Kraken Day Out (Seaworld Adventure Park (Florida))

Member Name: kellylouj

Product:	Seaworld Adventure Park (Florida)
Date:	17/05/06 (1019 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Interact with Dolphins and Sealions and many other creatures

Disadvantages: None

For those of you looking to visit Florida in the near future, SeaWorld has to be high up on the agenda.
It is a lot more relaxed than the busy theme parks dotted throughout Florida but is something not to be missed.

SeaWorld is known as the premier marine adventure park in the United States with 200 acres of World Class shows, thrilling rides and animal encounters and after two visits in a two week holiday, I can completely agree!!

SeaWorld is owned by Anheuser-Busch Inc, Busch Entertainment Corporation, the company's family entertainment subsidiary, is one of the largest adventure park operators in the United States. Its parks are located throughout the country.Anheuser-Busch Adventure Parks own and operate nine parks across America including SeaWorld in Orlando, Florida, Discovery Cove in Orlando, Florida, Busch Gardens in Tampa Bay, Florida, Adventure Island in Tampa Bay, Florida, SeaWorld in San Diego, California, Busch Gardens in Williamsburg, Virginia, Water Country USA in Williamsburg, Virginia, SeaWorld in San Antonio, Texas and Sesame Place in Langhorne, Pennsylvania.



>>>Directions<<<
SeaWorld is located at the Intersection of Interstate 4 and Florida 528 just 10 minutes from Downtown Orlando. It is signposted well and is easy to access.
We were staying at the Comfort Inn hotel which provided a shuttle bus each day which was just a 15 minute journey from the hotel.
If you are staying on International Drive the I-Trolley operates a route to Seaworld reguarly and is fairly low in cost to catch.

<<<Opening Hours>>>
SeaWorld is open from 9am daily all year round, summer holidays do have extended opening hours and you may want to plan at least two visits to your trip to get maximum value for money.

>>>Tickets<<<
Tickets can be purchased on the gate.
Adults aged 10 and over $61.95
Children aged between 3-9 $49.95
Children under the age of 2 Free
The day tickets can be exchanged for a SeaWorld Anytime pass which is valid for a further 6 days at SeaWorld so you could infact return for the cost of a one day ticket.

Discounts are available for guests with disabilities, senior citizens, military personnel and AAA members.

We pre-purchased our tickets in the UK from Keith Prowse Tickets for the cost of £115, this was a 5 park Orlando Flexi ticket which allowed us access to Universal, Busch Gardens, Islands of Adventure, SeaWorld and Wet'n'Wild this was valid for he full 14 days of our trip so well worth the money as we were allowed to visit the parks as many times as we wanted.

The queues are fairly long at SeaWorld but once you are in and have listened to the American National Anthem you are free to access the park.

*****************************TOP TIP**********************************
Once you enter the park, grab a park map and decide on the order of the shows that you want to go and see as they are all superb and extremely popular. If you want to arrange to have one of the character dining options always pre-book, we tried to make a reservation on the day that we arrived and it was fully booked. Toll free numbers are listed on the site so take them with you when you travel to the states so that you can make reservations if you wish.

<<<<The Rides>>>>
SeaWorld is more about the shows and animals rather than providing thrilling rides but they do still manage to offer one mind blowing ride called Kraken.

Kraken is the tallest, fastest, longest and only 'floorless' coaster in Orlando reaching speeds of almost 65 mph, rising to nearly 150 feet before plummeting through a network of underground tunnels... on your way to Kraken's lair 3 ½ minutes later this really feels as if the ride is never going to end and boy are you glad to get off at the end, this really gets your adrenalin pumping and the view is amazing at the front so get their first and be at the front as you don't want to miss this ride.
The ride does have a minimum height requirement of 54 inches and you are not allowed to take any loose items on the ride, and if you have flip flops on like I did make sure you remove them before you take off!

Journey to Atlantis is the ultimate adventure ride, where you'll be tossed and dropped by unseen mystical forces. This was a real let down for both Mark and I as our carriage was letting water in right up to our knees so it was not a thrilling ride at all, however it does have some of the steepest drops and just when you think it is all over there is a surprise right at the end! 42" is the minimum height requirement for this ride.

Wild Arctic
Take a simulator jet copter ride across the arctic, or alternatively you can choose to watch the video then exit into the Arctic and see real Polar Bears, walruses, harbour seals and beluga whales this really is an experience, however if you want to board the jet copter make sure you meet the minimum height requirements of 42".

All of the rides can be fitted in-between the shows which start from 10am.

>>>The Shows<<<
Clyde and Seamore take Pirate Island is the first show to begin and takes place in the Sea Lion and Otter Stadium not far from the Kraken ride.
This is a great show for both adults and children as the storyline is easy to follow, with Sea lions and Walruses making the story real a fantastic show that lasts for approximately 20 minutes, but watch out for the mime at the beginning if you walk past him he will have the crowd laughing at you!!!!
Show times 10am, 11.30am, 12.45pm, 2.45pm, 4.45pm, 7.30pm

Pets Ahoy is on 10.45am and is a show for the children with dogs, birds, cats and pigs bring the stage to life, this is a great show with cats walking the tightrope above your heads and when the show is over and you are told that they are all from rescue homes it makes the show that bit more special!
Show times 10.45am, 12.15pm, 1.45pm, 3.15pm, 5pm located in the Seaport Theatre.

Blue Horizons was my favourite show and is great as the picures show below. Dolphins, birds and performers bring the story to life of a young girl who dreamt of swimming like the Dolphin, watch as the performers surf with the dolphins make terrifying dives and are propelled through the water by the wonderful performing dolphins to music as beautiful birds fly above.
Show times 11am, 12.30pm, 2.15pm, 3.45pm, 5.15pm definitely a show not to be missed, but makes sure you sit clear of the splash zone as you will get wet when the cheeky dolphins splash you during the show.

The Shamu adventure is claimed to be the most popular show and lasts 20 minutes, held in the Shamu Stadium and Shamu entertains the crowd. I was not too impressed with this show and much preferred the Blue Horizons Show.

>>>Attractions<<<

As well as the shows and rides there are still plenty more things to do at SeaWorld and below are my favourites.

Penguin Encounter is fantastic, the music always and still makes me chuckle as you enter. There is an moving walkway which runs parallel with the Penguin Encounter where they live in real snow!! Snow falls from the ceiling and laugh as the penguins stand underneath dive in and out of the water.

Pacific Point Preserve is fantastic you can purchase trays of fish to feed the sea lions, and you would think they never get fed the noises they make, but beware of the birds as they can be quite vicious so try not to get too close.
$4 for one tray of fish, $7 for 2 trays or $10 for 4 trays. Definitely worth doing as this is such a great interactive experience you may never get the opportunity to do it again.

Dolphin Exhibit was my favorite part of the day but I think you have to go in the morning when the dolphins are ready to interact. You are allowed to put you hands palm down into the water and keep them flat and still and the dolphins will swim towards you and you get the opportunity to interact and touch them, this was worth the wait as you can see from the picture how close I got and as I had never been so close to a dolphin before it was a really special moment.

Manatee Rescue is where you can view the rescued manatees which a rather strange looking creature but fascinating all the same, watch the 3 minute video on the Manatee Rescue programme that SeaWorld operate and then follow on to watch them under sea level.

Shark encounter was probably Mark's favourite as he has this thing for killer animals?!?! Outside ou can feed the sharks and stingrays which are swimming about, before going to the underground viewing area where hammerhead sharks among others swim freely above you in the reinforced glass tunnel with beautiful tropical fish.

Now one for the lager drinkers, as some of you may or may not know the Anheuser-Busch company produce popular American beers such as Budweiser and in SeaWorld they have a hospitality tent where the beer is FREE!!! Provided you are over the age of 21 years.

This is the area where you will also get to see the famous Budweiser Donkey and the famous Clydesdale Hamlet and even have your photograph taken with them and there was even one called Kelly!!

<><>Dining<><>
There are plenty of places to grab a snack or a meal at SeaWorld including Dining experiences however we did not take full advantage of these services as we just lived on snacks in the day!
Cypress Bakery was our pit stop in the morning with pastries and cakes and coffee and was the only place open first thing so if we hadn't had breakfast we needed something!
I grabbed a rice krispie cake which was just under $3 and mark grabbed a large piece of cake which was just under $4 which wasn't too bad.

*Cypress Bakery offeres smoothies, coffees, baked pastries, muffins and cakes
*Polar Parlour offers hand-dipped ice cream and sundaes
*Sweet Sailin offers fudge and lots of other sweet treats and is my kind of shop!
*Seafire Inn offers burgers and stir-fries
*Voyagers Wood Fire Pizza is one of the most popular destinations for lunch and can get extremely busy offering pizza, salads, wraps and chicken dishes
*The Sandbar offers hot dogs and light snacks
*Spice Mill offers sandwiches and steak products
*Sharks Underwater grill is a premier full service restaurant that offers fantastic seafood products, but was out of our budget on this trip!
*The Deli offers fresh sandwiches and would of suited me down to the ground
*Mango Joe's Café offers chicken products and fish salads
*Dine with Shamu, now this was something I did want to do but it was fully booked, this is a buffet meal and reservations are required.
*Smoky Creek Grill offers BBQ products at reasonable prices
*Captain Petes Island Eats is again more fast food but ideal if you are on a budget and like hotdogs!!

<<<<Information>>>>
Strollers are available for higher at the Guest Services area however it is asked that they are parked in designated stroller park areas.

You can also hire wheelchairs and mobile scooters at guest services should they be required.

There are plenty of toilets located at SeaWorld and there is also a nursing area available for mothers located near the penguin encounter and Shamu's Happy Harbour Station.

Also located in SeaWorld is the Sky Tower but this is an additional charge and to be honest if you went on Kraken you get the same views a bit faster but for free!!

SeaWorld is a great place for children and adults and I thoroughly enjoyed it and can't wait to go back again for more!!!

Summary: Fantastic Experience for everyone.