Big Animal Encounters in Socorro

      isla socorro, mexico

      BP
      Blue Planet Scuba
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      142 reviews
      Apr 13 - 22, 2019
      Group size: 1 - 18
      Big Animal Encounters in Socorro
      isla socorro, mexico

      Blue Planet Scuba
      • Email address verified
      • Facebook verified
      • Twitter verified
      142 reviews

      Apr 13 - 22, 2019
      Group size: 1 - 18

      About this trip

      9 nights onboard the M/V Valentina

      Join Blue Planet for some incredible big animal encounters in Socorro, the “Mexican Galapagos.” These islands draw sharks, mantas, whales and pelagic fish in large numbers, promising a memorable week of diving from the M/V Valentina liveaboard.


      Socorro

      The Revillagigedos Archipelago, more commonly called Socorro, is located in the eastern Pacific Ocean approximately 250 miles south of Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, at the tip of the Baja peninsula. These islands have been compared to the Galapagos Islands in Ecuador or Cocos Island in Costa Rica because of the big animal encounters they provide…like up-close and personal encounters with the Giant Pacific manta ray, which can grow to 22 feet from wingtip to wingtip.


      There are plenty of sharks — hammerhead schools, white tips, silver tips, silkies, duskies, Galapagos and occasionally tigers. Divers have encountered up to 7 species of sharks on a single dive! We may even get lucky and see whale sharks.


      Add to the mix extremely large tuna, wahoo, thick schools of jacks and many other big critters along with endemic tropicals found nowhere else in the world, and you have the best big animal diving on earth!


      As the diving here is usually deeper and more challenging, each diver must have a minimum of Advanced Open Water Diver certification (or equivalent) and at least 50 dives. Enriched air/Nitrox certification strongly recommended.


      M/V Valentina

      The 125 ft long M/V Valentina will be our home base for this incredible trip. It has 10 air-conditioned cabins, each with an en-suite bathroom. The dining room offers excellent cuisine with a variety of Mexican, European and Asian dishes, and also an open bar with a choice of various soft drinks, tea, coffee and draft beer. Relax between dives on the large, partially covered sun deck, or enjoy the stars at night while floating in the middle of the ocean.

      Cancellation Policy

      Upon cancellation of a reservation for any reason, the refund of the deposit and payments made or due will be contingent upon Blue Planet reselling the participant's reservation. Any refund may also be subject to a cancellation fee and payment of any non-refundable fees imposed by the tour company, dive operator or any other contractor associated with the trip. 


      Dive accident insurance is required for all divers on this trip. We strongly recommend travel insurance to protect your vacation investment. Contact us if you need more information. 

      What’s included

      • 9 nights accommodations
        Double occupancy in a double or twin cabin with a private bathroom, air conditioning and personal entertainment system.
      • 3-4 dives a day
      • All meals and beverages
      • Airport transfers
      • Tax and service charges

      What’s not included

      • Enriched Air/Nitrox
        $120; for Nitrox certified divers
      • Flights
        international flights to Cabo
      • Scuba equipment
        Only tanks and weights included; rental gear available
      • Tips
        Tips for the boat's excellent crew
      • Chamber Support Fee
        $15
      • Onboard purchases

      Available Packages

      Deluxe Twin Cabin, double occupancy

      Twin cabins have spacious wide bunk beds. Each has its own en-suite bathroom, air conditioning, personal entertainment system, etc.

      $3,680
      Deposit: $500
      Deluxe Double Cabin, double occupancy

      Double cabins have 1 double bed and 1 single bed (non-bunk).  Each has its own en-suite bathroom, air conditioning, personal entertainment system, etc. 

      $3,680
      Deposit: $500


      Itinerary

      Embarking
      April 13, 2019

      Upon arrival at the San Jose Del Cabo airport (SJD), you will be greeted and transferred to the marina complimentary as long as it is on the check in and check out date.  If you are already staying in the area, feel free to make your own way to the Marina named “Puerto Los Cabos” by 6:00 PM.  All guests must be onboard by 18:00 on all itineraries so the Valentina departs at 21:00. 


      If you'd like to arrive in the area earlier, we can help with hotel arrangements. It's not a bad idea to ensure your bags make it before the boat departs! You can stay in San Jose Del Cabo or head a bit further south to Cabo San Lucas.

      Your Organizer


      BP
      Blue Planet Scuba
      142 reviews
      Blue Planet is a different kind of scuba diving organization — aimed at providing the best education and experiences to divers in the Washington, DC area and beyond, while harnessing the excitement and adventure of scuba diving to help protect our fragile oceans.

      Reviews

      Heather & Jonas were excellent trip leaders making sure everyone was well taken care of. The Galapagos Aggressor had a super crew and the diving was challenging and stunning! We saw hammerheads, penguins, seals, sea lions & dolphins! I really appreciated the personal touches like our matching jackets and a cake for my birthday. I would highly recommend this trip.
      By Catherine W for Explore the Galapagos on Mar 02, 2024
      This review is belated, I know... ...But that only means I took **serious*** consideration into reviewing my experience with Blue Planet DC, and ranking them very highly. Its been almost a year since I was OW Certified with Blue Planet in Cozumel - my training during that trip was thorough enough to provide me with a solid foundation to continue scuba diving afterwards many, many times. The trip itinerary, accommodations, and overall pacing of the scuba lessons were incredibly well organized. The instructors were patient and attentive - at various times I was provided specific one-on-one, actionable feedback regarding things like my trim or my breathing rhythm impacting my buoyancy and what I could do to improve my technique. They made sure we knew our stuff before letting us loose into the ocean, and during our checkout dives they stayed closeby and kept a watchful eye on us, so I felt more at ease and safe. (Even with the drift moving us around!) My main priority for this trip was to learn how to scuba, but that said, there were opportunities at Cozumel to (after the day's lessons are done) be a tourist and explore the area. The resort itself is a very beautiful spot with relaxing, open air dining, lounge, and balcony areas as well as a fantastic view of the ocean horizon. I also really appreciated that lodging AND meals were included in this travel package - it saved me the trouble of having to figure that out on my own, which made a big difference by freeing up more time after each full day of lessons to just relax and chill. I know each trip is always different of course in terms of other group trip attendees you may end up with, so of course this can just be sheer dumb luck, but everyone else on this trip was chill. Even the more seasoned divers who were already certified and doing this for years were friendly and happy to drop useful advice or recount from their personal experiences how it was like them becoming certified the first time. The time I did this it was "drift diving" and of course that scared me a ton. But the PADI material that is mandatory to study goes over what drift diving is. When doing my checkout dive the drift didn't like, wash me away from the group dive route. You'll be under instructor supervision so people are keeping an eye on you, and the drift itself is mild - I didn't have to struggle against the current (if you've ever surfed, you'll see that this isn't at all like a riptide or undertow). If anything, managing your buoyancy will end up your primary concern or worry during the checkout dive. Hope this review helps anyone considering who to go with for getting certified on their first ever scuba trip! I'm very glad I went with Blue Planet.
      By M T for March Certification Weekend in Cozumel on Feb 19, 2024
      EM
      This was my first liveaboard! 🛥️ Anthony was a fantastic trip leader and teacher, as always! The Aquacat crew was fun, the food was delicious and the diving and excursions were great! I would definitely recommend this trip with Blue Planet, especially as a first liveaboard experience! I had a good time learning about sharks, too! 🦈
      By Elsbeth M for Ring in 2024 on a Liveaboard in the Bahamas! on Jan 15, 2024
      Thanks for joining on another amazing trip! Hopefully we will be on another fun trip in sharky waters soon.
      By Anthony White on Jan 17, 2024
      AW
      This was my first trip with Blue Planet and my first liveaboard - both were a great experience! The communication and prep from Blue Planet was excellent (pre-trip meeting was really helpful, paperwork was clear and organized). My husband and I are new divers and Anthony (trip lead from Blue Planet) was an invaluable resource - we learned a lot during the dives and felt safe with him looking out for us. The liveaboard itself was amazing. The bed was comfortable, the food was amazing, the staff were wonderful. This was one of the best trips of my life - it's going to be hard to top with the bar now set so high!
      By Rachel L for Ring in 2024 on a Liveaboard in the Bahamas! on Jan 08, 2024
      Thank you so much, Rachel! I am glad you and Ben had such a good time on the trip. You were both great divers, and I can't wait to see you on more of our trips. I look forward to diving with you some more!
      By Anthony White on Jan 13, 2024
      AW
      JR
      Had a great time diving, wonderful people and nice accommodations; hotel was super convenient to dive boats.
      By Jennifer R for December Certification Weekend in Cozumel on Dec 11, 2023
      Thank you so much, Jennifer! We’re so happy to hear how much you enjoyed the dive experience with Blue Planet in Cozumel. We look forward to you joining with us on a future trip!
      By Blue Planet Scuba on Dec 12, 2023
      BP
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