Vacation planning can be fun and exciting, but it is important to be a responsible tourist and continue your commitment to cetaceans and our oceans when away from home. There is a lot of confusion with many marine parks misleadingly listing themselves as “wildlife sanctuaries” or “rescue” facilities on travel sites. An easy rule of thumb to consider while making your travel plans, is if you are paying to interact with a wild animal, then it probably isn’t a genuine sanctuary or rescue. Places will sometimes boast about their dolphins living in open ocean pens or areas that they can leave when they want. However, if you look at the fine print and read between the lines, you will see these are still trained dolphins, doing dolphin swim activities with tourists in exchange for food.
Hotels by region
Hawaii
The Kahala Hotel & Resort
Hilton Waikoloa Village
Florida
Discovery Cove, Orlando
Baker’s Cay Resort, Key Largo
Nevada
Mirage Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas (UPADTE: As of May 2023 no longer has dolphins of property)
Dreams Resorts & Hotels
Barcelo Hotel Group
Hyatt Ziva
Xcaret
Xel-Ha
Bahia Principe Hotel
Grand Sirenis Riviera Maya Resort
Atlantis, Paradise Island
Renaissance Resort, Okinawa
Singapore
Resorts World Sentosa
Tahiti
Moorea Dolphin Center at Intercontinental Moorea Resort and Spa
UAE
Atlantis Dubai
If you happen to come across a hotel with captive dolphins that is not on our list, feel free to contact us. It’s unfortunate that hotels are taking part in the captive dolphin trade. Together, we can continue to spread awareness so that we all make conscious decisions both in their daily lives and while on vacation.