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What to expect during your
Dolphin Encounter:
Dolphin Encounter is an exciting educational and interactive
program that will have you on the grounds for several hours. The
experience begins when you arrive and check-in at our
Environmental Gift Shop. The friendly and helpful staff will
provide you with the educational materials for your workshop and
have waivers for you to complete. Your workshop leader will
guide you to the workshop area and direct your activities for
the remainder of the program. Please arrive with your bathing
suit on under your clothes. You will need to bring a towel and
anything else needed to contribute to a comfortable swim. Also,
please remove all jewelry.
To participate in the program, guests must be at least five
years old, and children ages 5 through 12 must be accompanied in
the water by a paid adult participant. Guests must also be able
to speak and understand English.
Our swims take place in the natural saltwater lagoons of the
Gulf of Mexico. Most lagoons are quite deep, however, life vests
are available if required. The temperature of the lagoons is not
controlled and can be cool in the winter months. When water
temperatures drop below 66 degrees Fahrenheit (19 degrees
Celsius) we strongly recommend that participants wear wetsuits.
These can be rented at local dive shops and resorts, as DRC does
not provide wetsuits. Outdoor, freshwater showers are available
after your swim.
During your educational workshop prior to the swim, you will
learn about wild marine mammals and what you can do to save the
environment we all share. You will learn about the importance of
choosing the responsible and only legal way to swim with
dolphins. You will also have the opportunity to watch a video
that prepares you for your own experience at DRC. Your workshop
leader will teach you the signals and behaviors you will do in
the water with the dolphins.
After your workshop is completed, you will find out what time
and which dolphins will be joining you for your swim. We have
found that smaller interactive groups work to the benefit of
both the dolphins and the swimmers, so group size may range from
two to six swimmers at a dock per session. Please keep in mind
if you have made a reservation for a large group of swimmers, we
will do our best to accommodate your group, however we cannot
guarantee that everyone in your party will be swimming at the
same time or the same dock.
Once your swim trainer has escorted the group to the swim
lagoon, they will make sure that the dolphins are ready and
everything is in place before asking you to step down onto the
dock and into the water. You will then have the opportunity to
use the knowledge you learned in your workshop, participating in
a variety of structured swim behaviors with the dolphins.
Structured programs are very important because it allows you to
know what to expect before getting into the water, and the
dolphins also know what to expect when they have people in their
environment. The dolphins seem to enjoy the interactive programs
because they are with someone they know and trust, the trainer,
and have the opportunity to see new faces and try new things
with our public swimmers. Your in-water swim time may last
anywhere from 15-25 minutes, but the memories will last a
lifetime! You will also receive a certificate to commemorate
your Encounter with our dolphin family.
The program also includes a full day's admission to the
facility. Throughout your visit you will have the opportunity to
watch as many narrated dolphin and sea lion activities as you
like. Each session demonstrates a different facet of the
dolphin's day, such as research, new training, medical and
husbandry behaviors, and visits with our baby and senior citizen
dolphins.
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