You can now swim with whale sharks in Mexico

The whale part of the fish’s name is a misnomer. They are indeed sharks, but the non-dangerous carpet shark type that feeds on small animals on the seabed. Photo: AFP/Paul Hilton/ WildAid

They may be called whale sharks but there’s nothing to fear encountering one of these giant fish in the ocean – so much so that tourists in northwestern Mexico can swim alongside them on organised tours.

“These are tropical animals, very gentle, that you can swim with, and which go along at a maximum 8km an hour,” explained Fabricio Mujica, who handles these up-close sessions in La Paz Bay, in Mexico’s Baja California.