Many people can say they’ve seen seals from the shore or aboard a boat, but rarely does anyone get the chance to interact with them. Now you can! This 4.5-hour excursion takes you right into the water with the plump pinnipeds. After a short plane and boat ride, jump into the water, snorkel gear firmly affixed to your head, and get ready for a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. The seals may opt to watch you swim from the rocks, but there's plenty of other sea life to check out on this fun excursion, open to snorkelers of all skill levels.
Head to Vancouver Harbour for a short, scenic flight to Nanaimo on Vancouver Island. Once you land, hop on a boat for a 15-minute ride to Snake Island, where you'll get to snorkel with seals. Get outfitted with a wetsuit, mask, gloves, boots, fins and a snorkel, and then dive in. Who knows, your wetsuit attire might even make the seals think you’re one of them. Dive underwater and get a sense of what the seals are up to when they’re below the surface. Wave a hand (or a flipper) at your newfound blubbery buddies. If they aren’t up for swimming, wander over to the shore, where you’ll likely find them sunbathing. You can expect to see more than just these fin-footed giants during your visit; look up for Canadian geese and majestic bald eagles, or dip your mask in the water to spot various fish darting around.
After about 2 hours of swimming and snorkeling with the seals and other sea creatures, climb aboard the boat and make the journey back to Nanaimo for your return flight by seaplane to Vancouver Harbour.
Nice flights in a seaplane from Vancouver to Nanaimo and back and a great experience to swim around with the seals. Some seals were very curious and some quite guarded, but still let you get close enough for a good photo. Wet suits keep you warm even though it was 12C in the water. A fun day.
Review by: R C, September 2017
One word just amazing. Float plane experience is great and you make your own way to Nanaimo. From there I would recommend getting directions to the dive shop and be aware it won't be open when you first get there. There is a small mall there where you can grab a coffee while waiting. Then off to the dive shop to get kitted up - the girl explained everything and you didn't have to have any prior experience. The others on our trip all had their own transport so we were given a lift by the guide to the marina - about a 10 minute drive away. We then boarded a small boat for about a 25 minute sailing out to Snake island. On the boat there was complimentary water and a washroom. Once at our point we jumped in the water and were left to our own devices for about an hour swimming. We saw loads of seals and they swam in the water with us and were very inquisitive. Afterwards we were given space to change and then dropped back at the sea plane terminal where we then had time for lunch and a look round
Review by: Melissa B, September 2017
Not worth the price. Although the staff was cordial, the boat was old, the seals looked scared and uncomfortable with us swimming in the area. The captain advised the swimmers to staff off the rocks and don't approach the seals. The captain dozed off, didn't pay attention to swimmers disobeying.
Review by: cally h, September 2017
Worth the price and then some. Great tour. Seeing the seals was magical. Swimming with them even better. And the tour includes round trip airfare on a sea plane. Can't go wrong there! The captain of my snorkel boat was amazing and gave me great pointers on the best way to get pictures of the seals underwater. It worked! Highly recommend this tour!
Review by: Anne J, August 2017
While this wasn't about riding in a seaplane per se, that part was great because we got to see some gorgeous views. On the way back one passenger asked to sit up front with the pilot. Now I know for next time that is an option! Everyone at the diving was very friendly and helpful. Our wet suits kept us warm, we felt comfortable the whole time we were in the water. The water was somewhat murky apparently it is much clearer in the winter but when we went closer to the rocks where the seals were it was much clearer and we saw various fish, teeny tiny blue jellyfish, and purple starfish sorry don't know the proper names. Two seals swam under my husband. Fun experience and if you love seals, you'll have an even better time.
Review by: Philippa S, August 2017
This was an amazing experience, you really do get close to them. The water is cold but the equipment provided by outfitters kept you lovely and warm _br/_ The equipment was very good quaility and they were very caring on making sure everything fitted correctly. Steve was great fun and made the day perfect._br/_ We did have a problem when we checked our booking as we were given no timings to find they had booked us in on the wrong day. Thankfully the concierge at the Shangla-La was able to sort the tour out and got them to scource a new provider for us with Outrigger Which turned out to be fab. But was very disappointed that first of all the lady was only offering the sea plane without the snorkeling part which was what the tour was all about.
Review by: mark.findlay, June 2017
This tour was amazing!
Review by: Dawn B, June 2017
Amazing experience! Everything from the seaplane to the actual snorkeling with seals! On our trip, there were varied levels of snorkeling experience. Everyone seemed to really enjoy the experience! Nothing was rushed and we had time to enjoy!
Review by: Tracy G, September 2016
This experience is one we will never forget - it was simply awesome. The crew looked after us very well from checking in, kitting up and getting to and from the seals - it was smooth and no fuss. From the moment we swam into the island cannel, the adult seals watched us intently, swimming around us curious but a little wary to come to close. The seal pups though had no reservations....they swam right next to us mimicking our actions, nibbling our flippers and gloves, looking into our masks, following us the whole way in the channel....it was amazing. The wetsuits provided were excellent and we didn't feel or give a second thought about the water temp. We will definitely do this again our next visit to Vancouver.
Review by: Carmen C, September 2015
Amazing tour! Such a unique experience with cute seals! The staff was very friendly and the boat ride out was equipped with beautiful scenery. The seals would jump into the water as we swam up to the island and then poke their head out and stare at us from 5 feet away!
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