Booking Dolphin Cruise at HH

[Doctor P]

How do I get more information about the Dolphin Cruise? When does it depart? How and when do you book the cruise? Thanks for any help.

 

[cgcw]

I sent you a PM.

 

[RobDoc]

You can book the cruise right at the resort and there are also other local cruises available.

The resort Dolphin cruise leaves right from the resort area and I think has both morning and afternoon departures. You should have no problem getting a reservation at most times of the year.

Enjoy!

 

[colleen costello]

I would like more info about the dolphin cruise. Is it a big boat? Is it a very rough trip (we have potential pukers in our group)? Does the boat go far from land or can you see the beach at all times? Sorry -- nervous Mom here. Can you tell I live 800 miles inland? It sounds so neat but also makes me a bit uneasy. Do they provide life vests for everyone? How long is the trip and what's the approximate cost? We'll be at HH in July and I think my children, who'll be 9 and 5, would LOVE it.

Thanks!

 

[Doctor P]

Thanks for the information. About how much does the cruise cost?

 

[cgcw]

The boats are small passenger -- maybe 6 people or so. We've done it the last two summers with our kids -- starting with DS at 17 months. The trip is through the broad creek -- not a creek like I think of a little creek - it's more of a big body of water wide as a river (to me) that has the tide rise and fall with it. Kind of hard to describe. The dolphin/beach combing tours we have done have taken us to where the Atlantic Ocean meets the Broad Creek. We have always been within sight of land.

The waters are not choppy unless (I suspect) the weather is bad. One trip it started to rain while we were out on the tour and because we went fast trying to get back to the dock, the rain hurt hitting us. But I don't remember the water being choppy.

There are life vests for everyone -- the kids did not have the option of whether they were going to wear it or not.

We'll be there in July also and are already looking forward to another experience seeing dolphins in their natural habitat. It is a wonderful experience.

 

[cgcw]

Colleen,

One other thing. There is a big boat that leaves Shelter Cove (by Disney villas) which will take your family on a dolphin tour. I believe their rates are cheaper than Disney's but the expereince is not the same. The big boats cannot get up close and personal with the dolphins like the littler boats can. Last summer, DS8, had a dolphin come up to him right at the side of the boat. If his arm was a bit longer, he would have been able to reach the dolphin. Would not have had that expereince with a bigger boat.

Disney and at least 1 competitor I'm aware of charged $30 per person last year with a 3 person paid minimum. Children two and under were free.

PM me if you'd like any other information.

Cindy

 

[TIdoublegaER]

We have done both the dolphin cruies through Disney and through another company that is in Shelter Cove shops. Neither of the cruises we went on went into the open ocean, all stayed in the intracostal waterway which is more protected. The one through Disney was on a pontoon type boat that held about 6-8 max. Children under a certain age were required to wear life jackets. As stated previously, I don't remember the waters being rough at all. The other cruise we went on was on a larger ferry-type (holds 100+) people. I would say the ride on the larger boat was smoother just due to the size and the kids were not required to wear a life jacket; however, they were readily available. The larger boat was quite a bit cheaper than the one through Disney, but obviously not as personalized. When we went, the boat was not full at all and the captain provided lots of interesting tidbits about the island and some of the large, beautiful homes you will see. Of course the Disney one provided the same type of service. cgcw is correct in that the experience is not the same, you will get physically closer to the dolphins and have better interaction on the smaller boat. BUT, if you have never been on a smaller boat and/or are uncomfortable with smaller boats, I would recommend the larger one. My family and I enjoyed both cruises and would do both of them again in the future. We will be there in June and we are trying to decide which we want to do.

 

[colleen costello]

The info provided helps so much. I think my kids would love EITHER tour, and as long as I hand out dramamine, I think we would be fine on either boat! I wanted to budget for one of these trips as my daughter is a real marine mammal fan. I was anxious about being "out on the ocean." These trips sound wonderful. I am really excited about our trip to HH. We booked a longer stay (3 nights) thanks to advice here.

 

[Doctor P]

Thanks for all the info. I actually called HH resort today and, indeed, the trip is $30 per person. During the summer, the CM says that they have five trips a day--at 9 and 11 am, and then at 1, 3, and 5 pm. I think this is something we may try!