Dolphin Encounters in the Bahamas
Written: Aug 30 '09
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Fun half day excursion, not just dolphin interaction.
Cons: A lot of money, not for the budget minded.
The Bottom Line: For almost $100 per person, you too can hug a dolphin! It ain't cheap but nothing on vacation in the Bahamas ever is!
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| deenaf's Full Review: Dolphin Encounters on Blue Lagoon Island Bahamas |
On our recent visit to Paradise Island in the Bahamas (Aug. 2009), we booked an excursion with Dolphin Encounters, a private company housed off of the islands, both Paradise Island and Nassau. It exists on its own private island called Blue Lagoon Island (three miles offshore).
When we went to Atlantis on Paradise Island, we wanted to do a dolphin encounter of some sort. Atlantis offers one on site but their biggest competitor is Dolphin Encounters, which is the one I chose, partially for the monetary savings and partially because I read this review by chelledun, and it helped me decide on THIS encounter rather than the Atlantis one.
Right off the bat, Dolphin Encounters is at least a half-day excursion on its own. It requires you to leave Atlantis, and Nassau for that matter. This was part of the draw for us. We wanted to go out on a boat and not feel completely limited to the Atlantis resort’s property. But let me start at the beginning……
I booked Dolphin Encounters online at their website, Dolphin Encounters.com, using their simple online form. I received an email confirmation with no money down. You pay before you board the boat.
We walked through the Atlantis property to the exit (through their Marina Village) and walked a very short distance to the pier where Dolphin Encounters is housed. This is the Paradise Island ferry station where cruise ship passengers can disembark for a day at Atlantis. It is literally only minutes away from the Atlantis property so it is quite convenient. We followed the signs and found the Dolphin Encounters counter. We paid for four dolphin interactions (more on this later) which was $98 per person, adults and children alike. We then waited on the pier (there was a gift shop, a coffee shop, and some benches). We boarded the ferry at 10:30 am.
The ferry had two levels, upper and lower. We chose lower because the sun is BLAZING in August in the Bahamas. A half an hour of shade was priceless! And so was this ride. It was a scenic half hour ride that enabled us to view the expensive housing and hotels along the Paradise Island shores.
We arrived at the private Blue Lagoon Island and disembarked. This is a lovely island and you can see their beachfront area, the huts around it, and lots of palm trees. They invite you to stay on the island after your excursion and enjoy all the amenities and allow you to take whichever ferry you want back to the ferry terminal on Paradise Island. The staff at Dolphin Encounters is very helpful and they promptly direct us where to go based on the excursion we chose. We were directed up the dock to the Education center where we sat and listened to a half hour lecture on dolphins and how they are trained. It was very interesting. We learned about the dolphins and how they came to the island (many are born there... There was even a baby born recently!) The eldest dolphin is a whopping 42 years old! She has already outlived her life expectancy of 25 years…guess island living agrees with her!
After the seminar, we were led down a boardwalk towards our selected excursion. You were led to your appropriate dock based on the type of excursion you booked. We chose the interaction while others chose the swim. We were led to a common locker area and we stored our bags in the locked cubbies. It is all very safe and we left our towel bags on the benches, unlocked. We did NOT need a wetsuit because the water temperature was very comfortable. If this were wintertime, we’d probably had donned a wetsuit (complimentary, btw) but in 95+ degrees, we were fine!
OUR ENCOUNTER
We were in a group of 11, which was fine for us. We didn’t mind watching the dolphin interact with others. It sort of prepped us for our turn. The best BEST part of this at Dolphin Encounters is that each dolphin encounter is under a large canopy so the sun is not blazing down on us. Just an aside here…the Dolphin Cay at Atlantis is considerably more money per person AND is uncovered so you will be sun-rayed on… we were looking to have a day out of the complete sun and with Dolphin Encounters we got it. Anyway, back to the excursion….
We stood on a dock that was an open-ended square. Our dolphin was Princess, and she was the 42 year old and was sooooo gentle. Each family stepped down off the dock onto a sunken platform that put us in waist deep water. My 8 and 11 year olds were well above water. The water below the docks goes about 25 feet down so the dolphin comes up into the corral and meets you, full on, while you are standing on the platform. The trainer is there too and he is instructing the dolphin the whole time. We each got to hug her, kiss her, dance with her, take pics with her, and feed her smelt! My only unverified comment here is that I was told that on the Atlantis dolphin excursion, you do NOT feed the dolphin from your hand… this was told to me by fellow Atlantis guests but I do not know it firsthand. At Dolphin Encounters you actually hold the dead fish and the dolphin gently removes it from your hand. This is really cool but it scared me. I did it though!
There are two photographers on your dock taking pictures of everything. One uses a still camera and one uses a video. The DVD of your adventure sells for $59. We almost bought it but decided against it. Photos aren’t cheap but they were well shot and we bought them all!
After your 30-minute interaction, you exit the dock and retrieve your stuff. We then decided to walk around the island and explore. We meandered over to the sea lion area and watched them play in the water. Then we continued walking toward the beachfront area and came across a cute little touch tank. There ware conch shells, hermit crabs, and giant starfish! It was the BIGGEST freaking hermit crab I have ever seen. I think he was born in the Jurassic era because he was that big. SCARY!
We then walked over to the snack shop and gift shop and purchased some cute souvenirs and the pictures. We decided to head back to Atlantis rather than stay on the island so we boarded the 1:00 pm ferry and docked at Paradise Island at 1:30. All in all, a three hour tour.
MY THOUGHTS
Although I peppered my review with my commentary, I’d like to say a few final things. I highly recommend Dolphin Encounters as a day trip while on Paradise Island. There are other options in addition to the dolphin interaction that I participated in. There is a dolphin swim and a sea lion interaction.
While we did not partake in the free island activities, we did see how beautiful and well maintained the grounds were. We thought the snack shop was small but other than that, we had no criticism. We thought that it was interesting to learn that the dolphins here have been used in television and movies!
The website is very informational and very easy to navigate. They also have a toll free number for information. I ultimately chose Dolphin Encounters over Dolphin Cay Atlantis for the price difference and I know I made the right choice for us. It got us off the island for half a day, it saved us money, and we enjoyed a scenic boat ride on the crystal clear ocean waters. It was great fun…$450 of fun and photos, but great fun. One drawback? If you have a member of your party that does NOT want to interact with the dolphins but wants to watch, they have to pay $25 to observe. Suffice to say, that at Atlantis’ Dolphin Cay, you pay $50 to observe only and you don’t even get a fun boat ride! Choose Dolphin Encounters for a truly remarkable experience.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
deenaf
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Member: Deena
Location: Merrick, NY USA
Reviews written: 279
Trusted by: 72 members
About Me:
Mother, wife, teacher..... aren't they all the same?
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