Dolphin swim at Uvero Beach - photography allowed?

[broadwayshopaholic]

I actually have a few questions.

I really, REALLY want to do the swim with the dolphins. I'm going on a cruise with my mum, and I know she will not shell out the money for herself, but may be interested in the beach...

So is there a way that she can book just the beach, and I can book the package with the dolphin swim and the beach? And if you get it for $115 directly from Uvero beach, is the open bar included?

And then my last question is - is photography allowed on the dolphin swim?


Thanks :)

[broadwayshopaholic]

I tried emailing Hector who sells the Dolphin Interactive Swim package from the pier to tell me what he knew about it - here's my original message and the reply from him.

Hi there Hector :)
I've been told wonderful things about you! My name is Esther, I'm going to be sailing on the Carnival Liberty next month, and we'll be making a stop in Costa Maya on Thursday, April 26th.

I am extremely interested in doing this Dolphin Swim at Uvero Beach. I have always, always wanted to swim with dolphins! To book with Carnival, I'm sure you know is $159. However, I've heard you offer the same package for $115. So that includes the same activities and access to the beach, and the 20-30 minute swim with the dolphins, and the open bar? Someone said for $115 it did not include the open bar.

Also, do you know if any cameras are permitted near the dolphins at Uvero Beach? Whether it be in the water, or someone taking pictures from the dock?

I thank you so much for your time - and hope to hear from you soon :)

Here's his reply:

Hola there!!! esther, our package includes the interactive program and transportation round trip only, the beach break it's optional; now there's a photo pro guy to shot pictures while you're in your program, if you want to take pictures of the dolphins out of the pool you can do it but the angle is limited.
please let me know if you have any questions, or if you want to get your spots from now...
regards Hector
C U soon
----------------------------------

So now, I'm confused. I heard lots of people saying on here that $115 he was selling included the transportation, the swim, access to the beach and everything on it, and the open bar.

What do you find is the best way to go about it? I want to lie on the beach too... should I just book through Carnival?

[familyfun99]

What was Hector's email address? I've been trying to get an answer on the height/age restrictions for the Dolphin swim at Uvero beach and have not been successful. The Carnival shore excursion says 5 years old AND 4 feet tall (48 inches) while the webite www.delphinusworld.com (http://www.delphinusworld.com) says 1.1 meters (43 inches). My youngest daughter is 44 inches. Maybe Hector can clarify my issue.

[june2006]

I booked through the ship beach break/dolphin swim. When the bus arrived we were seperated to sides, beach break only and dolphin swim....then the annocement that not to worry if you did not purchase the dolphin swim you could while you were there. Soooooooooooooo this time around I was jus t going to get the beach break through the ship and then do the swim while I was at the beach. However we are now booking tequila beach. Pictures, as you can see mine is above and it cost $20. While you are in the water you need somone up on the pier to try and get some shots as it really isnt open that much and a zoon in camera may help with better pics. Hope this helps.

Another suggestion get off you ship and go right to the line regardless of what the ticket time has. We booked the 9:30 and didn't swim until 11:05 as the bus ride was about 40 minutes, if we had only known we would of been first in line for that bus!!

[june2006]

beach break drinks are all included ... breach break with dolphin swim drinks included ... so I guess I am saying think about just booking the beach break AI and buy the swim when you get there ....

I know it was in June of 06 so I hope that option is still available. I figure they have to make their money on the people who didn't book the swim so why not offer when you get there ... and I have no idea how much it was :(

[OolliieeJulie]

beach break drinks are all included ... breach break with dolphin swim drinks included ... so I guess I am saying think about just booking the beach break AI and buy the swim when you get there ....

I know it was in June of 06 so I hope that option is still available. I figure they have to make their money on the people who didn't book the swim so why not offer when you get there ... and I have no idea how much it was :(


How long do you get to swim with the dolphins? What all do the dolphins do??

[june2006]

How long do you get to swim with the dolphins? What all do the dolphins do??

There were 3 groups of 10. Each group has a guide. You will watch a short video and then head onto the pier at the end you will get walked to a set of steps, be careful they were a bit slimy from the green moss that builds up. We all walked down the stairs and stood on a platform and then got introduced to eman. You can touch him and ask ?'s and they talk about the dolphin that is with you. The dolphin will swim around and show off :) The we went out into the water were he swam around us and we rubbed his belly. Then they have you line up whild still threading in the water and the 3 of the dolphins come together and jump over your head. Back to the plat form to say good bye and feed a fish to your dolphin. I'd say 20-30 minutes in the water. They do not pull/push or let you grab their fins in anyway as they will explain in the video that it bothers them. At some point there will be a photographer that will take your picture while hte dolphin is kissing you ... yes mine above. I did not see one bad photo and they are $20.

[martym112]

I actually have a few questions.

I really, REALLY want to do the swim with the dolphins. I'm going on a cruise with my mum, and I know she will not shell out the money for herself, but may be interested in the beach...

So is there a way that she can book just the beach, and I can book the package with the dolphin swim and the beach? And if you get it for $115 directly from Uvero beach, is the open bar included?

And then my last question is - is photography allowed on the dolphin swim?


Thanks :)


I don't know what other ports you are going to but you might want to look into some of the other ports Dolphin swims. If you're going to Belize theirs is excellent. The beautiful island where it's held is a type of nature preserve and along with being great fun playing with the dolphins, it was also educational about the marine ecology & what people can do to help preserve it.

We were at Uvero Beach for the Jungle Excursion Beach Break & were very dissatisfied with the whole thing. Waiting to get on the bus for the 40 minute ride is a true cattle call. There are tons of people, all pushing & crowding to get on, & with limited seating, some will not get on & will have to wait 30 to 60 minutes for the next bus...and that's assuming it doesn't break down. The open bar consists of watered down drinks & you drink what they make...not necessarily what you want. Food is expensive & not very good. The bathrooms are filthy & the ocean in none too clean either. There's mostly sea grass & moss, with only small areas of sand to stand up in the water. A walk down the pier brings you to a corral where the dolphins are. It did not appear to be a very pleasant arrangement for the people and it sure didn't look very pleasant for the dolphins. I strongly suggest checking out other dolphin excursions.

[june2006]

experiences and opinions.

You just have to decide and make the best of your time no matter where you end up going.

Just enjoy! Don't expect and you will not be disappointed ;)

[Luv2Cruz4Ever]

We will be stopping in Costa Maya and my kids want to do the Dolphin Swim. We get into port at 9AM...do I purchase 9:30am or 10:30am tickets? Will the bus already be at the port to transport the 9:30am people? If it takes 40 minutes to get there, how can they hope to get people there for the 9:30am swim? Our friends are skipping the swim and doing the Uvero Beach Break. I'm hoping we'll be able to join them after the swim...did you enjoy the swim?

[june2006]

We will be stopping in Costa Maya and my kids want to do the Dolphin Swim. We get into port at 9AM...do I purchase 9:30am or 10:30am tickets? Will the bus already be at the port to transport the 9:30am people? If it takes 40 minutes to get there, how can they hope to get people there for the 9:30am swim? Our friends are skipping the swim and doing the Uvero Beach Break. I'm hoping we'll be able to join them after the swim...did you enjoy the swim?

Read back in this thread ... my posts#4, 5 and 7. This will give you some answers to these ?'s.

[rockstarmama]

We just sailed the Carnival Victory Western Caribbean on 3/25. We were in Costa Maya on 3/27. I didn't do any excursions through Carnival. My husband and older daughter didn't want to do the dolphin swim, but my two youngest did. When we got off the Ship, we walked down the pier and went to the shopping area on the left. There was a little hut around the corner from the Parasailing booth that said 'Delphinus' Dolphin swim. We went up, signed up for $115 each that INCLUDED the beack break for my two younger ones (of course no alcoholic beverages for them), and the remaining three of us just did the beach break for $35 each. Yes, the drinks were weak and lousy, but we just stuck with beer after realizing that. We also purchased a burger and fries basket for $5 as a snack. It was much less expensive overall than booking through Carnival and it was the same thing. However, what was even better was that we left in an air conditioned van that held only about 12 people and there was no one in line at the Dolphin site. In fact, there were no lines at all, but I think a lot of that was due to the fact that our ship was the first in port. Two more ships arrived within an hour or two of us. Overall, I thought it was a great experience for my girls and they loved it. The only thing was that there was NO way I could get any personal pictures whatsoever. I couldn't even see my kids interacting with the dolphins due to the fenced in area being so far away from the waiting area for those not participating in the dolphin swim. The professional pictures were great and although $20, the quality was worth it. We stayed for about 2 hours after the swim and returned on the 3pm bus. Of note -- ship's time is two hours later than Costa Maya time. Make sure you keep aware of that. Not sure I would do it again, but it was worthwhile to be able to have my kids swim with the dolphins while the rest of us hung out -- we needed to find a way to still be together. If it were just my husband and I, we would have headed to Mahajaul, chilled and saved some $$$. I am glad the girls got to do it, though.