Dolphin Excursion Revisited

[houseofmouse103]

OK, I took everybody's advice to my original post & did the dolphin excursion while in Cozumel on the Christmas cruise on the Magic, so this is kind of an excursion review. First of all, it's EXPENSIVE! $160 per person. But if you're smarter than I am, when you get off the ship, walk to the main street, turn right and walk maybe 10 minutes to Dolphinaris yourself, you'll save about $42 per person over what is charged for the excursion (found this out after I got home) and you won't have to walk thru the gauntlet of vendors as the "tour guide" walks you thru a shopping mall directly across the street from where the ship docks. We waited over an hour from the time we we arrived at Dolphinaris until we were able to get in the water. During this time you will be asked over & over again if you would like to order a drink or food while you wait. We didn't. Then you'll be assembled into a group, told that you can't take your own pictures, sun screen will have to be washed off & all personal belongings will have to be lockered at $3 per locker. And no sandals, flipflops or watershoes allowed. Basically you have to get a locker. After all that is done, you'll be re-assembled and given PFD's and broken into groups of 10-12. Now it's dolphin time, approx. 40 minutes worth. It's fun; dolphin skin feels like hard plastic, but it reminded me of the old joke about tying a pork chop around your neck so the dog would play with you. Same premise. And the photo op kiss the dolphin, pet the dolphin and ride the dolphin. Photo's run $28 a piece, DVD's $55. Bottom line, it's a neat experience to try, I'm not sorry I did it, just wish I would've priced it out beforehand. And bring lots of money. We only had $60 with us, so we ended up with a locker rental & a DVD hoping that I can screen capture a decent photo off of it. Hope this helps anyone else thinking about trying it.

[ElenitaB]

Thanks for sharing your experience. I'm sure it will help others when planning to do a dolphin meet.

[Texas Tinkerbell Too]

We are planning on doing the dolphin excursion in Nassau. I noticed the price is much more per person if we book through Disney. I was afraid to book directly with the company. But, you seem to think this would be okay. It would definitely save us some money. What would be the "cons" to not booking with DIsney? Is there anyone who has booked the dolphin encounter on their own (directly through the company)? I know the "pro" would be saving alot of money.

[DisneyWhirled]

A couple of "cons" I have read about are:

-Disney booked excursions will wait for you to get back to the ship before leaving. If you book on your own, it is your responsibility to make sure to get back to the ship in plenty of time before it leaves.

-If for some reason DCL cannot dock at that port (hurricane, rough seas) and opts for another port, if you have booked through Disney, you will not be charged for the excursion. If you booked on your own, the bill is your responsibility (I don't know if you could get your $ back from the company you booked through?).