I would definitely recommend doing this tour. It was so worth the money. We got to see dolphins and Kyle kept us entertained with his funny stories that nobody seemed to get lol. Had a nice time on the island. Kyle even listened to my husband and answered all his questions which was definitely above and beyond! Also great job to the lady that checked us in! Thanks, you are awesome, sorry I forgot your name read more

Great tour and great price for an hour and a half! The shell island has the prettiest shells. The tour guide & boat captain were wonderful and very informative! read more

Tour guides were great, a lot of fun and very knowledgeable. Beautiful boat ride and we saw many dolphins up close.

Loved it! I was worried about how my son would react to being on a boat (2 year old) but he was great. He loved seeing the dolphins. The captain and crew were very nice. One of them offered to take a picture of my family and I when we went to the little island to get shells. I normally don't buy the pictures from excursions like this but they got a great one of our little family so we got the picture and a keychain for $10, not a bad price! We will definitely be back when we are in town again! read more

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We searched Yelp for a calm boat ride in Clearwater with decent reviews and this operator was our choice. We visited the marina the day before to make the reservation for an afternoon tour the following day, but we were recommended to go on the 11 am tour as the chance of dolphin sightings was better. The following day we arrived at the marina and could board the boat in groups, each group was photographed; photos and photo keyrings were on sale when we returned (one for $6, two for $10) and there was no force to buy, maybe that's why we ended up buying one... The captain made a short briefing of the tour and headed off into the harbour, he had radio contact with a colleague during the cruise so he was up to date on where to see dolphins. He found them and by coordinating the wake waves with the colleague's boat they managed to have the dolphins perform a great show. After the dolphin show we headed off to Compass Island, a very small island, to find shells. Though the island is small you can find some nice big shells. As a bonus the captain gave us four fake coins we could hide in the sand for our daughter to find. Onboard they sell sodas and chips for $1 each. The highlight is definitely the dolphins and they do offer a dolphin sighting guarantee; you are entitled to a new boat trip if dolphins are not sighted; therefore make sure you plan hour ride in the start of your stay. read more

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This is my first time trying taking a boat for viewing dolphins. The trip is overall fine. We did see some dolphins that services the purposes. The rest of the trip is just okie. We did see another boat causing the dolphins to chase after it. We'll check alternative options next time. read more

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We visited Clearwater this week and tried this out at the recommendation of one of the staff from our hotel. We have a 3 year old and a 1 year old. The tour is 1.5 hours long. When we got there the staff was really friendly. They took a photo (which we ended up buying) as soon as we boarded. We sailed out and spotted dolphins not even 10 minutes into the ride. They were swimming and playing right by the boat. It was amazing to see them in their natural environment. They were so close we got some great pics. After we went to a small island where we got off and picked seashells and took some more pictures. In between it all they talked about the local mansions. Over all it was a very fun, informative tour. I would do it again. read more

Encounter With Dolphins - One of the beautiful houses - Boating Near Me - Clearwater, Florida

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The tour is really small, yes it is 1.30h but it literally moves across the bridge and comes back. We did see dolphins and was just amazing, they brought us to a small, I mean SMALL island to find shells and went back. The captain is funny and for 20$ is worth the tour. read more

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Took the dolphin tour with the wife and kids. Kids were happy we got to see dolphins. The boat fits 40 they only take 20 so it was very comfortable and everyone had space to see the dolphins. The private island stop was beautiful as well. The family enjoyed it. read more

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The staff on the boat were fun and knowledgeable. They shared ocean life facts and had jokes. Also, shared interesting information about interesting people and famous people info that live off the beach. At first - there were no good sightings of dolphins and we proceeded to the island for shell hunting. There were 10 of us celebrating my grand daughters 6th Birthday on this tour. Bathroom and snacks available but you can bring your own refreshments if you like. The best part of this tour is when returning to the dock we saw so MANY DOLPHINS!!! Definitely great for families. Thank you Encounters with Dolphins! read more

Encounter With Dolphins - After the boat tour lol - Boating Near Me - Clearwater, Florida

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Love it !!!!!! Learned a lot and great people!! Saw dph dolphins !! Staff was very kind! read more

Encounter With Dolphins - Boating Near Me - Clearwater, Florida

nice crew, nice ride. HUGE disappointment that we did not see any dolphins. I know it's not their fault but that was the whole reason for booking the ride. They do offer you another ride with them if there were no dolphins. Keep your receipt read more

This encounter is not good for dolphins. At the beginning, they told us that they were "eco-friendly". The first stop on our encounter was a small island called Seashell Island. We were there to collect shells but to collect shells they handed out PLASTIC bags to everyone. As it was windy, a couple of the bags flew off board. Next we went to this bay right next to a town, the boat obviously could not handle being so far out so the boat was tilting a lot. We started to just wonder around that area for about 20 minutes right next to the town where dolphins probably would not be. The next spot we went to was a dock, I was not expecting a dolphin to be there but sure enough there was. I was happy there was a dolphin but there was one problem, I couldn't see it. The boat was chasing the dolphin so hardly anyone could see it. Finally we headed back to the place and got off the boat. To sum it up: I think this tour is not great for looking for dolphins but better for shells and knowing about the area (most of the tour was about random houses). PS: the picture you take at the beginning is $10 :/ read more

The staff is great! Lisa at the front checkin is amazing - very friendly and personable. Captain and crew were very knowledgeable and entertaining. Got to see plenty of dolphins. read more

Awesome time with the family, 16 of us in total ranging from 18 months old to 60+ as well as a handicapped family member that they was more than happy to help accommodate to get loaded,seated and unloaded. Seen half a dozen dolphins on our 1-1/2 to 1-3/4 hour tour. The captain and deck hand where very polite and had a good sense of humor. All in all it was a great experience and I would do it again if we vacation here in Clearwater in the future. I managed to get some decent photos of the sunset but the dolphins pop up to quick to get good photos of. read more

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This attraction was a disappointment for us. They basically take you out on the boat and you are lucky to see dolphins. They do offer a next ride for free if you didn't see dolphins the 1st time but it's 1.5 hour ride with very uncomfortable seats, so I wouldn't take the ride again. We got lucky and did see 2 dolphins but they were swimming next to another boat pretty far away from us. We couldn't even take a picture because it was that far. They also take you on a small island to collect shells but all the shells there are broken or taken already because of the amount of boats stopping there - looks like almost every ride take the tourists there. On the way out you can purchase a photo of you which they take before you board the boat. Our picture was super pixelated and didn't worth $10 they asked for it. They do need a better camera. Anyway, I would not recommend this ride to anyone - waste of money and time. There are a lot of different attractions in that bay - better and more exciting. read more

One of the most amazing and pleasant experiences ever! We decided to book this boat ride on a whim during our stay in Clearwater and I am so glad we did because from start to finish we were all blown away. Our tour guide was so informative and told us about so many Clearwater landmarks we were not aware of including showing us John Travolta and Tom Cruise's houses, and sharing other stories about Clearwater history. We saw about 20 dolphins during the duration of our trip, and we even saw them jump out of the water! It was BYOB so that was really cool to be able to bring your own beverages on board, and there were also snack options too. We got to stop on One Tree Island for a half hour, which was absolutely breathtaking. It is a tiny island on Clearwater Beach, with one tree and an American Flag. It was so fun to explore around and see the beautiful views. I cannot recommend this tour enough! read more

Online it clearly states that if there is inclement weather they will either reschedule or refund. However, it is storming, the gulf is rolling with waves, and they refuse to cancel. They state that it will clear up within 30 minutes. However that is exactly what they stated over an hour ago when the storm rolled in. Over 15 people have the same complaint and concern and the owner extremely rude. We also chose this place because they will take you to an island and let you swim and snorkel, however, that won't be happening either. read more

This place is a scam. Was on the boat for 1 hour and 26 minutes and didn't see a thing. We were almost at the dock and saw a dorsal fin for 10 seconds. This counted as "seeing a dolphin" so we didn't get a free tour. This company is awful! read more

Great folks, from the ticket counter, Lisa, to our captain, Alecia and first mate, Alf! Fun, funny, great tour and wonderful local information. So accommodating! And they delivered on the dolphins....lots of them! Would definitely refer "Encounter With Dolphins" !!! read more

I went back in January and I had such a great experience. The crew was so nice and they were troopers because they stuck out the cold weather with us! Me and the person I was with were the only crazy ones to go on a boat ride that day thank you so much! read more

PICK THIS TOUR! The other (larger/themed) boats see the exact same things, cost twice as much, and they don't stop at Compass Island for shell-picking! The captain and the guide were so friendly and knowledgeable. We saw more than a dozen dolphins! The stop at Compass Island to pick shells was perfect, they even provide bags for you to put the shells in. Such a great activity to do! I can not recommend this company enough. read more

Had a great time. Didn't see a lot of dolphins, just a couple from a distance but got to go to a little island to swim or collect shells. It's affordable and relaxing. read more

Went on the 11am trip. Saw dolphins jumping out of the water right as we hit the open water. Was amazed that it's only 20 bucks for a 90 minute boat trip with dolphins, great price. Crew was very personable and helpful. It was too murky to snorkel but having the option was nice. Was a great way to spend an afternoon! read more

I had a Groupon for Tropics boat but couldn't use it due to not reserving in time. (Even though they still had plenty of seats ) So glad I couldn't use Tropics because we ended up on Encounter with Dolphins. Wow! 10xs better than any of the other boat rides in Clearwater! Mainly because the boat sits lower. Dolphins came right up to the side of the boat. Going to the little island was fun. We were given gold coins to hide for my granddaughter. read more

Great crew and they were so so kind when we were late! My aunt who bought the tickets had trouble parking and they waited for us. God bless them, so fun and we even got to stop on an island and see celebrity houses! Would recommend times ten. read more

Extraordinary experience ! Great team and nice people in the boat. Thanks to all the team for their professionalism and kindness with our children ! read more

This was the fourth boat ride we went on this week and by far the most disappointing. The staff was not extremely friendly and we only stopped once to try to see a dolphin. I understand that they are wild animals, but the other boat rides made more of an effort to find them. read more

This was an amazing adventure with Captain Jamie and the First Mate Tia. They were knowledgeable and fun. I highly recommend them. Well worth it! read more

Unfortunately we did not have a great experience. On the website it said it was family friendly and my kids and I got stuck sitting next to a bunch of loud drunk people. The employees made inappropriate adult jokes just about every time they opened their mouths. We had to sit in the middle and didn't even get to see dolphins because everyone would stand up. Also, the captain pretended to enforce a mask rule until he got chummy with the drunks and allowed them to not wear a mask. Would not recommend them to anyone. Look for other companies especially if you have kids. read more

It was a great affordable experience. We saw dolphins almost immediately and our captains toured us around some large estates and out to the shell island. I recommend this to anyone who has a couple hours and wants to watch dolphins play, enjoy your surrounds and do a little shell searching! read more

Nice seeing the dolphins! How we the host was extremely unknowledgeable and the captain was extremely rude. The island they took us too was covered in broken shells. To be honest I would go back if it weren't for the rude and inexperienced staff. read more

The first ride started off great. We had a great experience but did not see any dolphins and was told to we could come back any time 30 Days after our ride as we were guaranteed to see dolphins. We scheduled for the next day and was cancelled due to weather and rescheduled for the next night. We showed up 10 mins before our ride time at 7 pm - clear skies and great weather and told that the boat was cancelled due to numbers - mind you we had 12 people in our party and a lady with her mother so 14 people - the front lady and boat driver yelled and told us that we could not have a refund and refused, Calling us rude and threatening to call the cops as they could give us a refund but they wouldn't. We called the owner and with in 15 seconds she gave us a refund. Was completely - the face of this company is horrible rude. read more

We had a great time, saw lots of dolphins and it was the perfect amount of time. The guys were really good, great value for the money.

I really wanted to go on the Kai Lani catamaran but it was being serviced during my visit. Next I went to the EWD kiosk and spoke with Lisa. During her intro conversation, another potential customer came up and began to flip through some photos in a notebook and she grabbed the book back from the lady saying 'people just don't ask anymore'. I thought it was kind of brash but from some of the other reviews, it's just her style - not real customer service oriented. We left the marina at a pretty slow pace and the captain (Mike I believe his name was) told us to start looking for dolphins. Ok, we saw a group of about 3 dolphins barely grazing the surface of the water one time....and that was it. (The photo below depicts us looking for those advertised dolphins.) We went by some 'celebrity' homes (John Travolta, Hulk Hogan) and then he took us to an 'island' that was covered in sea shells. Because this was the last tour of the day, there's no snorkeling, just a few minutes to collect some shells. And then before you know it, we were back at the dock...womp, womp. They say 'you get what you pay for' and at only $19.75 pp, I guess we did. If you really want to see dolphins (and a lot of them) check out the yellow "Thriller Speedboat" where you will see dozens playing in the wake of the boat. read more

Encounter With Dolphins - Looking for dolphins??? - Boating Near Me - Clearwater, Florida

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First upon arrival to the booth, the ticket lady was very rude and stated to us that we were late for check in for a 5:00 departure. In fact we arrived 20 minutes prior to. As we were standing waiting to board the boat she yelled loudly to stand back from the gate like we were toodlers. Once on board the driver stated that he needed to take our picture, we politly declined and the driver demanded we stand up. We asked why and he stated that it was a requirement in an abrupt tone. My fiance then noted to the driver that this was not noted on the web site. To which he replied "We cannot put everything on our website" We then decided to disembark the boat and went to the counter where we were again met by a hostile lady stating that there were no refunds. I explained that the driver was rude and would like a refund. She kept speaking over us and would not attentive to the situation and told us to leave if we were not going on the tour. It can also be noted that the driver and the ticket lady also noted that the pictures will be for sale after the tour. To my point airlines do not take my picture when i board they give me a ticket stub. At this point i would like to have a full refund of our tickets. read more

The tour is nice and the snorkeling is definitely an added bonus. At basically $20 a person for 1.5 hours, its definitely not a bad deal and a good way to kill some time. Allowed to bring "adult" beverages with you on the cruise is definitely a plus. read more

Great experience!!! Captain josh and his first mate Jillian were wonderful! Lisa...the attendant was great too and she suggested The Bait house for lunch and it was PERFECT!!!! We did see dolphins and the tour of the gulf was full of fun local facts!!!! Great job guys!!! read more

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Good value, nice ride, sweet staff. Committed to getting you close to Dolphins. Very knowledgable about area, sea life, etc. Good entertainment value for the $$. Only disappointment was the little"island" to find shells on is teensy sand pile bereft of shells... read more

Encounter With Dolphins - Boating Near Me - Clearwater, Florida

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The crew were great! I highly recommend to anyone looking for an entertaining boat ride and some snorkeling!