One of the unique experiences offered by Yucatán Dive Trek in Mexico is an encounter with the salt water crocodiles of Banco Chinchorro, a false atoll located 40 kilometres off the coast of Southern Yucatán peninsula.

The biosphere reserve is popluated by the American Crocodile (Crocodylus Acutus). During a 3 night stay in a very basic fishermen’s hut, guests can get very close to these ancestral animals, whose origin goes back more than 200 million years. Before the guests are allowed in the water, a very thorough briefing on the behavior of the crocs and the rules for the participants are given.

Of course, customers and journalists were very excited about this opportunity, when we supported the launch in Europe. And the images generated ensured a high level of attention. That is why it was key to „control“ the messages published, as wild animal encounters with a potential risk involved, need to be communicated carefully.

Before press trips, a thorough briefing of the journalists ensured that they understand the do’s and don’ts for the coverage. The selection of the appropriate journalists played also an essential role in the assignment, as Yucatán Dive Trek was not interested in an abundance of articles, but rather in their quality. To support the quality of the articles, Yucatán Dive Trek provided a series of photos and we quickly established the „half-and-half“ shot of the crocodile almost posing under water in front of the fisherman hut as the key visual that we wanted to see published as often as possible.

Though the focus was on coverage in the dive press, coverage in travel magazines was of course highly welcome. We worked with freelance editors with a high reputation, who would also offer the story to non-diving magzines.

„abenteuer & reisen“ was Germany’s iconic travel magzine. They published a 2-page article on the famous crocodile encounter. And used the key visual photo provided.

The result for the customer: 85.000 circulation, 470.000 reach and 25.000 € media equivalent value generated!