dolphin quest

[Joeci]

Hello folks,

 

We're landing day before our cruise 8-7-10 but in the evening around 4pm, I don't think I'll have enough time do dolphin quest that day, are there any other options along our cruise, any information would be very helpful, Thankyou

[beachchick]

Where are you staying the night before your cruise? If you're in Waikiki, you could always check and see what time the programs start at the Kahala the next day. You might have time to drive down (about 20-30 minutes from Waikiki) for an early program, head back and check out of your hotel, and then go to the port for embarkation. For program options and times, check out the Dolphin Quest website.

 

If you don't have any additional days on Oahu, you could consider Dolphin Quest at the Hilton Waikoloa. It is about an hour north of Kailua-Kona (where the ship tenders). This is where I was lucky enough to snag the only open spot one afternoon in 2001. Normally, the programs had been booked with waiting lists and lotteries for openings, but that trip was in November of 2001 when tourism was way down. (Aside: No way were we going to let criminal terrorists stop us from our planned 3 week visit, not even when the cruise line we were booked with for 1 of the weeks declared banckruptcy 3 weeks before our trip--and thank goodness for travel insurance. We decided that supporting Hawaii's economy was a great way to tell the terrorists to you-know-what off! We mourned like everyone else and donated what money we could, but we decided that staying home and crying/raging didn't help anyone, least of all us.)

 

Anyway, we drove up from Kona for the day and were wandering the grounds, which are beautiful, and watching the dolphins play. We figured there was no chance, but my DH insisted we at least go ask at the office. When they told us that there had been a single cancellation for the long adult encounter 30 minutes later, my DH didn't think twice. He whipped out his credit card and said, "Sign up my wife, please." I know the price has gone up quite a bit, but it was about $120 for the long adult program, which at that time was 65 minutes, including 15 minute introduction out of the water, 25 minutes in the shallow water, and then 25 minutes in the deep water for good swimmers or an additional 25 minutes in the shallow for others. Everyone is required to wear a life vest, which can be problematic for small adults like me who are just too big for the child sizes, but who are a touch too small for the adult small.

 

I still can't put my experience into words, but I'll say this: You haven't lived until you've "raspberried" a dolphin's tummy and had him pat you on the bottom later. The dolphin "assigned" to my group (4 people per group/dolphin/trainer; 20 people total) kept playfully swimming up to me. Maybe it was because I wasn't afraid or maybe because I was the one picked to tickle his tummy (being sure not to get to close to his "boy parts"). His trainer told me that a pat on the bottom meant "let's play some more." The deep water part was amazing. They give you masks and snorkels (I brought my own) so that you can see everything above and below. We also learned some hand signals and things like that. It was just an amazing experience.

 

The enclosure is quite large and is not a tank. It's about 2 million gallons, as I recall, of created "natural" ocean space (sandy bottom, native flora and fauna) with constant recirculation from the ocean. The dolphins were very healthy and seemed happy. (A note that they don't allow some of the things that you see at other dolphin encounters such as guests "riding" a dolphin or grabbing onto his/her dorsal fin to be pulled along. They feel some things are not healthy for the dolphins.)

 

Well, that's way, way more than you asked for, but it was by far a highlight of any of our Hawaii visits. To get back to your actual question: 1. Check and see if any programs are early enough for you to head down to the Kahala on Oahu the morning of your cruise. 2. See what programs and times are available for your day in Kona; you'll need a rental car, so be sure to reserve in advance at the Thrifty or Dollar at the King Kamehameha Hotel across the street from the tender pier or at the Enterprise in Kona about 1 mile from the pier. The airport is 20 to 30 minutes away by shuttle or taxi and is not time efficient for a single port day, IMO.

 

I sincerely hope you can find a program that works for you.

 

beachchick

[Joeci]

Thank you somuch for your responce it not only helped but moved me, may we never forget, per your advice I booked Waikoloa in Kona. Thank you for being out there