cozumel royal dolphin-age restrictions

[Ursula's Mom]

My daughter will be four months shy of her 8th birthday when we cruise this summer, and she wanted to swim with the dolphins with her 12 and 14 year old cousins for the royal swim (non-Disney excurfsion). However, when I checked dolphindiscovery.com and shoretrips.com, both said the age limit was 8 years old. Another site whose web address I forgot said that there was a height requirement (4 ft 5 in). She is now 4 feet 4 inches and I have no doubt that she will meet the height requirement by the summer. Also, she is an excellent swimmer (we live near the water) and she won 1st place in all three races she participated in for the 6-8 year old group in her swim club this past summer.

My question is, will they let her participate if she shows she is a good swimmer? Or do they simply ask for proof of age without considering other circumstances? If anyone has experience with this, please let me know. I'd like to prepare her early if she will not be able to join her cousins in the swim.

Thanks in advance to all for your help. Kathy

 

[dzneprincess]

Hi there, we did the Royal Swim in Cozumel in October. WORTH EVERY penny!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! My DS was 8 and my DD was 7, I too was worried about the minimum age requirement. It was not a problem. THey never asked DD's age, when you book it, you just fax a printout from their website, with how many adults and children and your CC info. I booked ourd about 3 months ahead of time. When we checked in, they just verfied the card. I had my daughter plain sight, and she is not big for her age. Nothing was said. I shoud note that she is a very good swimmer, and I as a parent made a choice not to let my DS 4 participate because he was not a good swiimer. The water was quite choppy and you have to stand on a platform in the water while waiting for your turn. I am 5 feet tall and had to stand on tippy toes to reach as well as hang onto a fence behind us. They did have a worker from DC help my kids out also.

 

[DoomBuggieDriver]

Hi U's Mom,
You may want to go straight to the company with your question. You can find them at http://www.dolphindiscovery.com/dive.htm
I contacted them by clicking on a "chat now" icon that appeared on the pages, and got answers to my questions right away. (This was 4pm Sat afternoon EST) I had also already used e-mail before I saw the chat button, and had a response within 24 hours.

I decided to book directly with them rather than with DCL because like you, I think my daughters would get more out of the Royal Swim option. I decided to contact them because children between 8 and 12 need a paying adult with them, and an older sibling cannot be considered unless he/she is over 18. (I wasn't particularly up for swimming myself) The company rep told me that I know my child best, and since she was almost 12 I could book her with her 13 year old sister. However, the staff running the program that day could decide she should have an adult with her, and then I would be running the risk of her not being able to swim because I would not already be booked and everything could be full. So I decided to book an adult slot with the girls and my DH said he'd do the swim with them.

So I hope this helps. Have fun planning

 

[julie junebug]

Hi! I did the Royal Swim with my DD just last week in Cozumel (it's -21 here in Minnesota this morning, so I'm re-living our trip just to keep warm!). It was her 9th birthday, so it was a surprise gift to her and we had a great time!

I'm not sure from your post what you were planning, but I'd suggest 1 adult go with as well, and I'm sure your DD would have no problem at all. There was a younger girl in our group last week, I'd guess maybe 7, but she was with her mom and older brother and sister. Swimming ability isn't really that important (everyone moves at about the same speed in the bulky life vests you have to wear), but it's kind of difficult standing on the platform and keeping your balance while doing the "kiss" and "handshake" because the water is kind of deep and the life vest is pulling you up. It really helped with the kids to hold on to the back of their life vest to keep them in position.

As far as the swimming part, you take turns swimming out to the middle of the "pool" to get into position for the "Dorsal Tow" and the "Foot Push" (both great fun!!!). There is a person out there in the water to help you while the trainer is on the platform giving commands to the dolphins.

One thing I was kind of surprised about is the amount of emphasis they put on the video and photos they are taking while you are doing the "swim". We had to do some things over again to get them on camera, and then when you are all done, you go as a group to watch the video while they edit it with your names and the dolphin names. It costs $49 (more than the Dolphin Encounter video). If you are planning on buying one (we did and really enjoy it), make sure you all get into the same group. At the beginning they will split you into group A & B based on the sign in sheet they pass around. Make sure you put your names all together. I did notice they put all the kids and parents in our group, while the other group was just adults. Anyway, whoever is in your group will be in your video.

Well, I hope this info is helpful. I must get back to reality and get some work done. Have a great trip and enjoy the dolphins. They really are amazing animals and it's a great opportunity to interact with them!!

Julie

 

[Ursula's Mom]

I took your advice and I called the "800" number on the website. I spoke to a really helpful person named Abby and, as you all stated, she said I know my daughter best and that if I thought she was up for the activities, then they probably would let her participate. In the summer, she swims in the bay and LI Sound all the time, and we go to the ocean alot as well, so she is used to some waves and choppy water. Both my husband and I plan to do the Royal Swim with her. We are also going with my cousin's family of 5. So we will have 4 adults and 4 kids. They actually had one slot open with 8 spots available so we are going to take it! I am so excited, I just hope I can make it until August! Again, thanks for the help.

Kathy