Snorkeling with Seals

Seal Snorkeling in Cape Town is the ultimate wildlife experience for the adventurous. Plunge into the cool Atlantic ocean and snorkel with hundreds of playful Cape Fur seals. Interact with them in their environment and on their terms. This half day excursion is for ocean lovers and will be the best activity you do on your visit to Cape Town, if the ocean conditions are suitable !

You’ll be enchanted by the seals’ comic antics and friendly curiosity, all the while exploring the array of colourful anemones, goggle-eyed fish and hypnotic swathes of kelp. An afternoon of sunshine, salt water and seals: there’s nothing like it – a chance not to miss! 

 

Cape Fur Seals:
Cape Fur seals occur naturally on islands around the southern African coast and are found nowhere else in the world. Duiker Island in Hout Bay is home to about 5 000 seals and lies within the Karbonkelberg marine protected area, part of Table Mountain National Park, Cape Town. These Fur seals are not fed or trained, they behave naturally and interact with snorkelers and Scuba divers on their own terms.

Visitors can always see seals in the water and there are no sharks present. This is a wildlife adventure that brings you mask-to-whisker with playful and inquisitive wild animals in their natural habitat.

 

Meeting Point: 8 Albert Road, Hout Bay, 400m from Hout Bay Harbour. 

Experience It: 
Meet near Hout Bay Harbour  where you will meet the team, be briefed about the dive and get changed into your snorkeling gear.

The 8m Rib (inflatable boat) takes up to 10 snorkelers and will get you to the Cape fur seals, quickly and safely. After a good look at the seals as they bask on the rocky island, you can plunge into the cool waters and experience these playful animals up close. On average, visitors spend 45 mins - 1hr in the water.

Dive Site Conditions
The snorkeling site is very shallow (2 - 5m deep) and you will see the bottom clearly. This is the ocean so there can be small waves and a choppy surface. The water temperature varies from 10C - 15C. This means that the water is cold! The boat is always nearby and you can return to warm up if needed.

Season:  August - May

Departures: 
Please note that all trips are by pre-booking only (payment due 24hrs in advance)
ALL expeditions are weather dependent. 

10h00:  Aug - Nov
09h00:  Dec- Feb
10h00:  Mar - May

Experience required:
No experience is needed for snorkelers but they must be competent swimmers.

 

Rates:  Valid 1 Aug 2018 -  31 May 2019
Snorkeling:              R900 per person including all equipment
Boat viewing only:   R600 per person

Rates:  Valid 1 Aug 2019 - 31 May 2020

Snorkeling:              R990 per person including all equipment

Boat viewing only:   R600 per person

 

Includes:

• all snorkeling equipment
• a seal guide
• boat ride
• educational briefing
• water, biscuits
• hot chocolate
• hot water to pour in your wetsuit after the snorkel.
• Hot showers now available after snorkel

Requirements:
Towel, swim-suit for under the wetsuit
Hat and sun-screen for the boat ride.
Bring your dive card if you wish to scuba dive instead of snorkel.

Snorkeling equipment
We have fleece lined 5mm one piece wetsuits with hoods. We also provide 3mm vests, 4mm gloves, booties, fins and silicone masks and snorkels. Our equipment comes in a range of sizes to suit everyone.

Terms and Conditions:

Cancellation policy:
Customer Cancellation:

If we cancel due to bad weather: Full refund