Whale Shark Festival Schedule Isla Mujeres Mexico

ISLA MUJERES, Mexico - July 17, 2018 - PRLog -- The Isla Mujeres Department of Tourism, along with ecotourism company and international sponsor Ceviche Tours, have released the schedule of events for the 11th annual Whale Shark Festival, which will be held from July 20-22, 2018 in Isla Mujeres, Mexico.

Last year thousands of people attended the family-friendly event, where guests can swim with whale sharks, join in traditional dancing, enjoy local food and work by local artisans, attend presentations, snorkel and dive the reefs surrounding the Island and more.

"Isla Mujeres is designated Pueblo Magico, a place known for its legends, symbolism, history and of course for providing a magical experience for tourists. Swimming with whale sharks in Isla Mujeres is the ultimate Pueblo Magico adventure," said Gustavo Rodriguez Orozco, Director of Tourism of Isla Mujeres. "We welcome the world to join us to celebrate the Festival de Tiburón Ballena – the Whale Shark Festival -- enjoying this great show of nature and beautiful Isla Mujeres."

SWIM WITH HUNDREDS OF WHALE SHARKS

Isla Mujeres is home to the largest aggregation of Whale Sharks in the world. This year from May 15 through September 15 researchers estimate that as many as 1,400 whale sharks will migrate through the waters surrounding Isla Mujeres, providing guests with an opportunity to swim alongside these gentle giants.

"Visiting Isla Mujeres during the Whale Shark Festival is fun for the entire family  and is one of the best moments to come to the island, enjoy all the activities, expositions, food vendors, conferences, tours, handcraft local artists, the parade and much more." said Eyder Hoth, of the Isla Mujeres Hotel Association. "The whale shark is the biggest fish on earth, and the whale shark swim tours offered in Isla Mujeres are a wonderful opportunity to get to know from a very close look, this peaceful & noble giant in the wild."

SUSTAINABLE ECOTOURISM

The Whale Shark Festival is an effort to raise awareness of the need to preserve the area's marine ecosystem. Isla Mujeres is part of the second largest barrier reef on the planet and serves as the nursery of the Caribbean and the migratory path of whale sharks, sea turtles, manta rays, waterfowl and game fishes.

"The continued success of the Whale Shark Festival is indicative of how ecotourism can truly impact a community," said John Vater, co-founder of Ceviche Tours. "International events like these are essential in raising awareness and to help educate visitors on marine conservation efforts."

Featured at the Festival will be biologist Rafael de la Parra of Ch'ooj Ajauil AC, an organization dedicated to the monitoring, study and conservation of the pelagic organisms in the Mexican Atlantic; and Amigos de Isla Contoy, a local environmental NGO working to advance education on sustainable marine conservation and ecotourism in the region.

At this festival, various activities will be carried out in order for visitors to learn more about the whale shark species, including conferences on their marine biology, and on other shark species and manta rays that are found in the Mexican Caribbean, in an effort to encourage them to join the effort of conservation programs with the objective of protecting and preserving these beautiful animals.

WHALE SHARK FESTIVAL SCHEDULE OF EVENTS 2018

FRIDAY, JULY 20TH

6:00 PM - Parade and Opening Ceremonies

7:30 PM - Conference by Saving our Sharks NGO with Pamela Vazquez
Main square in front of Isla Mujeres City Hall

8:30 PM - Traditional Dances from Palenque, Chiapas
Main square in front of Isla Mujeres City Hall

DJ till 10pm - Main square in front of Isla Mujeres City Hall

Amigos de Isla Contoy Environmental educational displays
Side street of Isla Mujeres City Hall – All day

SATURDAY, JULY 21ST

7:30 PM - Conference on Manta Rays of the Mexican Caribbean by Karen Fuentes,
Chief researcher of Manta Mexico Caribe NGO
Main square in front of Isla Mujeres City Hall

8:30 PM - Dance Show
Main square in front of Isla Mujeres City Hall

DJ till 10 pm - Main square in front of Isla Mujeres City Hall

Amigos de Isla Contoy Environmental educational displays
Side street of Isla Mujeres City Hall – All day

SUNDAY, JULY 22ND

7:30 PM - Conference "Citizen's scientific research" by Rafael de la Parra,
Chief Scientist of Ch'ooj Ajauil NGO
Main square in front of Isla Mujeres City Hall

8:30 PM - Traditional Dances from Guanajuato
Main square in front of Isla Mujeres City Hall

DJ till 10 pm - Main square in front of Isla Mujeres City Hall

Amigos de Isla Contoy Environmental educational displays
Side street of Isla Mujeres City Hall – All day

STAY AND PLAY THE ISLA MUJERES WAY

The businesses and hotels of Isla Mujeres invite travelers to "Stay and Play the Isla Mujeres Way." As the safest family destination in the Caribbean, the island offers over 70 hotels and 5-star resorts, vacation home rentals and B&B's to choose from. "Isla is the perfect vacation in the Yucatan," said John Vater, "Enjoy this great spectacle of nature and experience why Isla Mujeres is a Pueblo Magico with your family and friends."

BOOKING TRAVEL

Travel arrangements can be made through Ceviche Tours by visiting www.CevicheTours.com or call +1.631.470.6315 (US) or 998.241.3345 (MX).

The Isla Mujeres Hotel Association can be reached at islamujereshotels.net  or email sales@islandsolutions.net or calling +1 52 1 998 214-2117

For properties in the luxury home rental market visit Island Home Services at
www.islahomeservices.com  or call 512-692-9853

MORE INFORMATION

For more information about the Whale Shark Festival, visit: www.whalesharkfest.com
Follow us on Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/WhaleSharkFest
Twitter: https://twitter.com/whalesharkfest

About Ch'ooj Ajauil
Ch'ooj Ajauil is a marine research and preservation NGO whose mission is to ensure a healthy, sustainable area of marine biodiversity in Northern Quintana Roo, which provides superlative natural phenomena for years to come. For more information about Ch'ooj Ajauil and to further read about several projects they are working on in order to create UNESCO world heritage site for the Northern Quintana Roo marine ecosystem so that we can protect, enjoy and study its inhabitants for many generations to come visit www.choojajauil.org.mx

About Amigos de Isla Contoy
Amigos de Isla Contoy was founded on October of 1994 to promote the conservation of Isla Contoy, nature areas and regional projects of the Yucatan peninsula through the sustainable development of local communities in collaboration with the National Commission of Nature Protected Areas. Amigos de Isla Contoy develops environmental education programs for children, youth and adults on recycling, coral reef conservation, marine turtles, Isla Contoy National Park, whale sharks, puppet plays, exhibitions of marine species of the Mexican Caribbean made with paper mache in real size and leads conservation projects on bird monitoring, corals species in danger, marine turtles, and fish. For more information visit www.amigosdeislacontoy.org or you can contact them at: islacontoy@live.com.mx

About Ceviche Tours
Ceviche Tours provides sustainable ecotourism and travel services to the Yucatan and Isla Mujeres, Mexico. Founded by John and Adriana of Spa Adriana in Huntington Village, NY, with longtime friend and Isla Mujeres native Luis Refugio Cortes, his son Jesus and their family, Ceviche Tours works with the indigenous islanders of Isla Mujeres to help preserve their culture and maintain the integrity and beauty of the surrounding marine environment. Through education and photo identification efforts, Ceviche Tours joins the worldwide effort to protect and preserve whale sharks. As participants on our whale shark tours, guests are invited to be part of those identification and tracking efforts. For more information, please contact www.cevichetours.com. Follow us at www.facebook.com/cevichetours and www.twitter.com/cevichetours