I did a dolphin trip last week when my family was over and it was really good so I thought I’d share it with you! You can book dolphin trips in Puerto Escala (Puerto Rico) – just ask for Kevin or Nina. There is a tour guide on the boat called Ronnie. He speaks English, German, Spanish and Dutch and he will look after you.
How Much Does it Cost?
This trip is 24 euros for adults and 12 euros for kids, which isn’t bad because if you don’t see dolphins or whales you can repeat the trip! You can buy drinks and snacks on board and don’t worry – there is a loo!
Here’s my sister Kath and my mum enjoying the sundeck. I had my camera at the ready the whole time.
Canarian Dolphins
You get various types of dolphins here – common dolphins which are black, white and yellow, Atlantic spotted dolphins which live in the Atlantic and are spotted (obviously!), Altantic striped dolphins (guess what they look like) and the Flipper-esque bottlenose dolphins. You also get whales but you have to be really quick to see those because they come up, breathe and disappear again for 20 minutes!
Seasickness
I personally don’t get seasick but if you think you might, just go to the chemist (top floor of the Passarella Centre behind the harbour) and ask for “biodramina con cafeina” – these are really good and the caffeine stops you from getting drowsy. They cost about 4 euros a pack I think and you need to take one pill half an hour before you sail and another after a couple of hours. The trip is two and a half hours long so you might be OK with just the one. If you are worried about being seasick, climb up on the wall next to the lighthouse and you can see how calm the sea is. It’s different every day. If it’s really bad, the trips will be cancelled.
What I Saw
Because you get a free trip if you don’t see whales or dolphins, don’t leave it until your last day! When I went out I saw 2 whales (fin whales – about 30 metres long!), around 20 common dolphins and about 100 bottlenose dolphins all together. I took about 30 photos but strangely the whale photos don’t have the whales in them! Told you that you have to be quick!
Why not book your dolphin trip online to guarantee your places?
Interesting and good complete review. It would help to give some additional data like sailing hours and above which windspeed the trips are cancelled. This could avoid useless travelling from other locations. Is reservation on beforehand necessary?
Hi Aat. The trips run at 11:30am and 2:30pm on weekdays, then 12:00pm and 3.00pm at the weekend. There is no set windspeed when they are cancelled, just “when it is very windy” or when the sea is too rough. But that hardly ever happens since the weather here is usually fine. You can just turn up at the dolphin desk 15 minutes before the trip. The boat is large and licensed for 96 people, so you will definitely get on. You might want to book in the summertime (July, August) or in Christmas week, since those are the busiest times. There are flyers in just about every hotel so you can phone from where you are staying or pop down in advance and pick a day.
Don’t forget your camera!
All the best,
Victoria
Hi Victoria, that’s great news. Thanks for your prompt answer. we went some time ago on this trip and would like to do it again with our children next week. But unfortunately I forgot the details. Your entry was great help. Thanks again.
Aat, you can phone or SMS Nina on +34 630138851 to book the day before you go to confirm your places. Have fun!! Victoria
Wow, that is certainly a great service. this morning I was uncertain about the trip, now I have all details on hand. Perfect.
You’re welcome! Have a great holiday.
Please change that photo! I had really bad hair that day cos of the wind!!! Fanks! x
Hi there
How much does the trip cost per adult, child and infant
It says in the first line!! 🙂
Costs 24 euros for adults, 12 euros for kids (under 15 I think) and free for under 5 year olds.
Dolphins have been spotted on every trip so far this week.
Have fun 🙂
is it safe for my 3 year old to go on thr trip
Hi Tan, yes absolutely, the sides of the boat are high, the sea is usually calm and 3 year olds go free! I think there are optional life jackets too although they shouldn’t be necessary.
Also look at the Crystal when you come over. It is a glass bottom/submarine boat and thousands of fish are guaranteed.
Have fun!! Victoria 🙂
boat name is Multiacuatic
http://www.multiacuatic.com
The Multiacuatic runs from Puerto Base and it’s 29 euros according to the website. The one from Puerto Escala is 24 euros and you get a repeat trip if there are no dolphins.
Claudio, do you know Dutch Mike from Excelsior 2?
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I would be very interested of the dolphin trip, but are they made just starting from May? I have been looking round on different web pages, but many of the activities like Loro park and now this boat trip can be booked starting from May?! As I am coming in the end of April, what could I do there interesting other than being on the beach?
Lyna, I used to work on the dolphin boat and the trips run all year. The website booking feature is useful for the summer months when it’s busy but outside of that (eg April when you’re there) you can simply go to the dolphin booking desk in Puerto Rico harbour and book there. Loro Park is in Tenerife so you’d need to see your rep about that. You can get a local bus to Palmitos Park in Gran Canaria which is a similar animal park. There are also shopping centres you can visit and other excursions like glass-bottomed boats, camel safaris etc. Just about everything is open in April but it isn’t peak season until the mid-summer so you can book everything once you arrive.
Enjoy yourself!! 🙂
Victoria
what ever you do, do not go on the Sagittarius star dolphin cruise its is awful and u dont do many if any of the things you are told you will.
Hi, I am going to gran canaria in February. Will the dolphin trip be running? If they are, can you book an excursion in playa del ingles?
Thanks
Hi Emily, yes the dolphin trips run all year. You can’t do the excursion from PDI because there is no harbour. You need to get the bus to Puerto Rico and head to the harbour there, then you can visit one of the 2 or 3 dolphin desks and do the trip. There are several a day. Alternatively you can speak to your rep and book it at your hotel or apartment. Else you can book online before you go: http://www.partner.viator.com/en/2813/tours/Gran-Canaria/Dolphin-and-Whale-Cruise/d792-3042LPA28 Have fun! 8)
Obviously as its winter months dolphins wont be there as they migrate, at most your see a striped dolphin..if you was off the north coast of Italy, which you aren’t. There may be around a one in a million chance your see a fin whale which would be amazing as they are around 18 meters long, but you wont. A 10 year survey to find out what cetaceans are around in the winter months begins this January, I would suggest either waiting 10 years, or not wasting your money.
Claire, Gran Canaria is located off the north coast of Africa. Where do you think the dolphins migrate to?!
Having worked on the dolphin sales desk for more than a year, I can assure you that the dolphin trips would not run year-round if there were no dolphins.
Also, some dolphin trips offer a free trip if you have an unlucky trip and don’t see dolphins. You can keep going on the trip until you find them (yes, they are wild animals and sometimes can’t be found in a 90 minute trip). If there were no dolphins, the boats wouldn’t offer this, would they?
http://www.ehow.com/about_4588314_do-dolphins-migrate-hibernate.html
Are u suggesting that dolphins migrate solely due to water temperatures?
I have been on this trip it was utter shambles, it was not what was advertised, we pointed out to the lady on dolphin sales desk and she could not have been more rude.
O well done you found and ehow, its nearly as useful as wikipedia, read a book.
Dolphins go wherever there is food. The water temp doesn’t change all that much around the Canaries so that wouldn’t be much of a factor. But I’ve been on dolphin trips during every month and usually seen them. Sorry to hear your trip wasn’t good. There is one trip from Puerto Escala and I think 2 different ones from Puerto Base (the bigger harbour in Puerto Rico). The one in Puerto Escala gives a free trip if the boat doesn’t find dolphins on the first trip. I’m not sure about the other ones. There is also a dolphin search trip from Anfi, and one from Mogan, but I expect those are more expensive.
I was trying to be helpful, Claire, shame there are people like you who only want to criticise and spoil it for everyone else.
Hi, I am going to gran canaria next week and i went on one of those dolphin excursions with animalwellness sites or something like that and i must admit i wanted to find a better and cheaper one to go with as they charged 45euros (i think thats a con tbh)and seeing victoria mentioning one that does a 2nd free trip if dolphins arent spotted on the first trip, i could do with some info about that one so i could print this off and get this booked at capri when i arrive? i know some trips provide bus services from the hotel to the pier drop off point but does that one also provide this? i really want to see dolphins and dont want to see them in a park where most of them are treated badly and exploited for high amounts of money in shows. i want to see them wild naturally – this is more of a spiritual experience. this is not to say i didnt enjoy palmitos park show though as i saw the dolphins there performing and the spiritual and amazing things they did and their powers had me in uncontrollable tears. never has an animal done this to me before just from observing them. What people say about dolphins being healers really has alot of ground – and seeing them close in the wild could be the tipping point. Ive also heard swimming with them is even more powerful but i may not have the courage to do that just yet. thats a later date lol
infact. it is my birthday on friday 16th december so seeing dolphins would be a special birthday surprise for me.
love n light
as for dolphins migrating – im not sure entirely, as apparently in west wales – there are dolphins round there and the weather is colder there most of the summers than all year round in gc, so theres a good chance of dolphins all year round to be fair. if theyre as far as in the uk, and in parts of norway too i believe, then i think theres a good chance they are always in gc. its a case of hit n miss though tbh with boat trips so im willing to give it one more try while im there next week for my birthday week and look to details for the one victoria mentioned about a 2nd free trip
that dolphin and whale link no longer works either so i dnt know what site to look for. i would be gratefull for details and a page to print off to show to the hotel person. thanks
Hi Chris, thanks for your comments. Sorry the link isn’t working any more. I just checked it and it looks like that company isn’t selling tickets online any more.
Honestly, I would go to Puerto Escala in Puerto Rico (that’s the smaller of the 2 harbours) and book the dolphin trip there. It should be 25 euros (might have changed a little) and they do offer a free 2nd trip if they’re unlucky enough to find them the first time.
I agree with your comments about how it’s nicer to see these lovely animals in their natural habitat rather than watch trained ones in captivation do tricks. They are really beautiful and special and I also felt very moved the first time I saw them leaping out of the sea into the air. It’s magical.
There is no way at all of guaranteeing a viewing though since they’re in the wild and the sea is big but make sure the boat you book with does offer free trips until you do see them.
You can see dolphins all year around the Canaries, believe me I worked on the boat, since the water temperature doesn’t change much and their prey remains in the same general area.
I don’t think you can book this trip online at all now but if you get yourself to the harbour in Puerto Rico you will find the dolphin desk and you can book there.
As for swimming with them, it’s best to swim with the trained ones. Wild dolphins are wild and a dolphin in a bad mood CAN attack you or try to drag you down to the seabed. They have moods just like us. Swimming with them can be lovely but wild dolphins are not domesticated (that’s like comparing wild cats with house cats).
But I hope you manage to see them on your birthday. That would be wonderful for you!
Victoria
hi victoria, thanks for the reply so puerto escala is the company then? i just need to find the bus that goes to puerto rico from maspalomas now, as i will be near holiday world for the week – well thats the nearest recorgnised stop anyway so if i can find the bus that goes from there i intend to see dolphins.
I understand what you mean about wild dolphins. in their defense, they have rescued a few people from sharks and also from drowning in wild seas in new zealand going by what i have seen on the news and on the net and information. but there are definately circumstances when to respect their space – ie:especially when the females are looking after their young, they wouldnt want to be disturbed and would protect them (as humans would do with their young). i think also if the dolphins feel threatened by humans for some reason they may be more likely to lash out then too. thing is, i need to learn more about dolphins first, and observe their body language and sounds that means to respect their space and dont want to be approached.
i dnt know if i would get chance to do so with trained ones as theyre in the parks with people ripping other people off to see the shows, and i dnt trust how theyre treated either 🙁
you say they might try to drag you down to the seabed – hmmmm, is there any hope of escape from dolpins in attack mode? they have warded off a white shark on numerous occasions so i wouldnt fancy being on the wrong side of a dolphin – or even a pack of them come to think of it. I strongly believe that dolphins mean human beings no harm as a rule, but as you say, animals have survival instincts and their are times to approach them and times not to – this is the same with dogs in a sense.
id feel safer in a boat with dolphins round it though as opposed to sharks round it. isnt it debatable though that using a boat to sail to where dolphins are could well disturb dolphins? i did read an interesting site about dolphins – one about what many parks do to captivated dolphins where they mentioned this about going on a boat to see them. tbh, i dont think it would be timne for me to swim with dolphins as of yet, as i wouldnt feel safe in the waters as it would be too deep and i only got one badge for swimming at school so im not great at it. id need a lifesaving boat/dingy type thing round me first i think. though how many instances are there of dolphins attacking people? i have no idea of that one (i guess not all dolphins are like flipper :)). I think i have alot to learn about these wild n wonderful mammals..
I have heard that swimming with dolphins can heal people and also heal people of disease but again, i dnt know how true this is but if they can heal people mentally then it wouldnt surprise me if they could more t hings to some degree. ive heard they know what parts of the human body is causing humans distress at the time and they have a way of working magical things and they are soo inteligent too and spiritual.
25euros is ok. i went on the animal encounters trip for 45euros and dont fancy that price again really. bit overboard (no pun intended). though u got free drinks, bus ride to puerto rico and back, and a fish dinner and some fruit so it balanced things out alittle. that could well be the asking price. going for a 2nd trip i would definately prefer though.
hi victoria, i have found an interesting link about interracting with dolphins on this website. this sounds interesting and it appears dolphins can be as vulnerable as humans in some cases, but its understandable why many dolphins may tend to avoid human beings – particularly on boats.
http://www.irishdolphins.com/webpilot/list/details.asp?contentid=54&l=10
Chris, Puerto Escala is the name of the port (harbour) in Puerto Rico. There are 2 harbours either side of the beach – Puerto Escala and Puerto Base. You need to get the no. 33, 39, 70, 90 or 91 bus from the Maspalomas lighthouse to Puerto Rico, then just walk straight down to the beach.
You’ll see the harbours on either side. Puerto Escala is the one on your right but you can also try Puerto Base on your left. The dolphin trips are daily at various times through the day.
The dolphins seem to like the boats because they usually approach (well some of them do, there are bottlenose dolphins which are very friendly, the “Flipper” ones, as well as spotted, striped and other kinds which are less sociable with humans). No one is allowed to feed them but they are very curious. They are also totally used to the vibrations from the boats/sounds of the boats and do not flee. They stay in the vicinity of the boat.
Wild dolphins can be aggressive (maybe like cat who’s had enough of being stroked and scratches you to signify this) but they can also be lovely. Personally I think they’re beautiful and majestic creatures and very special. Thanks for the link.
i was reading that you shouldnt feed dolphins as this can interrupt their feeding pattern and that the dolphins can tend to leave their young whilst visiting the boats and leaving the young vulnerable to prey, apparently.
from that site, it sounds like the dolphins are more likely to keep their distance unless they feel comfortable around you, and they may attack if you persist in harassing them and its more on their terms in initiating contact. keeping up with them isnt an option due to their speed they can travel at ;). it does sound like they only attack under certain circumstances – mostly being a lack of respect for them which is totally understandable. Im with you on this one. They are loverly beings. and my time on the palmitos show on friday 2nd december afternoon was nervewrecking but fantastic. those dolphins can bring grown men to tears!
i agree about the cat thing – by scratching as a warning to say “get outta my way!” kinda thing :)… animals tend to interract with humans on their terms more than anything – though cats do tend to get upset when humans ignore them and theyre meowing like mad! is it just me who notices that?
funnily enough im not sure where the lighthouse is but i walk down to the beach often from the holiday world back end of the building section. i think 39 might go from holiday world i will need to double check.
If you’re staying at the Holiday World end of Maspalomas, then there is a bus every 20 minutes or so from the bus stop right outside, which goes to Puerto Rico. It will say Puerto Rico (or Mogan) on the front.
thanks for the help. i will see what happens when i go gc on sunday and fingers crossed – i just might see some beautiful dolphins :). i will report back here if i do especially :). these experiences need to be shared on such sites like these and other dolphin and animal lovers in general
Sagittarius Star Dolphin Cruise:- Horrible – AVOID
(we paid 40 Euros pp)
Unhygienic, fraud, dirty, rip-off, rude staff, unprofessional.
We went on this trip on the 29th March 2012. I was super-excited, as I love animals and sea. When booking we were assured to see dolphins and flying fish.
We started to sail at about 11 in the morning. The staff on board (2 guys) made an announcement starting with ” Dont have high hopes on seeing dolphins, this is nature and not a zoo, so if you come back without seeing anything, dont be upset”. !!!
We kept sailing for more than an hour an half before stopping for banana ride, most people on boat had already thrown up (every bit of water & food in their stomach) by this time. (So as you can guess, the unlimited food and drinks was of no use !) Both the guys (staff) had retreated into the lower deck and were gobbling burgers and hot dogs, rather than attempting to locate the dolphins.
The ladies toilet door was broken and there was no water in either the ladies/gents toilet.
After I threw up, I went to one of the guys and asked for water. He gave me some water in a glass, with which I washed my face, hands and eyes. When I asked for another glass of water, he told me that when you jump in the sea for snorkelling, there will be lots of water !!!.
The same 2 guys were cutting salad, cooking on ship and doing all sorts of odd jobs on the boat (so I assume they wouldnt be washing their hands before handling food !).
After we anchored on the sea, there was lunch arranged on boat. Vegeratian food (salad & pasta) kept for self serving and non-vegeratian food being served by the two guys. I am vegetarian, and I asked them twice whether the pasta was vegetarian to which they confirmed yes. As I was about to have my first bite, I noticed something unusual, which I showed to my husband. He ate it and said it is chicken, so I either threw away the pasta or my husband ate it (dont remember). Gargled my mouth with coke, as there was no water on boat and didnt want to bother the 2 guys again. What annoyed me is that they should have told me to get my own food and not promised me a lot of vegetarian food while booking the trip. So I literally starved on the trip from morning 10 to 4.30 pm.
All the waste from the toiletes was directly disposed into the sea, and I didnt feel like snorkelling.
We returned to the shore at about 3.30 and were quickly hussled into the bus. And yes, I dont have to say that we didnt see a single flying fish let alone a dolphin. (though we did see a couple to fish swimby from the blurry glass bottom AFTER the ship had halted.
We were supposed to go on the submarine trip, Palmitos park and camel safari trip. But my husband and I fought massively after this Sagittarius trip and spent the next 4 days retreated into our hotel and did nothing else except some shopping and playing pool.
Thanks for sharing your review, Anna. Sorry it sounds like you had a horrible time. I’ve never been out on that boat. I’ve been out on 2 different dolphin boats from Puerto Escala (the harbour the other side of the beach from where the Sagittarius is).
Seasickness can happen, especially when it’s rough but there was no excuse for the non-vegetarian lunch and the rude service it sounds like you had. Also, the more professional boats NEVER promise dolphins (because they’re wild animals and you can’t guarantee them).
Hope you had some good weather at least 🙁 x
We have just come back from a cruise to the canaries.We had one day in Gran Canaria and booked a dolphin trip from Puerto Rico.No commentary on the trip.Husband and i saw one flying fish,few distant birds and nothing else.No dolphins.So just to warn people you dont always see dolphins.Luckily we”d already seen some off the ship near Lanzarote.
It’s a shame you didn’t see them Julie but you don’t always on these tours. That’s why the reputable boats offer you a free trip if they don’t find them first time around.
The commentary isn’t possible either since there are many nationalities in Gran Canaria on the dolphin boats. I used to work on the boat and we often had a mixture of English, German, Scandinavian, Dutch etc. I was OK with the English, Spanish and any French, but the rest would be difficult for me unless they spoke one of the languages I did. A lot of older tourists don’t speak English. Most of the younger ones seem to. I used to go around talking to each person and showing them the pictures in my dolphin book about which species we’d seen and answering any questions but I don’t know how it’s done on other boats. I worked on the boat that goes from Puerto Escala (the smaller of the 2 harbours in Puerto Rico).
well i can say that i went on either puerto escala or the other boat trip in december and although yes we saw dolphins, still not close enough really. apparently there is one boat trip in tenerife that allows the dolphins to come up right to the boat on the edge and you get a very close look as long as you respect their space i think. i forget which one it is now but a workmate told me of this.
the december trip turned out to be ok. dolphins on a couple of occasions got within around 2.5-3metres away but one blink and they’d gone again! you sure have to be quick to see them. i enjoyed the day out though and i prefer this to seeing dolphins oppressed badly in captivity. dolphins belong out in the wild.
When I worked on the dolphin boat the dolphins came quite close. The captain would switch off the engine when we were surrounded so the dolphins would be curious enough to come closer without being scared away by engine noise. It’s the most magical thing in the world to see them! Chris I agree with you, they DO belong in the wild, not in pitifully small tanks or zoos. And they are used to the boats coming and going.
The bottlenose dolphins used to come right up to the boat side I remember; some of the other ones (striped and mottled dolphins) were more scared and wouldn’t come so near.
to be fair victoria i might of used the other trip by the same port – i think i went the one on the right, escalla might of been on the left but there werent enough people going out at the time so i werent sure if it was going to happen so i took the other trip which was on the right side and you walk all the way round the right side of the pier basically. i will try the escalla next time if its the one on the left. i know that it was quiet and there were about 2-3 places and they were wanting a minimum of 10 people to take out – it was tuesday 13th december 2011. escalla might still have the dolphins come close to the boat now.
ive heard of people being healed from illness from coming close contact to dolphins actually, though this isnt a regular occurence.
The dolphins make up their own minds, Chris, that’s one of the things that’s so nice about the trips. If they aren’t feeling sociable they don’t come to the boat. If they are, then they do. But there are 4 different kinds (bottlenose, mottled, striped and another kind which I forget) and some are more nervous than others of approaching. All the dolphin boats do a similar trip, the main difference is the better boats offer a free repeat trip if they don’t find the dolphins on the first trip out. They have regular “haunts” (where there’s a lot of sardines for them to eat etc) but can move, then it’s just up to the captain if he’s lucky enough to find a group of them or eagle-eyed enough with his binoculars to spot them miles off. The boat I used to work on – the captain could spot a group of dolphins in the dolphins with his naked eyes. I could barely see them with binoculars. He was a real pro!! 8) Have a listen to this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eFiJVI2krfI&feature=related I can’t make up my mind if it’s relaxing or not.
This is also interesting: http://www.irishdolphins.com/webpilot/list/details.asp?contentid=54&l=10
thanks for those great links. im reading the last one you sent now and i agree w ith much of this soo much. this is what ive said all-along really. dolphins – as with many ainimals approach humans on their own terms and more importantly if they feel comfortable with a human being.
i like how it states they dont advise for or against approaching/swimming with wild dolphins – they keep an open mind and i believe its rare for a dolphin to attack. i think its an extreme case that may only be likely in self-defense i guess. if he/she feels threatened.
its worth questioning if a dolphin could catch human illnesses but i also believe that dolphins are more likely to heal than catch it. i dnt know how it works though but their inteligent naturistic/spiritual side is unexplainable and i dnt know if we could really father it out.
i believe approaching dolphins is also about respect. theres a time and place for things i believe. constantly harassing – i can see why they are warey of human beings tbh.