Dolphin encounter parks

[RATyson]

I did a search, but didn't see any real reviews on them so here goes:

Are the dolphin encoutner parks in Key Largo worth the price of admission? Are there any to stay away from? Any to reccomend?

My daughter is 5 and obviously can't dive yet, so we want to have something for her to try in the water while we are there in a couple weeks.

Looking at Dolphin Cove, they have a shallow water encounter that she would be able to do.. but Holy Moly! $155 is wad of dough (sorry if I sound cheap.. lol).

I can imagine there is a great expense caring for these dolphins, so I'm not complaining that the cost of admission is artificially inflated or anything. It is just a large chunk of money to spend when trying to remain on a budget.

I LOVE dolphins, and would really like to do this, so I'm sure the experience of sharing this with my daughter would be well worth the cost. Just want to get some insight on how these parks are.

Thanks in advance!

 

[Christina0701]

Please do not take my two cents as rude!
If you LOVE dolphins....first you should watch the documentary "The Cove" and second you should stay away from captive dolphin parks all together and save your money. There are plenty of dolphin watch excursions in the Keys to go and view dolphins in the wild....the only place they belong.

 

[guyharrisonphoto]

Yes, captive dolphin operations are cruel. My wife and I went years ago and the dolphins constantly swam back and forth along the fence separating them from the ocean. It was very sad and we will NEVER repeat that mistake.

No doubt it would be a thrill for your daughter to be close to such an animal, but some things are just not worth a thrill for our kids, and this is one of them. There are many dolphin-watching trips all over the country that can get you close to wild dolphins with no harm to them.

 

[RATyson]

Definitely not taken as rude Christina!

I was under the impression (somewhat self imposed I admit) that the dolphins in some of these places are there because of some injury, or other issue sustaned in the wild that, after rehab, has kept them from being able to survive on their own in the wild again.

If this is not the case, and they are captured and kept in captivity for their entertainment value. And they are otherwise perfectly self reliant otherwise. I would definitely not support that venture.

If these dolphins are, in fact, being supported because they cannot support themselves in the wild. I see this as a good way to raise awareness and funds to provide them a healthy environment in which to live. As long as they are treated with great kindness, respect, and care of course.

I'll definitely do some research to make sure we would not be supporting abuse if we do it.

I definitely appreciate your input! This is why I posted my question.

We did a dolphin cruise (pre daughter) in Maui. That was one of my favorite experiences. Seeing those spinner dolphins come up to the boat on their own to investigate was awesome. I so wanted to jump off the boat and swim with them! Somehow I think that would have been frowned upon.. lol.

 

[nimoh]

I too am morally opposed to captive dolphin parks.

However, I had not considered that some of these parks may only contain dolphins that were rescued, and were not able to be returned to the wild. I can definitely get behind that, although it would be very difficult to determine which parks are which.

 

[Christina0701]

I'm trying to think of another activity your little future diver would enjoy....you should check out "The Turtle Hospital" on Marathon not too far from Key Largo. They rescue, rehabilitate, and release sick and injured turtles and I believe have tours and events.
I've always wanted to snorkel with the wild Manatees (respectfully of course) but thats not near the Keys...
As for the dolphins...I'm not aware of any facility that isn't an entertainment only "circus act" unfortunately.

 

[danvolker]

The other thing to consider is that even though typically very good with people, Dolphins are very large and are not anything like domesticated dogs. They "can" play rough, and are not necessarily good playmates for a 5 year old.

I don't have much good to say about just "trusting" an operator that his dolphins, wild in-ocean, or captive in-pens, will always behave the way you would want.
Young children--in my opinion, are not big enough, and tough enough, to be put into a potentially very physical situation with large wildlife.

Did you ever see the TV special with the parents telling the little kids to go and pet the nice "Sea Elephants" that were sunbathing? Just saying !

 

[sportxlh]

I have very mixed feelings about these operations as well, as I have posted on SB in the past. If the operator is to be believed, Dolphin Cove indicates that after one of the hurricanes in the mid-2000's knocked out the fence separating their cove from the bay, the dolphins came back very quickly. Whether the dolphins lost the ability to hunt on their own or were uncomfortable with the bay/ocean or were just trained and conditioned to rely on people, who knows? They seemed to have voted with their feet (or flukes) and returned to their captivity willingly. Dolphin Cove indicates that at one time the dolphins were allowed to leave the cove and swim in the bay but had no fear of humans so were injured by boats or as stupid people poured beer down their blowholes or feed them junk foot. Hence the fence between their cove and the bay was made permanent.

At the time we visited, my daughter was about 15 and she had a great time but I certainly felt a bit guilty, like guyharris and christna suggest above, as I watched the operation. I'll add that the workers or trainers do seem to really love the animals and love what they are doing. I guess I soothed my mind to some degree as I tried to comfort myself with the fact that the dolphins probably would have trouble surviving in the wild if they were released and the trainers seem to care for and love the dolphins.

Your daughter would probably be thrilled with the experience, but 5 does seem a bit young to me. These really are big animals.

 

[DMDavid]

I've always wanted to snorkel with the wild Manatees (respectfully of course) but thats not near the Keys...

Whenever we stay at the Chesapeake Beach Resort in Islamorada Key we always encounter manatees in their lagoon during the tidal change.

As for dolphins, it is my understanding that it became illegal to keep captive dolphins back in the late 1970's unless they were injured or otherwise unable to care for themselves.
You may want to contact the places you're considering and find out how they came about getting their dolphins and if they are Dolphin Smart.

Here's a link to a good article on Swimming with Dolphins.

JMTCW

 

[turtlemoye]

We just returned from Marathon and my 7 year old daughter loved the Dolphin Research Center. I too had reservations but after reading the history of the facility I felt comfortable going. For slightly more than what it would cost for both my wife and my daughter to enter my daughter was able to "adopt" or sponsor a dolphin and receive pictures and updates via mail and it covered a one year membership. It does appear to be a serious research facility and not a tourist trap. You can stay for as long as you like and just view them up close and see what other "experiences" are offered as other families interact more closely with them. Both my wife and daughter did the "dolphin dip" which was an additional $120 but they got to spend about 30 mins with 2 dolphins and we all felt it was very much worth the additional cost. They had many other encounters that varied in price.

Due to getting the membership they actually went everyday for 4 days to say hello to my daughter's dolphin Cayo. It obviously helped that we only stayed about 100 yards away and it gave them something to do every morning while I was diving.

If I can figure out how to post pics I'll do so later but here is their website: http://www.dolphins.org/