Please give me your two cents on decision about parks: Seaworld or kennedy space !

[tamaraten]

Just when I thought I had made progress in making a decision, I'm in another dilemma!

After much help from the wonderful people on these threads, I finally decided to get an AP and stay on-site (at RPR) with a great discount so as to benefit from the FOTL.

I'm traveling with DH and four kids, ages 6, 8, 10, 12.

My dates are Sunday December 5th to Wednesday December 8th, with arriving really late Sat. the 4rth and staying off-site at somewhere inexpensive (haven't at all decided that one yet!).

That gives me four full days (have to leave Wednesday night which will be tiring after an entire day at whichever park, for a long drive, but that's besides the point..)

After all the great advice here, I decided on 3 days between Universal and IOA so as not to have to rush through. The fourth day I was debating between Seaworld and Kennedy.

My kids LOVE space stuff, but I know they would also love Seaworld with their amazing shows and sharks, etc.

Now, I'm revisiting the whole idea, and I'm thinking since I'm having an impossible time deciding between Seaworld and Kennedy, maybe I should do Universal in 2 days, and then one day each for Seaworld and KSC.

Or is that way too rushed and exhausting (especially with having to drive back on 4rth night)?

Should I go back to my original debate of staying at Universal for 3 days, and just deciding on what to do on the 4rth day, SW or KSC? And if so, which would you choose for that last day and why?

So to sum up, the choice is:

3 days universal and on the 4rth day SW or KSC - and please give me your vote on which.

OR:

2 days Universal and 1 day each SW and KSC.

I'm a real novice here, and so appreciate all of the help I'm receiving.

(ps. I've mentioned this in previous threads, but half the reason I think it's so hard to decide is because we live abroad and won't be coming often like US residents).



Thanks a million.

 

[damo]

3 days Universal, one day SeaWorld would be my vote.

 

[ducky_love]

3 days Universal, one day SeaWorld would be my vote.

What damo said.

 

[brenda1966]

Dare I say Kennedy was kind of boring to me. Sea World or a beach day would be my vote!

 

[tamaraten]

Dare I say Kennedy was kind of boring to me. Sea World or a beach day would be my vote!

Wow, I'm so surprised. It looks so great on the website and the reviews (on tripadvisor) were also pretty good. Are you interested in that stuff to begin with? (I'm actually not a great space fan, I just felt it would be fascinating for kids and DH who do love that stuff). Did you go on the bus ride and see the movies?

 

[brenda1966]

Yes, we did a bit of everything. I have prior exposure to space stuff, as does DD, so it was not new to us. We did the bus tour and it's surprisingly time consuming. Granted we were there on a weekend, but it was very busy. There were 2 bus stops and I found the narration interesting (although I can tell you the kids didn't pay attention at all). Our first day we got there at 12:30 and left at 6pm when they closed. We mostly did the bus tour and grabbed lunch and ice cream. Our second day we only spent a few hours there at the main buildings. We saw one Imax show (we'd already seen the other) and I can say that Imax doesn't need 3D! So the 3D gimmic was a distraction, rather than adding to the movie. The kids also did the really lame ride a second time while I walked around the rocket garden. If you asked DD what she liked best about those 2 days of our trip it would be the 2 hours we spent at Cocoa Beach for sure.

I'm not saying people shouldn't visit Kennedy, especially if you have an interest. It was interesting and informative. Impressive too. But it's really a museum, and not as much interactive stuff as I would have expected for the kids. Mostly a walk through, look, listen kind of museum. So, if you go, I'd go on day one and leave the amusement park fun for the latter days.

 

[damo]

Tamara, do a search on Kennedy Space on these boards. There are tons of people who do a one day tour and you should get some good ideas.

 

[tamaraten]

Tamara, do a search on Kennedy Space on these boards. There are tons of people who do a one day tour and you should get some good ideas.

You know, I've been doing that for the past few hours (it's 1:30 a.m. where I am on this side of the world. DH thinks I'm totally insane and keeps telling me to go to sleep but I've become addicted!) and I am really surprised at how little there is on this place as compared to other topics. There's also, surprisingly, little consensus. Some people say it's so boring and others say that it's fascinating, even though it's so different than a "classical" park - it's more of a museum.

What strikes me the most, apart from how little info there is, is how old the information is. There is nothing really current that I see on the place and describing the experience, at least not much. (there's some technical stuff on how to get there, tickets, etc, but nothing really current about the place itself).

HAS ANYONE OUT THERE BEEN TO KSC RECENTLY??!!!

I'm really going cukoo I think.

 

[damo]

Perhaps go on the Community board and put out a post about exactly that.

 

[Darcy03231]

Given the ages of your children and your short time frame I'd do SeaWorld. We've done both and hands down my kids enjoyed SeaWorld a lot more. In fact, the kids were really kind of bored at Kennedy Space Center after a couple of hours (kids were 9, 12, 14 & 16 at the time - we left the 3 y.o. home with Nana who had already been), and kept wanting to know when we were going to leave. I really enjoyed it myself (as did my sister and BIL).

 

[damo]

You also might want to look at some youtube videos to see exactly what is there.

 

[brenda1966]

My experience above was from 2 weeks ago. I know from a friend that the bus tour used to have 3 stops, with one being a "space station", but that stop is no longer on the brochure and there are just 2 stops.

 

[hibricc]

Last December during a 9-day visit to WDW, we did both SeaWorld and KSC, one day at each, with two boys aged 7 and 9. Each of them got to choose a destination for one day of our trip - the 7yo chose KSC (loves space), the 9yo chose SeaWorld (loves animals/ocean). We all enjoyed both places, though each boy enjoyed his chosen day more than the other, naturally.

Unless your kids have a specific interest in NASA or the space program, I would probably recommend SeaWorld over KSC. SW feels more like an amusement park, with lots of family-friendly shows and a couple of teen-friendly thrill rides. KSC is trying really hard to upgrade their experience to compete for tourists - and they've come a LONG way in the last ten years, adding a reality-based shuttle simulator ride (which unfortunately feels tame compared to Mission:Space) and a VERY cool reenactment of the first moon landing. But it often still feels like a museum, and if your kids aren't interested in space exploration, they will be bored. SW on the other hand, appeals to a broader group of visitors, IMO.

One final note that you probably already realize - SW is significantly more expensive than KSC.

All that said, I can't compare a day at either of these to a third day at UO, since we didn't go there (planning to this time, though!).

 

[coastgirl]

It's been about three years since I've been to KSC and I've never been to SeaWorld (hoping to change that in Feb.) but had to jump in and say Kennedy is A.M.A.Z.I.N.G. if you have an interest in any space "stuff". I will NEVER forget being able to touch a piece of moon rock, or seeing the control room they used in the Apollo missions, or walking under that huge rocket, or seeing an astronaut toilet (!) or the international banners in the Space Station area... So incredibly inspiring to me, to contemplate what our species is capable of. I'm not even American and I got all patriotic! (Of course I took about a million pictures of the Canadian flag in the ISS area!)

Your kids are a great age for it, and I just love doing things with my kids that inspires a respect for curiousity and science. (My kids were 4 and 7 the last time we went; the 4 yo probably didn't get as much out of it, but she felt our excitement and now if you ask her what she wants to be when she grows up, she says an astronaut.)

That said--4 days isn't a lot of time, and you're going to be knackered at the end of it. I think if your kids have an interest in space exploration, it is just absolutely wonderful, but if you think they'd enjoy learning about the marine mammals and habitats just as well, maybe Seaworld would be less work.

THat may not help! But I found KSC such an amazing, inspiring experience, I couldn't let you miss hearing a big resounding "pro KSC" opinion!

Have fun, whatever you decide.

 

[mdb78]

Why not just do a vote with your family?

DH and I are theme park, roller coaster, thrill seeking, people. We are also one of those fascinated by Kennedy Space center. It can take a half day to a full day depending on what you do and what time you get there (they're only open from 9-6). With admission you have the main visitor complex and the bus tour that has 3 stops. Yes, it is more like a museum, but if your kids are really into space, they'll probably appreciate seeing where the shuttles launch from and viewing the different artifacts and history. We went several times last year and this year(we bought the annual pass) and our dd was 2, and the only time she seemed bored was when we had to wait in line for something, and during the astronaut encounter when the astronaut was giving his little presentation (it's only like 10-15 minutes, then you get to ask questions and take your picture with the astronaut). This past April we took our 8 yr old nephew and he enjoyed seeing everything and riding the launch simulator. Have you checked out Kennedy's website?

BTW, choosing between Sea World and Kennedy would be tough for us too as we love going to Sea World! We LOVE feeding the dolphins and enjoy the shows as well!

 

[tamaraten]

Perhaps go on the Community board and put out a post about exactly that.

Thanks, I did do another post, although not on Community board because I did a search there on KSC and there wasn't one thing that came up so I figured that that wasn't the place. I think I did it in the general Orlando attractions forum. We'll see...

 

[tamaraten]

You also might want to look at some youtube videos to see exactly what is there.

Just tried it, also pretty dated. What's the story here? Everything is so old related to KSC?!

 

[tamaraten]

Given the ages of your children and your short time frame I'd do SeaWorld. We've done both and hands down my kids enjoyed SeaWorld a lot more. In fact, the kids were really kind of bored at Kennedy Space Center after a couple of hours (kids were 9, 12, 14 & 16 at the time - we left the 3 y.o. home with Nana who had already been), and kept wanting to know when we were going to leave. I really enjoyed it myself (as did my sister and BIL).

thanks Darcy. Did you do the bus tour, and if so did you do the extra one (where you pay extra)? If so, was it worth it? And if you did the regular one, was it good enough?

thanks.

 

[tamaraten]

Last December during a 9-day visit to WDW, we did both SeaWorld and KSC, one day at each, with two boys aged 7 and 9. Each of them got to choose a destination for one day of our trip - the 7yo chose KSC (loves space), the 9yo chose SeaWorld (loves animals/ocean). We all enjoyed both places, though each boy enjoyed his chosen day more than the other, naturally.

Unless your kids have a specific interest in NASA or the space program, I would probably recommend SeaWorld over KSC. SW feels more like an amusement park, with lots of family-friendly shows and a couple of teen-friendly thrill rides. KSC is trying really hard to upgrade their experience to compete for tourists - and they've come a LONG way in the last ten years, adding a reality-based shuttle simulator ride (which unfortunately feels tame compared to Mission:Space) and a VERY cool reenactment of the first moon landing. But it often still feels like a museum, and if your kids aren't interested in space exploration, they will be bored. SW on the other hand, appeals to a broader group of visitors, IMO.

One final note that you probably already realize - SW is significantly more expensive than KSC.

.

Thanks hibricc, was wondering whether while you were there did you do the bus tour, and if so did you do the regular one included in the admission ticket, or did you pay extra for one of the other two tours that they offer at the extra price. If you did the extra, was it worth it? And if you did the regular, was it good enough in your opinion?

Also,
Just wanted to let anyone who is interested know that I just found a great discount for Seaworld - saw it on Mousesavers I think, but it's on the Seaworld website - you buy one ticket and you get one free. I think that's great, so for us it would be 6 people, buy 3 and get 3 free tickets which is a nice discount. The promotional code you type in is "PepsiExclusive". I think it's until the end of December if I remember correctly.

 

[hibricc]

Thanks hibricc, was wondering whether while you were there did you do the bus tour, and if so did you do the regular one included in the admission ticket, or did you pay extra for one of the other two tours that they offer at the extra price. If you did the extra, was it worth it? And if you did the regular, was it good enough in your opinion?

IIRC, there are two bus tours, right? We only did the regular one - which was still a couple of hours long, and included a stop at the very cool SaturnV building. Sorry, can't comment on the longer tour.

ETA Ah I see that they've revised the tour structure a bit. We definitely only did the included tour.