Dolphin Academy Curaçao

The Dolphin Academy is one of Curaçao's signature soft-adventure experiences, set within the Sea Aquarium park at Bapor Kibra on the southeast coast, just outside Willemstad. It runs a range of programmes that let you meet, touch, and swim with bottlenose dolphins, from gentle shallow-water encounters to in-water swims and even guided scuba dives alongside the animals in an open-water lagoon.

Encounters are led by trainers who explain the dolphins' behaviour and run the sessions at a careful pace, so the experience suits families, nervous first-timers, and confident swimmers alike. Shallow-water meets let younger children and non-swimmers interact from a platform, while the swim and dive options put you out in the lagoon with the dolphins for a closer, more active encounter.

Choosing a programme

Programmes vary by depth of contact, the swim time you get, and minimum-age or swimming-ability requirements, so it pays to read the options and book ahead. The Academy shares its site with the Curaçao Sea Aquarium, so you can fold a dolphin encounter into a wider day at the marine park.

• Sessions run on a fixed schedule and popular slots sell out, especially on cruise-ship days.
• Check minimum-age and swimming requirements for swim and dive programmes when you book.

Bring swimwear, a towel, and reef-safe sunscreen, arrive in good time for your session briefing, and pick the programme that matches your comfort in the water, from a shallow-water meet on a submerged platform to a full lagoon swim.