Snorkelling with Humpbacks on Silver Bank

North of the Dominican Republic in the Caribbean, the seabed forms an underwater bank where humpback whales gather to give birth, resulting in vast numbers of mothers and calves. Swimming with the humpbacks of the Silver Bank Sanctuary is one of the most remarkable whale watching experiences anywhere in the world.

In the four months from January to April, up to 3,000 individuals gather here – pregnant mothers to give birth, others to meet and mate – making it the largest gathering of this species in the North Atlantic.

Every care is taken to ensure our presence does not negatively impact the whales in any way with visitor numbers to Silver Bank being very carefully controlled. With only three commercial ecotourism vessels permitted here, it's perhaps the most exclusive whale watching destination in the world.

So imagine the scene – you’re in a gentle swell in the warm waters of the Caribbean Sea, out of sight of land and wearing a mask and snorkel. You duck under the surface to scan the water and initially, it’s just deep, deep blue all around you. Then, from the depths below comes a hard-todistinguish shape that you realise is a humpback whale. And, not only that, it’s accompanied by a calf that would have been born here at Silver Bank earlier in the year.

The pair slowly approach to within 10 metres or so, then effortlessly move away again. And for half an hour or so the pair are content to be watched by us human interlopers in their environment.

And being in the water with the whales, we won't just be able to watch them, we can listen to them too - their haunting song echoing through the water, and the sound of their pectoral fins and tails as they slap them on the surface of the water.

If this wasn’t enough, it’s not just humpback whales you can expect to encounter here as the marine sanctuary is also a refuge for dolphins and rays. With twice-daily excursions, there are plenty of opportunities to immerse yourself in the is perhaps one of the most unusual of the trips that we offer anywhere on Earth.

Atlantic Ocean.

Day 1: Board Turks & Caicos Aggressor in Puerto Plata. Depart for Silver Bank around midnight.

Days 2-6: Morning & afternoon excursions to swim with humpback whales. Our objective will be for you to spend as much time in the water as possible with the whales as long as they're comfortable with it. Schedules may vary slightly depending on how the whales behave.

Day 7: Final excursion into the water, before departing for Dominican Republic at lunchtime.

Day 8: Disembark in Puerto Plata.

8 days, from £3,745 (voyage only)

Departure dates: Jan-Apr

See pages 28-29 for dates

Embark/Disembark: Puerto Plata/Puerto Plata

Vessel: Turks & Caicos Aggressor, a comfortable motor cruiser accommodating 18 passengers

For the most intimate of encounters with one of the largest animals on the planet in the safe surroundings of the Caribbean Sea.

ཀྵ Bucket-list adventure

ཀྵ Wildlife encounters

ཀྵ Caribbean experience

Wildlife Highlights

ཀྵ Humpback whales

ཀྵ Bryde’s whales

ཀྵ Bottlenose & spinner dolphins

ཀྵ Southern stingrays

Activities

Boat excursions, swimming & snorkelling, whale watching, birdwatching

This is surely the most incredible of all the whale watching trips that are possible to enjoy - snorkelling in the Caribbean with humpback whales, seeing them underwater and even hearing them singing. It must go right to the top of the bucket list!

Chris Breen - Wildlife Worldwide Founder

Puerto Plata

Haiti

Silver Bank

Dominican Republic