They are not very good at teaching kids how to swim, they pick favorites and ignore the kids they do not like. Do not waste your money with this place!!! read more

Terrible customer service. Good luck getting out of their billing cycle, as they make it nearly impossible, hold your money hostage, and won't return calls or e-mails. I had to advocate for my daughter to move up from a class that was clearly way below her skill level and she ended up with a chronic ear infection. Zero stars, if I could. read more

This place is phenomenal. So much focus on safety and Stacy is beyond patient and sweet with my nervous swimmer. I have nothing but rave reviews! read more

I can't review or rate the actual lessons, because I was never able to attend or even sign up. Getting ahold of a human is near impossible. After 3 1/2 weeks of calling & emailing DolFun I finally got a snarky voicemail back implying that I was bugging them by calling & emailing so much. I called 3 times in 3 weeks, and e mailed 2 times. She asked "what exactly I wanted" and reminded me that I had "called numerous times". Well, I wanted to pay you over 100$ for a swim class and get some information. A friend tried to give them some feedback on their facebook page, only to have it deleted & the owner respond with a personal message trying to deal with it "privately". This is not good customer service, and obviously they don't want any bad reviews floating around. I will be going with Children of the Sea instead. I was hoping to give DolFun a try, but they are way to hard to get ahold of & for that price I expect top notch customer service. read more

This is my first Yelp review. But I wanted to give the heads up to other parents. The actual lessons here were good and my kids learned a lot. But, start to finish, they were unprofessional: it took six months for them to return calls and emails to enroll, they tend to not return emails about safety concerns or really any other concerns. They don't enforce their own Covid safety protocol. The owner has a toxic and disrespectful communication style, to parents she disagrees with and her own staff, who have regularly quit. And she can act like this and overcharge. The waitlist is deep because they are one of the only private swim lessons outlets in town. But if there is anywhere else you can find, I suggest going there instead. read more

So ... being a new mommy ... every decision, every choice, every THING is well- over-researched. We decided a few months ago to put the little dude in swim classes ... but where? who? I mean ... he could DROWN! OK I'm being overly dramatic ... but seriously ... he could. The other thing about being a new mommy is that we truly value and trust the opinions of our mommy friends! So - when one of them recommended Dolfun - we jumped on it! And I have to say - THANK YOU HILARY! Miss Debbie is amazing. She is extremely knowledgeable about all things swim - and (as Christine mentioned) is also knowledgeable about babies. To feel comfortable and confident in a new environment with baby ... amazing. I recommend her to any and everyone I know who has a baby ... and yes ... we drive a half hour each way to get there ... and it's worth every second! read more

I've been happy with my experience at DolFun swim academy. I've been with them for almost a year, as I enrolled my son when he was just 6 months old. He is very comfortable in the water now as was proven on a recent vacation to Hawaii, so I know they've done something right. Debbie is the owner and she is a wealth of information - not just in terms of swimming but child development. The only other teacher we've come to love recently left to be with her family full-time. My son didn't take well to the instructor Diana's classes, and i felt ignored by her, but I know some people like her approach. Overall, I highly recommend this for children - we have a community pool right near our house yet we drive 30 min each way to be in this class once a week - its worth it! read more

One of the things I was most looking forward to while waiting for my son was infant swim lessons. It just sounded so wonderful! Thanks to Kristen and Diana at Dolfun - it was! I have heard people say they didn't sign up because there was a waiting list, but I think there is a misunderstanding... they wait for enough interested families to start a new infant class. So if you don't sign up you wont have the chance to be one of those interested families! For us, the wait was only about 2 weeks :) We loved how personal the service was there, we loved how they got to know our son quickly and paid attention to his specific needs. We loved how they stepped us up to each new thing, and how there was always another idea to engage the babies as they grew and developed. Our son enjoyed learning and playing with the other kids, and through the process he learned to be safe in the water. We also learned a lot of new things, like how the babies have an innate reflex to hold their breath when the water hits them just right. We enjoyed working on teaching him the cues at home during bath time. We enjoyed sharing the fun with our family and friends, who were blown away by his swimming underwater videos! Thank you so much. read more

My son has been taking semi-private lessons with Dolfun Swim for 6 years and he started when he was 6 months old! The instructors do an amazing job using the innate instincts of infants to ensure they are comfortable in the water and then begin using "play" to learn to swim (think wheels and wipers on the bus). Sam is now an independent and confident swimmer. He is working on increasing his strength with his strokes and loves his time in the pool. Thank you to Kristen and Jamal for all you've taught him! The only thing that holds me back from 5 stars for Dolfun Swim is that communication with the administration staff can challenging. But once your child is enrolled, you can be confident your time in the water will be time and money well spent! read more

My son started with them at 4 months old, he's now almost 3 1/2 yrs. I can't say enough about this wonderful program. Every week he amazes me with new skills. His independence and confidence in the water is fantastic. Miss Diana is great. She is patient with the kids, but firm. We've had other teachers in the past who were equally great. All are very knowledgeable about child development. It is more expensive than your community center pool, but worth every penny. This is much more than a mommy & me type swim lesson. Plus, the pool is nice and warm here.... I always leave the community center pool with blue lips and shivering little boys. read more

I can not speak highly enough about our experience at DolFUN. My 6 year old son had been taking group swim lessons at Portland Parks and Rec and NECC for years with no progress. He was too afraid to put his face in the water and they were not able to give him the attention he needed. We took private lessons with Stacy and the progress we saw during those first few lessons was incredible. She has great techniques with toys and games to get students over their fear. After a month he was able to swim small distances on his own and join the next level group lessons. They emphasize safety as well. After a month of lessons we went on vacation and our son fell off of his raft in a pool and he immediately turned to float on his back and save himself. It is money very well spent and I only wish we had signed up sooner! read more

If I could give this place 0 stars I would. I signed my daughter up for swim classes here but never ended up attending a single class due to the measles outbreak. I tried contacting them to change classes or to get a refund, but no one ever returned my calls/emails. They took my money and never tried contacting me again. I had to cancel my credit card just so they wouldn't charge me again! Trust me, spend your money elsewhere. I'm sure you can get better classes and service for a cheaper price elsewhere. read more

Like a previous reviewer, I could not get a hold of anyone for months at Dolfun, and I was desperately trying to sign my daughter up for a class before our LivingSocial deal expired. In the meantime, my voucher expired and THEN they decided to return my emails (how convenient for them). Now they're refusing to refund my money! BEWARE! Scammers! read more

I obtained a deal from either Groupon, Living Social or Sharing Spree (cant' recall) for swim lessons through Dolfun. It was a good deal and a way to get my 4 month old in the water. When we arrived at the Tigard location, I fell in love with how warm the room was and then in love with the water temp! It was perfect for my little one and as most moms know that's what happens with babies so we were excited. We loved swim teacher Diana who took the time to provide detailed instruction on how to hold your baby underwater, above water, and during every single activity taught in the 30 min class. My daughter excelled and was not only swimming underwater but was jumping in from the outter edge of the pool, floating on her back with only my hands supporting her neck and then swimming on her tummy with only my arm on her chest!!! My husband and I were pleasantly surprised with how wonderful our experience was with Dolfun and were so happy that she was doing so well. Fast forward to our current situation: We are now currently registered with Children of the Sea for the following reasons: #1 - Placed my daughter in the already set up pack n play at Dolfun so I could change. When I walked past her she stood up to hold on to the sides and it collapsed. Luckily, I was close enough to catch her before her head on the concrete! #2 - On a couple of occasions, the instructor did not arrive early enough to warm up the pool water/room and our babies were cold during the entire session. For babies, this is really bad in my opinion and not acceptable for the extra we pay for this benefit. (compared to most community pools etc) #3 - They added a new swim instructor that went through the motions and didn't really work with each individual child and provide the level of instruction that Diana had. #4 - The changing tables along the sides of the pool have plastic changing pads (unsecured) so you can change your child before or after class. However, these pads look as though they have NEVER been cleaned. After 2 sessions at Children of the Sea...here's what we don't like: #1 - They don't have adequate changing stations, just a very slippery countertop with only enough space for 4-5 kids max. #2 - Storage bins where you are supposed to place your belongings during class are small and barely fit my street clothes, towels and babies clothes. #3 - There are only 2 shower heads in the womens locker room and 2 in the family locker room. Considering they run 2 classes of 6 kids at the same time, there isn't enough shower heads. #4 - There are no pack n plays to hold you infant/toddler while you change. You have to set them on top of the counter and hope they aren't squirrely!!! UGH. #5 - I don't feel as though my daughter is excelling as quickly as she did with Dolfun based on the instruction that is given. There's no 1 on 1 attention given and no attention to detail with each child unless you ask the instructor. Like my husband says, it feels like a little baby swim factory. "Push them in and out" We have decided that we will probably go back to Dolfun do the following: #1 - make sure we get a class with Diana #2 - try not to sign up for a class first thing in the morning #3 - know the changing pads are icky and take something to wipe them up before setting baby down #4 - check & secure the pack n play before setting her in there The one on one attention at Dolfun is unbeatable and you will not be dissapointed! I promise!!! read more

So I agree with Kevin L. We have been going for 2 years. Enrolled my daughter at 4 months and now she's over 2. Great swim instructor, Kristen- love her. But the communication with admin staff or office staff is poor. I have sent several emails asking questions and this and that and never really get an answer, just an excuse for something. So I never get a resolution. Which is very frustrating...Pool is warm, instruction is good, facilities are fine. My daughter loves the water and is getting so good at swimming and is so comfortable in the water. Every time we go swimming people ask how old she is because the cannot believe what she is doing at her age. I don't like it when kids drop out and they add new kids to the class , because they need to keep the classes full, which I understand, but it slows the class down and we seems to go backwards for several weeks and when you spend almost $90 a month you want to keep moving forward, this is one of the things I tried to address. I suggested maybe and orientation for those kids new to the program to go over the basics so the regular class does not slow down and the kids can jump right in... but no answer or response from admin staff. Just a thank you for your email.. If you want your kids to learn to swim or be comfortable in the water i would send them to DolFun, but just know the communication is not the best. Instructors are great. read more

Kristen has been an excellent teacher for both boys. My older son has become more confident in rolling over and floating on his back on his own which is something we were struggling with and my younger son has learned a great deal as well. In the few months the boys have taken lessons they have progressed immensely, we are sad that there is not currently a class that fits into our schedule but will be checking back in the future. Kristen has done a great job of teaching water safety, swim skills as well as having fun. It was everything that I wanted out of lessons for my boys. I left a different swim school feeling sad because my son was frustrated that he wasn't doing the skills right but overtime we leave Ms. Kristen he asks when he gets to back which means he is enjoying learning and there is nothing better then that. read more

Today was our first class at DolFun. I'll admit I was a bit nervous. I didn't know what to expect. The instructor was friendly, informative and incredibly helpful. The 3 other moms were nice. The water is nice and warm. There are plenty of changing stations. My little 6 month old boy did great. We loved it!!! read more

What a great place. We've been coming for over a year and a half and my daughter loves it! Diana and Angie are great instructors and really help eliminate any fears parents would have with their baby underwater! Can't wait to start our youngest in a few weeks read more

I have had two kids at Dolfun for the last 4 years. I would give the swim teachers five stars, they are knowledgable, fun and have helped my kids have great water skills. The reason for the low review is the lack of communication and the slow communication from the business manager. I called 5-6 times to get my son enrolled and no one called me back. Finally I found a forum online talking about the lack of communication listing the business managers email. Over the years every time we have had a schedule change I would have to follow up over and over again to get any information. The last straw for me was inaction after repeated reminders on something that was affecting my health. I am appreciative of the swim teachers and we won't ever be going back. read more

Our daughter has been taking lessons since she was 10 weeks old, she is 2 and a half now. We recently went to the coast where we spent nearly every day on the water. While we were swimming, another parent approached me and asked how long she had been swimming. He was really impressed that she was clearly not fearful of the water but also very much respected it which she demonstrated by responding to our instructions, not going to off-limits places etc. At two and a half she has many basic water safety skills which make our job of keeping her safe so very much easier. Jamal, Debbie, Diana (and others I am missing) thank you all for your help! We are absolutely part of the dolphin "pod". read more

My daughter, now 10 months old, has been taking lessons at the airport location since she was six months old. I have been nothing but happy with our experience. Diana has been responsive to our needs helping us find the right time, they have a strong philosophy on how to teach infants how to swim, and Stacey (our instructor) has been great. I haven't tried any of the other infant swim classes in town however after speaking with other mother's about their experiences elsewhere, I am happy I chose DoIFUN. My little one loves the water and is learning how to be safe in it. The environment they have created for that is a positive and stress free one which I really appreciate. read more

Terrible experience. We were able to get in touch and get signed up for a semi-private lesson with my two daughters. I went online to pay a few weeks later (before the first lesson) and there was nothing in my online account. After leaving several messages, I got a call back telling me that the class had been postponed. Never bothered to call and tell me. So we were rescheduled to start a few weeks later. We showed up at the pool for class, only to be told that the class had been postponed again, now several months. Again, no one thought to let us know though they insisted they sent an email about this change (they did not). I wouldn't even give them one star for their poor communication and lack of consideration. read more

My girls love DolFUN. They both made much greater progress in a few lessons than they ever have elsewhere. Diana was prompt with communication and my girls LOVE Kristen. I'm so happy they're more comfortable in the water. read more

Our family was with Dolfun Swim Academy (the Tualatin location, in the owner's backyard pool) for eight years, up until 2015. This will be the first summer none of our kids are in lessons with Dolfun because they have basically outgrown this excellent program. Dolfun has been so amazing at teaching them all these years that two of them are now on competitive swim teams (ages 9 and 5). All three children started lessons as infants and learned invaluable safety and water fun skills early on. It was amazing to discover that infants can learn safety skills like rolling on their backs, hanging onto the edge of a pool, and kicking to the surface. We tried lessons at other places (Children of the Sea, Tualatin high school pool) but found Dolfun did the best job of teaching actual water skills. The other places seemed to focus more on being comfortable in the water but not actual swimming. I'm sorry to see some negative reviews, which mostly seem to be around communication not the instruction itself. We have found communication to be fine, mostly over email as I don't know if there is an actual office. I can only speak from our experience but eight years of amazing instruction from committed swim teachers gets five stars from me. I know my children would give it the same and we are sorry to no longer be with the swim school. read more

I would not hesitate to recommend DolFUN It has been such a great experience for our family and a great introduction into swimming and safety in the water for our little one. Top class! read more

Oh how I wish I could give a negative star here. Terrible, terrible, terrible experience with the Dolfun Swim Academy. First, it took three months to talk to anyone. No one returned my emails or calls, but after weeks and weeks someone finally answered the phone. I explained our situation and how my daughter was terrified of putting her head under the water and we needed to do private lessons to help her get over her fear. Great. First and only lesson was 28 minutes of spectacular swim instruction followed by the instructor dunking my seven year-old daughter under water (yes, on purpose). My daughter then became hysterical, as one would expect, and the instructor refused to let her out of the water as she sobbed and screamed. It was beyond awful. Needless to say my daughter will go nowhere near a swim class now and still talks about how she could never again trust someone not to do that. It's tough when someone physically traumatizes your child and there is no recourse to take. Since this happened I have called and emailed at least 4 times to request my money back and still have had no response. Clearly this instructor has no skill or clue on how to work with children who are afraid of the pool. read more