Discovery cove

[Ware Bears]

Great photos, Wayne.

We did Discovery Cove on our first trip ~ it was one of the best experiences of my life and well worth every penny.

 

[scojos]

we did DC last year during TS faye, and due to this had a bad experience...
if you are on the ddp, by the end of your holiday food is no longer a massive pull, we had eaten everything at the parks, and whilst the food was very good, we just didnt make it worth our while.
Photos are also v expensive, we aware that, if like us, this was a one off, you have to buy the pictures, its an added expense to a v expensive day already.
the dolphin swim is only about 20-25mins, so at nearly a grand for the five of us, it was an expensive half an hour!
we enjoyed it, but i wouldnt do it again, could think of other things to spend the money on, i think my kids would prefer "retail therapy"
Tracy

 

[tartangirl]

we did Discovery Cove on 2nd July last year and it was worth every penny although not something we could justify that often.

When we went to Seaworld the next day I remembered seeing something about getting a parking permit so I went to Guest Services to ask about it and was given complimentary parking for 2 weeks - worth asking on your way out the park

 

[disneycat_f2008]

We went to DC last year & loved every single minute of it, one thing no one seems to have mentioned even though people have said to book early is that DC is limited to just 1000 people per day.

We loved day & yes the photo's are expensive but they are great way to remember the day. You can relax on the beach sun bathing, go in the lazy river, the bird avery, the Ray Lagoon, The Coral Reef. I think people have also forgot to mention that you are also given your snorkling equipment, sun cream, you borrow the wet suits & you can also borrown the towels as well. The food is really good & the food & drink all day I think is great. I actually think that it is worth the money that you pay out for it, I know the dolphin swim isn't very long but if you like dolphins to me it will be worth but then again my hubby didn't want to do it all but ended up loving it & we are trying to find a way to pay for it again next year.

 

[Pegasus928]

We did this back in 2005. DW is a big dolphin fan so this was top of our list of things to do and was the first thing booked.
Although we had a good day and bought the pics and video, we have never felt a need to go back. As has already been said it is a very expensive day out and greatly depends on your budget for the whole holiday, as well as your love and interest in the sort of things that are on offer. In general we don't like the water parks so tend to give them a miss anyway.
The lazy river, ray pool and snorkeling with fish near the ship wreck all added to the enjoyment of the day.
My only complaint - and I can see why people would probably disagree with me - is that I think the term 'dolphin swim' is a little exaggerated, but thats just me

 

[Cleofish]

Maybe I'm biased because DF actually proposed at DC, so I have great memories, but we were there 16th September last year, and thought it was wonderful. We got there for about 7.50am and we got a 10am Dolphin Swim. We first went for some breakfast, which was scrummy - loads to choose from! We then went and got changed and went down to the Aviary, which was just perfect, we even got to meet Luna, the little mini deer who lives around the bushes in the Aviary, and she let us feed her. Our swim was amazing, we have some wonderful photos and memories from our time with Cindy (our dophin), even without the proposal. We spent the rest of the chilling out on the lazy river, snorkelling, petting the rays and sunbathing.
The food was gorgeous, we ate LOADS. There's plenty to choose from and some lovely snacks if you get a bit peckish. It is an expensive day, but I would do it all over again. I have never been so relaxed in my life, and I have some amazing memories and photos. We plan on going again when we are back in Florida for our honeymoon, which will also save me buying SeaWorld & Bush Gardens tickets for the rest of our trip. IMHO it's totally worth the money, and if I never get the chance again I'll have some lovely memories. :

 

[disneycat_f2008]

Cleofish how did your hubby to be propose at DC?

I do think that DC is worth it & you the package that includes tickets to Busch Gardens, Seaworld & Aquatica, then you just need to book tickets for Universal & Island of Adventure if you want to go there which you can do here here & for cheaper & I do think it saves you money rather than buying a flexi if you are already looking at doing DC.

 

[fuse04]

We have been to dC twice, the first we did the dolphin swim the second we did not. DC, it being all inclusive, is a wondeful day out and our duaghter (now 11) would chosse DC over any of the parks in Orlando.

You can go to DC on a non Dolphin swin basis and that redcues the cost quite a bit. this year we bought 3 non swim ultimate tickets for £420.

 

[mollies_mum]

I took my daughter and my Mum in 2006. My daughter was 6 and my mum didn't do the dolphin interaction.I would HIGHLY recommend it although I appreciate that it is a lot of money. We also had the 14 day pass to Busch Gardens and Seaworld (Aquatica wasn't open then)

The service was fantastic, they couldn't do enough for you. The food was out of this world and you can help yourself to snacks and drinks. In fact we took a load of snacks back to our hotel with us in our bag. We also got to keep our mask and tube in the discovery cove net bag so that was a bonus. We still have them now.

The photos we bought there, while quite expensive, were so fantastic. My daughter still talks about it now 3years later.

We're going back to Florida October 2010 and we're deciding between this and the shark diving in Seaworld....I would happily pay to do this again. It really was a special day

 

[Hbabe78]

i went on the 26th of september last year just my eldest dd and i, couldnt justify taking the rest as they wouldnt have done the dolphin swim and we were on a budget.

i also loved it spent all day there took full advantage of the food drink and snacks,

we went at about 9 and got a swim of 12,40 it suited us, also not being a peak times of year is maby why turning up later was on then.

it is a lot of money but then so is all off the attactions in florida, we wont be going when we go back next year, but hopefully one time we will

 

[Cleofish]

Cleofish how did your hubby to be propose at DC?

Well the sneaky boy booked it all online before we left for Florida. The story goes something along the lines that when we checked in (and I was uber giddy about seeing dolphins) he asked the check-in girl to 'use the bathroom', so she escorted him over, and which point he gave her the ring. She then took it away and gave it to the event co-ordinator who was in charge of the whole thing. We then went for our swim as normal at 10am, with the rest of our group, but at the end of the swim the trainer said they hadn't got our family photo properly, so she asked Matt & I to come back down for photos with the dolphin (Cindy). So the photog took a few pics (and I believe at this point they were sorting out behind us), and then the trainer told me sometimes the Dolphins bring back nice things from the water, so asked me to point to send Cindy away (which I did) and then stand with my hand out wide waiting for her to come back (at which point I started to wonder!!). Cindy then launched back at me with a buoy that said "Will You Marry Me?" on it, which I took, read and then hugged DF.

We then had some more photos took with Cindy & my bouy before we went to the shore to lots of 'Congratulations' etc. We were then led by our co-ordinator round to a privae cabana where my ring was in a treasure chest filled with tropical flowers. The cabana was all decked out in flowers, there was a table with a bottle of Champers, a framed picture of the dolphins, a box of choccies and a fridge stocked full of goodies. DF then got down on one knee, gave me my ring and that was that! We were treated like royalty all day, getting food service to the cabana if we wished, and they brought us everything we needed. We got the whole thing on DVD as part of the package, and we bought all the pictures on CD. It was absolutely amazing, and I believe they do a similar package for birthdays, anniversaries etc.
I have been told it cost a pretty penny, but it was worth every bit, and I'll never forget it. Hence why I love DC so much.

Sorry for the thread highjack - I still say the swim is completely worth it though!!

 

[jenbabes]

defiantly worth it if you've never been before its something you have to got to experience at least once not just for the dolphins but for the whole experience. me and my bf did it and we're not big dolphin fans but it was one of the best days of our holiday. even just swimming with the tropical fish and sting rays and feeding them if you catch that at the right time. we even brought all the photos which prob arent worth the money but had to to keep those memory's from an awesome day.