We went to Seaworld yesterday (Saturday of Memorial weekend) and I thought I would share some information about the new shows they have and our experience. We got Seaworld tickets as part of our Discovery Cove package and decided to go in the late afternoon/evening and focus on shows. My kids are not coaster fans and we recently went to an excellent aquarium, so this seemed to be the best way to approach the park.
We arrived around 4:40 p.m. and there was no wait/lines to drive in or enter the park. We did have a long-ish walk from where we had to park to the entrance.
5:30- New Dolphin Adventures Show- we walked up to the stadium at 5:00 and there were huge lines for both entrances and it was HOT! After a few minutes they let us in and we had no trouble finding great seats but the stadium did get completely packed well before the 5:30 showtime. We were thankful the whole stadium was in shade at that time of day. The show itself was enjoyable with the emphasis on education and showcasing dolphin's natural movements in the wild (jumps, swimming together, tail flaps, etc.). This was a theme in the Orca show as well- no stunts with humans- more of a natural approach. We all enjoyed this show!
6:30- Rescue Tails show- We came here right after the dolphin show and a quick restroom break. After being in the heat, we were happy to sit in this air conditioned theater! We got here about 25 minutes before the show started, but that wasn't really necessary to get a good seat- we could have showed up a lot closer to start time and been fine. The show is in the Seaport Theater which used to have the Pets Ahoy show (which I never saw). I could not find any information about this show ahead of time since it is new. The show is presented by 2 guys from a wildlife rescue organization in California. They said that usually they do lots of school programs during the year but this year due to COVID they didn't do any, so they brought their animals to SeaWorld. The show was really like school program- they had some cheesy jokes and a collection of animals with rescue stories that they shared. The animals didn't do any tricks or stunts- they just were displayed as the guys took turns sharing their stories. There were some really cute animals and lots of education about both the animals themselves as well as what to do if you find a wild animal injured in your yard. We also enjoyed this show!
7:30- Sea Lion show- After the Rescue show we walked out into some rain which apparently started while we were inside enjoying the show. I'm sure this sent some people home. This is not a new show but we liked it! Again, plenty of good seating even if you didn't get there 20 minutes early like we did. We did a quick walk through of the Shark Encounter after this show.
Then we grabbed dinner. I was worried about lines, but at 8:00 p.m. they were better than they had been earlier in the evening. We went to the Voyager Smokehouse and spent about 20 minutes waiting in line before we were able to order.
9:00- Orca Encounter- We got to the stadium about 10 minutes before the show, but it holds so many people there were plenty of seats.
10:00- Fireworks/Ingite- After the Orca show we didn't really know what to do! We wandered over to Bayside stadium for "Club Sea Glow" but my kids hated it- loud music, strobe lights, smoke, giant dance party, etc. Basically just like a club! The stadium was not super crowded and there were plenty of seats for fireworks viewing. The kids wanted to walk around and escape the club, so we found a good spot to watch the fireworks from the grass next to a sidewalk. We also checked out one of the "Ignite Viewing Areas" they have on the map and our spot on the grass was MUCH better for viewing than the place on the map. If you want a nice spot and don't want to sit in the stadium, I would recommend finding a spot somewhere between Bayside stadium and the Seafire Grill on the grass or pathway. I was expecting wall-to-wall people for fireworks (like Disney) but it was nothing like that with lots of space and not really crowded. This area also puts you close to the entrance for a fast exit. The show had fountains, fireworks and some flame throwing things. Fun!
Overall we were super happy with our evening at SeaWorld!
We arrived around 4:40 p.m. and there was no wait/lines to drive in or enter the park. We did have a long-ish walk from where we had to park to the entrance.
5:30- New Dolphin Adventures Show- we walked up to the stadium at 5:00 and there were huge lines for both entrances and it was HOT! After a few minutes they let us in and we had no trouble finding great seats but the stadium did get completely packed well before the 5:30 showtime. We were thankful the whole stadium was in shade at that time of day. The show itself was enjoyable with the emphasis on education and showcasing dolphin's natural movements in the wild (jumps, swimming together, tail flaps, etc.). This was a theme in the Orca show as well- no stunts with humans- more of a natural approach. We all enjoyed this show!
6:30- Rescue Tails show- We came here right after the dolphin show and a quick restroom break. After being in the heat, we were happy to sit in this air conditioned theater! We got here about 25 minutes before the show started, but that wasn't really necessary to get a good seat- we could have showed up a lot closer to start time and been fine. The show is in the Seaport Theater which used to have the Pets Ahoy show (which I never saw). I could not find any information about this show ahead of time since it is new. The show is presented by 2 guys from a wildlife rescue organization in California. They said that usually they do lots of school programs during the year but this year due to COVID they didn't do any, so they brought their animals to SeaWorld. The show was really like school program- they had some cheesy jokes and a collection of animals with rescue stories that they shared. The animals didn't do any tricks or stunts- they just were displayed as the guys took turns sharing their stories. There were some really cute animals and lots of education about both the animals themselves as well as what to do if you find a wild animal injured in your yard. We also enjoyed this show!
7:30- Sea Lion show- After the Rescue show we walked out into some rain which apparently started while we were inside enjoying the show. I'm sure this sent some people home. This is not a new show but we liked it! Again, plenty of good seating even if you didn't get there 20 minutes early like we did. We did a quick walk through of the Shark Encounter after this show.
Then we grabbed dinner. I was worried about lines, but at 8:00 p.m. they were better than they had been earlier in the evening. We went to the Voyager Smokehouse and spent about 20 minutes waiting in line before we were able to order.
9:00- Orca Encounter- We got to the stadium about 10 minutes before the show, but it holds so many people there were plenty of seats.
10:00- Fireworks/Ingite- After the Orca show we didn't really know what to do! We wandered over to Bayside stadium for "Club Sea Glow" but my kids hated it- loud music, strobe lights, smoke, giant dance party, etc. Basically just like a club! The stadium was not super crowded and there were plenty of seats for fireworks viewing. The kids wanted to walk around and escape the club, so we found a good spot to watch the fireworks from the grass next to a sidewalk. We also checked out one of the "Ignite Viewing Areas" they have on the map and our spot on the grass was MUCH better for viewing than the place on the map. If you want a nice spot and don't want to sit in the stadium, I would recommend finding a spot somewhere between Bayside stadium and the Seafire Grill on the grass or pathway. I was expecting wall-to-wall people for fireworks (like Disney) but it was nothing like that with lots of space and not really crowded. This area also puts you close to the entrance for a fast exit. The show had fountains, fireworks and some flame throwing things. Fun!
Overall we were super happy with our evening at SeaWorld!
