Unplanned Dolphin Swimming Adventure

Questions: Swimming With Dolphins Tour operator Accommodation At sea: the dolphin swimming experience Tips and advice Rating

Which tour boat operator did you go with, and how did they perform?

This trip was off the coast of Tamarindo on the Pacific side, Costa Rica. It was a boat charter primarily used for deep sea fishing (Rhino Charger) with Rick Bergstresser (owner), which we booked over the internet.

The service was wonderful. Friendly, and they made you feel at home. They were excellent.

We weren't really briefed about the dolphins, but this was a booked fishing tour and the dolphin swim was unplanned. After the first catch, Rick dropped us off in the water, which he does frequently for passengers. They had snorkeling equipment in case you wanted to go for a swim. My daughter and I had a "dolphin experience" in the Bahamas, where you pay a great deal for a controlled interaction with dolphins in a pool.

We all had diving and snorkeling experience, so this was not too scary for us. Dolphins are friendly and curious mammals. The only time I have heard of a dolphin attacking any human (quite rare) was while in captivity in a training environment. I would not want to be trained to jump through hoops either. Dolphins and whales are highly intelligent and should not be trained to entertain us. I will not visit Sea World for this reason.

Food is always included in Rick's charter fee and it was very good. Fresh cold cuts for sandwiches, crispy veggies, a variety of chips and drinks. He supplies everything. I especially enjoyed the fruit, which had true rich, sweet flavor. This was a real treat for us, because in the US, the fruit is imported after it has been picked green. The fruit is gassed to hasten ripening, which does not allow for any flavor, so we wolfed the pineapples and bananas.

I would definitely recommend Rick. In fact, I am sure they would take you out just to swim with dolphins. However, there is no guarantee that you would have an interaction, as they might not always be around.

We stayed at the Hotel Flores, which is about two blocks from the beach. The hotel is upscale for the price. It was $50 US dollars last year, which was a steal. Friendly people with a large loveable dog maintain the property.

The pool is lovely with beautiful landscaping. The flora and fauna are second to none. Clean white chairs along side the pool allow for maximum lounging and there is a rock waterfall that runs along one side of the pool. The whole place is lovely and clean. We felt as if we were in an upscale boutique hotel. The place is gated, so no one can enter. Guests are given a key for after hour activities.

The rooms are large, with cal-king size beds. Large tiled bathrooms, small fridge, writing desk and coffee maker made us feel right at home. There is a great little grocery store around the corner, where you can get cheese, salami, fruit and other munchies for your room. For the price, you can't beat this place.

The boat was 30' and there were six people total. Four of us, Rick (owner/operator) and Allonso, the deckhand.

The weather was wonderful: clear, calm and warm.

There are no docks here. You go to the beach and get on a motorized boat that takes you out to the larger boats moored close to shore. When we boarded the 30' boat, all we had to do was take off our shoes, eat, drink and have fun. The deck hand did everything and we felt very much at home. When we started out to deeper water, the deckhand put out four lines, since we originally were fishing for large game fish.

Rick let us climb up into the tuna tower of the boat, so we could get a view from high up. We saw large leatherback turtles mating on the surface of the water, which I understand is quite rare. 15' wide mantas were leaping out of the water and flipping before landing back in. All the sea life seemed to be having a party!

About two hours into the tour, my husband landed a beautiful pacific sailfish, which we promptly released. As we watched it calmly swimming off into the azure waters, I wondered if it was thinking, all I wanted was a snack and those dumb tourists made my mouth hurt!

We then got in the water with the spotted dolphins, up to within about 3' from them. They swam around us and jumped out of the water playing.

There were hundreds of them. It was great being in the water with them. It was a little scary at first, because you could not see them coming. They would brush up against us in the water, or jump right out next to us.

They are quite affectionate and love human contact. In a controlled "Dolphin Experience", the dolphins are in a pool and are trained to swim up to you and roll over so you can rub their belly. This was in the wild, but we felt safe and had great fun.

It appeared that they wanted to make contact and play. It was like being in the middle of a sea wild life show, but the creatures were not penned up or trained, which is way cooler.

There was my husband and I, along with our 2 daughters, 15 and 21. We had no problem with the current and bobbed around the boat for almost two hours interacting with the dolphins.

Use the internet to check into the time of the year when you should travel to any country. Season travel makes a difference when relating to price, weather and crowd conditions. Costa Rica has a rainy season, which was when we went, but I also knew there was a brief "dry spell" at the end of July/Aug., so I timed it perfectly. The summer months, June-Aug., are considered the off-season, so there are fewer crowds and the prices are lower.

If you want to see wild or marine life, check to see when the species you want to catch a glimpse of are more likely to be present.

In any country you are visiting, learn a rudimentary knowledge of the language if you do not hire a guide.

We rented a car and went self-guided, as there were no travel warnings or civil unrest in Costa Rica. Use common sense and leave NOTHING in your car, even trash or wrappers, as this will give thieves a reason to look in. We were solicited to buy drugs a couple of times, but just put up your hand and give a friendly, "no gracias."

Always check to see what types of shots you might need for the area you are visiting and check with your local government to see if there are travel warnings out. It is also a good idea to check the state of the bordering countries, as bandits have and will cross a border if you happen to be near theirs.

Make sure you book a room in Tamarindo in advance. There were a lot of people that arrived trying to find a room and there was none to be found.

No surf breaks in Tamarindo.

Great food at a restaurant called Casa Blanca.

Do not go around the cul de sac from midnight to 5am, as there was riff raff hanging out. Be prepared to be solicited for drugs. We still felt very safe.

The most useful item I took along was sunblock.

We also kept extra water and munchies in our vehicle when we were on the road.

No one got sea sick on our trip, but I have seen many people become sick before. If you are prone to motion sickness, take Dramamine BEFORE you get on a boat. If you become ill and it is possible, get into the water. The motion of the water will acclimate your body's internal level.

As our daughters say, "it was off the chain." This trip actually exceeded our expectations, which were high. No regrets at all.