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Bahía de Banderas Dolphin Watching: Swim and Snorkel
4.8
20 Ratings
Puerto Vallarta
Bottle nose dolphins make Bahía de Banderas, the home of Puerto Vallarta, their habitats all year round. With this tour, you have the chance to watch these dolphins from afar as well as swimming in nearby areas. A professional tour guide will be assisting you throughout.
Bottle nose dolphins make Bahía de Banderas, the home of Puerto Vallarta, their habitats all year round. With this tour, you have the chance to watch these dolphins from afar as well as swimming in nearby areas. A professional tour guide will be assisting you throughout.
Duration:
4 hours
Cancellation:
24 hours
Highlights
- Vallarta Natours - You will participate in a small group retreat, for you to let go and simply relax while also connecting with nature. On this 4 hour experience you will be joined by no more than 10 fellow adventurers, lunch and soft beverages are provided as well as the necessary snorkeling gear. An experienced marine biologist will have on…
- Vallarta Natours - You will participate in a small group retreat, for you to let go and simply relax while also connecting with nature. On this 4 hour experience you will be joined by no more than 10 fellow adventurers, lunch and soft beverages are provided as well as the necessary snorkeling gear. An experienced marine biologist will have on board a hydrophone to be able to listen dolphins communicating, and she is ready to answer any question you may have about the marine environment and its inhabitants.
You will observe the dolphins from a distance and then head into the water to swim in an area close by. The swims are always conducted with respect and awareness. You will not feed, chase or do anything that might alter the dolphins’ natural behavior. This is a life-changing experience. Not only will you enjoy spending some time in the water with wild dolphins, creating unforgettable memories but you will also learn many interesting facts about these magnificent animals and how important it is to take care of their environment.
What's Included
- Professional guide
- Bottled water
- Lunch
- Use of snorkeling equipment
- Professional guide
- Bottled water
- Lunch
- Use of snorkeling equipment
What's Not Included
- Gratuities
- Souvenir photos (available to purchase)
- Hotel pickup and drop-off
- Transportation to/from attractions
- The listed price does not include a $40 pesos per person departure tax, payable at the time of tour check-in. The departure tax is required by our governing authority and is not within our control.
- Gratuities
- Souvenir photos (available to purchase)
- Hotel pickup and drop-off
- Transportation to/from attractions
- The listed price does not include a $40 pesos per person departure tax, payable at the time of tour check-in. The departure tax is required by our governing authority and is not within our control.
Additional Information
- Children must be accompanied by an adult
- Infant meals not included
- Vegetarian option is available, please advise at time of booking if required
- Minimum numbers apply. There is a possibility of cancellation after confirmation if there are not enough passengers to meet requirements. In the event of this occurring, you will be offered an alternative…
- Children must be accompanied by an adult
- Infant meals not included
- Vegetarian option is available, please advise at time of booking if required
- Minimum numbers apply. There is a possibility of cancellation after confirmation if there are not enough passengers to meet requirements. In the event of this occurring, you will be offered an alternative or full refund
- Subject to favorable weather conditions. If cancelled due to Harbor master indications beacuse of unsafe weather, you will be given the option of an alternative date or full refund
Location
Mr. Cream Pancakes & Waffles
Pier I.
right infront of Mr. Cream Resturant
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
4.8
(20 Ratings)
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Alyssah919
Apr 22, 2023
Magical dolphin encounter!!! - Thalia was incredible!! She knows the pods so well and dozens of the dolphins have names. They recognize her boat motor and her whistle. She was beyond respectful of them. No chasing. No feeding. Just truly “asking” if they wanted to play and come meet us. She passed some dolphins because it was clear they didn’t want to see us. Then others she said “jump in! They want to play!” And sure enough they would come close to check us out and circle us and swim trying to get us to copy them. It was magical. Thalia clearly cares about the animals and respects them tremendously. I would never ever do a dolphin encounter with dolphins in captivity. It’s torture for them (truly). In this setting WE were THEIR entertainment and not the other way around. 6 stars if I could!!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Richardfd745bu
Jan 6, 2023
Wonderful Dolphin Experience! - If you want to experience swimming in the open ocean with wild dolphins, this is the tour to book! Thalia and Ángel are both delightful guides, fun to talk to, very knowledgeable, and respectful towards the dolphins. At one point there was a mother dolphin with her calves surfacing in the distance. Thalia could tell by the sounds the mother was making that she didn’t want to be disturbed, so we kept our distance and found another pod that was willing to come to us. A little while later a boat from another tour company chased down the mother and calves and everyone jumped in the water (of course the mother immediately left with her calves). It’s sad that most tour guides don’t know any better. Several times we noticed that the other tour boats were following us; they know that the best way to find dolphins is to follow Thalia. :)
Thalia is a marine biologist and knows the various dolphin pods in the bay, and where they are likely to be. The dolphins recognize Thalia’s and Ángel’s calls and come to them - sometimes… they ARE wild dolphins after all! We were fortunate enough to swim near a few different pods, and one of the dolphins surfaced only a few feet in front of us! It was an amazing experience to be that close and even more wonderful to know they chose to swim with us.
This was something my wife and I have been wanting to do for years, and we’re so glad we chose Vallarta Natours!
Thank you, Thalia and Ángel, for helping fulfil a dream!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
B7353mrbillw
Nov 23, 2022
Small, well run organization. - This isn't one of those sprawling companies where you don't know if you'll get the A or the B team- you are guaranteed to go out with Thalia and her excellent crew. You will be in good hands.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Angela_fok
Aug 22, 2022
Highly recommend - The experience is awesome, we had fun. We joined the wild dolphins encounter tour in August 2022. We saw more than 15 dolphins at the same time. We tried twice to swim with dolphins but they swam away. It was totally fine as they end up swam with the boat and we had a blast.
we went to the nearby unknown beach for snorkeling and the beach is beautiful.
They even offer a sandwich and drink after the tour
The boat is clean and comfortable as well.
Only a few steps from the shop to the pier
Highly recommend the tour and the tour guide and captain are amazing.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Kdbeaches
Jun 21, 2022
A beautiful experience! - Our wild dolphin encounter with Thalia and her captain Angel was excellent. She is very knowledgeable about the dolphins in the bay and was a great communicator.
Unfortunately the dolphins did not allow us to get too close but we were able to jump in several times with them and hear them underwater. We saw many different pods playing and it was neat to see the family groups and babies. It was so neat to see many in the wild.
I was aware that our dolphin encounter was entirely up to how the dolphins were feeling so I was not disappointed that we did not get super close. That is just how it goes sometimes and we saw so many dophins anyway. The lunch was yummy and you really need it after all the swimming.
Thalia was also kind enough to give us a great recommendation for a local fish restaurant we were able to try a few days later. The restaurant was one of my husbands highlights especially so don't forget to ask her about it!!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Sara
Jun 14, 2022
Once in a lifetime - This was our favorite thing about our vacation. What a dream come true! Thalia is so knowledgeable and communicates so well with the dolphins. They know each other. Her respect for them is so evident and we all felt extremely at ease in the water with the beautiful animals. Hearing them under the water and swimming with them was amazing! Book with Thalia. You won’t be disappointed, plus she made a delicious lunch with homemade cookies. 😀
Review provided by Tripadvisor
G6381cnjackier
Jan 27, 2021
Highlight of Our Trip - Y'all. Book this excursion. Cristy, Thalia, and Jose were SUCH wonderful hosts and guides. They are all so knowledgable and fun and there was never a dull moment. We learned so much about dolphins and whales and got to see and hear amazing things! The cruise around the Bay was gorgeous, we were fully taken care of the whole time, and we made friends with LOTS of dolphins and whales - what more could you ask for?!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Kybear9
Oct 9, 2020
Book this activity! - We had an amazing intimate experience! I highly recommend this once in a lifetime activity. Our tour guide was so nice and welcoming. We were dolphin chasing all day it was a blast. The boat is pretty luxurious too.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
G9298caianh
Jan 5, 2020
Amazing Tour and Guide - Booked this tour after reading the reviews on Tripadvisor. I have to say, I was somewhat hesitant as there aren't many reviews compared to other tour companies within the area, however the ones I did read highly recommended this particular operator.
We arrived at the pick up point slightly early, our Guide Thalia was already there greeting guests and we surprised to hear there were only 4 of us going out on the tour. All I can say is Thalia was A***, extremely knowledgeable and provided valuable tips on how to interact with the dolphins and keep them entertained in the ocean, she also explained if the dolphins lose interest in us, they would simply swim off! We spent just under an hour swimming in the water with the dolphins, the first time I have ever seen dolphins in my life, as I have always refused to go and see them in captivity. They where that close I could see the markings on their fins and could hear their pitches, apparently this is them communicating with each other, an absolute once in a lifetime experience.
This trip was the highlight of our holiday, truly amazing and without a shadow of a doubt, would highly recommend.
To top it off, not long after we got home, Thalia sent us links to access the photographs she had arranged to be taken from the boat, this was hugely appreciated and again just reminded us of this truly memorable day.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Travelcruiser2019
Nov 26, 2019
Swimming with dolphins - This tour was absolutely incredible. Thalia is a marine biologist who knows everything about the different dolphin families in the Bay of Banderas as she has been studying them for years. It was almost like she could talk to them with her whistles and call them. The tour was perfect in every way. Informative, fun and interactive. We saw many dolphins playing in their groups and got to swim with some also which was very exhilarating. Thalia even supplied a delicious healthy snack for us. I would highly recommend this tour to anyone who loves getting close to nature.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
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