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Swimming with Dolphins: Day trip from Pattaya


SpiceMan

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I always wanted to swim with dolphins but never had the opportunity. On my last trip to Thailand I finally did it at Oasis Sea World in Chantaburi. My girl friend and I took a taxi from Pattaya which took about two and a half hours. If you are on your way to or from Koh Chang you could swim with dolphins as a minor detour.

 

Entry to Oasis Sea World costs 180 baht for foreigners and 90 baht for Thai citizens. The price includes a dolphin show. If you just want to see a dolphin show, this can be done in Pattaya. But if you want to actually swim with dolphins, the only place in Thailand that you can do this is Oasis Sea World. Swimming with dolphins costs 400 baht for Thai citizens and foreigners like.

 

We arrived at 9:30 and swam with the dolphins before we saw the show. Swimming is done at a special pool with an island in the middle. Before you can swim, the staff will check your fingernails are short, since dolphins have very sensitive skin and you wouldnâ??t want to hurt them. We paid the 400 baht each then removed our outer clothes and showered in our swim suits before we were issued with our life jackets and allowed into the pool. The pool is shallow at the entry point so it is easy to enter if you have difficulty walking. We swam the 15 meters to the artificial island where the dolphins come to play. There are two kinds of dolphins at Oasis Sea World, Irrawady dolphins which have a flat nose and Pink dolphins which have a snout.

 

We climbed onto the island and were given a fish to feed a dolphin. Our dolphin was a pink one. We also were given a pole with a fish on the end so that the dolphin could jump out of the water to get the fish. All the fish were de-boned to make them safer for the dolphins. Then it was time to swim with the dolphin. I entered the water and held on to his fin. His skin was soft like human flesh, warm to the touch and hairless. He pulled me through the water at a moderate speed. I began to lose my grip and the dolphin responded by slowing down a little so I could regain my grip. He swam slowly around in a circle before taking me back to the island. I clambered out and fed the dolphin more fishy rewards. Then my girl friend had her turn to swim with the pink dolphin. After she got back to the island we did all the same things with an Irrawady dolphin, with one addition. Because the Irrawady dolphin has a flat nose, it was able to gently butt heads with me, a so-called â??dolphin kissâ?Â.

 

The swimming with dolphins experience took about an hour, after which we exited the pool and got a coffee in the café. They also serve food and the prices were very reasonable. Then we went to the other pool to see the dolphin show. Kids would love this. Hell, my girlfriend and I both loved it though it was not as good as actually swimming with the dolphins.

 

I have to say I thought the dolphins were well cared for. I did wonder about the cleanliness of the water because it looked dark. But I think this was due to the black foam rubber that lined the pools to protect the dolphins.

 

All in all we thoroughly enjoyed our day out. I would highly recommend swimming with dolphins as a day trip from Pattaya. It is well worth the long taxi ride.

 

indo-pacific-humpback-dolphin.jpg

http://swimwithdolphins.information.in.th/

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interesting indeed.

 

never heard of it although must have passed nearby several times on the way to chang island, trat etc...

 

I actually swam with the wild dolphins in the sea off lovina beach, north bali more than 10 years ago for a dime which was pretty damn amazing, but that is no longer possible unfortunately although there's a similar 'dolphin show park' along that beach who offer a swim as well as the show for probably similar prices as chantaburi although I can't remember exact numbers.

 

cheers! :up:

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You will be well advised to book the swimming with dolphin tour in advance especially in high season if you go their on your own. Tour operators have pre bookings.

I found the water in the pool ressembling than of a khlong in Bangkok, but me kids didnt seem to mind that at the thought of playing with a dolphin.

I also found it well worth of a visit and very affordable. Great dolphin show.

 

Nice accomos near by at Chao Lao beach too by the way. We stayed there several times.

 

There is a governmental fish breeding station nearby where you can watch the caretakers feed sea turtles, leopard sharks, GT`s etc.

Also a very nice aquarium located a few miles to the north of Chao Lao Beach. Free admission.

 

 

 

 

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