The whale sharks come to visit north of Cancun near Holbox.

I went with Mayan Aqua Divers in CC. Ben was really great to communicate with prior to coming down to Puerto Aventuras.

I was picked up at 5:40 am from the Catalonia Riviera Maya. Brought up to Pto Jaurez. That's up in CC on the north end where the ferries depart for Isla Mujeres. Marta was there to meet us as scheduled. Thanks for all your provided info.

Then take a boat to the Holbox area. The water is so very nice and pretty and calm. It is so serene. It was odd how calm it was. I could see fish and starfish on the bottom while we were cruising.

Oops, going off topic ~ ~ stop the boat and idle near their location. Spotted some water action. You need not see their fins because there are tons of fish swimming around with the whale sharks and they splash a lot.

Spot the sharks ~ guide and two people hop in the water. The water clarity wasn't the best at our 1st location.

My turn ~ hopp in.. Guide grabs my hand ~ ~ swims me quickly -- AaAahHhHh -- what the HECK, it's right NEXT to me... Wow it's HUGE. It's only the head.. Then at it swims slowly yet swiftly along past me. WOW ~~ It comes around again. WOW.. Once my anxiety slows down, I'm ready for the next round. Keep it in check.

These things moves so slowly, yet they are too quick for us to swim continuously with. They are also so very large.

The big guy (shark) dives down. Off to spot for some more action.

What do we see, but the flapping fins.. It's the mantas. Who else is there besides a gazillion fish?? IT's more whale sharks. Wooo Hooo ~ Jackpot.

That was so cool that they were all swimming together in one location. There was a couple sharks and at least 5 mantas.

Now the mantas are just wild to see and be in the water with.. They're so adorable too.

The journey is something to remember just being able to be in their habitat and getting to see BOTH. My pix turned out pretty crappy due to all the excitement under the water. Then the stupid battery died.

The boat ride was about a 30-40 minutes. Then about 2 hours taking turns with the big guys (sharks and mantas). We had 9 people on our boat. Only 2 people in the water at a time with the guide.

Next off to a reef for more snorkeling if you'd like. That was at least a half hour. There they prepared shrimp cocktail. We had sandwhiches, shrimp cocktail, beverages, fruit and cheese. (sandwhiches and beverages were also offered prior to this while swimming with the big guys).

Then back to port. Into the transport and back to hotel (Pto Avntrs). I think I got back about 4'ish. Still had enough time for pool and beach. Wonderful day.

It was a long day, but worth it all and I'm still here to talk about it ~ wooooo.

My girlfriend and I just returned from a week in Cancun where we hooked up with Jorge and Denise from Mayan Aqua Dive. We are fairly new, this was our 5th and 6th dives in open water but without a doubt this was the best. We dove Santa Rosa and the C-53 wreck in Cozumel and I'm still smiling over the whole experience. Jorge and Denise were with us always and they are really professional and friendly people - In short, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend Ben's crew to anyone. You will have a great time and meet some wonderful people. I will definitely use their service again when I return to Cancun.

We went with Ben to do our open water dives after we did our classes back in the states. The Dive sites were amazing and Ben was more attentive then any other instructor we have been with. The crew is really watchful and Ben will show you some of the best sites. We seen more fish then we could handle. Don't Waste your money with anyone else THIS place is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED and VERY SAFE in regards to their equipment. Thanks for some great dives Ben and we will defiantly be coming back to you. John & Kari

I did my open water referral dive with Mayan Aqua Dive in April 2009, and would highly recommend them to anyone looking to dive in the Cancun area. I chose them based upon the glowing reviews on Trip Advisor, as well as many other positive reviews on other dive websites. They lived up to- or exceeded -my expectations in every way. The entire operation was professionally run by friendly people that obviously love what they do. My instructor- Ben Mooney- went out of his way to make my diving experience memorable. The equipment was well maintianed- an important concern for anyone that doesn't own their own gear. Rates were comparable to any other operation in the area. What more can you ask for? I will definately use them again next time I'm in the area-