Giant Mantas – Come dive with giant Manta rays of San Benedicto Island, Roca Partida and Socorro Island! Encounter friendly dolphins, Humpback whales and sharks with Nautilus Explorer & Belle Amie, safe & luxurious liveaboards with 25 years of experience.

Socorro Giant Mantas

The giant pacific mantas which you will meet at Socorro are the largest of the rays and we believe they are the most majestic creatures in the ocean. They swim by moving their wing-like pectoral fins, which can grow up to 7 meters wide, but usually average about 5 - 6 meters.

At Socorro, these giants choose to interact with divers! They come in very close - less than 1 meter! - make eye contact with you and then swim along beside you - totally on their terms. What is even more extraordinary is that the local population of bottlenose dolphins have learned to mimic the behavior of the giant mantas. It is very likely that these wild dolphins will also move in close and intimate to divers during your trip.

Diver taking photo of a giant mantas — Photo: Cristian Dimitrius

At Socorro, these giants choose to interact with divers! They come in very close (less than 1 meter!), make eye contact with you and then swim along beside you totally on their terms.

November to December

Socorro is all about amazing interaction with our favourite giant mantas. No other mantas in the world behave like this. We don't know why but we LOVE IT!! And the mantas clearly love us back. November and December boast the warmest water temps of the year in the low 80's. Aside from the usual interaction with mantas, dolphins and 10 kinds of sharks, this is the best time of year to see whale sharks in blue blue water and often excellent visibility.

Swiming with giant mantas — Photo: Deb Smrekar

Playful pelagic dolphins — Photo: Sten Johansson

Early January

Value season!!!! It's always been hard to persuade folks to travel after the holidays so our attitude is "what the heck, let's offer super value pricing". The diving is as good as ever and you can't beat our pricing at this time of year. As always, Socorro is about amazing interaction with our favourite giant mantas. No other mantas in the world behave like this. We don't know why but we love it!! And the mantas clearly love us back. You can also expect interaction with dolphins, 10 kinds of sharks and early season humpback whales. Water temps are usually in the mid - high 70's.

Mid January to April

Socorro is all about amazing interaction with our favourite giant mantas. No other mantas in the world behave like this. We don't know why but we LOVE it!! And the mantas clearly love us back. Aside from the usual interaction with mantas, dolphins and 10 kinds of sharks, 1200 humpback whales migrate down from Alaska at this time of year to mate and breed.. You will see loads of whales on the surface and you will hear them singing when you are in the water. Most incredible of all is the opportunity to snorkel with the whales and sometimes even see them during a dive. Please note that cooler waters and humpback whales go hand-in-hand and you can expect water temps 73 - 74 degrees.

Humpback whale and diver — Photo: Nautilus

Humpback whale underwater — Photo: Joel Ibarra

May to July

Bait ball season!!! Socorro is all about amazing interaction with our favourite giant mantas. No other mantas in the world behave like this. We don't know why but we love it!! And the mantas clearly love us back. Research indicates that there are more giant mantas and more biomass at Socorro during bait ball season than any other time of year. Everything intensifies with more sharks - including schooling silky sharks - schooling hammerheads, whale sharks, lots of tuna and other pelagic fish and even pilot whales. You can expect water temps in the mid - high 70's.