Benalmadena Dolphins: the Boats That Look for Them

The $100 shared trip is the closest thing here to a classic Benalmadena dolphin watching boat tour. It runs 3 hours 30 minutes, and the listing says an expert crew helps you spot wild dolphins. It names whales, rays and turtles as other marine life you might meet, a possibility rather than a plan. The rest of the time goes on snorkelling, a 6-metre water slide, a kayak, a paddle board and lunch on board.

With 311 reviews at 4.5, it is the dolphin trip Benalmadena offers for a half day of water play as well as the search. Zoe from Switzerland: «Within a few minutes we saw a school of dolphins from up close.» Orla from Ireland kept it short: «We saw dolphins!» Sylvia from the United States is the honest counterweight: «Although we didn’t see any fish or dolphins, it was an evening tour, so we weren’t expecting as much marine life.»

Of the trips on this page, it is the only one whose listing includes a minibus transfer, from Torremolinos, Benalmádena and Málaga. If sea conditions stop the trip, the listing offers a new date or a full refund.

A private boat gives you the search without strangers: your group, and a skipper who decides where to go. There are two.

Our top pick: the private boat with drinks, $191 for the boat. It takes up to 10 people from Puerto Marina for anything from 1 to 6 hours. Dolphin watching is on its list, with snorkel gear, fishing rods and unlimited beer, sangria, cava and snacks. Rated 4.8 from 178 reviews. Kellie from the United Kingdom: «Amazing trip. Got to see dolphins.» Jenny, also from the United Kingdom, calls it a «great boat trip with dolphin watching». Nicola from the United Kingdom is the reminder that the sea decides: on her day the group «had no activities or saw any dolphins».

The private boat for up to 12, $213. Departures run daily from 10 am to 10 pm at Puerto Marina, for 2 to 3 hours, with catering by arrangement. Dolphin sightings are on its list. Cathy from Ireland: «The sailor brought us out to an area to view dolphins, which was spectacular.» It is rated 5.0, but from only 7 reviews, and its price shows as per person, so check the total for your group before you pay.

On this page, the rental is the one dolphin boat Benalmadena visitors steer themselves. That is its charm and its catch. You choose the route and the pace, and with six on board the cost per head is a fraction of the shared trip’s per-person price. But the search is yours alone: on the shared trip, finding Benalmadena dolphins is the expert crew’s job.

Handling the boat is not the hard part. Thomas from the United Kingdom: «Our apprehensions about handling the vessel were soon dispelled by a professional and thorough introduction.» The no-licence rental is rated 4.6 from 41 reviews, the self-drive one 4.4 from 21.

Yes, there is a catamaran Benalmadena dolphin trip. The shared catamaran at $34 per person sails for 1 to 2 hours along the coast, with drinks from the bar on board and a swim if the sea conditions allow. Its two-hour option adds dolphin watching, and the operator puts the chance of spotting them at 80%: their figure, not a promise. It is rated 4.3 from 768 reviews.

The boat party at $95 per person is a catamaran too, but a different night out: two decks, a DJ and one drink, for adults 18 and over. Its listing says nothing about dolphins, so book it for the music. For Benalmadena dolphins with children, the shared trip at $100 is the family choice.

Book the shared trip. For a half day out, the one dolphin tour Benalmadena has to beat is the $100 trip: a crew that looks for dolphins, a slide, snorkelling, lunch and hotel pickup. Just the dolphins? The plainest dolphin cruise Benalmadena offers here costs $22 and lasts about 100 minutes.

With your own group? Our top pick, the private boat with drinks at $191 for up to 10, is the Benalmadena dolphin boat tour for a celebration. Want the wheel? Rent a boat and keep your distance.