4 Reasons to Avoid Swimming With Whale Sharks in Oslob

A guaranteed chance of swimming with whale sharks sounds like a dream—but in Oslob, it quickly turned into a nightmare. Here’s why this so-called bucket-list experience is actually a major tourist trap.

While there’s plenty of debate about the ethics of this practice in Oslob, we’ll also cover four other big reasons why I found tourism in Oslob to be very disappointing.

General information about swimming with whale sharks in Oslob

How much is it to swim with whale sharks in Oslob?

A snorkeling day trip from Moalboal to Oslob including snorkeling with whale sharks cost about USD 60 per person. Scuba diving packages with two dives cost upwards of USD 100.

What is the best time to swim with whale sharks in Oslob?

The Oslob whale sharks are near the shore only in the morning, so swimming with the whale sharks in Oslob is only possible between 6 AM and 11:30 AM.

Therefore, if you’re doing the common day trip from Moalboal, you will need to wake up between 4 and 5 AM.

How to get to Oslob?

Getting to Oslob is at least a 2.5 hour journey and can be done by:

• Day Tours, which cost about USD 60 per person, are very crowded and often do not accommodate for scuba divers
• Taxi, which I found to be relatively expensive if you spend the day in Oslob, but the one-way fare is around USD 40.
• Public transport, the slowest and least comfortable option, requiring multiple transfers.

Our experience going to Oslob: Since we wanted to scuba dive with whale sharks in Oslob, going on the standard snorkeling tours wouldn’t work for us. The only option we found on our date was to hire a one-way taxi to Oslob in the morning, with a price tag of about 40 USD. Later in the afternoon, we returned to Moalboal by public transport, which was affordable but required a few transfers and lacked both comfort and air conditioning.

4 Reasons Why You Shouldn’t Go Swimming With Whale Sharks in Oslob

1. The damage to the welfare of the whale sharks and other marine animals

Impact on migration patterns & poor nutrition

Though whale sharks pass through Oslob as they naturally migrate, the region is not supposed to have them year-round, and to keep them there, locals feed them a diet based off shrimp, which is not as diverse and rich as what whale sharks typically eat in the wild.

Damage to the shark’s protective mucus layer

Whale sharks have a protective mucus layer that helps shield them from harmful bacteria and parasites. Touching them can damage this layer and expose them to new diseases.

Although tourists receive a 30-minute briefing instructing them not to touch the sharks, many disregard the rule, putting the animals in danger. Local guides often try to enforce the no-touching guideline, but with so many tourists in the water at once, it’s nearly impossible to monitor everyone.

Also, often while feeding the whale sharks, the boat crew hold the whale shark away from the boat by using their feet, which is incredibly harmful to the shark.

Serious accidents and scarring because of close contact with boats

Whale Sharks in Oslob often have scars caused by rubbing against boats while they are fed. Accidents have happened where the whale shark is severely hurt by the boat’s motor!

Damage to the local reef ecosystem

Mass tourism has been shown to harm coral reefs, which serve as habitats for numerous marine species. Oslob is no exception.

2. The long lines of crowds waiting to swim with whale sharks in Oslob

At about 7:00 AM in Oslob, I could already see a huge line of tourists waiting to swim with whale sharks, and the line just kept growing throughout the morning.

Though we didn’t have to join the giant line because we’d scuba dive, I couldn’t help but feel bad for the many tourists who had to wait hours to be able to get in the water just to get with a rushed and crowded experience.

Seeing that long line, with easily 100+ people, really got me thinking about responsible tourism and how the ever-growing crowds only push local fishermen to keep feeding the whale sharks, disrupting their natural habits and migration patterns.

3. It is not worth it to stay in Oslob

After the exhausting morning trip and a disappointing time underwater, we hoped to explore Oslob.

Unfortunately, we couldn’t find anything to see or do. Although we found a nice cafe to eat at, the town felt like a ghost town with no other obvious options for places to go.

If you are thinking about spending one night in Oslob, I recommend reconsidering, as the town does not have much to offer. In fact, we recommend reconsidering going to Oslob altogether and spend your time going to more fun activities in Moalboal, like canyoneering at Kawasan Falls.

4. The awful infrastructure for scuba diving

Altered animal habits and the poor attention to detail of dive shops in Oslob make scuba diving there more painful than fun.

In an attempt to make the Oslob day trip worth it, we booked two dives:

1. Shore dive starting at 7 AM to see whale sharks. The pictures speak for themselves as to how crowded this experience was!
2. Boat dive at 1 PM at Sumilon Island. Here, the dive was beautiful but not worth all the hassles we faced with the Oslob dive shops. I do not consider this dive site unique or special in the context of the Philippines – the marine life we encountered on this dive was extremely similar to other Cebu dive sites.

During our first dive, we learned that diving with whale sharks in Oslob isn’t like seeing them in the wild. The water is packed with snorkelers and scuba divers, making the experience crowded and chaotic.

Since the whale sharks stay near the surface for feeding, snorkeling might even be a better option, though I found both activities unprofessional and overcrowded.

We found the dive shops in Oslob to be of subpar quality, which made our experience scuba diving there both dangerous and uncomfortable. During our two dives we witnessed:

1. A leaking tank that significantly delayed our dive
2. Masks that fogged the whole time, making it impossible to see anything
3. A broken regulator, and a dive instructor who insisted that we continue the dive using the alternate regulator
4. A dive instructor who forgot to bring weights to the boat, and ended up having to use stones as weights

My scuba diving experience with shops in Oslob ranks as the worst I had worldwide. This fact is particularly bad because the other dive shops I visited in the Philippines rank among my favorites!

Therefore, I do not believe that scuba diving in Oslob is worth it, especially in the context of the other amazing diving opportunities available in the Philippines.

The Controversy: Is swimming with whale sharks in Oslob ethical?

The ethics of swimming with whale sharks in Oslob is a hot topic, with strong arguments on both sides. On one hand, whale shark tourism has transformed the local economy and helped protect these gentle giants from hunting. On the other, the way tourism is handled there severely damages the local marine wildlife.

The Positive Side: How Oslob’s Whale Shark Tourism Helped the Community

✅ It revitalized Oslob’s economy.
Before tourism, Oslob was an impoverished fishing village. The arrival of whale shark tourism gave locals new job opportunities, and turned the town into a tourism hotspot.

✅ It put an end to whale shark hunting.
Before 2011, fishermen saw whale sharks as a nuisance or a source of profit. Some killed them to reduce competition for fish, while others sold their highly valued fins on the illegal wildlife market. Despite a national ban on whale shark hunting in 1998, enforcement was weak—until tourism proved to be a more profitable alternative.

The Harmful Side: Why Conservationists Oppose It

❌ Feeding the whale sharks disrupts their natural behavior.

Whale sharks shouldn’t be in Oslob year-round. They’re supposed to migrate, but because they’re being fed daily, they stay long Oslob instead of following their natural migration routes.

❌ Close human interaction puts the sharks at risk.

• Tourists are told not to touch the whale sharks, but many do. This damages their protective mucus layer, making them vulnerable to disease.
• Boats often get too close, leaving scars on their bodies. Some sharks have even been seriously injured by boat propellers.

Ultimately, the question isn’t just whether whale shark tourism should exist—it’s how it should be done. With better regulations, such as stricter visitor limits and improved enforcement, Oslob could strike a much healthier balance between.

Unfortunately, given the way whale shark tourism is currently done in Oslob, I consider the practice to be unethical – but hopefully that will change in the future!

A better alternative: swimming with whale sharks elsewhere

Now, I don’t want to sound like a total downer. Swimming with whale sharks can be an incredible experience—just not in Oslob!

For example, one of my happiest memories in life is snorkeling with whale sharks in Cancun. The experience was well-organized, ethical, and safe.

There are so many places around the world that offer fun and responsible ways to swim with these magnificent creatures. And guess what? Some of them are, like Donsol and Leyte are also in the Philippines!

Is swimming with whale sharks in Oslob worth it?

While swimming with whale sharks sounds magical, our experience in Oslob was far from it. Between the grueling travel, overcrowded snorkeling, terrible dive shops, and a town with nothing to offer, we left feeling more stressed than satisfied.

So no, we do not think that it is worth it (or ethical) to go swimming with whale sharks in Oslob!

Until real changes happen, I wouldn’t recommend Oslob to anyone who truly cares about comfort and the health of marine life.

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