Best dolphin encounter on western Caribbean?

[MichelleCanada]

My Dh and DS7 are going in 7-day western Caribbean cruise in August. We want to do a dolphin encounter but there seems to be one at each port. Anyone have an opinion as to which is the best?

 

[jdg345]

We did the one in Cozumel and it was pretty great!

 

[Minnie368]

This will be our first cruise, so no first hand experience. However, with lots of research we’ve decided to do the one in Cozumel at Chankanaab Park. Trip Advisor reviews look great as well as the input I’ve gotten from these boards. It looks like there is another one in Cozumel- Dolphinaris maybe- but its reviews are not as good.

 

[jdg345]

This will be our first cruise, so no first hand experience. However, with lots of research we’ve decided to do the one in Cozumel at Chankanaab Park. Trip Advisor reviews look great as well as the input I’ve gotten from these boards. It looks like there is another one in Cozumel- Dolphinaris maybe- but its reviews are not as good.

Yes, that's the one we did ... Chankanaab park. Lunch was included, as was transportation. Nice beach and stuff to explore on your own after the adventure. Several trips back to the Ship. Was a good setup. Look for Fernando!

 

[MichelleCanada]

Yes, that's the one we did ... Chankanaab park. Lunch was included, as was transportation. Nice beach and stuff to explore on your own after the adventure. Several trips back to the Ship. Was a good setup. Look for Fernando!

Did you book through DCL or on your own?

 

[jdg345]

Did you book through DCL or on your own?

We booked through DCL ... my SO has a fear that the boat is going to leave us if we don't.

 

[MichelleCanada]

We booked through DCL ... my SO has a fear that the boat is going to leave us if we don't.

We are like that as well! How was the lunch buffet?

 

[jdg345]

We are like that as well! How was the lunch buffet?

It was good ... typical Mexican fare ...

 

[DebHorner04]

We did Dolphinaris in Cozumel last April. It was great for what it was. My DD (age 9 at the time) absolutely loved it. DH and I had a much better experience in the Bahamas many years ago, but this was a great experience for DD to up close and swimming with the dolphins. Pictures were very expensive, but that is to be expect no matter where you go. No matter where you go, enjoy it! Dolphins are amazing creatures!

 

[Minnie368]

Did you book through DCL or on your own?

We are going to be going on our own. Booked directly through dolphin discovery. $258 for 4 adults to do the push pull and swim, and also includes lunch- about 1/2 of what we’d pay through DCL. Did lots of research so I feel pretty confident we’ll be ok but everyone has to make the decision based on what they feel comfortable with.

 

[lklgoodman]

We also did Dolphin Discovery at Chankanaab park in Cozumel. Had a great time. We booked through DCL. There's a lot to do at the park afterwards, so whether you go through DCL or on your own, try to get an early time so you'll have more time to do everything once you are done with the dolphins.

 

[lklgoodman]

We are going to be going on our own. Booked directly through dolphin discovery. $258 for 4 adults to do the push pull and swim, and also includes lunch- about 1/2 of what we’d pay through DCL. Did lots of research so I feel pretty confident we’ll be ok but everyone has to make the decision based on what they feel comfortable with.

That's a great deal. We booked the same experience through DCL, paid more than that for 3 people and ours didn't include lunch! You'll have a great time!

 

[OKgirl]

We did the VIP experience at Chankanaab in Cozumel last summer for my family of 5. We priced the dolphin swim through Royal Caribbean (we went on the Liberty) and it was around $750 for the dolphin swim. Instead, we booked online through Chankanaab and it was about Half Price for the VIP Experience which included free soda and alcoholic drinks from the VIP bar, an upgraded lunch buffet from 2 different VIP areas, a dolphin swim and a manatee experience (pet/feed). When we got there, they asked if we wanted to add the sea lion swim - $100 for all 5 of us - so we added this on and it was wonderful! The only difference from the cruise line was that we had to get a taxi there which cost $12-$15 or so. We were able to arrive early (not on a giant tour bus from the ship) and were able to explore quite a bit more. It was a MUCH BETTER DEAL to book independently online directly through Chankanaab and I felt comfortable doing it (I knew we weren't going to miss the ship - it was just a few miles away). They will give you an outrageous price for all the pictures they take (I think they told me $700 or so for the whole family pictures of the dolphin swim and sea lion swim). I politely told them that I would be willing to pay only $300 but I wanted all pictures (not half of the pictures) or I would walk away. I still thought the price was too high but the pictures were pretty fabulous and since I'd saved over $300 booking independently, I justified it...