FOR THOSE WHO WOULD RATHER BE

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Small-group trips to swim with humpbacks in Mo'orea, mobula rays in Baja and orcas in Arctic Norway.

Worldwide ocean expeditions

Each trip is one week, timed to when the animals are there. Five or six guests, a local captain, and Gavin in the water with a camera. Days are spent on the boat. Evenings usually end around one table, going through the day's photos with the people who were in the water with you.

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Trips run
Guests
Countries
Years behind the lens

Upcoming Trips

Two humpback whales in clear blue water off Mo'orea Mo'orea · 17.5°S

French Polynesia · Humpback whales

Mo'orea

Humpbacks swim up from Antarctica to have their calves here.

  • Aug–Sep 2027
  • 7 days
  • 5 guests
Mobula rays leaping out of the Sea of Cortez Baja · 24.1°N

Mexico · Mobula rays

Baja

Thousands of rays jumping out of the Sea of Cortez, and five full days on the water.

  • May–Jun 2027
  • 7 days
  • 5 guests
Orca surfacing in a dark Arctic fjord Arctic Norway · 69.6°N

Norway · Orcas

Arctic Norway

Orcas and humpbacks follow the herring into the fjords, 70° north.

  • [Oct–Nov 2027]
  • 7 days
  • 4–6 guests

Week full?

Spots do open up.

Leave your email and pick a trip. If someone cancels, we'll tell you first.

How we run it

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Small groups

Five or six guests a week. Fewer swimmers keeps the animals calm, and everyone gets their swims.

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Local crews

Our captains and guides live where we go. They know where the animals are, and where to eat afterwards.

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Photos included

Gavin is in the water with a camera on every swim. You get the photos and video after the trip, so your phone can stay on the boat.

Your hosts

Gavin Heeks is an underwater photographer and former shark safety diver. He has spent 6 years photographing whales, sharks and rays in the Pacific and the Arctic, and he runs the trips he'd book himself.
Some weeks are led by other ocean photographers we've travelled with and trust. We still run the boats, the houses and the booking, so every trip works the same way.

A little ocean family

★★★★★

“Obviously swimming with the humpback whales was something I’ll never forget, especially hearing them sing beneath us… You arrive with a group of people you barely know and somehow leave feeling like you’ve gained a little ocean family.”

Laura GMo'orea · Sep 2026
★★★★★

“I just finished the Mobulas Mega Fauna expedition in La Ventana and it was incredible… All the expedition days were well organized, epic and I felt safe at every moment.”

Jade GBaja · May 2026
★★★★★

“The trip to Moorea with Gavin was the trip of a LIFETIME. I’ve been to several countries and on a ton of hosted group trips and honestly this was my favorite one by far.”

Zay KMo'orea · Sep 2025
★★★★★

“We saw whales breaching before our eyes, heard a male whale singing for like 30 mins… If you wanna not constantly have to think about photographing then Gavin has you covered for that as well!”

Dominique PMo'orea · Oct 2025
★★★★★

“Trip of a lifetime, amazing experiences and memories made! Huge thanks to Gavin, he’s an absolute legend!”

Nuala OMo'orea · Sep 2025
★★★★★

“Everything about this trip was amazing, the experience, the accommodation, the people were more than amazing, thank you For this fantastic experience 🩵🩵🏝️”

Maha AMo'orea · Oct 2025