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Full-Day Mauritius Volcanic Wonders Tour Including Swimming with Wild Dolphins
Belle Mare, Mauritius
From $125.64
Price varies by group size
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Free cancellation
Up to 24 hours in advance.
Trou d'Eau Douce Tours
Attractions
Recommendations
- 8 hours (approx.)
- Hotel pickup offered
- Mobile ticket
- Offered in: English
- Good for avoiding crowds
Overview
Combine some of Mauritius most important natural landmarks and features in this full-day private tour. Start the morning with snorkeling and swimming in a wild dolphin habitat, then head up to the top of Trou aux Cerfs, a dormant volcano. Hit the crater lake at Grand Bassin, Black River Gorges, and Alexandra Falls, then wind up at the site of the 7-Coloured Earth. Round-trip hotel transport and use of snorkel gear included.
- Combine the natural wonders of Mauritius in one tour
- Visit Alexandra Falls, Grand Bassin, and the 7-Coloured Earth
- Swim and snorkel in a wild dolphin habitat
- Use of snorkel equipment
- Round-trip hotel transportation
What's Included
- A 2.5-hour encounter with wild dolphins in the open sea
- Snorkeling near the coral reef (snorkeling gear provided)
- Services of a fully licensed, qualified driver
- Entrance fees to Chamarel are Rs. 500 (10 Euros) per person
- Lunch or snacks
Meeting And Pickup
Pickup points
Select a pickup point
Start time
07:30 AM
Pickup details
We pick up at all hotels, B&Bs, apartments on the island. Please let us know which hotel, B&B or apartment you're staying at. Note that this excursion starts 7:30am on the west coast of the island, so your exact pickup time will depend on where you are staying, but will typically be between 5:30am and 7am. We will let you know your exact pickup time upon booking.
What To Expect
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Not wheelchair accessible
- The dolphin portion of this outing is not recommended for pregnant women. All children under 12 years old should be accompanied.
- Bring swimwear for the dolphin's portion, and comfortable walking shoes for the rest of the tour
- Not recommended for pregnant travelers
- Most travelers can participate
Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
- For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
- If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.
- Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.
- Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.
- This experience requires good weather. If it’s canceled due to poor weather, you’ll be offered a different date or a full refund.
about cancellations.
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Reviews
4.0
119 reviews
Reviews by Viator travelers.
Showing 1-10 of 119 reviews
Great experience for whole family
Katarina_J, Dec 2022
I was on the trip with two kids (8, 10) dolphins were amazing and the crew helped my daughter when she wanted to return to the boat earlier. They made an effort that we have a great time. Only the communication struggled, zero instruction or information about what are we going to do, how etc.
The rest of the trip was awesome as well, our driver was very patient, we could take as much time as we wanted, we were even considering other activities and he didn’t have any problems with it, but in the end we didn’t do anything additional. He proposed other stuff, lunch, souvenirs but the decision was on us. When we wanted to buy drinks he took us to place. He was very kind and helpful. I can only recommend. We all liked it a lot!
Response from Host, Dec 2022
Hi Katarina, thanks so much for your wonderful review! We're glad your family enjoyed the tour, and we hope to see you again during your next trip to Mauritius!
Disappointing
Silvia_B, Aug 2022
This excursion didn’t meet the expectations. The best part, which was swimming with dolphins, was compromised because of the lack of snorkeling equipment for everyone in the boat and the poor quality of the equipment available. Some of us had to swim without fins or tube, the life vests for the children were broken and we had to reuse tubes from other tourists in the group (totally against Covid measures!!!!). Apart from that, we did not like the fact that we were taken to a couple of shops (not part of the itinerary mentioned) and instead did not go to the Aquarium. The visit to the volcano was very disappointing and all in all the tour felt short of the expectations
Response from Host, Aug 2022
Hi Silvia, thanks for your feedback. We will follow up with the skipper regarding the equipment. We're sorry you didn't like Trou aux Cerfs. We hope you enjoyed your vacation in Mauritius!
I was expecting a tour...
Rajnish_J, Aug 2022
I was expecting a tour with swimming in the sea and hike to the volcano as well as the black river gorge, all I got was a boat ride, with a horde of 40 odd boats chasing the dolphins, and a long car ride stopping at various places for 5-10 minutes
Response from Host, Aug 2022
Hi Rajnish, thanks for your feedback. We're sorry you didn't like the excursion. Please note that the length of each stop is flexible, depending on how long you'd like to stay at each attraction. It's possible to do some self-guided walks/hikes at Trou aux Cerfs and Black River Gorge National Park, but a guided hike is not part of this tour.
Not bad, Dolphin part was disappointing though.
Brian_F, Aug 2022
I'll start with the Dolphin part of the trip.
I feel as though there are too many boats around chasing the Dolphins. The water is not very clear so unless the Dolphins are at water level you can't really see much under water.
You do see them dipping in and out of the water, but I wouldn't class it as 'swimming with Dolphins', more like jump in next to them and hope they stay long enough for you to get near. Unfortunately, because of the constant chasing from all the boats it kind of pushes the Dolphins away.
Next stop was the Trou Aux Cerfs volcano. Was nice to see and there were some great views of South Mauritius to be seen, but you only need around 15 minutes to walk to the view point and take some photos of the crater below you in the dense forest.
We visited Grand Bassin Hindu temple, which was a very nice experience. The statues were amazing and it was nice seeing all the monkeys around the lake stealing all the fruit.
The Chamarel waterfall was really nice. There are some great view points for it. Make sure you walk up the steep stairs to get the top and best view of it.
Chamarel seven coloured earth was OK. Good to see, but the colour of the rock is not as vibrant as you see in most of the photos. Luckily for us, the sun was shining very bright and it did colour the earth more than if the weather would've been dull.
It's a good trip to experience some of the tourist spots of South Mauritius. Just be cautious of where you stop for lunch, as the restaurant we stopped at was very pricey! I feel they have 2 different menus. 1 for locals and 1 for tourists which is over priced.
Response from Host, Aug 2022
Hi Brian, thanks for your review and feedback! We're glad you enjoyed the trip overall, and thanks for your feedback regarding the swimming with wild dolphins portion of the trip. We hope you are enjoying your stay in Mauritius!
Spectacular
Christopher_H, Aug 2022
The early morning start was well worth it - to be out in Tanarin Bay and swimming with dolphins was amazing. The rest of the trip was well worth seeing - a whistle stop tour of the sights and beauty of Mauritius.
Response from Host, Aug 2022
Hi Christopher, thanks for your review, and we're glad you enjoyed the trip! We hope to see you again soon!
Very good until....
Tony_C, Jul 2022
Some of the sights to see where breathtaking and swimming with the dolphins was a fantastic once in a lifetime opportunity however going to see a "factory" was just a place that tries to hard sell you boat models at a very expensive price. No doubt the tour company have some kind of kick back for each sale or person they bring along. Which ruined what was a fantastic day until that point.
Response from Host, Jul 2022
Hi Tony, we're glad you enjoyed the swimming with wild dolphins portion of the trip and many of the sites as well. We're sorry you didn't like the ship model museum and factory, and that the salespeople there were pushy. Please note that this is a popular stop for many tours, but Bonjour Mauritius does not work directly with this factory. We wish you a great rest of your stay in Mauritius!
Book private taxi driver instead.
Kasper_H, Jun 2022
We got picked up by a taxi driver at 5.45 from our hotel. He was on time and very good througout the trip.
Our first stop was Tamarin, where we swam with doplines and snorkelled. A good activity and the people who was responsible were kind and good at english. A young man who went into the water with us and helped us see the dolphines was very good.
Thereafter we cleaned up at the beach. A shower (primitive) was available and a toilet. Thereafter our taxi driver took us to the 7 coloured earth. Along the way there was a stop or two, where we could take picturs. He dropped us of at the activity and said we had 15 minutes.
Thereafter we went to a restaurant. Note that lunch is not included, even though is says so. Nice restaurant with good toilets facilities.
Grand Bassin and the volcano was not that good.
We had to pay the taxi driver more money, which we could read in the info. If we drove for more than 8 hours, we had to pay him 200 for each additional hour.
A long day with a lot of driving. We cannot recommend buying this offer. It would be a lot cheaper if you book a taxi driver for the day, who can take you all of these places.
Response from Host, Jun 2022
Hi Kasper, thanks for your feedback. It sounds like you enjoyed the tour for the most part, so we're a little surprised to see the review. We'd love for you to get in touch with us so we can address any concerns you have regarding the price. Please note that as mentioned on the booking page, and in the message sent to you after booking, lunch is not included.
I feel this tour was very over priced for the experience I had!
Rebecca_M, Jun 2022
I liked the tour and tour guide was very friendly but I feel it was very over priced and not value for money at all
Response from Host, Jun 2022
Hi Rebecca, thanks for your feedback regarding the price, and we're glad you enjoyed the trip. Please note that while the cost of the swimming with wild dolphins portion of the tour is priced per person, the taxi portion is the same price for 1-4 people, so for a single person it can definitely be quite a bit more than the per person cost for 2 or more people.
1 traveler found this review helpful
Amazing!
Natalie_B, Jun 2022
Such an incredible day, swimming with the wild dolphins was definitely our highlight. Our driver was amazing going above and beyond to ensure we had an amazing day. Would highly recommend this trip
Response from Host, Jun 2022
Hi Natalie, thanks so much for your review! We're glad you enjoyed the trip, and we hope to see you again!
Great experience splitted in two days
Arnim_P, May 2022
We had a really great start into the tour with the Dolphin swimming and the snorkeling. Great weather and a perfectly timed ride to the dolphins.
Unfortunately the weather didn't stay good and turned really bad. So we had to skip 3 of the planned destinations.
But we had a really kind driver who didn't loose his good mood after all this rain. We couldn't see the 30m statues until standing 10m away from it.
In the end we decided to skip the last 3 destinations and reschedule parts of the tour. Due to a very kind and friendly tour organizer we could easily reschedule to three days later.
All in all it's totally worth it. And with good weather you will have a really great tour with a funny and chilled driver who tells you a lot about the culture, religion and other stuff in Mauritius.
Response from Host, May 2022
Hi Arnim, we're glad you were able to see the last three stops in better weather! Thanks for your kind comments regarding our driver - we'll be sure to let him know as well. We wish you a great continuation of your stay in Mauritius!
Questions?
Product code: 9433P14
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