Dolphin Discovery Reviews (Isla Mujeres, Mexico)

Poor Transportation Organization & Customer Service

Burnaby, British Columbia

December 5, 2011

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This is actually two reviews of the same Dolphin Discovery, one from April 2011 and the second in November 2011.Background:My wife and I are in our early 40s and have travelled extensively in Mexico. We have been there on 17 different occasions and ...Read more This is actually two reviews of the same Dolphin Discovery, one from April 2011 and the second in November 2011.

Background:
My wife and I are in our early 40s and have travelled extensively in Mexico. We have been there on 17 different occasions and have been to dozens of resorts and experienced many different activities

April 2011:
My wife booked the "Trainer for a Day" program and was advised that the transportation would be picking us up at 8am. At 8:10am the transportation still hadn't arrived. We were on holiday and figured that it was on "Mexican time" so we waited a little longer since the program didn't start until 9am. By 8:30 we started to get a bit worried and phoned Dolphin Discovery who advised us that they had forgotten to pick us up! They would not be able to arrange transportation in time for the 9am start. We had no option but to book it for another day.

The re-booked date saw the transportation pick us up on time and take us to the Dolphin Discovery. My wife really enjoyed the Trainer for a Day program, although she enjoyed the dolphins, she particularly liked the time spent with the manatees.

I would rate the program 7/10 but the transportation arrangements 3/10.

Fast Forward to Nov 2011:
My wife booked another program at Dolphin Discovery and was advised of a 7:55am pick up at our hotel. Well come 8:10am and no sign of transportation can only mean one thing, yes, unbelievably, they forgot to pick us up again. Luckily we called in time for them to arrange a "rescue driver" who got us to Dolphin Discovery at 8:55am.

Now I realize that mistakes happen, however, for them to completely forgot to pick up the same pre-paid clients twice, once in April and second in Nov, is inexcusable. My complaint to Rene at the Dolphin Discovery about the forgotten and late pick up fell upon deaf ears. Since we had arrived before the 9am start it was all ok. Rene completely ignored that fact that if we hadn't phoned, they would have completely forgotten to pick us up again and we would have had to re-book for a second time.

As you all know, time is precious for most on holidays and in my opinion, the unreliability of the transportation arrangements made by Dolphin Discovery is unacceptable. I can see that from previous reviews that transportation issues and complaint resolution is definitely an area that needs improvement Close

Be Careful, This Company Will Take Advantage!

by angela bardoe

vineland, New Jersey

May 6, 2008

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I really want to start with the positive first. I did the Royal Swim and my children did the general dolphin swim. Overall, the experience was wonderful. I would do it again in a heartbeat even though it was pretty expensive. However, we did run ...Read more I really want to start with the positive first. I did the Royal Swim and my children did the general dolphin swim. Overall, the experience was wonderful. I would do it again in a heartbeat even though it was pretty expensive. However, we did run into a few snags with the company that I thought you should know before going. The company offers to pay your transportation if you book as a group which we did. Unfortunately, when we arrived we were early and there wasn't any people from Dolphin Discovery near the entrance (only the park workers were there) so we had to pay the taxi ourselves and they refused to reimburse us for that expense. Secondly, when we did get there, they told us that two of our children we under 18 so they couldn't do the Dolphin Experience without us in the same group. They tried to make us upgrade their swim to the Royal Swim and have us pay the difference. However, I refused. When we made the booking nothing was mentioned to us about this "rule". Also, my children didn't want to do the Royal Swim because they were a bit scared, plus they did have my sister with them who was 18. Finally, they gave in but we did have to stand our ground about it. When it was over, my sister wanted to buy two pictures and they have a discount for buying two. The catch is that you must buy two pictures of yourself; not, for example, one of yourself and one of your spouse, so she didn't buy any at all. This is just not good business sense. And worst of all, we did buy two dvd's; one of our swim, and one of the children's swim. I think they were $30 each. Well, we just tried to watch them with our family this weekend and our dvd was completely scratched (we hadn't even tried to watch it before so it couldn't be our fault). The audio didn't work at all, it never stopped skipping, and my husband and I were completely cut out of it! This was so disappointing; we really wanted to have the memory. Anyway, the swim experience was great. The dolphins were well trained and the people working with the dolphins were friendly and kind. The business aspect of the company needs a lot of improvements. I would encourage you to go but be careful and watch your wallet!
Follow-up….
I recently contacted dolphin discovery group to see about getting my dvd replaced because it skipped incessantly and the audio didn't work. They seemed to be willing to replace it for me, and told me that I would need to send it back to them and give them my name, the date, and the time of our swim. I sent them that information, and even included our registration number etc. Then they emailed me saying that they would also need a picture of me to in order to prove that it was me in the swim! I thought this was ridiculous but sent it to them anyway. THEN, they sent me another email saying that I needed to remember the name of the dolphin that we swam with that day! This company is just terrible! They will take your money, provide you with a lousy product and then give you every excuse in the book to not make good for it. Do not purchase any of their crap unless you are willing to take a loss on it or just swim with the dolphins through another company if you can. This is just incredible! Close

Captive dolphin swims

by rodman416

brookfield, Wisconsin

April 17, 2007

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To swim with caged animals is worse than kissing your sister. Look at the critters, will you? They do what they do for a food reward. How many survive a year in the capitivity that they call home? We saw a nurse shark in a pen that was maybe 15 ...Read more

From journal Swimming with our mammal friends, in pens

Dolphin Encounter

by Inu

Hurlingham, Argentina

January 14, 2007

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Discover the dolphin’s best-kept secrets in a safe and fun-filled environment. You will be surprised by the great intelligence and friendliness of these wonderful marine mammals. You will also have the opportunity to hug it, kiss it, let it kiss you ...Read more

From journal Peace at Isla Mujeres

Dolphin Swim

by Lefko26

Chico, California

May 31, 2005

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This is pretty expensive ($75 to $125 per person), but something I've always wanted to do, so we went ahead and went for it. Even if you don't pay to swim with the dolphins, it's still fun to visit Puerto Adventuras, as there are shops and ...Read more

From journal Cancun (Puerto Adventuras), Mexico

Swam with Dolphins

by Cannon5

Folsom, Pennsylvania

July 18, 2004

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It was my dream to swim with dolphins and I got to do that. They are beautiful mammals. The cost was $119.00 for 1 hour, it was well worth it. The video was $50.00, which we did get, and the pictures were $20.00 apiece, but we did not get them. The ...Read more

From journal A week at Aventura Spa Palace in Mexico

Sealife Adventure

by karlag

Normal, Illinois

February 22, 2004

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Pictures and words cannot describe this experience. It is called the Sealife Plus and it is given by Dolphin Discovery at Puerto Aventuras, which is approximately 40 south of Cancun. The staff at Dolphin Discovery was very friendly and ...Read more

From journal Cancun Christmas

Day with the Dolphins

by scubadiva

Westfield, Indiana

October 19, 2003

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I have been scuba diving for one and a half years and this was by far the most amazing dive I have been on. It is not a deep dive and you are basically sitting on the ocean floor the entire time, but to be this up close and in the open with a ...Read more

From journal palace resorts

Dolphin Express

by akakd

, Arizona

February 18, 2001

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We took the Dolphin Express from the dock near our hotel over to Isla Mujeres, approximately a 40 minute boat ride. The mood on board was light & fun, with music playing & refreshments served. Once there, we relaxed on the beach, visited famous ...Read more

From journal Cancun on the Caribbean Sea

IgoUgo

Dolphin Discovery

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