Sea World Trip Report by a WDW Commando

[agavegirl1]

I am continuing my trip report from the WDW Trip Report thread here, since I went directly to Sea World from WDW. Our first afternoon didn't include much Sea World but this is my first post. I have lots of pictures for the second day.

SEA WORLD TRIP REPORT:
The following occurred after nine nights at WDW’s Pop Century Resort. After a morning riding Seven Dwarfs Mine Train and Meeting the Frozen Duo, we headed back to POP where our luggage was waiting for us. We had checked out before heading to Magic Kingdom. We asked for and received a Taxi immediately. Our destination?...Hilton Garden Inn at SeaWorld. We arrived about 2PM and our room was ready. We checked in, dumped our luggage and headed to the park with our Quick Queue voucher in hand. We never needed it. We checked the shuttle schedule and decided to walk. I was hurting but with frequent rests, I made it. (See WDW trip report in my signature as to why).
After entering the park, we obtained our Quick Queue card. Then we sought out a ride before our “date”.
Tonight, we had a date. We were dining with Shamu. I had never been to Sea World and I knew we needed to check in for this dinner. We arrived at the park at around 3:00 PM. Absolutely first on the list was Manta. This is one of the best, if not THE BEST roller coasters in Orlando. It was worth it to ride. This is the only time we used our Quick Queue.
After our ride, It took a while to find the check in for “Dine with Shamu”. Eventually, we found it, a podium basically. We checked in, got our table number (11) and went to the photographer for our included photo. We then went to the venue and were seated. FYI, tables are assigned in the order they are reserved. I made my reservation months in advance. We were right in front with a great view and good access to the buffet.

A word about the buffet. It’s a basic, American food buffet with a kids section and some very nice options. The desserts are quite nice. Wine or beer is included and not technically limited by anything but time. What it is, more than anything, is uniquely affordable in a town where food plus entertainment usually means big bucks. Our price tag for a Sunday night in October: $72.42 for two with all taxes and a free, matted photo delivered to our table. Also all you can eat, ample time to eat it, Q&A with staff and free adult beverages. After WDW, I thought it was a bargain.
A quick photo from our table…



After dinner, we checked out a few exhibits but knowing we had the whole day Monday, we took it easy. Sea World is a beautiful park. It is not ride-centric but has a few real gems in it’s offerings.

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Great start on your report so far . Looking forwarding to hearing all about the rest of your time at SW!

 

[debsters41]

Thanks for the detailed write-up! I am going for a couple days next summer and I think I am looking forward to this part of my Orlando vacation most of all.

 

[agavegirl1]

Monday morning…October 27th…our second day at Sea World.
We decided to take the free shuttle from our hotel to the park this morning after enjoying the breakfast buffet. The buffet is not free but is reasonably priced and has a lot of tasty offerings.

After being dropped off at the parks, we waited a few minutes for the park to open. There were not many people waiting and it was easy and fast to get through the turnstiles. We planned to focus on rides in the morning and shows in the afternoon. With our free Quick Queue in hand, we headed toward Antarctica to the newest ride. The area is themed as an icy landscape with an Antarctic base. The ride, Antarctica, Empire of the Penguin, is cute but not a thrill by any means. You can select a “wild” or “mild” ride. We chose “wild”. The best part of the ride is the penguin viewing at the end.

Since they were nearby, we found a locker and headed to Kraken next. We rode twice since we both like this coaster. We then headed over to Atlantis. As usual, I got wet, we rode again. It was still early, around 10:30 AM. We crossed over the bridge toward Shamu Stadium to check out Wild Arctic. This is a simulator ride meant to suggest a helicopter adventure over the Arctic. It’s starting to show a little wear but it’s still a fun little ride.

By now, we needed a break and an adult beverage in the shade. We stuck with beer because it was the cheapest. We relaxed a bit before our next adventure…finding a Quick Service lunch menu that appealed to us. We stopped by a few places and checked out the posted menu. We didn’t want pizza, barbeque wasn’t doing it for us either so we opted for a basic burger place by the water…Spice Mill Burgers and Sandwiches. We found a table on the patio and had a relaxing lunch. The food isn’t fancy, just satisfying and familiar.

It was time for some shows. First up was the 1:30 showing of Blue Horizons, the dolphin and aerial show in Dolphin Stadium. The story itself is kind of contrived but the visuals are stunning. We did not need to arrive very early to get good seats on a Monday in October. We could have used our Quick Queue for better access but it wasn’t necessary. You can see by the pictures that it is a beautiful, awe inspiring show. Our view was excellent!









We knew that the park closed at the ridiculous hour of 6PM and we needed to catch the last showing of “One Ocean” before park close at 6PM. The Sea Lion Show was closed for refurb. But, right across from Dolphin Stadium… We hit up Turtle Trek next. Using regular lines again, we viewed the Manatees in the ponds, and went through the amazing aquariums that showcased the rescued sea life. There were manatees without fins, turtles with half their shell missing etc. The entire show of these rescued sea mammals was very inspiring. After this exhibit, I was angry at the movie “Blackfish” for focusing so much on an ill conceived notion of “marine life freedom” and not considering that Sea World has rescued more manatees than may exist in Florida in the wild at a given time, in a healthy state at the moment. They really are quite endangered.


After this visit, we went and fed the seals. I wasn’t going to…but the park was so slow and I thought these seals looked “needy”.



We then made our way to “One Ocean”…the controversial Orca show that proved to be absolutely beautiful. There have been some changes made to the training and interaction with these magnificent animals. I cannot say there is anything that leads me to believe they do not enjoy their environment and their trainers. Most of these creatures were born in captivity and releasing them to the wild would be homicide.

One Ocean at park close….





I managed to limp along home by walking since we couldn’t find the bus at the right time. It was a wonderful day at Sea World. The park is lovely, and has so much nature going for it. It also has benches! Yay! It also has the best roller coaster in central Florida….Manta.

 

[agavegirl1]

Ignore

 

[Gabriel&Nana]

It seems you had a great time

 

[debsters41]

You really got some great photos! I don't know how I missed the manatee section of the park when I visited about 5 years ago, but I will be sure to go next summer.

I am really enjoying your review!

 

[agavegirl1]

You really got some great photos! I don't know how I missed the manatee section of the park when I visited about 5 years ago, but I will be sure to go next summer.

I am really enjoying your review!

You should really check it out. There are injured manatees and sea turtles you know would never be alive in the wild, swimming happily. I have had the advantage of seeing manatees in the wild in the Caribbean. They are pretty much protected everywhere now. Did you know that their hides were used to make belts for heavy duty equipment? They were superior to the rubber belts currently used in machinery. Maybe I'm totally okay with short lived, petroleum based belts if it means saving the manatees.

The Turtle Trek surround movie is really good too. The viewing areas are before and after the movie.

 

[agavegirl1]

For my photos, I kind of aimed my camera toward the action, set on the kids and pets setting (basic Cannon point and shoot) and watched the show over the top of the camera while clicking when I thought something might happen. I have more but they are not up on PhotoBucket.

 

[agavegirl1]

Solar Powered Coke Machine...








From Horizons
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[agavegirl1]

Thanks all for those who commented. We had intended to do a little more morning touring on Tuesday but managed to get everything done that we wanted to in a day and a half. My trip report continues in the US/IOA Trip report section.

We checked out of our hotel early and asked our desk attendant for a taxi. The Hilton Garden Inn uses a Town Car Service for routine transportation and they were already there awaiting guests. We just went outside with our luggage on a cart and told the driver we were heading to the Portofino Resort at Universal.

Our driver was awesome. He took care of all the luggage, commented about how awful drivers who text were (we saw several) and engaged us in conversation while safely driving us to our destination. We didn't feel like a fare, we felt like a friend. A nice ride.

I will continue to check in here in case some of you have Sea World related questions. Hoping to help.

Wendy

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Beautiful photos, and an excellent write-up! Thanks again for sharing your visit with us .

 

[agavegirl1]

Thanks Gina. I was impressed by my little Cannon point and shoot camera.

 

[919Florida]

Loves your report and photos thank you so much for sharing with us

 

[johnvree]

Great report.
I'm on the fence as to whether to go to SeaWorld for our fifth day at Universal.
On the one hand, I just want a day of relaxing at the hotel/pool. But when I read reports like this, I want to go to SeaWorld.

 

[Meech Loves Mickey]

Great pics and great report! I was on the fence about going to Sea World for our upcoming trip in June, but your report has convinced me that we should give it a try!

Thanks!