Cast
Me, Michelle, 36, wants to see the dolphins
DH, Chris, 39, don't know why I've been putting 38???
DS1, Kenton, 8, wants to see the penguins
DS2, Lincoln, 5, wants to see any animals
Day 4 Mon 5 Feb
It is quite chilly today, about 55 I think. We had jeans fleeces and waterproof jackets on. I have been watching the Weather Channel so am prepared!!
We have our first drive along the I4, very quick run up to SeaWorld, arriving at 8.40am. We are one of the first to arrive. I am slightly worried in case our pre-printed tickets don't work (bought online in the UK and printed ourselves) but all is well. We wander past the flamingos and visit the turtles and stingrays. We enjoy the atmosphere around the Key West area of the park, but a bit more sun would be nice!
Then we go to see the dolphins and by chance arrive as they are starting to sell fish to feed them with. We quickly decide to buy some and then spend a magical 30 mins seeing the dolphins close up and feeding them fish. This is the first feeding time of the day so the dolphins are quite eager for their food and generally quite frisky. A real highlight of the trip! We have a look at the photos taken of us but they are not very good and we have taken better ourselves.
We then head over to see the Clyde and Seymour Show, which is entertaining but a little corny. The human performers look very cold! We then go to visit the seals and sea-lions at Pacific Point Preserve. This seems to be a very nice habitat for them. The sea-lions are making lots of noise in the hope of getting some fish. DH goes off to book lunch at Sharks Underwater Grill at this point.
We go to see the penguins in their snowy world, the boys are amazed that they have real snow. We spend quite a bit of time watching them. The park is extremely quiet, although all the shows were nearly full. We grab some nice hot popcorn and have a look at the Atlantis ride but noone feels brave enough to get a soaking. Noone fancies Kraken either!
We go and see the sharks and fish in the underwater viewing area, and then it is time for lunch. We have a nice table with a view of the tank and enjoy a very good meal. We share some starters of bruschetta topped with prawns and a crab salad, then I have a trio of fish, DH has tuna, DS1 has prawns and DS2 has pasta. DS1 absolutely loves seafood and is always begging us to order expensive menu items, but he does mostly eat them. The restaurant has a very relaxed atmosphere and of course a great view of the sharks and fish.
We decide we want to go to the 1pm showing of Believe so we run round to the Shamu Stadium, just getting the last seats in the 'dry' area! I can't believe how packed it is, considering we have hardly seen anyone all day! We really enjoy the show, especially DS2, who is absolutely transfixed by the killer whales.
The boys spot the Happy Harbour play area (kind of hard to miss!) so we go there and DS1 disappears into the netting. DS2 is a bit intimidated by the net climbs so he plays on the pirate boat, squirting people with water! It is very chilly and starting to rain so we round them up after 20 mins and head to the Wild Arctic. We enjoy the helicopter ride and I am surprised how big this area is. We enjoy watching the beluga whales having a training session and admire the big walrus. The polar bear catches a fish while we are watching, quite a sight! DS2 buys a plush killer whale in the shop, named Splashy!
We walk back to the other side of the park and grab some hot coffee and a danish, the boys choose something choclatey I think. We then take our snack to the stadium to watch the Blue Horizons whale and dolphin show. We enjoy the show very much, but feel a bit sorry for the performers who must be freezing after being in the water!
We then head back to the Key West area to see a few bits we missed eearlier. We saw the dolphins underwater viewing area and then went to visit the manatees. A ranger was giving a talk about the manatees in the underwater viewing area, which was very interesting. They were being fed box-fuls of lettuce. A quick peek at the alligators and we leave the park.
We decide to have a look at International Drive and drive along it looking at all the restaurants, shops and other landmarks. We decide on Sweet Tomatoes for dinner, unfortunately we take a wrong turn and end up on a toll road oops! I get shouted at for my navigational skills but we manage to make our way back and into the restaurant. We are very impressed by the salad buffet, thanks for all the recommedations! We enjoy salad, soup and pasta followed by muffins, all really nice and fresh.
We then drive back to the villa on the I4.
Tomorrow- Magic Kingdom, parades and fireworks.
Me, Michelle, 36, wants to see the dolphins
DH, Chris, 39, don't know why I've been putting 38???
DS1, Kenton, 8, wants to see the penguins
DS2, Lincoln, 5, wants to see any animals
Day 4 Mon 5 Feb
It is quite chilly today, about 55 I think. We had jeans fleeces and waterproof jackets on. I have been watching the Weather Channel so am prepared!!
We have our first drive along the I4, very quick run up to SeaWorld, arriving at 8.40am. We are one of the first to arrive. I am slightly worried in case our pre-printed tickets don't work (bought online in the UK and printed ourselves) but all is well. We wander past the flamingos and visit the turtles and stingrays. We enjoy the atmosphere around the Key West area of the park, but a bit more sun would be nice!
Then we go to see the dolphins and by chance arrive as they are starting to sell fish to feed them with. We quickly decide to buy some and then spend a magical 30 mins seeing the dolphins close up and feeding them fish. This is the first feeding time of the day so the dolphins are quite eager for their food and generally quite frisky. A real highlight of the trip! We have a look at the photos taken of us but they are not very good and we have taken better ourselves.
We then head over to see the Clyde and Seymour Show, which is entertaining but a little corny. The human performers look very cold! We then go to visit the seals and sea-lions at Pacific Point Preserve. This seems to be a very nice habitat for them. The sea-lions are making lots of noise in the hope of getting some fish. DH goes off to book lunch at Sharks Underwater Grill at this point.
We go to see the penguins in their snowy world, the boys are amazed that they have real snow. We spend quite a bit of time watching them. The park is extremely quiet, although all the shows were nearly full. We grab some nice hot popcorn and have a look at the Atlantis ride but noone feels brave enough to get a soaking. Noone fancies Kraken either!
We go and see the sharks and fish in the underwater viewing area, and then it is time for lunch. We have a nice table with a view of the tank and enjoy a very good meal. We share some starters of bruschetta topped with prawns and a crab salad, then I have a trio of fish, DH has tuna, DS1 has prawns and DS2 has pasta. DS1 absolutely loves seafood and is always begging us to order expensive menu items, but he does mostly eat them. The restaurant has a very relaxed atmosphere and of course a great view of the sharks and fish.
We decide we want to go to the 1pm showing of Believe so we run round to the Shamu Stadium, just getting the last seats in the 'dry' area! I can't believe how packed it is, considering we have hardly seen anyone all day! We really enjoy the show, especially DS2, who is absolutely transfixed by the killer whales.
The boys spot the Happy Harbour play area (kind of hard to miss!) so we go there and DS1 disappears into the netting. DS2 is a bit intimidated by the net climbs so he plays on the pirate boat, squirting people with water! It is very chilly and starting to rain so we round them up after 20 mins and head to the Wild Arctic. We enjoy the helicopter ride and I am surprised how big this area is. We enjoy watching the beluga whales having a training session and admire the big walrus. The polar bear catches a fish while we are watching, quite a sight! DS2 buys a plush killer whale in the shop, named Splashy!
We walk back to the other side of the park and grab some hot coffee and a danish, the boys choose something choclatey I think. We then take our snack to the stadium to watch the Blue Horizons whale and dolphin show. We enjoy the show very much, but feel a bit sorry for the performers who must be freezing after being in the water!
We then head back to the Key West area to see a few bits we missed eearlier. We saw the dolphins underwater viewing area and then went to visit the manatees. A ranger was giving a talk about the manatees in the underwater viewing area, which was very interesting. They were being fed box-fuls of lettuce. A quick peek at the alligators and we leave the park.
We decide to have a look at International Drive and drive along it looking at all the restaurants, shops and other landmarks. We decide on Sweet Tomatoes for dinner, unfortunately we take a wrong turn and end up on a toll road oops! I get shouted at for my navigational skills but we manage to make our way back and into the restaurant. We are very impressed by the salad buffet, thanks for all the recommedations! We enjoy salad, soup and pasta followed by muffins, all really nice and fresh.
We then drive back to the villa on the I4.
Tomorrow- Magic Kingdom, parades and fireworks.
your navigating sounds like mine 
Take a look though my (work in progress) trip report 3 weeks of bliss and see if your in any of my photos, if you are that would be too spooky.
