Swim with dolphins
Swimming with dolphins is on most people's bucket list, and for most it happens once. The three programs below are genuinely different, and the names don't tell you how — so here they are side by side, with the one thing that matters most first.
You only swim in two of the three
In the Dolphin Encounter you stand on a submerged platform and interact with the dolphins — you do not swim, whatever you may be told at a hotel desk. It's the right choice for small children and non-swimmers, and the wrong one if swimming is the point. For that, you want Dolphin Explorer or Dolphin Royal .
Young children and non-swimmers
from $120
You stand on a submerged platform and meet the dolphins face to face — touch them, learn how they move and communicate, and get your photos. You do not swim, and no tour rep should tell you otherwise.
First-timers who want to actually swim
from $155
Everything the Encounter gives you, and then you get in the water. You swim with the dolphin, dance with it, and take the foot-push ride across the enclosure.
The bucket-list version
from $199
The longest programme, the smallest group, and two dolphins instead of one — which is the difference that people actually feel. More time in the water, and far less of it spent waiting your turn.
|
Dolphin Encounter
5
· 4 reviews
from $120
|
Dolphin Explorer
4.57
· 7 reviews
from $155
|
Dolphin Royal
4.5
· 6 reviews
from $199
|
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Do you swim? | No — platform only | Yes, in the water | Yes, in the water |
| Time in the program | 40 minutes | 50 minutes | 60 minutes |
| Dolphins | 1 dolphin | 1 dolphin | 2 dolphins |
| Group size | Up to 15 people | Up to 12 people | Up to 10 people |
| Venue | Ocean Dolphinarium | Ocean Dolphinarium | Ocean Dolphinarium |
| Minimum age | 1 year | 1 year | 1 year |
| Pregnancy | Up to the 5th month | Not suitable | Not suitable |
| Best for | Young children and non-swimmers | First-timers who want to actually swim | The bucket-list version |
| In short | You stand on a submerged platform and meet the dolphins face to face — touch them, learn how they move and communicate, and get your photos. You do not swim, and no tour rep should tell you otherwise. | Everything the Encounter gives you, and then you get in the water. You swim with the dolphin, dance with it, and take the foot-push ride across the enclosure. | The longest programme, the smallest group, and two dolphins instead of one — which is the difference that people actually feel. More time in the water, and far less of it spent waiting your turn. |
| Book | Book | Book |
Still not sure which one?
Tell us who's coming — ages, swimmers, non-swimmers — and we'll tell you honestly which program fits. We've been running these since 2007.