Discovery Cove

[JustAKid]

Can anyone who has gone to Discovery Cove tell me how the Dolphin Swim works? Is it like WDW when one chooses an "ADR" for the time of day they would like to do this, or are you assigned a time?

Also, about how long does check-in take?

TIA!!

 

[SYDCOLEMOM]

We did DC last May and I just booked again for May 24th. It is by far my most favorite vacation day ever !! You pick a day when you book. When you arrive at DC they have all your information - they take your picture, print out your ID card (put it on a lanyard) and then assign you a swim time. We were not able to pick a swim time. I believe ours last year was for 10am. We ate breakfast, hung out in the Grand Reef for awhile and then checked in at our assigned time for the dolphin swim. Check in is very fast, they have lots of staff ready to check you in and point you in the right direction. Get there about 30 min before opening to get a good parking spot. you will not be disappointed. Such an amazing experience !!!! I can hardly wait !!

 

[KingofSwing3000]

DC is Amazing. Absolutely a-maz-ing. But I'll pass along a personal family consensus: the dolphin swim is overrated and not worth it. We did it our first trip, and while it's cute and all it's very short especially for the price. You can still see the dolphins from the shore, and that has more than sufficed on our subsequent trips. Plus, if you want to feed the dolphins and pet them than just do that over at Sea World. Anywho, that's just our opinion.

 

[mjohnson96]

Can anyone who has gone to Discovery Cove tell me how the Dolphin Swim works? Is it like WDW when one chooses an "ADR" for the time of day they would like to do this, or are you assigned a time?

Also, about how long does check-in take?

TIA!!

We loved it, get there early. I would suggest more than 30 minutes because they tend to open things up for breakfast and check in early. The earlier you are there the better your swim time is. I don't like the later day ones because the weather could get crappy in the afternoons

I have gone several times but only have one the dolphin swim once, to me once was enough. But I love the rest of the park and enjoy being able to relax.

 

[kerryc6]

Check out the sea world universal threads on here ... Lots of discovery cove info and a lot of great pictures! We go in August!

 

[4kids4karen]

When we went (2004) they assigned the dolphin swim times by the time you checked in. I wanted to go early, and since we were one of the first to check in, we got the first session! I wanted to get it done first so we didn't have to keep checking the time throughout the day.

 

[The Lorax]

Best park ever - We experienced Discovery Cove last May. As PP stated arrive early as the Dolphin swim times are on a first come first serve basis. Plan to be there approx 30 min before gate times to secure the earliest times.

Check in was fast, no waiting when you are early. Only had to wait about 15 min for the gates to open after we completed check in.

We preferred an early time dolphin swim time so we could leisurely enjoy the park.

Wish all parks were all inclusive, Loved the lack of any real crowds and not hearing my kids ask for a snack or drink!

I highly recommend Discovery Cove to anyone visiting, even without the dolphin swim it is well worth the $.