Eilat, Dolphin Reef
Resting in a small pretty resort of Eilat on the Red Sea, be sure to visit one of its most interesting and picturesque corners - the famous Dolphin Reef. For us, for example, visiting Dolphin Reef is just a tradition. Children believe that the Eilat program is not completed if they were not visiting the dolphins.
Dolphin Reef is not a dolphinarium in its usual sense. This is a corner of nature where a person can communicate with dolphins - on an equal footing.
Dolphins do not live in captivity here - they are present in their natural environment, in the Red Sea. It's just that the territory of the Dolphin Reef is separated from the open sea by a grid, and, accordingly, is limited in area. They say that there are holes in the net, and that dolphins even swim away sometimes - for a walk. But they always come back.
It is also important that dolphins are not trained here. They are easy to… communicate with. Moreover, Reef employees believe that it is a great honor to win the trust, and even more so the friendship and love of a dolphin.
There are no performances at the Eilat Dolphinarium, but don't think that the dolphins there can't do anything - far from it! They are happy to perform various tricks - but only those that they want to do themselves! The employee of the dolphinarium asks - but never orders the dolphin. Even if this happens during feeding, when a huge number of people gather on the Reef to look closely at the feeding of dolphins and communication with them. For example, this fact impressed me very much - I saw free marine animals, and not circus artists living in captivity.
Dolphin feeding takes place several times a day, starting at 11 am. They feed from three floating bridges and from a boat at once - so that all dolphins can eat at the same time. Each dolphin has its own personalized bucket, on which its name is written. This is done because the needs and portion sizes of each of the dolphins are different. As the employees of the Dolphinarium explain in the process of feeding, dolphins provide their own food in the waters of the Gulf of Eilat. So this regular feeding is nothing more than an opportunity to track that everything is in order with the dolphin, to see his eyes, teeth, skin, etc. up close. And also make sure that the dolphin is healthy and does not suffer from a lack of appetite.
On Dolphin Reef, you can not only watch these wonderful animals, but also swim with them, or dive to a depth of 6 m, accompanied by a personal instructor. The cost of snorkeling is 280 NIS. (approximately $78) per person, dives - 320 NIS. (about $90). Moreover, if a child (under 16 years old) will dive or swim, then the adult accompanying him has the right to enter the territory of Dolphin Reef for FREE. To swim with dolphins, you need to be able to stay on the water, and the age of the participants here is from 10 years and above. But for diving, even the ability to swim is not required - and children from the age of 8 can already do this, because each diver has his own personal instructor who will explain everything, show everything. During the dive, the instructor will hold the amateur diver's hand at all times. It is important that the briefing before diving is carried out in the native language, including Russian. Well, the instructor, of course, may not be Russian-speaking - but this is absolutely not important, since in the water communication takes place exclusively with gestures, which are very quickly absorbed during instruction.
It is very funny to watch how dolphins swim up to those preparing to dive - right in the shallow water, where they are waist-deep. They seem to be calling - come on, hurry up, come to us already! Children, and not only them, are delighted!
It should also be noted that Dolphin Reef has an excellent beach - clean, with small round pebbles and sand, very well-groomed and pretty. There are even fish there - not as many, of course, as on the coral beaches in front of the Princess or Yam Suf hotels, but still.
In addition to the fish and the beach, you can admire freely roaming peacocks who are not afraid of anyone and are not shy. Also touching are free Israeli cats, who can sleep literally anywhere - even in the locker room on the left things, if they suddenly have such a desire. By the way, the cats are very clean and well-groomed - either someone looks after them, or the excellent ecology affects.
In general, when you relax in Eilat, be sure to visit the Dolphin Reef, it is definitely worth it. And even better - swim with the dolphins, and you will be provided with positive energy for a long time!
