Dolphin Encounter-on own or with DCL?

[brerrabbit70]

Has anyone done the Dolphin Encounter on their own? We are sailing on the 3 day Wonder 3/4. My DD9 and I will be the only one doing this. DH and DS will be bonding on the ship and parasailing at CC!
I am nervous about wondering around Nassau on my own. My sense of direction is terrible!
Is it easy to find? How long does it last...from the time you get off the ship till you get back? I do want to do some shopping in Nassau before the shops close.

Thank you for the help!

"Everybody has a Laughing Place!"

 

[valeriekc]

It was not hard at all to do the dolphins on our own! It is a short 5-7 minute cab ride over the bridge to the Paradise Island Ferry Terminal check-in and incredibly easy to find. Every cab driver there will know exactly where it is and you can do it! Here is a link to their website with all the questions I wanted answered as well.
http://www.dolphinswims.com/faq.html
Our experience with the Dolphins was on a different cruise line but we did not do the encounter, we did the Dolphin swim and that you can not book through the cruise line. You should book whichever one you choose on your own as you will save money that way and it is very simple!
We did watch the people doing the encounter however and it seemed just OK. In our opinion it is too much money for what it offers. You stand on a platform in the water waist deep and the dolphin swims by and you get to pat them, feed some fish etc.. not really very interactive.
Now if you want info on the swim...awesome! We spent almost an hour in the water (with lifejackets on) interacting with 2 dolphins. There were about 10 people in our group (our family was 4) and we had the best time.
As for the time requirements, it takes about 30 minutes on a boat to get to the Blue Lagoon Island and (obviously) 30 minutes return. The time on the island was around 2 hours total.
All the people that did the encounter waited around till we were all done and we all took the same boat back.
Afterwards we looked around Atlantis & Nassau and knew we had done the best thing (in the dolphin swim) that the island had to offer!
If you have any questions feel free,
Good Luck

 

[sherr]

My 10-dd and I are doing the dolphin encounter at Blue Lagoon on our Feb.26 cruise. I booked directly with them and did not go thru DCL. It was cheaper and so decided to try to save $. We are going to Blue Lagoon by fairy that morning and spending the day on Blue Lagoon beach and than at 4pm head over to the dolphin encounter. I was told it is all right there close by. The downfall is we get on the fairy to head back and we will probably be late for early dinner seating so we will eat elsewhere that night.

Not sure what to tell you about shopping in Nassau. I think the dolphin encounter is far from town but I could be wrong.

 

[kcashner]

We did the dolphin encounter in Nassau. Definitely do it on your own. Even then, it is quite expensive for what you get. The description is accurate of getting into waist deep water and having the dolphins swim around you.

We have not done the dolphin swim in the islands. However, we did the dolphin swim at Discovery Cove in Orlando (sister park to Sea World.) This was a really good experience. The day is not cheap--it was about $200 per person, and has increased since then! It is an "all inclusive" where you get parking, lunch, all equipment, a photo entering the park, all activities, and all food for the creatures. In addition to the dolphins, there is unlimited swimming with fish in the "coral reef", stingray area, an aviary where you can feed birds and small animals, a "lazy river" for tube floating, etc. In addition, you get a week's pass to Sea World. SO....not a bad deal, all in all.

 

[brerrabbit70]

After "accidentally" leaving the web page for Discovery Cove on the puter, DH has decided that is a much better deal.

I don't know if ya'll are familiar with it, but for about $224 per person you get all day at a beautiful park. There's lot of snorkeling and a 30 minute dolphin swim. They provide wet suits and a hot lunch. It also includes a 7 day pass to Sea World or Busch Gardens.

He was so sweet to think of that!