Dolphinaris Arizona

9500 East Vía de Ventura, Scottsdale, AZ 85256, USA

Address:	9500 East Vía de Ventura, Scottsdale, AZ 85256, USA
Phone:	+1 480-407-5154
Site:	dolphinaris-arizona.com
Rating:	3.3
Working:	9AM–5PM 9AM–5PM 9AM–5PM 9AM–5PM 9AM–5PM 9AM–5PM 9AM–5PM

Location

Photos 100

Reviews 5

Al Jordan

Before you think about going to swim with the bottlenose dolphins at Dolphinaris, there are some things to consider. We live in a world where information is easy to access via books, videos, and the internet. It is very simple to educate yourselves about dolphins with these sources. You will come to find that dolphins are very intelligent creatures with complex brains and have evolved for the very environment they belong in, traveling in the ocean for hundreds, possibly thousands of miles. People tend to make claims that these dolphins are “happy” and well taken care of, and that since they are captive born, they cannot go back into the ocean. These claims do NOT justify the idea that they should be held captive and exploited. By paying for a ticket to swim with the dolphins, you are in no way helping this species. You are not saving it from environmental issues such as bycatch, and pollution. Instead, you are supporting this whole system of dolphin capture (some dolphins die in the process of capture and shipping) and captivity for the sake of human entertainment and profit. Dolphinaris has very vague, or no credible information on which conservation or organizations their proceeds go to. In my opinion, there is no educational value in swimming with captive dolphins. As I stated before, there is accessible information and technology that allows you to learn what dolphins are truly like in their natural habitat, and not confined to a small concrete pool in an unnatural environment such as our hot and dry desert. You do not need to exploit dolphins for educational value, and you can easily find ways to educate yourself and save ALL ocean life by doing research online. One can only hope that you do the right thing, and not support this place or any cetacean captivity.

Fredric Greenblott

Dont believe the terrible reviews that others are saying! Dolphinaris is a FANTASTIC place! I went on 7/3/2017 for the Deluxe Dolphin Swim experience at 12:15. The staff were extremely polite, and it was only me with the dolphins; nobody else had the deluxe experience at the 12:15 timeslot! As a result, I got a lot of time to spend with the dolphins and interact with them. You spend 30 minutes in orientation just learning about general facts about dolphins and Dolphinaris, how they keep the dolphins active and healthy, etc... Then you spend 30 minutes actually in the water. Because I was the only one in the deluxe experience, I joined the regular Dolphin Water Experience group in the other pool for a few minutes. I got to give a handshake (or flipper-shake, should I say?) to one of the dolphins, and then I gave her a kiss! The dolphins are extremely friendly and the trainers treat them with the utmost respect and love. Then I went over with another trainer to the deepwater deluxe experience. I swam with a 16-year-old female dolphin named Koalani, who was actually completely blind! The trainer told me that she uses echolocation to find her way around and they tell her what to do by touch instead of hand signals. She was very, very trusting and I actually got to put on goggles and swim alongside her in deep water. She is absolutely precious! It is an experience I will never forget. The location is very clean and tidy and I would definitely recommend it to anyone looking to make some new friends! Thank you to the Dolphinaris trainers and staff for making my experience so special, and for taking such great care of these amazing and intelligent (and friendly) dolphins!

Miamidolphins21 AJ

I had an amazing experience at Dolphinaris and I would highly recommend it. I have seen many reviews saying that this is animal abuse and that these dolphins should be in there natural habitat and as an animal lover myself I agree on some terms but this was different. In the pool area there were 2 levels one, an about 3 or 4 foot level were everyone would stand and interact with the dolphins. Then there was a second level with a depth of about 12 feet which is very deep so dont overreact about the space the dolphins have for swimming. The trainer and warned us not to fall into the deeper area and my mom almost slipped in. So I feel like all these Animal Abuse negative reviews are ridiculous. Now my experience like I said was wonderful and I enjoyed a wonderful time with my family and the intelligent dolphins. The staff was very friendly and fun to chat with about the animals. In total they have 8 dolphins at the aquarium and they are all adorable and incredible animals. There is also an aquarium and various gift shops located around the main facility. The interaction is about 25-30 minutes but thats if you got the regular package. At the encounter you get to kiss, dance, play, and sing with the dolphin. There is something I would like to warn you about before going. Its VERY expensive so I would recommend going in January or February when the prices are low since not many people are on vacation out in the dessert. So Yes! I give this amazing dolphin encounter a 5/5 and a positive review! High Recommend!

kungfuman82

I went here solely because of the copy-pasta the regressive left was posting on here. I had a great time here as I had never actually gotten this close to a dolphin before and it was very interesting to learn about them. I didnt experience any snobbiness from the staff, but some were a little... I dont, maybe "cold" is the word? Im not expecting a daughter-hugging-her-soldier-father-after-a-tour-in-Iraq kind of welcome, but it seemed some were incapable of smiling. They werent rude by any stretch, but definitely seemed disinterested. Maybe they were just having a bad day. The trainers were great and very knowledgeable. I learned the most about dolphins and their behaviors from them, obviously. The time with the dolphins was easily the highlight, as it should be. I have gained a much deeper respect and understanding of these magnificent creatures and have even been inspired to donate to marine life conservation projects simply because of the experience here. While its above my price range to do often, the price for the Trainer for a Day is fair. I cant imagine the cost of running a place like this and keeping the dolphins happy and healthy so I wont ding this place on its prices, but Id highly recommend doing your research on their website before you decide what you want to do. Its absolutely a fun place for the family to go, or even by yourself like I did. Not often can education be fun, but here it certainly is.

La Vonne Dougall

We bought a package for almost $400 for our son and his family to spend 45 minutes with the dolphins at Dolphinaris over Christmas this year. No cameras are allowed in the viewing area due to the protection of the animals, so therefore Dolphinaris provides photography. Wanting a tangible of their experience my son paid $150 for the digital proofs of the family enjoying the dolphins and we were excited to enjoy the prints. That was $150 for three pictures. My husband just returned from having three 8 x 10s printed of the kids enjoying the dolphins. I am furious with the quality of the digital imaging! With 8x10 enlargement the pictures are so grainy and blurry that they are not worthy of framing! How is this possible to pay $150 and not even be able to enlarge to 8x10? We are not looking to do wall murals!!! To print an 8x10 should not be too much to ask! The dolphin experience was lovely but the rest of the experience was a cash grab, and a poor one at that! We also have another son. Will we send him and his family to Dolphinaris and purchase the picture feature of the experience? I think not! I just cant understand why Dolphinaris would find it necessary to sell an inferior digital image. What else are they going to do with the images? Not impressed whatsoever!