Dolphin Quest – Kahala Hotel & Resort

The luxurious Kahala Hotel & Resort features a magnificent 26,000 square foot lagoon that is home to a variety of Atlantic Bottlenose dolphin, turtles, and colorful tropical fish.

If you ever get a chance, you definitely need to swim with dolphins and doing it in Hawaii as part of Kahala’s Dolphin Quest is truly an unforgettable experience.

The Dolphin Quest program is provides guests with the opportunity to get up close, swim with and learn about Atlantic Bottlenose dolphin.

The Kahala Hotel & Resort is stunning property on Oahu, east of Honolulu and Diamond Head. The lagoon area at Kahala is gorgeous and the ideal location to observe these incredible sea creatures.

The experienced trainers at Dolphin Quest provide daily education programs for guests to experience the dolphins up-close, and fully understand the uniqueness and intelligence of these wonderful creatures.

What I appreciate about the Dolphin Quest program, is the awareness of over-commercialization and not over stressing the dolphins. The trainers limit the number of private sessions to only a few each day.

Dolphin Quest features five beautiful dolphins:

• Hoku – (Name means ‘Star’ in Hawaiian) Hoku was born at The Kahala in 1991. A very good-natured animal, Hoku loves tactile attention and learning new behaviors.
• Kolohe – (‘Rascal’) He is from Dolphin Quest Hawaii, where his mother, Shaka, currently lives. Kolohe is usually one of the first to try new things and is not shy. Kolohe is 13 years old.
• Liho – (‘Rare and Precious’) He is a terrific animal and loves any and all guest interactions. Liho is 13 years old.
• Lono – (An ancient Hawaiian god of fertility and farming) He is the largest and oldest of our Dolphin Quest Oahu animal family. At 500 pounds, he ranks among the larger of the Atlantic Bottlenose dolphin species. He has sired several calves at Dolphin Quest Hawaii where he resided for most of his life.
• Nainoa – (‘The Wanderer’) You will be able to differentiate him from the others because of his chocolate-colored topside. Nainoa was born at Dolphin Quest Hawaii on October 31st, 1997.

Class participants will become educated on how dolphins live and survive in the ocean. In addition, learn several hand signals and actually get the dolphins to perform a few tricks.

In case you are not able to take photos of your dolphin experience, a professional photographer shoots photos during the session. You can purchase the pics and capture the wonderful memories to later share with friends and family.

Whether you are guest at the the Kahala Hotel & Resort or just visiting, you can always just wander down to the lagoon at anytime and watch the dolphins.

For additional information, please visit http://www.kahalaresort.com/swim-with-dolphins-hawaii.cfm

or  http://www.kahalaresort.com/activities/dolphin-quest-encounter.cfm