Discovery Cove compared to Xcaret?-Long

[PatriciaH]

Hi everyone. My husband and I were thinking of doing Discovery Cove with friends of ours while they are on their honeymoon in Orlando. Our visits are overlaping. I am a bridesmaid in their wedding so this is kind of neat

Anyway, I was wondering if any of you had been to Xcaret or Xel-Ha on the Yucatan coast in Mexico? They have dolphin swim programs there and we have done this twice at Xcaret. Xcaret (and Xel-Ha) are both nature parks south of Cancun. They are georgous and to be honest it looks like someone form Sea World visited these parks and had the good idea to plan one in Orlando

The difference is they are on the ocean and have real coral reefs and you do the dolphin swim in real ocean water. The swim we did at Xcaret was $90 (plus park admission is about $40 but this includes several snorkeling sites, butterfly pavilion, wonderful night show, museams, etc..) From reading the boards it seems the Dolphin swim at Discovery Cove is 45 minutes? Is this about right? Are you in the water the whole time with the dolphins? How many dolphins per person? At Xcaret we had about 15 minutes of instruction about dolphins and then about 45-1 hour of actual water time with them. Everyone had their own dolphin (in a group of 6-8) although the dolphins were very interested in people and swam person to person checking us out. We swam (free time) with them, took a picture with "our" dolphin then saw some tricks with the trainer. Then we got a "foot push" from 2 dolphins. What you did was float on your stomach and when the trainer gave them the signal they came up under your feet with their "noses" and pushed you out of the water and accross the swim area! It was SO fast. Then we all lined up (the group) and the dolphins jumped over our heads! We got a great picture looking straight up at the dolphins flying over us. Yes, we were allowed to bring water cameras in with us.

So sorry for the long post but I wanted to know if you all think your day at DC was worth the $200. I love to snorkel so does my husband but are the reefs real or fake coral? I love the coral as well as the fish. How was the sting ray lagoon? We have done bird aviary/feeding in Parrot Jungle and San Diego zoo-is this one similar?

Thank you SO much for your answers!!! OH, and if any of you are doing the Western Caribbean Disney cruise you should check if Xcaret is one of the shore excursions- It is worth it.

 

[mouseclick1]

I can answer some of your questions as we were at DC last week.

Though I didn't time it, I think we were only actually in the water with the dolphin for about a half hour. We were with a group of seven total, 4 in our party and 3 in the other, and we shared one dolphin. It sounds like your interaction in Mexico was much better than ours at DC. We all had a great time, but we did not get any "free swim" time with the dolphin. All 7 of us stood in a line as our dolphin, Natalie, swam by us for us all to pet her. Then we were shown how to give her a kiss, and she came up to each of us individually for her kiss. After that, we were taken in groups of 2 or 3 into the deep water, which wasn't far at all from where we were standing. Natalie did a couple of tricks for us, then we were given a ride back to where the rest were standing. We each had a turn to feed Natalie a fish, and she did a couple more tricks for us. Finally, all four dolphins (there were 3 other groups in different areas near us) did some jumps and tricks for everyone, and the swim was over.

Since we had never done anything like this before, we loved every minute of it. Your experience of free swimming with your own dolphin sounds incredible! I might have actually found DC disappointing after the interaction you have described. I don't know. I just posted a trip report on these boards if you want to read to get a few more details about the trip. If you have any other questions, I would be happy to answer them for you!

 

[PatriciaH]

Thank you for your reply. Maybe we will wait and save the $200 for our next trip to Mexico! Check out www.xcaretcancun.com for some pictures of this great park.

-Patricia

 

[mouseclick1]

I checked out your link and it does look beautiful! Keep in mind that the $200 does cover an entire day at DC, plus a 7 day pass to Seaworld. Even though your dolphin time is limited, there are other areas to snorkel and relax. It's a tough call to make. I guess if you are looking strictly at the dolphin experience, I would wait until you go to Mexico again. But if you want to check out the other areas at DC, and head over to Seaworld for at least one day, then DC would probably be worth it. Good luck and have a great time on your trip, whether you hit DC or not!

 

[vernon]

Looking at what you paid ( $130) for the day, I'd say value wise DC looks to be a similar cost. But as mouseclick says much depends on if you'd use the SW tickets. Lunch at DC (included in entrance) has got to be a cost close to $20 per person so in effect you're paying $50 ( one days ticket cost) for a weeks worth of entry to SW. I think that makes it a pretty good deal, but then I would use SW at least 3 possibly 4 days of that 7.

It's difficult to say how the two offerings compare, but I'd say if you enjoyed you're time in Mexico I think you will enjoy the time at DC, as always in these situations it's important not to compare A to B ( It's like saying IOA is a better park than AK or the other way round) if you do so you're likely to have some dissapointments. DC is in the middle of Orlando, it won't be able to offer the space and natural envoirenment that Mexico offers, BUT they have done a wonderful job with the layout and themeing of DC and it really is hard to remember you are in the middle of Florida not on a tropical Island somewhere.

 

[PatriciaH]

Thanks for your answers. We will try DC when we move to Florida next year. Maybe it can be a special once a year treat.

-Patricia

 

[TigerBear]

BUMPing to ask Patricia a question! I'm curious as to whether you have ever been to Xel-ha? I'm wondering how it compares to Xcaret? I believe they are owned by the same company. I am so looking forward to going to the Mayan Riveria, but it won't be until March 2004! I'm sure we will only do one of the parks, but we will definitely be doing the dolphin swin!

One more question which might be a stupid one: If the eco park is actually in the ocean, is there are barrier to prevent the dolphins from swimming away? I warned you.

 

[PatriciaH]

My DH and I did go to Xel-Ha in 2000. It is also a wonderful park but they usually combine it with a trip to Tulum. We went to Tulum in the morning and Xel-Ha in the afternoon. Unfortunatly my DH sprained his ankle at Tulum (not at the ruins- in the unfinished mall after getting his Subway sandwich!) Because of this we did not do the whole park. We spent a lot of time on Hammock Island so he could rest. He did insist on swiming. The water is very clear but has a strong current. I suggest bringing/renting fippers. Most of the fish are further out so you will need to swim against the current to get back in. They have a swim with dolphins (in the ocean water) as well. It looked very nice. A big area!

Overall I like Xcaret better, it is a whole day park. The night show is not to be missed!!! They have a butterfly pavillion that is beautiful, a small aquarium, 2 natural rivers to snorkel (very freaky when you look down and it seems like a mile below you.) They make you wear a life vest. Horseback riding along the ocean(extra), several restaurants, great snorkel areas, etc..It has become much more comercialized from when it first opened but they do a great job.

One Dolphin area is in the front in ocean water. The other is in the middle of the park. I prefer the one in the ocean water. They do have it blocked off from the ocean. The trainers told us that they let the dolphins go and they come back though (for food and they like/have become attached to the trainers.) Who knows? I used to beleive it when that was the only dolphin swim area but now that they have built the self-contained one I am not so sure.