BEST OF · SCUBA DIVING IN SOUTH AFRICA
Prices, water time and who each one suits, in one place. The 15 scuba diving in South Africa below are the ones worth spending a spare morning on.
Travel from Cape Town or Hermanus to Gansbaai for a guided shark cage experience with White Shark Projects. You’ll get breakfast, safety training, a 7 mm wetsuit, about 20 minutes in the cage, lunch, and time to watch bronze whalers and other marine life from the boat.
“it was great. saw 4 bronze sharks. the experience was great, the team was very polite and helpful”
Travel from Cape Town to Gansbaai for a full-day shark cage encounter with Marine Dynamics. After breakfast and a safety briefing, you’ll board a boat near Dyer Island, watch wild sharks with a marine biologist, and return with snacks, gear, and hotel transport included.
“It was a very unique experience, loved it but please take sea sick medicine as that can make or break your trip! Got to experience sharks so up close and personal”
Travel from Cape Town to Gansbaai for a guided shark cage encounter with Marine Dynamics. You’ll get safety instruction from a marine biologist, use supplied wetsuits and gear, and visit the African Penguin and Seabird Sanctuary. Bronze whaler sharks are the main attraction, with seals, rays, whales, and dolphins possible.
“This trip was very well organized- they’ve really thought of everything and strived to make the participants as prepared and comfortable as possible. I had a GREAT time and very adventurous yet comfortable experience. The boat was very well stocked, the shark cage was very safe and well designed, and the guides and crew were knowledgeable, informative, and helpful. Highly recommend.”
Meet at 7:00 am in Van Dyks Bay for a small-group great white shark cage encounter with White Shark Projects. You’ll receive breakfast, safety guidance, gear, hot showers, refreshments, and a light lunch, with about 20 minutes in the cage when conditions allow.
“This was horrible- long and far from Cape Town, poor communication, and no one told us that the Great White are no longer coming around the waters they cruise. They did not even put the cage in the water and only 2 sharks came and went. NOT worth the money or the time. The only saving grace was the scenery down to the dock.”
Ride a 12-meter catamaran off Van Dyk’s Bay, watch Great White Sharks feed at the surface, and enter a floating cage for close views. Qualified scuba users may use air tanks, while others can snorkel or hold their breath. The trip lasts about 3.5 hours and includes gear, snacks, and hot drinks.
“A lot of sharks were close to the boat. Good helpful staff. We had luck with weather. Sea was calm..”
From Gansbaai, you take a 20-minute boat ride to shark waters, then take turns in an 8-person cage with wetsuits, masks, and booties provided. Guides explain shark behavior and conservation. Breakfast, lunch, snacks, and onboard viewing are included. Cape Town transport costs extra.
“This is a great company doing important work. Their staff were professional and informative. Unfortunately, the day we went, visibility underwater was poor, there were maybe 7ft swells (lots of seasickness, I took Dramamine and was still queRead more”
Spend about three hours at sea near Kleinbaai, watching bronze whaler and possibly great white sharks from a protected cage. The crew provides wetsuits, masks, food, drinks, and marine-life briefings. Expect cold water, rough seas at times, and rotating cage time for groups of four or five.
“Was so amazing!!! I loved! Staffs as really nice and kind, the filming was so good. In the end we had soup and bread witch was really good. Recommended a hundred times. The only thing is we didn’t see great white sharks, they told us they are not in that region. Shame! But it worths anyway”
Meet at Simon’s Town for a small-group shark cage adventure led by an expert captain and crew. Use provided SCUBA equipment to spend time underwater with bronze whalers near Seal Island, or search for blue and mako sharks near Cape Point. Expect cold water, marine life, snacks, and a boat ride.
“Shark cage diving was the most important event of our stay in Cape Town. We arranged all other tours around it, taking a great deal of effort. Then, three days before the tour, the operator said that the weather was going to be too rough and cancelled the tour. The operator said that he might be able to re-schedule us with an unidentified "colleague" in Gansbaai (a 6 hour round trip drive away) for the same price plus 3000 ZAR for the transportation. We understand that safety comes first and that weather precluded this tour. But this operator made no real effort to accommodate us by still charging us $936…”
From Simon’s Town, Apex Shark Expeditions takes you aboard White Pointer II toward Seal Island or Cape Point. You’ll receive a safety briefing, boat gear, towels, snacks, and refreshments, then watch for bronze whaler, seven-gill, blue, or mako sharks from a cage shared by up to four people.
“Wow what an amazing experience. We saw lots of sharks as well as a visit to see the seals. The crew were amazing, very knowledgable, helpful and welcoming. Special shout out for Brandon. Would definitely recommend 🦈”
Meet Apex Shark Expeditions in Simon’s Town for a three-hour False Bay outing. You’ll receive a safety briefing, wetsuit, mask, and snorkel before entering a surface cage. Ryan, Brandon, and the crew may also seek out seals, dolphins, penguins, seabirds, and whales.
“We had an amazing dive and were able to see 6-8 bronze wheeler sharks. Instructions were clearly provided by the guides and they helped us throughout”
From Kleinbaai, you head by boat toward Dyer Island and Shark Alley for a cage encounter with great whites or bronze whalers, then watch southern right whales from Gansbaai. The two outings can run on one long day or separate days, with Cape Town pickup available.
“Shark Diving was absolutely great, the driver arrived on time and the drive to Gansbaai was smooth. They gave us breakfast and briefing before heading to the boat. We went in the cage for two dives of about 15 minutes each. We saw so many bronze whaler sharks. When we came back lunch was waiting for us and then we got back to Cape town. We couldn’t do the whale watching due to the strong wind in the afternoon, it got canceled. We got a refund. Totally worth it”
From 62 St George’s St, Shark Explorers takes you into False Bay for a four-hour shark encounter. Guides including Nina, Jason, Ernest, and Stephen provide a safety briefing, wetsuit, mask, and booties before you enter a secure cage. Expect sandwiches, hot drinks, and possible dolphins, seals, penguins, and whales.
“The confident and relaxed mannerism by all the staff made it feel like a family outing, spotted and followed a pod of dolphins en route to the dive site that made it more special, definitely want to do this again after this as a first experience.”
Leave Cape Town early for Gansbaai, where you receive a safety briefing, gear, breakfast, and lunch before a three-hour shark cage excursion. Afterward, visit penguins near Betty’s Bay, though the exact route and penguin stop can change. French and English guiding is available.
“The staff was excellent!! However, I was very disappointed that I did not see a Great White Shark. I saw only 2 sharks of different species from the boat. I couldn't see it at all in the gage. We were supposed to be in a 6 person gage but one of the first group came in with us and there were 7 of us and it was very tight and uncomfortable. The staff should have said no.”
Meet your PADI professional at Just Nuisance’s statue in Simon’s Town, complete the online learning and a 45-minute safety briefing, then spend about 1.5 hours underwater among kelp, fish, seals, penguins, and possibly small sharks. Kobus is a praised instructor when available.
“For some of us it was our first time diving and the guides made us feel super comfy! We got to see some cool things and overall was an awesome experience and highly recommend for beginner divers!”
From Cape Shark Adventures’ office in Kleinbaai, you’ll head toward Dyer Island for about three hours of shark viewing, with the option to enter an underwater cage. The crew provides breakfast, drinks, safety instruction, warm soup, and help arranging transport.
“Super Organisation, kleine Gruppe, Frühstück, nach dem Event gab es warme Suppe und eine warme Dusche. Alles perfekt”
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