Buyer beware: Dolphin Connection decide to cancel on us on December 26th two hours before we were supposed to be there. We stayed next door at Hawks Key specifically to be able to do this event as a Christmas gift. They never refunded me after saying they would. Again, they cancelled on me sighting "understaffing" and will not return emails, Facebook messages or calls. So they will basically take your money and run. After talking with others staying there apparently this happens a lot and if you read other reviews you will see it's frequent. Such a shame to do this to people and scam people out of money. Warning if your thinking about booking and paying upfront like I did: SKIP THIS PLACE. read more

Dolphin Connection - Email sent two hours before cancelling on us and keeping my money - Zoos Near Me - Duck Key, Florida

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This was truly an amazing experience. If it's within your means, I HIGHLY recommend you go. My family and I were able to play with Chinook, their geriatric dolphin who was just the cutest. My little sister was able to conquer her fear of dolphins due to the kindness of the trainer and the gentle Chinook. It was so special to see the true bond and love the trainers had for those dolphins, and I wish only the best for them. If you are in the Keys, this experience is a must!! read more

Dolphin Connection - Zoos Near Me - Duck Key, Florida

Our family did the Royal Swim. It was around $1,000 for a family of 4, so not cheap, but certainly an incredible experience. You spend about 30 minutes learning about dolphins, and then another 45 minutes or so in the water. You get to pet the dolphins, dance with them, get kissed by a dolphin, and get two rides with two dolphins. I'm not an expert, but it seemed like the dolphins were treated well, and had a large area. They also had a really nice photographer, and all the pictures are included. FYI, if you don't want to pay this much, they do have more affordable packages, and you can also just walk into the Hawk's Quay resort, and just watch the complimentary dolphin show. read more

We had a fantastic time! The trainer, Samantha, was kind, informative and entertaining. And of course the dolphins were the highlight! I didn't know quite what to expect but it exceeded my expectations. And the price includes pictures. Definitely worth doing! read more

Such a great experience for my 12 year old daughter, We went there while we were staying at Hawks cay Resort, and this was a very well organized experience. It's a expensive 45 minutes , but we'll worth by the smile on my girl. Trainer was great explaining the steps ,and talking about the dolphins. For what I saw the only not so good thing is when they divide the party's the should make sure everyone has the 45 min full experience and not divide the 45 min in between them read more

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My wife and grandson did the package where you wade on a platform and interact with the dolphins. They absolutely had a blast. Price is a bit steep but it's a very memorable experience. I have no regrets. Place was hard to find because Google maps took me to the wrong location. It's close by, but not the place that was shown. They also have no signs up at the new location. After stressing out because we were going g to be late, it ended up being wonderful. read more

Dolphin Connection - Zoos Near Me - Duck Key, Florida

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The trainers (and dolphins!) were knowledgeable and kind. You could tell they really wanted to help us get the best experience we could. We loved it! read more

I absolutely 1000% recommend this place! My 7 y/o son wanted to swim with dolphins. He was able to do it by himself (in a group but without a parent) he throughly enjoyed every second he was in the water. He was in a group, but everyone was able to do the exercises with the dolphin in their group. They did have quite a few people during the session, but they were split into smaller groups and each group had a dolphin. The photos were included which is a huge plus! Wonderful memory! I forgot to go in the office after the session for the photo code, but I called the next day when I realized it and they emailed it to me. I spoke with Donna probably 4 different times just to ask questions. She couldn't have been any nicer! The dolphins seemed happy to me. read more

Taylor, Angela, and Kaitlyn were amazing! They made sure everyone got a chance to touch a dolphin. They were very engaged with the customers and so intune with the dolphins. Everyone was treated like a 5 star guest including the amazing dolphins. Their love for these beautiful animals show by their care and attention they give each dolphin. We can't wait to come back and will 100% recommend everyone to do this encounter! Once in a life time experience!!! Loved every minute!! read more

PLEASE READ THEIR REFUND POLICY BEFORE BOOKING. Like everyone else we looked at the good rating and booked this experience and signed up for a nightmare. We drove 2 hours from Miami for this 30mins experience and an hour before the activity time we got a call they are canceling due to rain and THERE WILL BE NO REFUND. For a place like Florida where there are always rain and storms, and the activity is so expensive, this policy is bizarre. They give a voucher valid only for a year but I am a tourist like most of the people who visit this place, i am not coming again in a year to use the voucher. Special mention of manager Tyler who was extremely rude, unkind, unprofessional, also his subordinate who walked out on us and shut the door on our face. We anyway drove to this place since we were almost there, the manager and the associate can atleast listen to the customer who came all the way and have fully paid for the experience. Zero on professionalism. Our day was wasted, so we decided to check other places to see if it's common to not a get a refund in case of bad weather. IT IS NOT. We even called the Theater of the Sea which is nearby, their refund policy was flexible and in same price they also included multiple shows. Could have gone there if we got our refund. read more

We had a great time with Roux, Eddie and Maria! Our daughter swam with Maia and Indie and loved her trainer as well. The photos came out great, we would recommend to anyone! read more

My daughter decided to try the Dolphin encounter program. After a brief educational class about dolphins she was able to get right in the water! The trainer who worked with my daughter was Felicia. My daughter had a one on one session with the trainer since she was the only one signed up for the 10:30 time slot. The program is expensive but it's not something you can do many other places. They also email you many photos to download! read more

Dolphin Connection - Having the dolphin do tricks - Zoos Near Me - Duck Key, Florida

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It was a fun an awesome experience to swim with the dolphins. I would recommend swimming with the Dolphins to anyone. It is such a great experience. Would definitely do it again. Angela was awesome and accommodating as much as the dolphin trainer was! This was a bucket list item and was absolutely worth the money and a great experience!!!! read more

My children loved it! (5,7) It was great! The trainers all worked together and gave the four of us an amazing experience! The trainers answered all our questions and gave us a ton of personal attention. We did not feel rushed and we had a good amount of time with all the dolphins! Everyone got to participate and we even learned some tricks to do with the dolphins! We are already talking about next time! It was hard for me to not take a camera with me; but, it also allowed me to enjoy the experience more! If I stayed back at the overlook and took pictures, we would not have had any good face shots. But we were able to pick 1 pictures per admission. So the 4 pictures were great! It's a whole family experience!!! read more

Surreal experience with dolphins! Beautiful place! Awesome honeymoon excursion! Swimming with the dolphins was amazing and the people were also amazing! read more

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My 3 kids had an awesome time swimming with the dolphins. Trainer's we're fun, out going, and very nice. Definitely going to do it again next time. read more

I'm not someone who writes reviews but depended on them for my Florida Keys trip. YOU WANT TO DO THIS‼ Choose the Royal Swim - it was awesome and I'm so happy I found this place vs the original place I considered. Pictures come with your package and here are samples. read more

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Wow. Sooooooo fantastic. I can't say enough great things about this place. My granddaughter and I had an amazing time. The photographer, the trainer, the dolphins all were just amazing. Such a great memory read more

Several years ago our little one was only tall enough for us to do the dockside experience, which was amazing. However, this year we did the Dolphin Encounter. So we got into the water with what I think are kinda creepy mammals (not that humans are not creepy; I just never had to pay to have an 'encounter' with a human!!). It was a fantastic experience and well worth the money to keep these mammals safe and raise awareness. Lauren the trainer and Emily the photographer were just fantastic as were the stars of our show Tatum and Bala! We bought t-shirts just to help them increase revenue and awareness for these coinhabitants of our environment. read more

Incredible experience! So much fun interacting with Roux and learning his story. Eddie (trainer) was awesome. Pictures turned out great!

We went on a friday to the in the water on a platform thing as a group of 4 and got paired with a trainer and a party of 5. I think it would be good for young children if you're willing to hold them. The dolphins get good space and socialization. The only reason not 5 stars is that there is a bit of wait time and I'm not sure how the dolphins feel about some of the tricks and interactions, such as pulling the people when they are swimming. The dolphins do seem to get good care though. read more

This place is amazing, they took care of my wife fulfilling one of her dreams to swim with dolphins and were super accommodating and helpful for her. read more

Such an awesome experience to not only learn about dolphins, but interact with them.VERY COOL. The staff was very knowledgeable and patient with the dolphins and humans. read more

I don't know how you would do a better dolphin program than this. There was great up-front instruction from the trainers; followed by an orderly stroll out to the water, with arms folded (so as not to confuse the animals with false commands). There was obviously a lot of staff respect and affection for the dolphins, who seemed well cared-for and happy. Their obedience and intelligence really showed through, and I didn't feel at all worried about these 500 lb animals in the water with my kids. Some of the tricks and stunts were a bit corny, but the dolphins were just amazing to be around. Definitely a repeat visit if we are in the immediate area again. read more

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We recently went to dolphin connection as trainers for a day. Ellie was our trainer and she was amazing! Her knowledge and how she cares for all of the dolphins there was amazing. It was so cool to see just what goes into the day to day operations of being a dolphin trainer. All of the trainers at dolphin connection are so knowledgeable and personable. We had an amazing experience and can't wait to take our kids back one day. Highly recommend this place. read more

My wife and I had an encounter scheduled for May this year. Due to Covid we had to cancel on March 31. They sent us a cancellation email stating a full refund would be issued. Perfect... but they have not communicated since also with no refund issued. I have reached out on several occasions. It is now July 25th. I have contacted the BBB so hopefully this may get us somewhere. I would love to get our $400+ dollars back. If they read this please issue refunds due to people who you are now stealing from. read more

A 5 star dolphin experience (the dolphins perform all the great tricks and let you up close - kudos to the trainers). 2 stars outside of the dolphins, zero stars for photography. They take away cameras/phones "to keep the dolphins safe." Then charge for photos - I'm ok with that. However they charge per person in the photos - that is they don't take any extra photos per person, so same number of photos if 1 person or 6 in the group, but the fee to download the images goes from $49 if one person is in the photo to $240 for six people in the photo. Since the pricing is completely outrageous and difficult to understand, I included an image. Remember, they already charged $80 per person to be on the dock! The sales clerks obnoxiously pretend that they don't understand why people are upset about the photo pricing (although asked every 10 minutes). Family of 6, same experience, same number of photos, $200 more purely because you have 4 kids and two adults rather than one adult in the group. Pay someone $50 to take photos from the observation deck and come out $200 ahead. read more

Dolphin Connection - Photo pricing - per person in the photo. - Zoos Near Me - Duck Key, Florida

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Horrible customer service. When you ask to speak with owner (after manager gives you the same robotic response to every and any question you have after a bad experience "if you signed up on line, then you are aware and signed waiver . . .") I was told he lives in Mexico. I paid for the "Royal Swim Experience" for $279.99 plus tax for each of my 3 children. Horrible manager (red head), horrible experience, horrible customer service. August 2022 read more

it was great experience for my daughter!! staff was excellent & they were very accommodating when she was nervous

Average, at best. We did the dockside experience because we had a 5, 6, and 8 year old with us. Our kids had a lot of questions about the dolphins, and our trainer seemed annoyed by them. She ignored us most of the time because she was so busy trying to get the dolphin to do a lot of different things in a short amount of time. We got about 10 minutes on the dock with the dolphin so it was a very rushed experience. We were told to "smile for the camera" every 30 seconds which made it hard to enjoy as well. Personal cameras are not allowed and photo packages start at $99 for 1 person and over $200 for a family of 6 in addition to the fee you pay for the experience. I would recommend looking for a better outfitter if you want a dolphin experience in the Keys. read more

My daughters (10&12) did the half day Trainer for a Day experience with Kaitlin at the Hawks Cay resort, they had a great time and loved the entire experience. We got many wonderful photos and it's a memory they will cherish. read more

This was great! My trainer was Darby and she was very nice and told me about zoo school where you can go to high school and learn about becoming a dolphin trainer which I want to do as a job. She gave me lots of great info about the dolphins and the specific ones I was working with. The dolphins were very gentle and were not aggressive in any way. I had a lot of fun riding them and playing with them and simply learning about them. Darby really was a great trainer and she even said a few fun jokes :) This experience was simply amazing and my favorite thing I did while staying at the Hawks Cay Resort. Have absolutely no complaints. read more

Chose to do the dockside encounter and at $60, I felt like it was worth every penny. Of course if I had my twins and husband in tow, it'd add up fast. Maybe a discount for booking the whole family? The class was quick (which is what you want... let's face it, I was there to pet some dolphins) but informative. The trainer was great and I felt like I had ample time with each of the five little guys there. The photographer was also really sweet and got some great shots. The one thing that stood out was how enthusiastic every single staff member was about what they do. Their excitement made me forget I was man-handling frozen fish heads. I once had a giraffe encounter and I couldn't stop talking about it for weeks. I'm sure I can get some serious mileage out of meeting some dolphins. Thanks for an unforgettable experience! read more

Absolutely awesome experience for my family! The Dolphins were awesome and the crew did an amazing job of educating us about dolphins. If you are thinking about swimming with dolphins, it is worth every penny! read more

This was an amazing experience for my kids. Was at a dolphin encounter at Atlantis years ago and this one was much more interactive. Kids learned a few tricks, fed and played with them. Was very pricey, but what would expect from a place like this. They take some amazing photos of the experience, but you can take your own from the observation deck. read more

This group just gave my two kids (17,22) and my niece n nephew(15,13) the greatest experience of their lives. My daughter has loved the water and animals since forever and cried happy tears the entire time while swimming with the dolphins. THANK YOU for great memories of their lifetime! This was definitely worth every penny! A MUST DO while in the keys. read more

Sarah was extremely rude as I tried to get information from her she told me "woah woah" back up and wait your turn 6 feet apart. While others then came after straight up to her and she attended them ALL while I was in a corner waiting. She left me unattended and had to wait for another team Member to assist. Worst customer service ever! Had my daughter not been anxious to go, I wouldn't have booked with that kind of service. read more

I wish I could give them 0 stars. We had to cancel our reservation due to Covid-19 on March 20 and have been promised a full refund multiple times by the manager and two other employees. It has now been 2 1/2 months and we still haven't received our refund of $1156.00. And they are no longer responding to phone messages or emails. Very disappointed. We definitely WILL NOT be rescheduling with them when we return to the Keys. read more

Not worth price. Mostly got to pet dolphins. Any tricks they did was just by trainer telling you (which you are in group of 10) what hand gestures to do. Observation deck where family can watch is so far away that any pictures taken were too far away. However there is a photographer on deck taking your pictures and then they try to sell them to you for an extraordinary price!! The pictures should be free on a CD for price they charge. Also no where to park unless you pay valet 10.00 to park car. Find another place. Sorry I read reviews of Dolphin By The Sea in Islamorada because they discouraged me from going there to swim with dolphins. We did visit that park for general admission and we enjoyed that. read more