One Day at Seaworld at Christmas

[cnjmom]

Help! My family of five (Me, DH, DD11, DS8 and DS6) are going to visit my MIL the week after Christmas, and we've already purchased our one day tickets and the dining plan. We will likely go the Monday after Christmas. We have visited Disney twice in June, so we know about crowds, but I'm hoping Seaworld isn't quite what Disney was during our June visits...or if it is, at least it won't be 95 degrees while we're there.

I am at a bit of a loss as to how to plan. I keep reading to base our visit around the shows, but I don't know which shows (especially at Christmas) are the "don't miss!" (If we see the Shamu show during the day, we probably won't see the evening, Christmas-themed one, if that makes sense.) I will mention that DH and my older two kids are tall enough and love coasters, so I know that they will want to ride those as well, but we probably won't spend another $90 for them to get Quick Queue (I just looked and it's $29 pp the day of our visit). MIL, DS6 and I probably won't ride things like Manta and Kraken (and DS6 isn't tall enough for all of them anyway).

The park hours are 9AM-11PM, so we do have time, although I doubt we will make it to the end, though we might try! The plan is to arrive at park open.

Anyone want to give me some general advice, if you've gone during the holidays with a group which contains a grandparent as well as youngish kids? Or even if you haven't, what have you really enjoyed? What could be missed, since we only have one day? We probably won't be going back to Seaworld anytime soon, so the highlights are what we're looking for.

Thanks.

 

[Dax]

First off, they will be having a lot of holiday only stuff. I know the Shamu show is holiday themed, and I also think the Pet Ahoy show may be as well. Your best bet is to decide among your group what is the cant miss and plan from there. 2 coasters, and one water ride. The penguins line can get long as well. It is doable for you to do it all in a day though. As for crowds...they can be hit or miss

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

The park is going to be very, VERY busy during that time period. The busiest you will see it all year. Things like Quick Queue and reserved show seating will go a long, long way to maximizing your day (and are worthy purchases, IMHO). Arriving just before park opening will be imperative. SeaWorld absorbs crowds better than the other Orlando parks, but busy is busy no matter what way you slice it.

Holiday attractions not to miss......Sea of Trees, the Christmas Shamu show, the Polar Express, and O Wondrous Night.

Also not to be missed....having your family photo taken in the snow globe. Its an awesome souvenir.

Check out my December 2012 trip report (see the link in my signature) for our Christmas week trip two years ago. It might help out a little!

 

[Cira]

I am very interested in seeing Polar Express. Do you need a queue for the line there? Are the lines usually long at Christmas? What does the "ride" entail please? Thanks. Will be there next week and have not gone to SW during the holidays before.

<<Holiday attractions not to miss......Sea of Trees, the Christmas Shamu show, the Polar Express, and O Wondrous Night.>>

 

[KBF]

I am very interested in seeing Polar Express. Do you need a queue for the line there? Are the lines usually long at Christmas? What does the "ride" entail please? Thanks. Will be there next week and have not gone to SW during the holidays before.

<<Holiday attractions not to miss......Sea of Trees, the Christmas Shamu show, the Polar Express, and O Wondrous Night.>>

There is a queue line that you must line up in to ride the ride. Lines can be especially long at certain times of the day, like when the Shamu show lets out. If you don't want a long wait time, then plan on riding the ride while a Shamu show is going on.

The ride itself is a motion simulator that is set to scenes from the movie. In all, its about 5 minutes long. Then you exit into the beluga whale and seal habitat where you can get a picture with Santa.