“Swimming with dolphins on a wild dolphin tour is without a doubt the best way to experience an interaction with wild dolphins.
But if you love dolphins and don’t have a trip to Hawaii planned any time soon, you can still learn more about the amazing animals from the comfort of your home!
The Dolphins and You team swims with dolphins on a daily basis and has an intimate understanding of them. So we’ve put together our top 5 list of accurate and interesting dolphin programs that you can watch on Netflix.
#5: Dolphin Tale (2011)
If you’re looking for a lighthearted, Box Office dolphin film, this is it.
Based on a true story, “Dolphin Tale” takes you along on the tale of a friendless boy who finds a dolphin with its tail caught in a crab trap. The dolphin is transported to a marine hospital, but it loses its tail. It takes the help of a prosthetics designer and the loving young boy to help the dolphin recover.
“In this changing world, it’s harder than ever to find something extraordinary, but every once in a while a symbol of hope breaks through.” – Dr. McCarthy in Dolphin Tale
Packed with a star-studded cast including Morgan Freeman and Harry Connick Jr. and an 81% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, the movie will make you laugh, cry and everything in between.
“Dolphin Tale” is only #5 because the story Clearwater Marine Aquarium runs a captive dolphin swim program, and we disagree with dolphins in captivity. But we also believe that when dolphins are hurt and they need our help, people can and should intervene. Since this story falls in that category, it made its way onto our list!
4: Ocean Giants (2011)
This education program focuses on both dolphins and whales, which are both members of the toothed whale delphinidae family. Those who enjoy a more scientific approach to learning about dolphins will love this three-part series.
“Ocean Giants” looks at how dolphins and whales hunt, mate, and communicate and shares some fascinating insights. The episodes will guide you through dolphin and whale studies that have proven their human-like creativity, their advanced hunting methods and their complex and mysterious societies.
Watch this serious to be taken behind the scenes on groundbreaking studies and to hear from the scientists who are pioneering the research.
3: Dolphins – Spy in the Pod (2014)
“Dolphins – Spy in the Pod” also provides scientific insights into the lives of dolphins, but in a truly ingenious way.
Using 13 underwater cameras disguised as various marine animals, the two-part BBC series gives you a glimpse at a dolphin’s world. “Dolphins – Spy in the Pod” not only talks about hunting tactics, social communications and everyday interactions, it shows you them.
“There’s no doubt there’s something very special about dolphins. It’s something that anyone who has had a close encounter with these creatures won’t be able to explain. But the experience will stay with them for the rest of their lives.” Dolphins – Spy in the Pod
That’s why “Dolphins – Spy in the Pod” is #3 on our list!
2: The Ultimate Guide: Dolphins (2000)
The Discovery Channel never fails to deliver well-narrated, engaging factual content about animals. While “The Ultimate Guide: Dolphins” is the oldest of all our picks, it’s no less interesting.
“Every year more than 5 million people all around the world go on organized whale and dolphin watching trips. The lives of humans and the lives of dolphins are about as different as it’s possible to be and still be on the same planet. But getting even an inkling of a dolphin’s life is an experience that stays with people forever.” – The Ultimate Guide: Dolphins
After decades of research on dolphins exposed their complicated lives, this documentary helped to share that information with the masses. Throughout much of the 20th century and prior, dolphins were only thought of as cute, fun entertainment.
“The Ultimate Guide: Dolphins” helped educated the public about the fact that they were so much more.
1: Blue Planet (2001) and Blue Planet II (2017)
Altogether these two BBC documentary series contain 15 episodes spanning from the ocean’s glittering shores to its mysterious depths. Dolphins are only part of what’s covered in the series, but we feel that the series brings viewers closer to the ocean.
Narrated by the famous naturalist Sir David Attenborough, “Blue Planet” and “Blue Planet II” use some of the most advanced underwater technology to discover information about the ocean’s inhabitants.
The series captures previously unknown behaviors of dolphins and whales, such as Australian snubfin dolphins’ ability to spit into the air to their prey into leaping from the water, South African bottlenose dolphins’ love for surfing waves, and the interactions of bottlenose dolphins and orcas.
“You get glimpses of a non-human world, and that is a transporting thing.” – Sir David Attenborough
The Atlantic magazine called “Blue Planet II” the “greatest nature series of all time”. Because of their unbeatable cinematic quality, captivating narration and calls for ocean preservation, “Blue Planet” and “Blue Planet II” are our #1 dolphin programs on Netflix!
Snorkel with wild sea turtles and Dolphins with Dolphins and You!
Join a Dolphins and You guided dolphin swim tour to snorkel with dolphins and sea turtles on the west coast of Oahu. The half-day tour also includes hula entertainment, an ocean water slide and taro bun burger lunch!
Learn More about Dolphins and You
