Dolphin encounter at Living seas...worth it?

[Glennwood]

DW and I are considering going to the dolphin experience at the living seas in Feb. Is it worth it? Is it difficult to get a reservation?

 

[ralfrick]

I would want to swim with the dolphins, which you do not do at WDW. You can at Sea World's Discovery Cove, although it's $100 more. However, I believe that gets you a 7 day SW pass, plus there are many other things to do in a place that greatly restricts the number of people inside (2000?).

We'll be in the Keys before going to WDW, and there are several dolphin swim programs, so we'll be going with one of those for about the same price as the Epcot program, although I'm sure that surroundings will be less plush. I figured I could keep my 9 year old son from finding out about the one at SW, but knew he was bound to see billboards in Key Largo, and he's a dolphin nut that once waited outside the Dolphin show at Marine World for 2 hours to make sure he was picked as the volunteer. And this was after he waited without success for 45 minutes on an earlier visit. He looked at me like I was crazy when I asked if he'd give up the Aqua Seas tour at Epcot and one of the snorkel boat trips we were planning for the Keys if he could swim with dolphins instead. Might as well have asked if he'd rather have a cookie or be hit in the head with a rock.

If you do it at Epcot, I'd make reservations soon; I booked last month for DiveQuest in July, so I'm sure they've been taking them for the Dolphin program for a while; when I called, I was told I could make the reservation before I even told her what date I wanted. And that one is limited to certified divers, many more are eligible for the dolphins.

Cheers.

 

[CheshireMelanie]

I did the Dolphin Encounter on 12/16/04.

I loved it, but let me clarify a little.

I'm a land-locked, marine-biologist wanna be. I don't have much opportunity to get in anything bigger than a backyard pool. I don't dive or snorkel.

I am an educator by trade.

The encounter is about 3 hrs long. You are in the tank with the animals for about 40 mins. The rest of the time is spent learning about the research methods, facilities, the dolphins themselves and conservation and protection issues.

I found it all to be fascinating. My only complaint was that the "canned" info that the instructors were giving was written for the lowest common denominator. In my group there were only 4 adults (the program is limited to maximum 8) and we all had some idea of what was going on. Luckily, the female instructor was able to improvise a bit and talk to us more as educated adults.

The two trainers that were in the tank with us were wonderful. And the dolphins are simply amazing. (They weigh between 450 - 500 lbs. by the way)

This facility is a research area, not an entertainment venue. I felt like I had the experience I wanted, which was a lot of information, some real quality time interacting with the dolphins and access to trained researchers to ask questions of. I didn't so much want to swim with them, I wanted to interact with them. And I did, very much so.

It was very cold while we were there and I was happy that I was going to an indoor, climate controlled environment.

The facilities are incredible. You have a great locker room to change and shower in - you are also given a shorty wet suit and booties to wear.

I feel like I knew what kind of experience to expect and the Living Seas Encounter was exactly what I was looking for. It was well worth my money.

Let me know if you have any other questions.

 

[cra-z-4-dizney]

did you get to touch the dolphins???

 

[elgerber]

did you get to touch the dolphins???

Yes you do. When I did it, we got to hold them on our knees, pet them and give them handsignals. I totally agree with the above poster. Granted you are not swimming with them, but I LOVED every minute of it!!!!!!!! I had goosebumps when we were in the pool with them, and not just because the water was cold.

 

[crcormier]

I did it with my exGF last December, and we both loved it as well. From what I heard, you get as nearly as much actual interaction with the Dolphins as you do at Sea World even though you don't get to 'swim' with them. It was a really educational, well done tour by professionals who were very enthused about what they were doing. Plus most of the cost goes to environmental causes, so you don't feel bad about the price tag. I don't think it's too hard to get a reservation in advance.

 

[sunny04]

That's awesome! I have not heard that they actually do this! I thought they had stopped. How do you reserve this kind of thing? How much is it? How long is the entire event?

 

[Alaska Catdog]

It was called Dolphins in Depth when we did it in November and we had access to it through our Platinum Plan package but I bet you could reserve it like you would any tour in Disney World. At first I was wanting to swim with the Dolphins but after learning all about them and how smart they were it seemed a bit tacky to want to experience them hauling me around the tank. It felt like an interaction with a thinking being rather than a thrill ride and I appreciated that Disney does not allow you to "swim" with them. After this experience I was reading a trip report about someone who went to the Swim with the Dolphin park in Orlando (I don't know the name of it) and I couldn't help but feel a bit sorry for the dolphins in that venue. We loved meeting Ranier and Calvin (the Disney Dolphins) and we wouldn't want to ever "ride" them. It shifted my perspective for sure. I highly recommend this.