
We try to offer the best experience to our guests, to do so, we used all kinds of boats over the past 3 years. We took into account the guests’ feedback about the different boats, how each one behave in the encountered sea conditions and how we could stay sustainable as we where with our first boat.
The result is Rorqual, she is a Rigid Inflatable Boat (RIB), not the most fancy looking boat but she is a “work horse”, designed to deliver results in a wide range of conditions. If the conditions Rorqual allows you to meet the dolphins close enough for listening them, smell them, get splashed by them and even make eye contact.
- Brand & Model: Highfield PA760
- Length: 7.6m
- Width: 2.8m
- Max persons: 10 (can become open deck on request)
- Nº of seats: 10
- Built material: Welded Aluminium
- Engine Power: 200hp
We listened to our guests and what most guests looked for in our expeditions was, seeing dolphins. Comfort details like, seat size, distance from different groups, WC, beverages, snacks, basking areas and shade, were appealing but wouldn’t improve the experience if we didn’t manage to find dolphins.
Taking this into account we decided to re-launch with a work boat instead of a pleasure craft, in order to improve the capacity of finding dolphins. We choose the most reliable and flexible type of boat, the Rigid Inflatable Boats, as they’re used by coast guard. With a RIB we dropped our failure rate to 5% and brought the cancelation rate down too, as we could keep comfort and safety conditions, under higher wind and wave conditions. The main problems of this boat, pass through lack of a toilet, (there are toilets on the docks) meaning if you manage to see the last Avatar movie nonstop, you’re ready!
The boat’s build is one of the best in the market, hull is made of recyclable aluminium metal, making her lighter which reflects in fuel efficiency. Rorqual can have a second life after retyring and not contributing to waste like the other boats. Being partially inflatable is a great advantage, as it saves even more weight, lowering carbon emissions even more, while adding extra floatation and stability (yes, the boat floats deflated). Having 7 separate chambers make her very hard to sink.
Rorqual is equipped with an Honda outboard engine, famous for their overall low noise emission. Additionally, as the engine is located outside the hull (unlike inboard engines), most of the noise is transmitted to the air and not to the water environment, thus reducing our impact in the ocean.
NOTE: You might seen on reviews and old publications the sailing trimaran Megaptera, she isn’t operating anymore. During the pandemic she showed to be too difficult to keep and had to sail away.
Other boats
For the special cases and upon request, we also use large boats that have toilets, shelter and even a bar! The smaller ones, taking 8-10 passengers, are sailboats, ideal for private tours. The larger ones, which carry 50 passengers, are ideal for those who prefer or need a small piece of land floating in the ocean.
These boats are designed to deliver comfort and they are not ideal for looking for dolphins, as they are slow and cover less distance. However they may be the only option for some guests, such as:
- Large groups that don’t want to split in small different boats
- Guests with babies, as they need shelter from the sun and the elements
- Guests with back problems
- Guests that can’t stay 3h away from a toilet
- Guests that value comfort over proximity to the dolphins
- When a boat tour is more important than seeing dolphins