The Acapulco cliff divers are Acapulco’s most iconic tourist attraction. The cliff divers jump off the jagged cliffs from different heights into a narrow inlet of shallow water at the base of the cliff. Some divers jump from a height of 115 feet and other from a height of 136 feet. The divers time their jump to coincide with the incoming wave so the waves will cushion their impact and protect them from landing in too shallow water. The water depth at the landing spot is only eleven (11) feet deep and could be shallower if the divers miss time the incoming wave.

Some of the divers make the jump sequenced with another diver making the dive even more dangerous as both divers must coordinate with each other and the incoming wave.

The next few photos are from two different dives. Some divers start with spread arms then flip into an almost setting position before flipping again with a head first entry into the water. These moves are shown in the photos below.

The set of photos below shows the full cycle of a single diver jumping from the top of the cliff and entering into the narrow inlet near the edge of the cliff base. In this dive the diver started with the chair like position then flipped into the open arm position before entering the water head first at the same angle as the cliff.

The Dust on My Shoes

I had heard of the Acapulco cliff divers when I was a young kid. Seeing them dive was something that I wanted to do from the first time that I knew about them. I had seen the divers several times on TV and thought it was remarkable to see skilled divers jumping from a high cliff into the shallow water precisely when the wave entered the narrow inlet but seeing it in person made the feat even more impressive.

I enjoyed the show so much that I stayed and watch the next performance so that I could get a standing spot on the front row of the opposite side of the inlet. Being able to be right in front of the divers let me get a feeling of the real height that the divers were jumping from and the other variables like the wave pattern and the strong wind coming off the Pacific Ocean.

My lifelong desire to see the Acapulco cliff divers didn’t disappoint me. Watching them in person really let me see the skill and courage that they have to make these dives.

“One of the things that I have enjoyed the most about my travels is that seeing places and activities in person really helps me to have a better understanding of them!”

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