Swimming With Dolphins In The Bahamas is an amazing experience. We spent the day on Balmoral Island for a private beach day and dolphin swim.
Over the girls summer break, we went on a cruise to the Bahamas. While in Nassau, we did the Balmoral Island Dolphin Swim and Beach Day Excursion. If you have never gone swimming with dolphins in the Bahamas (or anywhere for that matter), then you need to add this to your bucket list!
This was such an amazing experience for both the girls and I! I mean it’s not every day you get to go swimming with dolphins in the Bahamas and get kissed by a dolphin!
Swimming with Dolphins – What To Expect
We spent a solid 45 minutes with dolphin interaction. There are 2 different dolphin excursions to choose from on this particular island. There is a dolphin encounter and a dolphin swim. I highly recommend the dolphin swim. With the dolphin swim, you get everything you get with the dolphin encounter. Plus, you actually get to interact with the dolphins besides just for the pictures.
Kids must be at least 5 years old and able to swim for this swimming with dolphins excursion. Abigail had just turned 5 and was not the best swimmer so don’t let the swimming thing discourage you from taking your younger kids. Everyone wears life jackets so it is super safe. The reason they have to be able to swim is because you do have to swim out a little ways to get deep enough to interact with the dolphins. I just wrapped my arm around Abigail and dragged her with me to help her get there a little faster. Remember, both you and the kids are wearing life jackets, so as long as they are comfortable in the water and you feel they can travel a small distance in the water with or without your help, then they will be fine.
Once you swim out to your spot, there are 3 different dolphins in the area with you. The guy will do a lot of tricks with them in the water with you which are so fun to watch. The dolphins will swim all around you and you are able to pet them as they swim by. The dolphins swam by us multiple times and the girls giggled and got excited each time! You will learn different ways you can talk to and interact with the dolphins also. Then you will be taken by groups of 2 to dance with the dolphins. This was one of our favorite parts!
Watch The Video To Know What To Expect
Watch the video below to see everything you will get to do once you swim to the area. It’s also a good idea to watch to see how far the distance is you will have to swim. There was an older lady in our group who wasn’t able to do the excursion because she knew she couldn’t swim the distance. She didn’t know ahead of time she would have to do this so she missed out on a big part of what she came to the island for.
The girls still talk about how they went swimming with dolphins in the Bahamas! They thought it was both the coolest and most awesome experience. They giggled and laughed almost the entire time we were in the water with the dolphins. As a mom, it was such a blessing to be able to give them this experience.
After the dolphin swim, you will get to take off the life jackets and take pictures with the dolphins in a shallow area of water. The downside of this excursions is that you cannot take your own pictures or videos. I believe this is the case with most dolphin swim excursions where ever you go. They do provide you with the pictures and video, but it isn’t the cheapest. It’s worth it to purchase, because it’s not every day we are swimming with dolphins. Although, the advantage to not being able to take my own pictures and video is that I got to be 100% there. I didn’t miss a single giggle or facial expression or chance to interact with the dolphins because I was too focused on taking pictures. So, there’s always an upside!
Balmoral Island Dolphin Swim & Beach Day Excursion
This particular excursion we did was more than just a dolphin swim, it was a 4 1/2 hour long trip. About an hour of that time is spent on a boat to get to and from the private island (20-30 minutes each way). We loved the boat ride though! It was relaxing and a chance to see a lot of the island (from a distance). You’ll pass by some of the towns, some industrial areas and even the Atlantis hotel on your way to Balmoral Island.
Once you get to the island, you will have about 3 1/2 hours to spend exploring. About an hour of this time will be for the dolphin swim. They do the dolphin swim in smaller groups so you will schedule your time once you get to the island.
We were scheduled in the last group, so we had about 2 1/2 hours to spend on the island before swimming with the dolphins. While we waited we explored the island, ate lunch and did some shopping for souvenirs. This is a beautiful island and it is private. They have pools to swim in and a beach as well which we also enjoyed!
Since the island is private, it isn’t crowded at all which is really nice.
After the excursion, we still had some time left to explore Nassau. We picked up these adorable dresses for super cheap in one of the market places. Believe it or not, they have made it through several washes!!
If you haven’t already, you can read about our first stop on our Carnival Cruise where we explored the private Princess Cays Island and went on the Glass-Bottom Boat excursion.
We swam with the dolphins in Cabo, it was such a wonderful experience! Not sure I’d ever do it again, but it was really cool.
I agree! For the cost, it’s more of a once or twice experience. I do want to try the sea lion excursion they offer now. But you have to be at least 8 so we have a couple more years!
That island is so pretty. This would be a day to remember for a long timel
How cute. It looks like you guys had a lot of fun!
What an incredible opportunity! Love the dresses too 🙂
Phenomenal pictures! That looks like so much fun. We took a cruise last year and wanted to swim with the dolphins, we have to wait until ours are at the 5 year mark but it’s definitely a TO DO item!
How cool this is. We will be visiting the Bahamas in October as a stop on a cruise route. Perhaps we will look in to this excursion.
Oh I have always wanted to do just that. It must have been a thrill to communicate so closely with another species. What a memory.
Oh my goodness, I bet this was an amazing experience, I have to admit I would love to swim with dolphins at some point myself as well.
This looks so fun and the pictures are so beautiful! So glad you all were able to have this experience and that you shared it with all of us!
I love dolphins so much! You girls look like you had a blast!
That would be so much fun!
This looks like so much fun and a once in a lifetime opportunity!
What a ball! The kids were beaming. 🙂 I’ve got to get over my fear of some (or all) of us having sea sickness issues and book a cruise!
We had no issues with sea sickness at all so you should be fine! You can barley tell the boat is moving.
We’ve done an excursion like this before. It was so fun but the kids were still too young to participate. Next time we will have to let them do it too.
I have always wanted to visit the Bahamas and swim with dolphins…I will do both one day.
I have never swam with dolphins but this post makes me want to ten times more!! Thanks so much for sharing!
This looks like an amazing time. I have always wanted to swim with the dolphins.
I just love dolphins! It looks like you all had an awesome time. Great photos!
I love swimming with dolphins and I love the Bahamas!! What a wonderful trip!
Now that looks like an amazing day! I have never gotten to swim with Dolphins.
I have always wanted to swim with the dolphins – Totally on my bucket list and definitely going to happen someday. Maybe even someday soon before my kids get too old!
I am happy that you shared this post because it makes me smile. What a beautiful experience that seems to have been, and I enjoy reading about things outside of the norm. Thank you for sharing your family’s adventure!
I get goosebumps just thinking about taking my daughter swimming with the dolphins. I actually showed he your pictures and video and she got excited too. She doesn’t swim (but thinks she can) however the life jacket would be very helpful. Looks like a great family-friendly activity.
Me me me! I want to swim with dolphins. I guess I’d bring the kids too lol. Looks so much fun. Definitely a memory I’d never forget.
Ich denke, dass Sie nicht recht sind. Es ich kann beweisen. Schreiben Sie mir in PM, wir werden besprechen.
Rexuiz Shooter
We don’t have too many options when it comes to swimming with Dolphins back in India. You are so lucky to have this opportunity. 🙂
Omg this looks like an amazing time! Hopefully one day we can do this one day. It would be a great memory making moment.
I feel like Bahamas is so much fun & I love that its so close to Miami, making it easier to get to.
This definitely looks like a magical experience. I would love to have a similar experience.
Thanks for taking me with you! This is so endearing. Love the pictures and the poses with those joy-filled dolphins. What a fun and memorable vacation! xo Evelyn, Path of Presence
Dolphins are actually my favourite animal and I swam with them in Florida but I have to say I wouldn’t do it again just because of the ethical issues surrounding their captivity. I was lucky enough to swim with wild dolphins in New Zealand and it was more exciting and I had a clear conscience afterwards … but I do appreciate when you have children you need the situation to be a more controlled environment .
What an amazing time! I would love to do this.
That looks amazing. We went swimming with dolphins at Discovery Cove in Orlando at Christmas but this looks way cooler. Having your children laughing with joy is such a blessing.
oh my this is the experience of a lifetime. how wonderful that you could give this to your girls!
This looks awesome! Something I definitely want to experience soon❤️❤️ Thanks for sharing!
My husband and I took our honeymoon here and it was wonderful! We would like to take another trip here. It’s been almost 21 years and it’s about time. 🙂
Yes! Definitely time for a trip back!
This is so awesome! I can’t wait for my kids to be older so we can take them on trips like this. What a wonderful idea! Your girl weren’t scared of the dolphins at all?
Not at all! They LOVED the dolphins!! My youngest didn’t want to kiss the dolphin, but she loved when it swam by and loved feeling it!
This looks like so much fun!
Looks like a great experience. Definitely on my bucket list.
WOW!! I have always wanted to do this! Thank you for the wonderful article.
Love this! We did this last Summer and my daughter was 6. Well worth the experience!
Sold! Sign me up! 🙂 What an incredible experience for you guys! Dolphins have always been my favorite and I have always dreamed of being able to swim with them. This is now at the top of my bucket list. Thanks for sharing!
Wow, what a surreal experience! My son will definitely enjoy this. I know I would. 🙂