Great White New Year Expedition (5 Nights)

A special 5-day live-aboard expedition includes four days of peak great white shark diving, an Australian sea lion dive or two, plus other extras in this comprehensive expedition package. 

What we love about this time of year:

- Extreme Shark Reliability

This Itinerary has enjoyed near 100% reliability of productive sharks in more than 10 years.

- Photographic Opportunities

Optimal photographic conditions of typically good visibility and strong daylight.

All the briefings and travel to our first dive location are covered on the first evening.

Four full days are dedicated to Great White Shark Diving at both the North and South Neptune Islands groups, at the various locations of reef, weed bank, and sand. 

A full day is planned to target other South Australian underwater icons including Australian Sea Lions at Hopkins Island.

Also included is a beautiful tour around the pretty Neptune Island long-nosed fur seal colonies in our tender boat. 

Conditions permitting, a walking tour is also a possible option on the Neptune Islands, a treat exclusive to Rodney Fox Shark Expeditions.

At night, we enjoy great local food and wine, a shark research talk, beautiful sunsets plus lots of time to relax onboard under the stars.

Day 1

We’ll meet you outside of the Marina Hotel, Port Lincoln at 8:15 PM and officially welcome all aboard at 8.30 pm.  Formal inductions and safety talk will begin, followed by being shown to your cabins to unload your belongings. We then depart for the night’s anchorage at a location near our next days' activities.

Day 2

It’s worth getting up at day-break to see the spectacular scenery of the Thorny Passage and nearby Hopkins Island where we expect to have frolicking sea lions eager to meet us. For an hour or so in the morning there is an option to snorkel/dive with these adorable creatures in shallow sheltered waters.

Then, time and weather permitting we can either try another dive location, or then make haste to anchor down at the Neptune Islands, where we’ll be looking to spot a few dorsal fins.  

Days 3 and 4

Divers are briefed, and the cages hit the water, ready for action! Our priority is generally for everyone to see the sharks in the surface cage before we descend deeper with our SCUBA certified diving guests in the ocean floor cage. 

At night you can download our pictures then relax, unwind, talk about the day while feasting on the buffet, engage in the Great White Shark Research Talk (really interesting, with some fantastic photography), check out the amazing night-sky, and can then retire to your cabin ready for the next days adventures. 

We also like to hop in the tender boat, check out the Long Nosed Fur Seals and go walking around the Neptune Islands. Here, there are many birds and a few reptile species to watch and the elusive Australian Sea Lions can also sometimes be spotted.

Our liveaboard itinerary gives so many more opportunities to immerse yourself in the beauty of the Neptune Islands, listening to the sounds of the seals with a chilled glass of white. There is plenty time to chill out and rest. Hit the hay when you feel like it... and get up when you feel like it.

Day 5 

By now your shark identification skills will be finely tuned. 

Leave the Neptune Islands late afternoon and enjoy some lovely local South Australian ‘wine on the bow’ usually with common dolphins joining us for company.  Arrive back in Port Lincoln for the last night onboard.

Day 6

Guests disembark by 8.00AM.

*Itinerary is indicative only (subject to weather and any other circumstances that may affect the scheduling of events).