Here is some dolphin swim info.

[IBSaling]

Do they allow water cameras in the water to take pictures with the dolphins?? Also, how much was it to buy pictures and the dvd??

I brought my new digital underwater camera, but it really got in the way during the dolphin interaction. They wanted me to just tuck it into my life vest, but that did not feel secure. Because they have 2 people in the water at a time, I had to hand it off to one of my family members who was not next in line to hold until I got back to the platform.

 

The photos and video they took were great and I ended up buying several even though I took some of my own. It is obvious that the activities are staged for their camera; in one case the photographer did not get a shot and they had a "redo." The Royal swim DVD is $50 (I think the DVD for other programs cost less.) and the individual pictures are $13 for a 6'X8" and $15 for 6"X10" (wierd sizes!). You don't get to pick which ones are printed in each size; they are all printed for you to choose from. In our case, the dolphin kiss was the larger photo and the others were all smaller. You can get a discount on packages such as a DVD and 8 photos for $140. (We had a family of 4.)

[djctwakefield]

Dolphin Discovery's web site says that children need to be at least 8 years old and 4 feet tall to participate in the Royal Swim. How strict are they on those requirements? My son will be 7 years 7 months and about 4 feet tall when we are in Cozumel. Does anyone have experiences with this they would like to share?

 

Thanks in advance.

[dorisdvu]

Dolphindiscovery.com states for the Royal Swim "Children 8 to 12 years old must come with a paying adult (per child) as a companion." So if there is 1 adult and 2 kids, the adult has to pay twice? What if you pay for the royal swim and the kid (or adult) chickens out after they get in the water--are you out of luck. What if part of the party wants to do the royal swim and part wants the dophin encounter or adventure -- is this all done in a separate group? If you just want to watch while your party does this, do you have to pay? If so, how much? How close are you if you are just watching?

[czmjacq]

Dolphin Discovery's web site says that children need to be at least 8 years old and 4 feet tall to participate in the Royal Swim. How strict are they on those requirements? My son will be 7 years 7 months and about 4 feet tall when we are in Cozumel. Does anyone have experiences with this they would like to share?

 

Thanks in advance.

 

The age isn't as important as the height... I have been able to get authorization for under 8 to participate as long as they were at least 4 feet tall - and they will measure him if he looks questionable so make sure of the height - and of course for anyone under 11 an adult must participate with the child.

 

CozInsider Jacq

[czmjacq]

Dolphindiscovery.com states for the Royal Swim "Children 8 to 12 years old must come with a paying adult (per child) as a companion." So if there is 1 adult and 2 kids, the adult has to pay twice? What if you pay for the royal swim and the kid (or adult) chickens out after they get in the water--are you out of luck. What if part of the party wants to do the royal swim and part wants the dophin encounter or adventure -- is this all done in a separate group? If you just want to watch while your party does this, do you have to pay? If so, how much? How close are you if you are just watching?

 

If there is 1 adult with 2 children ages 8-11 that is fine. You can book different activities for different people in your party - all the activities are done in separate pens which are inside a U shaped pier area - you could be right next to the others in your party or they could be across the way - there is no way to determine that. There is no extra charge to watch - everyone pays the Chankanaab Park Entrance fee (right now there is a promo for dolphin activity participants - free or prepaid at discount) but others pay at park. The pier that surrounds the pen is raised several feet above the people in the water so you can see them - probably about 7-10 feet below you - which makes it a little hard to get good pics - but the staff photographers have better angles and always have great pictures.

 

CozInsider Jacq

[djctwakefield]

Thanks for the insight.

[Princess246]

I have a quick and silly question. I would love take part in the Royal Dolphin Swim? Do you have to know how to swim? It is my understanding that they give you a life vest. I was told by someone who works there that you didn't but I'm still unsure.

 

Thanks.

[dolfansam]

Do they allow water cameras in the water to take pictures with the dolphins?? Also, how much was it to buy pictures and the dvd??[/quote

 

Yes you are able to take a camera into the water with you. My avatar was one of the Dolphins that I swam with last summer (taken after the encounter). He actually posed for the pictures, turning his head from side to side as the pictures were taken. I had to laugh when he did that. I guess he wanted to make sure I got his best side. :)

[Bamacruz'n]

We did the middle option just last month -- the entrance fee was NOT included.

 

Purchase your water cameras here! Cost was $25 at Chankanaab Park! (I had used up the two I had and had to buy another!).

 

We didn't love the beach at Chankanaab -- instead spent the morning by the pool -- which worked out great with the kids.

 

Also - FYI - there was a charge of $5 pp for anyone who was not in the dolphin swim who wanted to go out on the docks and take photos.

 

Some shots in my Navigator album (link below).

 

 

What else is there to do at Chankanaab Park? We are scheduled to do the Royal Swim May 28. A beach and pool were mentioned. Is there anything else to do there?

[ILUVCRUZEN]

Last November we did the dolphin encounter (not swim). They will allow 2 children per one adult with the encounter. They have to be the required height because you are standing on a platform in the water and if your child isn't tall enough then he/she would just be bobbing around in the water instead of standing. Also, the movement of the water makes it a little hard for the younger children to stand still because their life vest is bobbing around in the water while they are wearing it. There is a chain link fence under the water that keeps the different dolphins in seperate pens. DO NOT ALLOW YOUR CHILDREN TO LEAN AGAINST IT FOR SUPPORT. My friends little girl held onto to it for balance and about 10 minutes after she was out of the water her skin in different places starting welping up and started stinging really bad. The workers at Dolphin Discovery said it was probably Fire Coral that was on the fence. The fire coral she encountered looked like seaweed. I am not trying to discourage anyone from doing the encounter because it was so fun and we had a blast. We bought pictures and the video. We will probably do this again next time we are there. Just educate yourself about Fire Coral.

Here is some info I found on Fire Coral.

Fire corals are not true corals. Fire corals are members of the Cnidaria phylum, and although fire coral looks like coral, it is more closely related to jellyfish and other stinging anemones.

 

Fire corals have a bright yellow-green and brown skeletal covering and are widely distributed in tropical and subtropical waters. Divers often mistake fire coral for seaweed, and accidental contact is common. The very small nematocysts on fire corals contain tentacles that protrude from numerous surface pores (see Jellyfish Sting). In addition, fire corals have a sharp, calcified external skeleton that can scrape the skin.

 

Fire Coral Symptoms

Within 5-30 minutes following skin contact with fire coral, an immediate burning sensation or a stinging pain develops.

A red rash with raised wheals or vesicles appears, and itching develops.

Rarely, nausea and vomiting have been reported.

Fire Coral Treatment

The following guidelines are suggested to treat fire coral cuts:

Rinse with seawater. Avoid fresh water because it will increase pain.

Apply topical acetic acid (vinegar) or isopropyl alcohol.

Remove tentacles with tweezers.

Immobilize the extremity because movement may cause the venom to spread. Apply hydrocortisone cream 2-3 times daily as needed for itching. Discontinue immediately if any signs of infection appear.

[ILUVCRUZEN]

Here is a picture of the little girl I am talking about as she was leaning against the underwater fence which had Fire Coral on it.

 

[ILUVCRUZEN]

It was October not November.

[wonlife64]

Do you know if they take credit cards for the DVD or only cash?

[ggprincess2004]

We just did the Royal Dolphin Swim in Chankanaab for the 5th time this January.

You certainly can take underwater cameras with you, but make sure you have some way of attaching them to the fencing (the fencing with the fire coral on it - ouch!). We buy the kodak disposables and use the rubber strap to loop it on the fence when we have our turn to interact with the dolphins.

To the person who asked the question about swimming - you do have to wear a life vest, but you need to swim out into the water some distance to engage with the dolphins for the foot push (Superman move), the ride on the fins, for playing some of the games - so it would be good to be comforable in water that is over your head. I might suggest a few swimming lessons to learn the basics of a stroke that will get you out from the platform at least 25 yards.

Above all - relax and enjoy the adventure. It is really wonderful - and as they say at Mastercard - PRICELESS!

We always wind up buying the DVD and most of the pictures their photogs take, in addition to having our Kodak on digital media and hard copy. We have a wall dedicated to our dolphin experiences, and all of the photos on it were taken by the Chankanaab photogs - we paid a fortune, but the memories are so worth it!:D

[Princess246]

ggprincess2004, thank you for responding.

[IBSaling]

Do you know if they take credit cards for the DVD or only cash?

 

They do take credit cards for the videos, photos and other gift shop purchases, but the charge will be in pesos, not US $. Most banks will charge a 3-4% surcharge on such foreign currency transcations. They will take travelers cheques in US $ and of course cash.

[thecruisers723]

If you make a day of it and spend part of it at the beach at the park, what's it like? Is there a sandy beach that you can walk out into the water from? Or is it rocks and steps you have to climb down to get in the water?

[ILUVCRUZEN]

There is both. The rocks and steps is where you snorkel.

[babyfacebabe86]

Can you bring your own snorkle gear to the park? Do they have lockers to put stuff in? If so, how much money??

TIA

[thecruisers723]

Also, can you rent snorkel gear right there at the park? If so, how much is it?

[ILUVCRUZEN]

I believe the snorkel equipment is about $10.00 to rent BUT I wouldn't want to put a snorkel tube in my mouth that someone else has rented. Also last time I was there, I was talking to a couple who had rented the equipment (snorkel,mask,fins) and the woman was complaining that she had exchanged out the mask 3 times because they were worn out and kept leaking. I would suggest you bring your own mask & snorkel (forget the fins) rent one of the life vests to keep you afloat while you snorkel.

[trctjs]

First time cruiser(Carnival Conquest 9.30.07) and my best friend and I are planning to do the dolphin excursion while our dh's are golfing. We are looking at the Dolphin swim and snorkel.

 

Is it better to book on our own....or through Carnival?

 

We're really nervous about missing the ship but it might be the only time in my life that I'll get to swim with dolphins.....so I want to make sure I do the best one. :)

[wecamp]

Tennislover,

did you do the Dolphin Adventure Swim? That is what my daughter wants to do. What is the best time to do the swims? I think our ship arrives at 9am.

Thanks

[dorisdvu]

If there is 1 adult with 2 children ages 8-11 that is fine. You can book different activities for different people in your party - all the activities are done in separate pens which are inside a U shaped pier area - you could be right next to the others in your party or they could be across the way - there is no way to determine that. There is no extra charge to watch - everyone pays the Chankanaab Park Entrance fee (right now there is a promo for dolphin activity participants - free or prepaid at discount) but others pay at park. The pier that surrounds the pen is raised several feet above the people in the water so you can see them - probably about 7-10 feet below you - which makes it a little hard to get good pics - but the staff photographers have better angles and always have great pictures.

 

CozInsider Jacq

 

 

If you book the Royal Swim, there must be one adult per child ages 8-11. I had booked 1 adult with 2 children and was told this.

[TDOTCRUISR]

So that means that if it is the adventure swim & NOT the royal swim, 1 adult with 2 kids would be ok, right? Does anyone know if the DVD is of the whole group or specific to the individuals. ie: We have a quite a few people & am wondering if the DVD will show the entire group.