The Living Seas With Nemo...Is it just me?

[ShannonMB]

I enjoyed the Nemo ride at Epcot on our trip last year. I thought the theming was great!

Is it just me, though, or is the actual living seas aquarium kinda grungy? The tanks at the Coral Reef are beautiful, and I have been to other aquariums that look a lot nicer than the living seas. It just seems so brown. Anyone else feel that way? I think Disney could do better there.

 

[bradk]

i knew what the reason was, but I don't recall offhand now. the water is actually crystal clear inside (algae maybe? if that makes any sense). the seas has an amazing filtration system where the water is actually pumped underground well outside of the pavilion where it's filtered. i don't know the stats either unfortunately but it doesn't take all that long for the entire tank to be cycled.

incidentally, without taking too may liberties, there essentially is only 1 tank. the same fish you see in coral reef are the same you'd see from inside the pavilion.

 

[Jessfrogger88]

I actually think the aquarium is cool... like seeing the mantatees, but not a big fan of the ride at all.

 

[disnut8]

incidentally, without taking too may liberties, there essentially is only 1 tank. the same fish you see in coral reef are the same you'd see from inside the pavilion.

That is very true. If you do Dive Quest (or know someone who has done it), there is only one tank. Park of the controlled dive (the first part) is to swim over to the restaurant part as a group. In the buddy dive (the second part), you can go over there if you want. The only part of the aquarium that isn't accessible is the dolphin tank.

The live fish on the Finding Nemo ride, the fish from the restaurant, and the fish in the viewing area part area all part of the same big tank.

 

[make.it.blue]

That is very true. If you do Dive Quest (or know someone who has done it), there is only one tank. Park of the controlled dive (the first part) is to swim over to the restaurant part as a group. In the buddy dive (the second part), you can go over there if you want. The only part of the aquarium that isn't accessible is the dolphin tank.

The live fish on the Finding Nemo ride, the fish from the restaurant, and the fish in the viewing area part area all part of the same big tank.

You also get to go to the top of the tank during the Dolphins in Depth tour. You walk out onto a ledge in the water for the dolphin interaction, which is fantastic! It's pretty amazing to see how big the tank is from above.

 

[bradk]

just to clarify, the dolphins are in the same aquarium as the rest of the fish, but they are gated off due to aggression issues.

 

[ShannonMB]

Wow, I had no idea about any of this. This board is so full of info! Especially the part about the tank at Coral Reef being part of the same big tank. Apparently I need to do a little more exploring of this area on next trip...

Boy do I feel like a dummy now!

 

[bradk]

the talking point has always been that speaking out of pure volume, spaceship earth could fit inside the aquarium (i.e., not physically placing the geodesic sphere directly inside, but the amount of space it contains is less than the amount of space the seas aquarium contains)

 

[wdwwishes]

I also felt that the place needed a good cleaning. Aquariums are such a hit with all ages. I would hope that they "doll" the place up some.

 

[tracirae1105]

Trust me, they clean that tank very well! We did the Sea Aqua tour two years ago and I kept getting my tank stuck on the cords from the divers cleaning the tank in the morning! Our guide told us that the reason things seem crystal clear while swimming in the tank, but not when looking at the tank from the viewing areas has to do with glass distortions, something with the thickness of it making things seem fuzzy and not the greatest colors. I HIGHLY recommend the diving tours if you can swing them so you can see the "true" Living Seas!

 

[MomofKatie]

What I always notice and comment on is the lack of bright, colorful fish in the aquarium. Compared to other aquariums we've been to (and there have been a lot- DH is an aquarium freak ), there seems to be a lack of beautiful, brightly colored reef fish. Also, the aquascape seems pretty monochromatic and not at all colorful.

 

[bradk]

ok, thanks for that.. like i said, i knew there was a reason it looked like that from inside the pavilion.. but it is crystal clear inside... and amazing.. anyone who can do either the seas aqua tour or the divequest tour absolutely should