Blue Lagoon Dolphin Encounter

[Mom2Kaylee]

Hey all! Leaving in 26 days and have a couple questions about this excursion. First, we decided to finally go ahead and book this but of course the only time slot left was 12:45. Now my questions are, what are the chances of moving to the earlier one? Can I ask the day of if there are cancellations? If I do have to do the 12:45 one, is there enough time to do anything? It will be my daughter and myself doing the "encounter" and my parents will be the "observers". Can they take pics of us while we are with the dolphins? (From what Ive read cameras arent allowed during encounters) I have an ok zoom lense they could use! Thanks in advance!!

 

[tinkrbell929]

we did that 2 years ago.. i dont know about moving times but i do know that my husband was able to take pics from the observation area. they do sell pics after your encounter that were very good.. and we bought a package.. they accept credit/ debit cards.. but just remember to call the bank and let them know you will be out of the US so they dont decline your charges like they did mine.. but i was able to call them from my cell phone on the island and they were able to fix the problem.. i think we might be on the same sailing.. 7/18?? getting excited..

 

[AStamm]

DS and I did this excursion in 2008 and it was definitely the highlight of the cruise. DH decided against coming along as an observer since he gets sea sick and was worried the smaller boat ride would make him sick. At the time, the description of the excursion said that there would be pictures/videos/souvenirs for sale, but that only cash would be accepted, not credit cards so I left my credit card on the ship with my DH for safe keeping. Sure enough, the pictures were fantastic (although very pricey) and I didn't have enough cash with me to get everything I wanted.

So...moral of the story is be sure to bring along your credit card even if the description says cash only. I'm sure your parents will be able to get some great shots as well during your one-on-one time with the dolphins.

 

[Disney Dreams]

You can check at the Excursions Changes table onboard the ship when you first board to see if there is any space on the earlier excursion. Sometimes people change/cancel, opening spots for you.

The above poster answered your question about photos, but I just wanted to add for everyone's benefit that if you want to purchase pictures after the fact, Dolphin Encounters has all the pictures on their website for purchase. I just checked and it looks like their offerings go back several years. My pictures are still up there and that's from last November.

- Dreams

 

[onecoolpilot]

The above poster answered your question about photos, but I just wanted to add for everyone's benefit that if you want to purchase pictures after the fact, Dolphin Encounters has all the pictures on their website for purchase. I just checked and it looks like their offerings go back several years. My pictures are still up there and that's from last November.
- Dreams

OMG thank you for that! I did not know they had them on their website. We didn't order any pics while we were there, but after looking at them again, we might get a few.

 

[dunnhorn]

We just did this in April. Loved it! Daughter was 7 ... it was very cool to feel the dolphins.

I think the observers can take pictures, but they aren't allowed on the platform, so the pictures are from behind and they might not be that good. The encounter takes place on a floating square platform in the water that is shaded. The observers stand to the back of where the encounter takes place. They can see just fine, but they see the backs of the people with the dolphin (the dolphins would face them when doing the hug.)

That says, the place puts it on video (not really worth it) and they also have pictures (very worth it.)

Definitely try to get the early excursion if you can. After the encounter, you can walk around and explore blue lagoon. I know this is terrible, but I actually thought it was more beautiful (and more enjoyable) than Castaway Cay (GASP!) A picture from that day is currently my computer background. The water is similar (turquoise blue) and they have lounge chairs everywhere - the diff w/Castaway Cay is that is isn't so terribly crowded.

We had a fantastic time... enjoy! I would also recommend getting an underwater camera. We got the Sony Cybershot with a flotation strap from amazon. It was around $300 and it was the best pre-cruise purchase we ever made. It takes HD video and is drop proof, freeze proof, water proof and sand proof. Suddenly, I don't mind handing this camera to my daughter. The underwater pictures were incredible. Takes great panorama pix too.

 

[Mom2Kaylee]

Thanks for all the feedback!!

 

[Fab5Family]

We just did this in April. Loved it! Daughter was 7 ... it was very cool to feel the dolphins.

I think the observers can take pictures, but they aren't allowed on the platform, so the pictures are from behind and they might not be that good. The encounter takes place on a floating square platform in the water that is shaded. The observers stand to the back of where the encounter takes place. They can see just fine, but they see the backs of the people with the dolphin (the dolphins would face them when doing the hug.)

The shaded platform that is directly by the encounter platform allows for up close pictures ... but as stated in the above comments, the pictures will be from behind the participants.

There is a walkway that goes further out into the water away from the encounter platform. If you have a camera with a good zoom you could send an observer out there and they would be able to get some good shots that would include the faces of the participants.

 

[HappyontheLake]

This was the highlight of our March cruise -- best family photo we have.

Take the earlier boat over and enjoy your time on the beach in the morning before your dolphin time. The beach is wonderful -- but wear a watch so you don't miss your time!

Take money for lunch at Blue Lagoon so you aren't hungry though when it is your time to do the dolphin thing.

 

[MadtownMama]

Glad to hear some great reviews and tips of the enounter! This is the one excursion that we're planning on doing so I'm really looking forward to it. My DH and I swan with dolphins on our honeymoon (Xel-Ha) and it was so fun so I'm looking forward to experiencing something similar with our 5 year old daughter!

 

[jetskigrl]

I'll second the recommendation for the waterproof camera. We did the Blue Lagoon Dolphin swim and my DD and I traded off taking pictures during the swim (including taking videos of each other while doing the foot push across the lagoon).

 

[Pinmaniac]

I'll third the recommendation for a waterproof camera. We just did this excursion earlier this month. My DD and I did the dolphin encounter and my DW and her DS did the sea lion encounter. I brought my camera with me and took several pics of my DD standing next to me interacting with the dolphin. My DW was told no cameras allowed. There was an observer for the other people on our dolphin encounter and as mentioned above the area for him to take pictures was behind us. The pictures that Blue Lagoon took all turned out well so we purchased a few and the video. If we do it again we would not purchase the video as it just isn't worth it IMO.

We did the late encounter and there was not much time to do anything else. My DD and I walked over to find my DW at the sea lion encounter, took some pics of the sea lions in their cage, walked over to the store to buy our pics, and then it was time to go. In fact, they took so long to process our pics that we were the last to board the boat back to the ship.

 

[Disney52303]

We did this excursion in February while on NCL. It is worth every penny. DD was 6 and DS was 2y 11m, they both loved it. Despite DS's age, he had his own turn hugging, kissing and feeding the dolphin. In the beginning the trainers ask for one family to volunteer but don't tell you what for. I volunteered us and we got an extra turn to pet the dolphin while the trainer explained how/where to pet him.

You're not supposed to bring cameras into the excursion area (the observation area is higher up and the excursion area is covered), they truly want you to purchase their photos. There were a couple families who argued and took their own photos, but I would just deal and purchase their photos. It's wasn't a horrible price for what you got and the photos were great. We got 2 5x7's that came in holders plus two magnets. We had cash. My kiddos were hungry so I bought them a small bag of Doritos... $6+!!!! I had grabbed a couple boxes of dry cereal that I thought would last till we were back on the ship, but didn't. Next time I will bring extra cereal since you can't take fruit off the ship.

You take a boat from Nassau to Blue Lagoon Island which is about 20 minutes and great for photo ops. You go by Atlantis, several mansions and yachts which are docked. It's a stunning boat ride.