I have some questions for DC, Sea World and Aquatica

[M&E]

I am heading to Florida in a few weeks and I have some questions. I've been searching and reading so many posts and I'm sure these questions have been asked before, so thanks in advance to anyone who helps!

Discovery Cove
- I have a 7 year old who loves to dig/build in the sand. Should I bring a pail/shovel or will those be provided?
- DC opens at 7:15 but the water areas don't open until 9:00. Is anything other that breakfast available from 7:15 to 9:00? We are not doing the Dolphin Swim so I was thinking if we showed up at 8:30 we would be fine. Would that give us enough time to get breakfast? Will there still be hot food and lots of choices left? Enough time to grab a good chair?
- Do we need water shoes? I know this is a personal preference, but I'm wondering people's experiences. Do your toes get scraped in the lazy river? I'm debating buying us each a pair since we will be going to Aquatica also, but not sure if I want to spend the $ for a family of 5.
- Towels are provided, right?

Aquatica
- We plan to spend one whole day at Aquatica, arriving early to do the more popular rides. We also plan to spend a couple of afternoons, arriving about 2:00. Will we be able to grab at least one chair at that time of day? Are you allowed to "reserve" a chair. By that I mean plop your towels/shoes on it and then go do rides and expect your towel/shoes to still be there when you return? We wouldn't of course leave anything of value unattended.
- Is there sand to play in at Aquatica? By the wave pool maybe?
- Do we need to bring towels? If yes, what do people generally do for this. Do we haul towels all the way from Michigan or do we just bring towels from the pool at the resort?

Sea World
- We plan to arrive right at opening. What rides should we head to first? Which rides generally have the longest waits?

Parking
- I am under the impression that parking at Discovery Cove is free. I have seen mention of something like a $30 parking pass for Sea World and Aquatica. Can I purchase this ahead of time?

Thanks

 

[georgina]

I can only answer one of your questions, as we will be visiting Aquatica for the first time in Sept and it has been years since I have been to DC, but I did see you can book the $30 parking pass online 30 days ahead of your trip. You could also get free parking if you pay $25 to upgrade one person to the ticket that includes Busch Gardens, but I didn't see how to do that after I had already purchased my DC tickets online, perhaps a phone call would work.

I do recall that there was a line to check in at DC, there was some paperwork and they took your photo for your day pass, so it was good to get there earlier and get that out of the way (this was 7 years ago!) They were having computer problems the day we were there and the line was even slower.

 

[mjhtvchick]

I am heading to Florida in a few weeks and I have some questions. I've been searching and reading so many posts and I'm sure these questions have been asked before, so thanks in advance to anyone who helps!

Discovery Cove
- I have a 7 year old who loves to dig/build in the sand. Should I bring a pail/shovel or will those be provided?
- DC opens at 7:15 but the water areas don't open until 9:00. Is anything other that breakfast available from 7:15 to 9:00? We are not doing the Dolphin Swim so I was thinking if we showed up at 8:30 we would be fine. Would that give us enough time to get breakfast? Will there still be hot food and lots of choices left? Enough time to grab a good chair?
- Do we need water shoes? I know this is a personal preference, but I'm wondering people's experiences. Do your toes get scraped in the lazy river? I'm debating buying us each a pair since we will be going to Aquatica also, but not sure if I want to spend the $ for a family of 5.
- Towels are provided, right?

Aquatica
- We plan to spend one whole day at Aquatica, arriving early to do the more popular rides. We also plan to spend a couple of afternoons, arriving about 2:00. Will we be able to grab at least one chair at that time of day? Are you allowed to "reserve" a chair. By that I mean plop your towels/shoes on it and then go do rides and expect your towel/shoes to still be there when you return? We wouldn't of course leave anything of value unattended.
- Is there sand to play in at Aquatica? By the wave pool maybe?
- Do we need to bring towels? If yes, what do people generally do for this. Do we haul towels all the way from Michigan or do we just bring towels from the pool at the resort?

Sea World
- We plan to arrive right at opening. What rides should we head to first? Which rides generally have the longest waits?

Parking
- I am under the impression that parking at Discovery Cove is free. I have seen mention of something like a $30 parking pass for Sea World and Aquatica. Can I purchase this ahead of time?

Thanks

I will try my best to answer your questions:

Discovery Cove
- Yes, if you want to have pails, etc available for your son, you would have to bring your own.
- We usually aim to arrive by around 8:00-8:30. Sometimes there is a bit of a line in the check-in area. You want to allow for this as well as give yourselves plenty of time to grab a quick breakfast, pick up your snorkels & wet-suits, stow your stuff in a locker and slather up with some sunscreen before jumping in the water!
- You don't really have to worry too much about grabbing a chair for the day. We usually don't bother but rather wander around the resort.
- Water shoes are definitely a personal preference - I always wear mine but my daughter can't stand them. There are definitely rough spots in the lazy river where you can scrape your toes. Having the water shoes also allows you to get out in the aviary mid-river. I don't know about you but I am not a fan of walking through bird poop in my bare feet! Depending on where you are from and where you are staying, you can pick some up at Wal-Mart for a good price.
- Yes, towels are provided. They are in the change-rooms. Shampoo, conditioner and body wash are also supplied along with plastic bags for all your wet items.

I absolutely love Discovery Cove - you will have a great day!

Aquatica
- I don't have much experience with Aquatica in the summer months but I do understand it can get quite busy especially on the weekends. Lots of people leave there stuff on the chairs all day.
- There is a huge sandy area in Aquatica - pretty well the whole area in front of the wave pool is sandy but it is set back a bit.
- You can either bring towels from your resort with you or you can "rent" towels for the day. I believe there are also locker/towel combos that you can rent.
- Depending on your budget, you could consider renting a cabana - there is great value in them if you book one ahead of time online...they come with the locker, towels, a refrigerator and and 8-12 bottles of water.
- Another tip - consider leaving 1/2 hour before closing or be prepared to stay late - it seems to always be a nightmare getting out of the parking lot at park closing - we were in line almost an hour during our last trip in April.

Sea World
- The new ride, Mako and Antarctica seem to have the longest wait times but Sea World is not too bad on the whole with regard to lines.

Parking
- Parking at Discovery Cove is complimentary with your admission but it costs $20 per day at Sea World and $15 per day at Aquatica. I believe you can add a parking package by calling: 1-877-557-7404. You can also save a few dollars by pre-paying online on Sea World and Aquatica's websites.


Enjoy your trip!!

 

[M&E]

Thank you so much! I am so excited to get there and experience everything. I am a teacher so it is back to work once we are home.

 

[scdak]

No real advise other than have a great time! We did DC and Aquatica for the first time last fall and had a blast! DC was the highlight of our 14 day trip to the area, even more so than any park day at Disney and even 2 Halloween parties plus a Hallowishes dessert party.

I also second a cabana at Aquatica on your full day there if its possible - it was our "home base", included the locker and towels plus water so it really paid for itself. And in regards to water shoes - I recommend some sort of footwear - even in late September the paths and even the sand was hot to walk on so it was easier to wear our water shoes all the time than to slip flipflops or similar styles off and on repeatedly. My feet were rather upset at me for wearing the water shoes all day but that could be because I had a stress fracture in one foot at the time and ANY walking no matter what shoes I wore was painful LOL

 

[M&E]

Thank you! I keep going back and forth about a cabana at Aquatica. I really want one, but not sure if I'm willing to pay that much $. We will spend a few hours there one afternoon before the full day. If we really love it and are sure we are coming back for a full day, I might try to book a cabana.

 

[eyehartdisney]

I second the penguin ride and the new ride as being the longest lines at seaworld.

 

[squirrel]

Are there any water slides that you can't wear water shoes on?

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Are there any water slides that you can't wear water shoes on?

I know for sure you can't wear shoes on Ihu's Breakaway Falls. They sent DH alllllllll the way back down when he forgot to take his off.