We're looking forward to the experience. We booked for 8am so hopefully it's not too rocky but we will expect it to be and will be taking motion sickness pills as well as wearing seabands at least while on the ride out to the cage dive site and on the way back.

We are looking at booking with north shore shark adventures too. Let me know how it goes!

 

[Happyinwonerland]

Wow, I am surprised to hear that a 5 year old would go on this. I would worry that they would get scared and panic and maybe hurt themselves trying to get away from the shark. My daughter would not have done well with this at 5, but each kid is different.

 

[rlk]

We used North Shore Shark Adventures in 2014. Our boys were 11 and 12 at the time and loved the experience. I really loved it too, except for getting seasick after the dive. I was only one in my family of four to get sick, but there were several other people on our excursion that got seasick after getting out of the cage. As the bring the cage back to the boat, you do get tossed around quite a bit.

My one tip would be to book the earliest tour of the morning for the calmest seas.

 

[Jamesmom7]

Wow, I am surprised to hear that a 5 year old would go on this. I would worry that they would get scared and panic and maybe hurt themselves trying to get away from the shark. My daughter would not have done well with this at 5, but each kid is different.

Fairly sure the age is 3 and up on this one. You are in a cage. It’s not really unsafe. My son will likely stay in the boat due to anxiety. We are visiting for his 8th birthday.

 

[AgentMama]

Is the top of the cage open the whole time or does it close after everyone is in?

 

[rlk]

Is the top of the cage open the whole time or does it close after everyone is in?

The top of the cage is above the water and open.

 

[Wendy from Neverland]

We're interested in doing a shark cage dive for the first time while on our trip to HI this Sept. There's 7 of us on the trip but only 5 of us will be going into the cage. DH, DW, DS11, DS 9, and DD5. We found two companies and both seem to have good reviews. We're wondering if anybody here has had any experience with either of them and if you'd recommend one over another. The companies are sharktourshawaii.com and hawaiisharkencounters.com.

Also, if you have tips, please share since this will be our first time doing this.

Don't you need to be a certified diver to do this?

 

[Jamesmom7]

Nope it’s just snorkel gear. Trust me. I watched that shark movie with the cage. You couldn’t pay me to do that lol.

 

[Mackysmycat]

Nope it’s just snorkel gear. Trust me. I watched that shark movie with the cage. You couldn’t pay me to do that lol.

Haha I saw that movie too! And that's totally what I thought of when I saw this post