Me DH 37 spent last eleven months planning first trip to Disney World (this web site is a good substitute for coffee breaks at work);
DW - 34 would go just to see Small World which she fondly remembers from childhood;
DD 9 - wouldn't go on anything too scary;
DD 4 would prefer not to go on anything in the dark but that would limit her to Dumbo so she cooperated and closed her eyes and ears when necessary.
OK. So we cheated on Disney for a day and went to Sea World and we are so glad we did. Drove from WL, about a 20 minute or slightly longer ride. Sort of weird buying tickets and paying for parking (don't think they would have thought it very funny if we presented our Park Hopper!).
Got there at 8:30 am and waited twenty minutes for ticket windows to open, once they did we were let in (annual pass holders were being let in around 8:30 it seemed). Once again, pretty deserted first thing in the morning just like at Disney, the early bird gets the worm or in this case no crowds at the sting ray and dolphin feeding areas in Key West.
My DD 9 absolutely fell in love with the sting rays, even more so than the dolphins. She was picked to help demonstrate the proper feeding technique and made sure she at least pet, if not fed every sting ray in the pool. I fed them too and it was a great experience. Feeding and tickling the dolphins under their chins was very cool too. We spent about $15 on smelts for the sting rays and dolphins. This was an experience not to miss.
Then we caught the Clyde and Seymour sea lion show which was pretty cute but not as funny as the preshow mime who made fun of people walking into the theater, he was a riot so don't miss it. The otter stole the show from the sea lions but you'll have to see why for yourself.
We raced from that show to Shamu which was not as spectacular as I thought it would be and the coolest part was watching all the people up front get wet after many, many warnings about the splash zone (take heed). From there we spent a short while at the childrens play area with a huge and I mean huge net climb.
I convinced my family to pass on the boardwalk type games since if we won a big stuffed animal we would have no practical way of getting it home. We saw the Budwesier clydesdales, got a picture with the one named Busch, and had a great lunch at the deli next door. The carved turkey sandwich and beef briscuit sandwich were super fresh, the best lunch we had anywhere during our trip. To top it off you get free beer samples and the carrot cake was delicious.
Then we went underground to see the sharks in Terrors of the Deep (sorry, but this blows away The Living Seas). Then we saw the penguins which was nice. Moving walkways in the shark and penguin exhibits assure everyone a front row view without waiting for people to move out of the way - smart idea.
While the rest of the family went in a gift shop, I tried Kraken. It took me longer to walk through the empty queu (I mean absolutely EMPTY) than to get on the ride, I walked right on in the back row. This coaster is awesome, it takes a great ride for me to say that since I live 5 minutes from Six Flags in Jackson, NJ. The first drop on Kraken doesn't look physically possible and you don't know which way the coaster will loop or twist next, not to mention the unique feature where it goes underground twice. When I got off I went straight back on, though I waited three extra runs to get in the front row this time. It was even better in the front, out of this world.
After that we fed the sea lions (you throw the fish and they catch it) they are very funny, loud and fierce at the same time. It was sort of funny seeing people talking on their cell phones with loud "barking" in the background. I could imagine what that must have sounded like on the other end of the phone.
Well my wife asked if there was any place to see characters at Sea World and we were told to go back to Key West. They had a band, Santa, and about 6 characters there at 4:30 pm including two penguins, a dolphin, sea lion and sea turtle. I have very cute video of my DD 4 dancing with the sea turtle (Arthur C. Turtle) and a penguin. It really was like being in Key West (well I guess, I have never been there though - chuckle). Characters more than willingly signed the kids Disney autograph books ("two worlds - one family").
We left when they closed at 6:00 pm after checking out the beautifully done manatee exhibit. The film is only three minutes long and worth seeing before you view the live manatees from underground. Again it blows away what you see at Living Seas. Back to WL. A great day in every regard.
Tips from Day 4. Tip #1 - again, get there at opening. Then go straight to the sting ray and dolphin feeding areas. They stop selling fish to feed them at various times of the day and you don't want to miss out on this experience. Tip #2 - eat lunch at the deli and you won't be disappointed unless you prefer another fried food lunch. We were sick of chicken fingers and fries by Day 4. You probably will be too. Tip #3 - on the way out stop just before the exit and get your second day free passes. You will have to pay the $6 for parking when you return but the passes get you in free for a return visit within 7 days. This was a great deal that we took advantage of. Even if you don't use them they make a great souvenir since they have a different sea animal on the front of each one and your photo (not so flattering necessarily) on the back. On the day we left Disney to fly home, we had an hour to waste so we went back to Sea World and the kids got to see the sting rays, dolphins and sea lions one more time (better than just sitting around in the airport). Going back to tip #1, they were not selling fish at this point at the dolphin exhibit (around 11:15 am) and the sign said they would be selling the fish again at 12:30 pm. Tip #4 (last tip) - watch your fish VERY carefully at the sea lion feeding area. The white birds there watch you and will swoop down from the trees and grab the smelts right out of your hands before you get to throw them to the sea lions. My DD 9 lost 3 of 4 fish once to the birds so be careful.
More to come (Animal Kingdom tomorrow)
[This message was edited by jasper on 12-10-00 at 06:26 PM.
[This message was edited by jasper on 12-10-00 at 06:30 PM.]
DW - 34 would go just to see Small World which she fondly remembers from childhood;
DD 9 - wouldn't go on anything too scary;
DD 4 would prefer not to go on anything in the dark but that would limit her to Dumbo so she cooperated and closed her eyes and ears when necessary.
OK. So we cheated on Disney for a day and went to Sea World and we are so glad we did. Drove from WL, about a 20 minute or slightly longer ride. Sort of weird buying tickets and paying for parking (don't think they would have thought it very funny if we presented our Park Hopper!).
Got there at 8:30 am and waited twenty minutes for ticket windows to open, once they did we were let in (annual pass holders were being let in around 8:30 it seemed). Once again, pretty deserted first thing in the morning just like at Disney, the early bird gets the worm or in this case no crowds at the sting ray and dolphin feeding areas in Key West.
My DD 9 absolutely fell in love with the sting rays, even more so than the dolphins. She was picked to help demonstrate the proper feeding technique and made sure she at least pet, if not fed every sting ray in the pool. I fed them too and it was a great experience. Feeding and tickling the dolphins under their chins was very cool too. We spent about $15 on smelts for the sting rays and dolphins. This was an experience not to miss.
Then we caught the Clyde and Seymour sea lion show which was pretty cute but not as funny as the preshow mime who made fun of people walking into the theater, he was a riot so don't miss it. The otter stole the show from the sea lions but you'll have to see why for yourself.
We raced from that show to Shamu which was not as spectacular as I thought it would be and the coolest part was watching all the people up front get wet after many, many warnings about the splash zone (take heed). From there we spent a short while at the childrens play area with a huge and I mean huge net climb.
I convinced my family to pass on the boardwalk type games since if we won a big stuffed animal we would have no practical way of getting it home. We saw the Budwesier clydesdales, got a picture with the one named Busch, and had a great lunch at the deli next door. The carved turkey sandwich and beef briscuit sandwich were super fresh, the best lunch we had anywhere during our trip. To top it off you get free beer samples and the carrot cake was delicious.
Then we went underground to see the sharks in Terrors of the Deep (sorry, but this blows away The Living Seas). Then we saw the penguins which was nice. Moving walkways in the shark and penguin exhibits assure everyone a front row view without waiting for people to move out of the way - smart idea.
While the rest of the family went in a gift shop, I tried Kraken. It took me longer to walk through the empty queu (I mean absolutely EMPTY) than to get on the ride, I walked right on in the back row. This coaster is awesome, it takes a great ride for me to say that since I live 5 minutes from Six Flags in Jackson, NJ. The first drop on Kraken doesn't look physically possible and you don't know which way the coaster will loop or twist next, not to mention the unique feature where it goes underground twice. When I got off I went straight back on, though I waited three extra runs to get in the front row this time. It was even better in the front, out of this world.
After that we fed the sea lions (you throw the fish and they catch it) they are very funny, loud and fierce at the same time. It was sort of funny seeing people talking on their cell phones with loud "barking" in the background. I could imagine what that must have sounded like on the other end of the phone.
Well my wife asked if there was any place to see characters at Sea World and we were told to go back to Key West. They had a band, Santa, and about 6 characters there at 4:30 pm including two penguins, a dolphin, sea lion and sea turtle. I have very cute video of my DD 4 dancing with the sea turtle (Arthur C. Turtle) and a penguin. It really was like being in Key West (well I guess, I have never been there though - chuckle). Characters more than willingly signed the kids Disney autograph books ("two worlds - one family").
We left when they closed at 6:00 pm after checking out the beautifully done manatee exhibit. The film is only three minutes long and worth seeing before you view the live manatees from underground. Again it blows away what you see at Living Seas. Back to WL. A great day in every regard.
Tips from Day 4. Tip #1 - again, get there at opening. Then go straight to the sting ray and dolphin feeding areas. They stop selling fish to feed them at various times of the day and you don't want to miss out on this experience. Tip #2 - eat lunch at the deli and you won't be disappointed unless you prefer another fried food lunch. We were sick of chicken fingers and fries by Day 4. You probably will be too. Tip #3 - on the way out stop just before the exit and get your second day free passes. You will have to pay the $6 for parking when you return but the passes get you in free for a return visit within 7 days. This was a great deal that we took advantage of. Even if you don't use them they make a great souvenir since they have a different sea animal on the front of each one and your photo (not so flattering necessarily) on the back. On the day we left Disney to fly home, we had an hour to waste so we went back to Sea World and the kids got to see the sting rays, dolphins and sea lions one more time (better than just sitting around in the airport). Going back to tip #1, they were not selling fish at this point at the dolphin exhibit (around 11:15 am) and the sign said they would be selling the fish again at 12:30 pm. Tip #4 (last tip) - watch your fish VERY carefully at the sea lion feeding area. The white birds there watch you and will swoop down from the trees and grab the smelts right out of your hands before you get to throw them to the sea lions. My DD 9 lost 3 of 4 fish once to the birds so be careful.
More to come (Animal Kingdom tomorrow)
[This message was edited by jasper on 12-10-00 at 06:26 PM.
[This message was edited by jasper on 12-10-00 at 06:30 PM.]
