Dolphins - The Royal Swim at Chankanaab

We had a great time on our dolphin swim expedition. I'm 56 and due to a chronic health problem am fairly inactive. My husband is 58 and moderately active. We got to,the park w no problem and easily found where we to check in. We were. actually later than the time that we scheduled because our ship didn't dock until 11:30 ( we were shcduled for 10:00)' but this was no problem. They assigned us a new time and we had a few minutes to walk around the beautiful park. When it was time, our group of six ( the others were all young enough to be our children!) were given life jackets and walked down the pier to start interacting with the dolphins. . There is a photographer assigned to each group and she started taking pictures right away. There is also a dolphin trainer in the water with you at all times. It was very well organized and the trainer made sure that we each got to do all of the activities. You are required to swim out a fairly long distance for two of the activities. It has been a long time since a had actually swam in that way and it was a bit strenuous for me, but well worth it! When our time was finished, we actually got to get into the water in another area and have a brief encounter with a manatee. That was unexpected and fun. After we were finished they took us to a computer monitor to view our pictures. We had decided beforehand that we were not going to buy the disc of pictures but there were so many great ones that we couldn't resist. After retrieving our things from out locker, we went into the small restaurant/bar and ate from rhe buffet. The food selection and quality were fair, at best. We took a few pictures and went out of the park and caught a taxi right away. We went ahead and boarded the ship, as we've been to Cozumel many times and weren't interested in the shopping, etc. Been there, done that! After rennoarding, we had several hours of time on the nearly empty ship to do as we wished.

very -organized, educational, great sharing it with a group of different ages, and just fun. th The guide was very professional and knowledgable.

swim with the dolphins and riding the dolphins were fantastic experience for our children. Even our 6 year old was lifted up by two dolphins. Very memorable experience. The beach and swim were nice as well in the Dolphin park and we had a great time. It is worthwhile to spend the extra to get the Royal package.

We were on a cruise and took this excursion separate from the cruise. This means we had to get our own transportation but the taxis were readily available and cheap. The dolphin swim is a bit pricey but does include lunch and entrance to the park, Chankanaab where you can also snorkel, walk the Mayan ruins trail and see a sea lion show. The guides that worked with the dolphins were wonderful. They made sure that everyone in our group had the full experience of getting pulled by the dolphin fins, pushed by their noses, handshakes, etc. I'm no expert but the two dolphins we worked with looked very healthy and seemed happy to cooperate. They take a lot of pictures and then encourage you to buy the CD for $140, again pricey but we figured if it helped support the animals and keep up the park, it was worth it.

The trainer was excellent! He taught all about the dolphins and how to interact with them. Most of the photographs were excellent too, although a little pricey. The food was really good and the service was pretty good. It was overall an amazing experience!

Loved the dolphin experience!

I've wanted to swim with dolphins since I was a little girl and this was a dream come true experience. Everything was perfect and I loved every second of it. We paid for the more expensive excursion (forgot the name) and it was so worth it!!! I will do it again sometime for sure!

This was great. My wife said everyone has to do this. My boys at 13 & 15 loved it. We had a small group of 7 so when my 13 yr old son failed his first attempt at the foot push, he got a second chance and success! The other thing I liked was getting a cab ($11 each way) because I didn't have to wait around for a group like the Royal Caribbean excursions. Pictures where pricey ($199 for 100+ on CD and 5 printed plus we took a few family pictures with the dolphin for an extra $48), but you have to get them (smaller packages available.) Other plus was lockers are free and they had a free lunch buffet. And we went in the water with the Manatee. It was amazing how the 2 dolphins lift you almost completely out of the water with the foot push. Bottom line, we will never forget this experience.

This was a really cool and fun experience. I would recommend the Royal swim if you are going to do it. They limit it to 8 people with 2 dolphins so you get a lot more interaction time with the dolphins. The only con is the price but it is worth it. The pictures are also pretty expensive but you have to buy them

A must do

My daughter, granddaughter and I enjoyed our first swim with the dolphins experience. Our guide was extremely knowledgeable and an excellent instructor. We purchased a CD with 128 pictures of our adventure, and though a little expensive, was well worth the price. This was definitely the experience of a lifetime.

We did the Royal Swim, which all of the reviews said was worth the money. I agree and here's why. Most people opt for the less expensive package, so the Royal Swim is much less crowded. We had about 8 in our group, while the others had as many as 20. Things moved along quickly--no long waits. Also, with the Royal Swim we got to get in the pool with the Manatee. It swam back and forth in front of us and we got to touch it. I'm pretty sure I will not do that again in my life! The down side of this experience is that you absolutely cannot take your own pictures. Observers must stay about 100 yards away from the swimmers, and the cost of pictures is about 5 times what you would expect to pay--very, very high. Otherwise, a good value, particularly compared to similar experiences in the US.

Worth the extra money for the ""Royal"" Swim.

Very fun time at the park. Lots of stuff to do for one low price. Would definately do it again.

It was so cool to meet and interact with dolphins FACE to FACE. This is a once in a lifetime kind of opportunity. My kids missed out on a couple of the activities because everything moved so quickly and they didn't hear the guide ask who hasn't gone yet. That's the only con, but everything else was really cool. The foot push was the most exciting part and we got it on film!

Wonderful experience!

The guide was very experienced and was masterful in managing all the people in our group and the dolphins at the same time. Our interaction with the dolphins was much more extensive than we had anticipated. We were pulled across the pool with a dolphin on each side, holding their fin. We were pushed across the pool with a dolphon's nose on each of our feet, rising 3/4 of the way out of the water. We hugged, kissed and shook hands with them. Wonderful time !

The park was excellent with a lot to-do before and after the dolphins. Cheap snorkle rentals and excellent food in the restaurant, very happy with the facilities. Only problem was we were made to wait for almost 2hrs mostly in the mid-day sun while they tried to organize groups to get in the water, it seemed like the local staff were not very well organized. The dolphin trainer (Australian lady) was excellent however