Tell me about Discovery Cove--have you gone???

[dbail2]

Which day of the week has the lowest attendance? We have swam with the dolphins twice and hope to go again this year. Our last swim was in 2002. The price went up alot since then. Has anything changed there?

 

[2BoysMum&Dad]

dbail2 - there is a daily limit of 1,000, I believe. 1,000 is probably not a lot of people for a theme park and therefore won't feel like the Disney Parks when they are busy. At peak periods, the limit will still be 1,000 people - you will just need to make sure you get your tickets well in advance if you are going at a busy period.

Zoe

 

[msdisney53]

Zoe, We did Discovery Cove last Easter. It was wonderful. It was also my DD's 11th birthday so we did the birthday package. because we had the package we had a prearranged time for the dolphin swim and at the end the dolphin swam out to her with a buoy float that said " happy birthday" (you can put whatever you want on it) She also got the video, a tshirt, birthday cake, and the band sang happy birthday. So even though they know you are going you can make this a surprise. It was really great!

Denise

 

[2BoysMum&Dad]

That sounds a great idea Denise! Funny that your daughter had her 11th birthday there when my DS will be having his 11th birthday there too - obviously great minds think alike. Many thanks for the tips.

Zoe

 

[dbail2]

msdisney53

About the birthday....We are thinking about it this August.

what was the video like? Does it still have many other people on it besides your group? When we bought one 2 years ago and we noticed so many other people on it and they even missed part of our swim..

 

[2BoysMum&Dad]

dbail2 = we have tickets to swim with dolphins on 10th August which is my son's 11th birthday. If you happen to be there on the same day as us that would be great! You never know, we might end up in the same group and that would be better with regards to a video - at least we'd feel like you weren't total strangers!! LOL. Regarding your other questions, sorry can't help there. We have never been ourselves.

Zoe

 

[tomerin]

scheduled for the dolphin swim this july 12th. myself DW, DS(16) DS(14)

can anyone tell me the actual time the park opens, i have read that it opens at 830 but i am not sure of that info.

i also would like to know is the dolphin swim time assigned to you or is it a first come first swim basis?

i have read that there are birthday pacakges offered but i would like to know if anyone has ever heard of something offered in the way of a honeymoon package. well second honeymoon package. when planning this vacation the only thing that my DW wanted to specifically do is swim with the dolphins. when we did the actual planning for this vacation i could see just how excited and happy she was about the dolphin swim. so i would like to make this trip extra special for her.


i am just full of questions this morning!


thanks
tom

 

[dbail2]

The dolphin pushes in a buey with anything you want written on it.to you, This happens at the end of the dolphin swim.
It is first come first serve when it comes to the dolphin swim so get there early to get an early one just in case it rains later in the day. I would go on there site and read more. I thought it opened at 9:00. But we did get there early to get the picture taken for you ID cards , get your introduction (small groups) , Family free photo taken, Get an overview of the park explained to you, get your equiptment (goggles,snorkles jacket suntan lotion,etc.)

http://www.discoverycove.com/vi_dcpackages_special.aspx

We loved the dolphin swim and hope to do it again this year. The family talks about it quite often. What a memory.

 

[maine_jennifer]

Originally posted by tomerin
scheduled for the dolphin swim this july 12th. myself DW, DS(16) DS(14)

can anyone tell me the actual time the park opens, i have read that it opens at 830 but i am not sure of that info.

thanks
tom

You should be getting a confirmation letter in the mail. I waited about 6 weeks and still hadn't received mine, so I called and they resent it. It arrived about a week later.

My nephew and I are doing the trainer for a day program and our confirmation letter says that normal park hours are 9am-5:30pm, though we have to be there at 8am for our registration.

HTH,

 

[tbck1993]

If you are even considering Discovery Cove, all I can say is - GO FOR IT! This place is awesome. My good friend is a dolphin trainer there and took us on a behind the scenes tour earlier this year. We only wished we would have set aside an entire day to be there. We will make a point of it next time - no matter what the cost.

I'm not a big bird fan, but they have the most awesome aviary here. The beautiful birds eat right from a cup in your hand. You very much feel like you're in the jungle.

Our kids even learned some hand signals that the trainers use and they were able to have the dolphins do tricks. I'm not sure if anyone can do this, but I'll bet if you have a one on one with a trainer-they might teach you.

The white sand beach is also awesome and every person is treated like a family member there. Plus, they only let in a certain number of people in a day, so it's never overly crowded!

Hope this advice helps.

 

[highlander447]

I second that thought its great we where so impressed we are going back this january its worth every penny and then some

 

[2BoysMum&Dad]

Our trip in August was brilliant! My son had a wonderful birthday and it was very relaxing for all of us. If you are not strong swimmers, this is not a problem as you can get life-vests which make you float like a cork in water. Both my boys used these even though they can swim short distances, it meant we didn't have to worry at all about them.

 

[Reems]

Hi!

I'm going to discovery cove in early Jan, will it be freezing? Take into consideration I'm used to English weather!

Has anyone taken part in the trainer package or know anyone who has? If so, id it worth it?

Reems
xx

 

[2BoysMum&Dad]

Hi Reems,

Sorry I can't tell you about the weather in January (I went in August), but the water for the dolphins, rays and fish is fairly cool but the water in the main snorkle area and "river" is warm. I don't know how the temperature of these different areas is regulated. Maybe someone can confirm? If the weather is cool then the water in the dolpin, ray and fish areas might not seem so bad!

 

[highlander447]

Someone a few months ago did a report on the trainer package and they thought it was great, try looking through some of the old threads on this forum it should still be there.We also will be at DC in early jan I've looked at the previous january weather patterns and I think it should be ok for us brits
anyway

 

[boatergal]

This was by far the most incredible experience. It was beautiful and exotic. I totally forgot that I was in the middle of a city. The atmosphere was like being in a tropical getaway. I was snorkeling in the big lagoon when a huge school of 40+ fish the size of a dinner plates came up from behind me and swept around me and kept going. I tried to catch up but couldn't. I had to laugh and smile. Then I dove down to the bottom and swam with these stingrays that were 5 feet across. I have never in my life had an experience like that. You will absolutely love it!

My DD (7) wants to go but I am waiting until she is really great and handling the mask and snorkeling. I don't want to spend the whole experience fixing two sets of masks. Maybe get a mask and snorkel for the bathtub to give your child a lot of practice a head of time.

The only drawback was the water temperature. We had our dive at 9:00 am and it was so COLD. We went the first weekend in May. Pick an 11:00 time.

Have a fantastic time!!!!!!!!!!

 

[nataliesdaddy]

We are trying to decide wether to surprise my now 8 yr. old with
a once in a lifetime swim with her all time favorites--
DOLPHINS.
We will be Orlando on her birthday and thought this would be
awesome
I am imaging it to be like being in Hawaii??

any words??
thanks in advance

Well it isn't Hawaii that is for sure. But it is a great place !! We liked DC so much after one trip that we planned our next trip entirely around DC. WE have done two days back to back there before. Just one hint - if you don't want to smell like fish then do not be in the Ray pool during feeding time. Personally, I don't mind so I get in and feed them.

The place is a wonderful respit from the normally high energy rush of doing the Universal, Disney parks...and there are no crowds at DC - even when they are fully booked.

We have been four times - your kid will love it! Unless she hates fish..

 

[DaisyMoM]

My sister & family will be in Orlando in FEB. and added discovery cove to thier vacation plans due to the awesome reports on the boards! Thank You.

 

[Swan]

I have given the kids the option of flying to Disney or doing Discovery Cove. And while thwy decide I am looking for more info.
I was wondering if the kids(10&12) can do the Dolphin swim without an adult(we would be on shore).

 

[highlander447]

We did the DS and there was a girl of 10 or 11 doing it herself and her parents where on the shore videoing it so u will be fine