My wife and I are heading back to the BVI after a fourteen year hiatus - needles to say we are very excited for the trip! We shifted from a mono-hull to a cat for this trip.

This time, we will have our kids - aged 14, 12 and 8.

Our kids discovered 'Dolphin Discovery' and much to our chagrin, the are really keyed into swimming with Dolphins.

I'm looking for first hand experience with Dolphin Discovery or other swim with Dolphin companies in the BVI.

This trip will surely have different experiences than previous trips prior to kids, fewer late nights, less foggy mornings <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Yikes.gif" alt="" />

Thanks in advance for any/all information.

Cheers,

Brendan

I guess it depends on how one feels about caged wild animals, trained and fed to provide amusement to humans.

Brendan--suggest you do some reading up about how keeping a dolphin in captivity affects their lifespan, etc., and educate your kids as to why it's not a good idea.

Agree with the previous posts. Wouldn't they rather take a chance to sail with them in their natural habitat? We see them regularly around the BVI.
A little research might change their minds.

It's way more fun to see dolphins swimming off your bow and "escorting" you to your next destination than to let your kids get in that brackish sh*t water with a circus act.

Keeping dolphins in captivity is cruel.

I read in the BVI News that two Canadians were arrested attempting to free the dolphins. Probably sounded like a great idea after a few painkillers.

Dolphins belong in the sea, not in jail.

Go watch the movie black fish with the kids. Then have a long talk about the bvi dolphin jail. I'm glad other posters feel the same way.

The Dolphins are intelligent creatures and should be free.

Thanks everyone! Appreciate the frank feedback and suggestions.
Cheers,
Brendan

You can go to the Abacos and they'll follow your boat. Or, you can swim with them in Kauai in the wild. Dolphin Discovery is horrible.

I've done the Dolphin Discovery with my children about 8 years or so ago so can't speak to how it is recently. It's a high dollar experience, on top of the fees, then they want to sell you videos and still photos that they got you to pose for, for yet more money.

People are certainly entitled to their opinions, but horses are intelligent mammals, as are pigs, and yet most of us would ride one and eat the other without giving it a second thought, so I happen to find all the negative comments to be overblown.

There's certainly nothing unpleasant about being there. The people who work there are nice and have a nice rapport with the animals.

The killings and captures are going on in Taiji Japan right now....it is just unbelievable....watch The Cove....you will be changed forever on the subject of swimming with the dolphins..

As many above have said, you may very well encounter dolphins in the wild while you are sailing the BVI. We had a family swim around us off of Sandy Cay on one special visit!

So glad the TTOL crowd jumped in here - we have to kindly discourage this wherever possible.