South Africa Shark Cage Diving: 10 Things to Know Before You Go 

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What does it feel like bobbing up and down in a shark cage waiting for that thrilling moment when a great white shark graces you with its presence as it swims by the cage?

Check out our video below.

YouTube video of our shark cage diving experience

Iconic photo of a great white shark breaching

Which location is best? False Bay? Gansbaai? Mossel Bay? 

Pick your location based on which area is having more GREAT WHITE SHARK SIGHTINGS during the time of your trip to maximize your chances of seeing one.  

How do you know who is getting more great white shark sightings?

By reading some of the dive operators’ blogs! 

I would highly suggest reading the following blogs to get a sense of which location is getting more sightings around the time of your trip:

Which location did we pick?

Gansbaai! Why?

Because the blogs we read were showing they were getting almost daily sightings of the great white sharks in Gansbaai.

Apex Shark Expeditions, however, said they had not seen a great white shark since 2019 in False Bay.

Mossel Bay was just too far for us to drive since we were not doing the Garden Route on this trip.

There are several highly-rated shark cage diving companies in False Bay, Dyer Island, and Mossel Bay that are highly recommended.

I’ve listed several of these companies earlier in this article under the differences between the diving sites.

Most people will say Marine Dynamics is the best, but we picked GREAT WHITE SHARK TOURS for several reasons:

Great White Shark Tours Boat “Apex Predator”

Shark cage on back of boat fits 8 people

Expert Divemaster

Master Chummer

The only other factor I would consider when you are selecting a company is if you prefer to do a shark cage dive using scuba gear.

At the time we went, I was only aware of Africa Shark Eco-Charters offering this option. They operate out of False Bay. Since False Bay was not seeing great white sharks when we went, I ruled them out.

After doing research for this article, I found out the highly rated White Shark Diving Company offers a Shark Cage Hookah Dive with only 12 people per dive on select days.

This allows divers to stay underwater without scuba tanks. I’ll be honest, constantly going up and down in the water does get tiring and you may miss some quick shark action.

Some say the bubbles from the scuba gear scare away the sharks, but I could not find any evidence to back this claim. The next time I go, I would like to try the shark cage dive using the scuba gear and hookah system to see if it makes a difference in your experience. 

We had a few people who did not go in the shark cage and instead took pictures of the sharks as they poked their heads above the surface.

There is an upper-level viewing platform to watch and take photos from.

Pictures from the surface can be pretty incredible, especially when the sharks breach the surface and flash their toothy grin as they try to take the bait or nibble on the fake seal decoy.

The visibility in the cage is pretty poor, only about 1-2 meters.

It is still spectacular to see these magnificent creatures while in the water, but the sharks have to be close to the cage for you to see them.

Great white shark seen breaching from the surface

Upper level viewing platform

Bronze whaler seen from the surface trying to catch the bait

The tour in Gansbaai can start anywhere from 6 am – 12 pm depending on the weather.

I received an email the day before our trip notifying me the pickup time was 5 am the next day.

Hearing my alarm go off at 4:30 am was painful.

However, the excitement of possibly coming eye-to-eye with a great white shark allowed me to peel myself from the warmth of my bed.

Our van arrived promptly at 5 am at our hotel, the highly-rated Derwent House. We picked up a few more passengers along the way and then began the 2.5-hour journey to the shark capital of the world, Gansbaai.   

Once we arrived, we were provided a light continental breakfast.

After a safety briefing, we were loaded up on the boat by 9 am.

The boat takes up to 40 people.

It was cozy but never felt too crowded. They provide you with big windproof jackets, which were lifesavers. It is cold and super windy! 

So glad we were provided these jackets!

About 20 minutes later, we set up anchor, and the shark cage was unloaded and securely fastened to the boat.

The crew started their chumming process. They helped us get into our wetsuits, which was no easy feat to wiggle into.

There is a watertight container to put all your belongings in to keep them dry. Then we anxiously awaited to see if our toothier swimmers would arrive. 

It can take minutes to hours (or not at all) for the sharks to show up.

Luckily, the feisty bronze whalers also known as copper sharks arrived within minutes of getting the shark cage set up.

The crew lured the sharks to the cage using bait tied to a rope or by using a fake seal decoy. I NEVER once saw the sharks being fed.

Seal decoy to attract the sharks

We were in the second group to go into the shark cage.

As we waited, I got some great shots from the surface of the bronze whaler sharks getting close to the cage. 

Is it illegal to chum the water for sharks?

Chumming is legal (with regulations) in most parts of the world, but there is debate if it is ethical.

Sharks tend to be shy. To encourage them to come near the cage, the companies throw out bloody fish parts as bait, which is known as chumming.

This practice is used by tourism operators, fishermen, scientists, and videographers. Chumming does not attract sharks from great distances; it only concentrates on those that are close according to Dr. Robert Hueter, Director of the Center for Shark Research in Florida.

A lot of times these fish parts are tied to a rope, which is then pulled toward the shark cage.

The goal is to attract the shark BUT not to feed them. Occasionally the shark will be quick enough to consume the bait. 

Fish bait used to attract the sharks (but never feeding them)

Bronze whaler shark trying to catch the bait

Each person in our group had 3 opportunities to get into the 12 mm galvanized steel mesh cage.

Eight could enter the 13.7 feet (length) x 3.2 feet (width) cage at a time. That may seem like a lot of people, but once you are in the cage everyone spaces out nicely.

I went twice.

The water is freezing! I could not get my teeth to stop chattering, but the thought of possibly seeing a great white shark overrides your discomfort with the freezing sea temperature. 

View from inside the shark cage

I had the pleasure of seeing multiple bronze whaler sharks swimming around the cage on my first cage dive, but no great white sharks.

The visibility is poor, but the bronze whaler sharks will come right up to the cage, so there’s no missing them.

The cage felt very sturdy. They close the lid after everyone is in. There are two bars inside the cage: one for your hands to hold on to and one to rest your feet on. 

Bar to rest your hands on

Bar to rest your feet on

The cage bobs about a foot above the water, which allows plenty of room to take breaths in between popping your head in the water to see the sharks up close. 

Eye to eye with a bronze whaler shark

Bronze whaler shark almost catching the bait

Great mouth shot of a bronze whaler shark

Bronze whaler shark getting close

Nose shot of bronze whaler shark

Then it happened!

A great white shark was spotted hanging out by a nearby diving vessel because of a lone seal swimming around the boat.

Luckily, the seal swam towards us, and the shark followed in hot pursuit.

We jumped in the cage for dive #2.

Seal swimming for his life from a great white shark in South Africa

Trying to attract a great white shark with a seal decoy in South Africa

When the crew knows the shark is very near, they yell “down! down! down!”

With your hands and feet resting on steel bars within the cage, you hold your breath and poke your head down in the water.

There it was!

A massive great white shark!

The video I shot was only a few seconds, but I’ll take it. The photos below are screenshots from the GoPro footage I took. I came eye to eye with this magnificent creature I have been fascinated with for years.

So exhilarating.

Beautiful great white shark right next to the shark cage in South Africa. Visibility is not great, but spectacular nonetheless.

Great white shark coming in to view

Wow, the girth of this magnificent creature is massive!

He was not too interested in us today … still trying to find his seal

And he is gone.

I climbed out of the cage grinning ear to ear. My initial fear turned to great respect for this top ocean predator.

After drying off with the towel they provide, we then had the challenge of getting out of the wetsuits and into dry clothes while the boat sped off back to the harbor.

Drinks and snacks are provided throughout the trip. The round boat trip to/from the harbor was close to 4 hours.

After a hot shower plus some lunch at the company’s headquarters at the harbor, I was a happy lady. 

Then it was nap time as we made our 2 1/2 hour trip back to Cape Town.

We arrived back in Cape Town around 5 pm.

It is advised not to plan anything else the day you are doing the shark cage diving tour because they cannot guarantee a start or finish time.

This was the only night we did not make dinner reservations in Cape Town since we did not want to risk being late because of the shark cage diving tour.

We are big foodies, and since Thali required no reservations, this was the perfect restaurant to check out on the day we did the great white shark tour.

A free video of your trip is included if you book online. FYI, the video quality was not that great, and there was no underwater footage. Bring a GoPro!!!

There is always a risk; you are putting yourself in a steel cage and coming eye to eye with a 4,000-pound fish.

I do believe though you can minimize your risk by selecting a reputable responsible tour operator that practices in an eco-friendly manner such as no feeding of the sharks, no bait bags on the cage, etc.

It is also important to note companies have to qualify for a shark dive permit to operate.

This permit is issued by the South African Government’s Department of Environmental Affairs (D.E.A.) and the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (D.A.F.F.).

This permit shows the dive operator has complied with a strict set of rules, ensured their staff is properly trained and qualified, and has proven the safety of their boat and equipment.

I researched extensively and found a total of 5 SHARK CAGE DIVING INCIDENTS from around the world.

BUY TRAVEL INSURANCE! 

By the way, I have never paid for travel insurance prior to this trip.

Since my husband and I decided to do some higher-risk activities such as swimming in Devil’s Pool in Zambia, sleeping in an open treehouse in the African bush,  and shark cage diving with great white sharks, we purchased it (you know, just in case).

We picked the Explorer Plan offered by World Nomads Travel Insurance.

For $291.82, the plan gave us peace of mind for 2 weeks of travel in South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Botswana.

It included shark cage diving! 

You are breath-holding. No snorkeling or scuba diving experience is required.

Even the dive companies who offer the hookah system scuba dive do not require prior experience.

It is well known the number of great white shark sightings started to significantly decrease in South Africa starting in 2015.

There are two theories on why this is occurring.

Some blame the DSL. 

This fishery lays down a baited fish line on the ocean floor and targets smaller shark species, which make up part of the great white shark’s diet. 

The bulk of these smaller sharks then get exported to Australia and are served unknowingly to the public as “flake and chips.”

Flake is supposed to be made from the sustainable gummy shark that is from Australia and New Zealand, but due to the illegal shark trade mislabeling often occurs.

Orcas feed on great white sharks.

At least 8 great white sharks were killed in 2017 near Gansbaai, South Africa, with missing livers and torn pectoral fins.

Most recently this same pair of orcas nicknamed Port and Starboard killed a whopping 19 sharks in one day in South Africa. 

Orcas love shark livers, which are rich and fatty! Their liver can make up a quarter of its total body weight.

If a great white shark knows orcas are in the area, they will avoid that area for up to a year! Wow, one of the most fearsome predators of the ocean is scared to death of the killer whale.

Orca

This was our second experience shark cage diving.

Our first shark adventure was in Hawaii in 2009 on our honeymoon. We went shark cage diving with Galapagos sharks.

Incredibly fun, but coming up close to a great white shark was on a whole different level.

It was both exhilarating and scary. I have a new respect for these powerful creatures. If you have the opportunity, don’t miss out.

If you are looking for more fun things to do on your South Africa trip, don’t miss my 2-week itinerary below:   

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Questions about our South Africa shark cage diving experience?

Let me know in the comments below!