Which port do you leave from?
The first thing to settle is the harbour, because the island is long and the drive to the quay is part of the day. Puerto Rico is where the cetacean boats, the Princesa Ico catamaran and the Infinity yacht berth. Puerto de Mogán, twenty minutes further west, has the submarine, the Yellow Boat and the Aqua Fun yacht.
Líneas Salmón is the exception: the same dolphin excursion also leaves from Puerto de Mogán, Anfi del Mar and Arguineguín, so you can pick the port nearest your hotel.
Does the size of the boat change the price?
Princesa Ico takes up to 250 people and Spirit of the Sea up to 97 — big, stable, with a fixed timetable and a price to match. The Infinity yacht takes 12 and Aqua Fun 18, and the Yellow Boat runs in a small group too, which is why the cheaper of them still costs more per head than the catamaran: you are paying for the small group, not for extra hours.
What does the ticket actually cover?
Lunch, drinks and snorkelling kit are inside the ticket on some boats and sold on board on others, so the comparison is easier column by column:
Are the dolphins guaranteed?
Nobody sells you the animals. Dolphins are resident and often seen off the south coast, but every one of these trips is a search, not a delivery, and Blue Spirit does not count its catamaran as a cetacean tour at all. If seeing something under the surface matters more than the odds, the submarine and the glass-bottom hull show you a reef either way.
One more thing leaves the same Mogán waterfront and is not a boat trip at all: a four-hour sea kayak run into the Mogán caves at €65 per person.
Important
the transfer to the port is not included on every trip, so agree the ride to the quay when you book.
