San Diego Zoo or Sea World

[Mindibellcm]

Good Morning.

We are spending 4 days at DL and then heading to San Diego. We would like to do either the zoo or Sea World. Any thoughts? We did the wild animal park on our last visit and Legoland. We weren't really excited about either of them. The zoo would be less expensive and take a little less time which might be nice to let us unwind from our 4 days at Disneyland!

Any thoughts would be great.
Mindi

 

[tmt martins]

Good Morning.

We are spending 4 days at DL and then heading to San Diego. We would like to do either the zoo or Sea World. Any thoughts? We did the wild animal park on our last visit and Legoland. We weren't really excited about either of them. The zoo would be less expensive and take a little less time which might be nice to let us unwind from our 4 days at Disneyland!

Any thoughts would be great.
Mindi

The Zoo takes less time All those hills OMG .Yes we spent about 3/4 of a day at both so time wise about the same .We went asa relaxing time at those for the return to DL camando style.
Seaworld was nicer IMO I really like the Cirque type water show.


You might want to check out the SOUTHERN CALI pass thats what we did it was way cheaper then tickets separtly.
It included 3 day Hopper DL (was enough to get all in plus extra day to go back to favs.) 1day SW 1 day SDZ and 1 day at Knotts but I think thats being replaced by US.

 

[GreenGirl8]

You will do a lot less walking at Sea World. Most of the day will includes sitting down and waiting for shows. That can be a bit more relaxing than fighting crowds to see animals. The zoo is amazing, but if you are looking for a more relaxing time...do Sea World.

 

[utahkennedys]

We love Sea World and don't care too much for the zoo. I agree about the hills, not my idea of a fun day pushing 2 strollers in the heat up hills!

 

[LukenDC]

I am originally from San Diego and last month I vacationed there and visited both Sea World and the Zoo. I was disappointed with Sea World. There did not appear to be as much to do as I remembered from earlier visits. Since it's the off-season, some of the attractions were closed for refurbishment and some shows (including Cirque de la Mer) were on hiatus. Thankfully I got my ticket by using American Express points. Had I paid the hefty admision fee, I would been more than simply disappointed!

I love the Zoo. There is so much to see and the exhibits are innovative. They have underwater viewing for the hippos and polar bears. The gorilla and chimp exhibits are also well designed. The Zoo is also one of the few places in the world where one can see pandas and koalas. If walking up hills concerns you, make use of the express buses which patrol the park and provide numerous pick-up and drop-off locations.

The Zoo is in Balboa Park, which is an amazing urban cultural center and the crown jewel of San Diego. If you have time, you should visit the Ruben H. Fleet Space and Science Center (five minute walk from Zoo exit). They have dozens of hands-on scienece exhibits and a wonderful domed IMAX theater.

 

[kuusimo]

I think it depends on the ages of your children as well. We were there two years ago so our sons were 1 and 2. They did not like Sea World and we were there from 2:00 to 4:00 which meant $4.00 an hour for parking. They loved the zoo though and we went in the morning, and came back in the afternoon after naps. I really though they would have like Sea World better since their favorite movie at the time was "Nemo", but that was not the case. Sea World does have a lot more "shows" than the zoo. Parking is free at the zoo vs. $8.00 at Sea World. www.tripadvisor.com has reviews of both places. May be worth checking out.

 

[ter-moo]

I think it depends on the ages of your children as well. We were there two years ago so our sons were 1 and 2. They did not like Sea World and we were there from 2:00 to 4:00 which meant $4.00 an hour for parking. They loved the zoo though and we went in the morning, and came back in the afternoon after naps.

That's funny, I was about to say the opposite. We lived in San Diego when my kids were small and had passes for both the zoo and Sea World. My kids always liked Sea World better (with the exception of the dressed-up characters that walked around--they were afraid of them!) I finally figured out why:
At the zoo, the animals are mainly standing there, sometimes hard for a very small child to find or focus on. At Sea World, most of the animals are moving all the time (because they're in water and have to swim) and kids can get a real close-up view of them.

I think both have their merits and both are definitely worth seeing, however. As a previous poster mentioned, there's a lot to see in Balboa Park besides the zoo (there's a train museum, art museum, science museum and botanical gardens).

Sea World is usually cooler weather-wise than the zoo (depending on when you're going) and then there are those hills at the zoo that many have discussed.

So I think it's a question of what your kids like and how active/enthusiastic about walking they are.

 

[jemilah]

I went to both with my son's 8 and 6 years old........it was Aug. and we got cold at sea world! We try to go to SD to see pro football once a year since we have none here . i asked the boys if they could pick one the were split . The bus tour at the zoo is so nice and then you can walk to see what you really like. Sea World is more shows and 3 rides. Sorry this was probably not alot of help , but trust me you will enjoy either one.........flip a coin if you have to!

 

[victorandbellasmom]

My kids loved seaworld. We went for the first time when they were 1 and 4 w/o dh. When we came home, ds (4) had to make daddy promise he'll come with us the next time. We went last year, the kids were 7 and 4 and we all enjoyed it, espcially dh. Our son was old enough to ride the rides and our daughter(4) had a blast watching the animal shows and just playing at their elaborate play area. We actually spent 2 days there on our last trip and had breakfast with Shamu. We went to San Diego Zoo last year too. The highlights of our trip to the zoo was seeing the pandas (dh, dd, and ds had never seen a panda live, up close and personal) and riding the sky tram. It is a very hilly zoo and should you decide to go this route, I would recommend the bus tour. You don't have to pay for parking here so that's a plus. Good luck making your decision.

 

[LucyKate]

Tough call! We loved them both, but here's the comparison:

Zoo - as mentioned, no rides or real interaction for kids, but seeing animals like pandas up close, and hippos underwater made this Zoo much better than average. LOTS of walking though and lots of hills, but our kids (6 and 9) loved it.

Seaworld - more expensive, but lots for kids to do, great shows and some fun rides, especially the rope climb area. It is more expensive, but not too far to walk around.

On balance I suspect kids would like Seaworld more, but I don't think you can go wrong with either. We're pleased we took an extra day to make sure we saw both.

 

[webprinter]

My vote would be for Seaworld. To me it seems much more relaxed with less walking. Plus, as mentioned earlier, there are a couple rides. I love the shows. We went to Seaworld in December last year and it wasn't too bad temp.-wise. It was a little colder than inland but there was a lot of sun and if you don't sit in the splash zone at the shows, it isn't a big deal. We saw everything and still left before the closing time. However, the zoo is good too and I don't think you can go wrong with either one. Debby

 

[darph nader]

SeaWorld! Don't get me wrong i like zoos,but you've seen one you've seen them all.Detroit Zoo(my birth place) Reid Park Zoo,Tucson,Abilene Zoo,they're somewhat all the same.It is somewhat nice being entertained(although captured) by our fellow terrians (no matter what their species).Feeding Dolphins or petting Manta rays is kinda cool.

 

[RIFamily]

Is it possible to do both? Could you get to the zoo when it opens and spend 3-4 hours there and then head over to SeaWorld for the remainder of the day? Are they even close by each other??? Thanks!

 

[mickeysgal]

We're in the same boat - Sea World or SD Zoo. We've been to Orlando's Sea World many times. Shouldn't we then opt for the zoo? Wouldn't the SD Sea World be basically the same as the Orlando version? Has anyone thats been to both Sea Worlds please comment on this? We love Sea World and if its significantly different enough, we'll opt for it. Otherwise, if they're basically the same, we'll choose the zoo.

 

[LucyKate]

I don't think you could do both, and especially not with young kids.

Due to us driving down from Disneyland that morning we didn't arrive at the zoo until 2PM, and thus had less than 3 hours to see it, which meant we had to rush, and missed a lot of exhibits. (If you do have to rush plan to just see a few special animals, such as the Pandas). I regret this and wish we'd had a full day to see it properly.

Because we were in SD the night before we went to Sea World, we got a full dau and there and needed it. We arrived at 10, and I think, left not long before 5 having seen the dolphin and Shamu shows, and done most of the rides. We didn't rush, and took our time, but I doubt very much you could do Sea World in under 5 hours.

That said, if you did try to cram them in, Sea world has dolphin and Shamu shows on both morning and afternoon.

At certian times of the year Seaworld stays open ater so if you did the zoo in the morning first thing, and got to Seaworld by lunchtime, you might be able to squeeze them in.

 

[Mindibellcm]

Well after reading all this I think we will opt for Sea World. I had thought the zoo might be a nice slower paced cheaper activity for us but now I'm not so sure. Does anyone know how much Seaworld rents there Electric scooters for? The zoo rents them for $35.00. My mother will rent one each day we are at a park. She is limited in her mobility for multiple medical reasons. Just from reading everything, I think she would do better at SeaWorld. Plus pushing 2 strollers doesn't really excite me.
Mindi

 

[darph nader]

Is it possible to do both? Could you get to the zoo when it opens and spend 3-4 hours there and then head over to SeaWorld for the remainder of the day? Are they even close by each other??? Thanks!

It's doubtful you could both in 1 day. Sea World is at least 1 day b/c the scheduling is so weird. You basically have to run around to catch all the animal shows.There is some time killers to do in between.I'm not familiar with the mileage but i would venture to guess it's about 8 to 10 miles apart. The zoo is in a neighborhood,while Sea World is close I-5/I-8 intersections. (not bad for a zonie huh ?)