A Lovina dolphin safari in an outrigger, the typical local fishing boat on Bali is a wonderful experience. The boats leave the beach of Kalibukbuk at six o’clock in the morning. A quiet sea and (in most cases) a lot of dolphins swimming and leaping around the boats is your reward for getting up so early.
It is not a problem to get a ticket for one of the boats, because everywhere in Lovina people will ask you if you like to join a dolphin safari in the morning. You also can just go to the beach very early to catch a boat that will bring you to the dolphins. All skippers will offer the same price for the ticket by the way.
The dolphins are familiar with the boats and the tourists and it even looks like if they enjoy their own ‘theater play’ of jumping and leaping to enjoy the audience. The dolphins belong to a small subspecies of the so called spinner dolphin, sometimes also referred to as the long-snouted dolphin. This type of dolphin is found in off-shore tropical waters around the world. The dolphin has a length of two meter and a weight of around 80 kg and is famous for its acrobatic displays in which it spins along its longitudinal axis as it leaps through the air. They are smaller and darker than the well known bottlenose dolphin like Flipper. Except seeing the dolphins, you also get the chance to enjoy a beautiful sunrise. Did you know that the name dolphin comes from the greek word delphis that means: Fish with a womb?
Our house manager can arrange a boat for you (300.000 Rp per boat (max. 4 persons), including coffee or tea and some food). A new opportunity is a more luxury boat with a roof (to avoid the hot sun) and more or less ‘silent’ engines. The shape of the boat and/or sound of the engines seem to attract dolphins, who like to swim very close to the front of the boat. Another advantage: this boat leaves at 7 o’clock! But the price is higher: 300.000 Rp per person (min. 5 persons).
Picture of our guest Marjolein Verharen