Important and fun – and while most of the exhibits keep you separated far from the animals for everyone’s safety, there are several spots where you can get up close and personal with them. These are undoubtedly the most fun, and I’m going to tell you which are also the best.

#5 – Elephant Interaction Wall
The Elephant Interaction Wall is an area that gets you as close to elephants as you can while still maintaining your safety. Here, the elephants will come right up to the gate to interact with their trainer and receive treats in exchange for demonstrating behaviors for the crowds.

Each time you stop here, you could see a different member of the elephant herd, as they come to the gate of their own free will and are never specifically selected to participate.

#4 – Serengeti Express
The Serengeti Express Railway is not only an excellent way to rest your feet after walking the park for a while, but the section of the train ride between the Nairobi and Congo stations takes you right through the Serengeti Plain. This is an area of the park where the animals roam freely, and you can see herds of animals strolling close to the train. Sometimes they’re so close, they even have to stop the train to wait for the wildlife to cross the tracks!

While you shouldn’t reach out to touch any of the animals (they repeatedly warn you to stay seated with arms and legs inside the train), you sometimes come close enough to the animals that it’s quite the temptation.

Unfortunately, due to construction for an upcoming attraction, the Serengeti Express is closed for the remainder of 2015.

#3 – Tiger Pop-Up
The Tiger Pop-Up, in the Jungala area of the park, is an amazing spot where you can safely get very close to tigers. They’ve designed this exhibit to have a small area, enclosed in very strong plexiglass, where, after climbing a short ladder, you’re actually inside the exhibit with the tigers themselves.

The tigers seem to be oblivious of this intrusion into their space (most of the time) and will walk right next to the pop-up. Quite often, I’ve even seen them lay down to sleep on top of the plexiglass box, allowing you to get closer than you’ve ever been to a tiger!

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#2 – Walkabout Way
Walkabout Way is one of a handful of exhibits where you can feed the animals. Here, guests can purchase cups of grass (or, at certain times, bottles for the younger ones) and feed kanagroos and wallabies. They even have helpful signs offering advice on how to feed them.

While you’re still separated from the animals by a fence at this exhibit, most of the animals found here have been hand-raised by humans and have no problem being touched as you reach through the fence. While at times these are some of the laziest animals I’ve seen in the park – and they tend to sleep far out of reach from your hands – the moment the food comes out, they’re very attentive and anxious for your attention.

#1 – Lory Landing
Lory Landing takes my top spot for animal interactions, hands down. This is a bird exhibit where you enter into the enclosure, and there is nothing between you and these colorful little birds. If you stop to purchase a cup of nectar, these birds will have no fear of you whatsoever (and, sometimes, you can even trick them into trusting you with an empty cup of nectar someone has left lying inside the exhibit). My family has personally had several birds at one time land on them and even fight amongst themselves to be the one drinking from the nectar cup!

They’ll land on outstretched arms, fingers, shoulders, and even the top of your head. My advice is to visit this enclosure as early as possible, as the birds will fill up on the nectar throughout the day and become less friendly as the day wears on.

Honorable mention – Serengeti Safari Tour
All of the experiences I’ve mentioned are really amazing, but the most engaging animal interaction experience in the park doesn’t come included with the admission fee. The Serengeti Safari Tour is a separately-priced experience that takes you out into the Serengeti Plain while standing in the back of an open-air truck. Your guide will take you right out into the animals, and you’ll be given food to feed the giraffes.

I’ve seen the giraffes stick their heads all the way into the truck to receive the food, giving everyone ample time to have the once-in-a-lifetime experience to actually pet a giraffe. While they don’t guarantee you’ll experience the giraffes up close every time (they occasionally choose to ignore a truck), I’ve yet to see a truck out on the plain not be surrounded by the animals looking for a handout.

While the price varies based on the season (and, yes, Annual Passholders receive a discount), these tours always sell out very quickly. Busch Gardens recommends purchasing tickets early in the day so no one gets left out.

So the next time you’re at the park, racing along at 60 mph on Cheetah Hunt or hanging 200 feet in the air on SheiKra, remember to stop by one of these exhibits and experience some of Busch Gardens’ amazing animals.

Have your own favorite spots to interact with the animals at? Leave a comment below!

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  About the Author Salina is a Florida native that has gone to theme parks all of her life. Even with the busy schedule that comes with having children, Salina and her family make it a priority to visit the parks several times a month. Quality family time should always include a roller coaster or two! More articles by Salina

The post Top 5 animal encounters at Busch Gardens Tampa appeared first on Orlando Informer.

It’s a favorite question on forums across the internet, partially because the dining options at Disney are diverse and, sometimes, daunting to vacationers. With all the choices Disney offers, the answers to the question are never quite the same, but some familiar favorites rise to the top every time: Le Cellier, Crystal Palace…

But many times, those answers fail to consider one of the most important options in Disney dining: the remarkable restaurants housed in the resorts just a few steps beyond the parks. Quite frequently, those resort dining options offer better food, better service, and better value for guests’ money than their in-park counterparts. Because of their location outside the parks, however, many guests don’t consider them when planning their trip, and that omission is a loss!

So why dine at a resort restaurant?

The food

Resort restaurants are outside the bustle of the parks and are often more specialized, particularly the table service (sit-down dining) locations. Their chefs are frequently serving a lower volume of clients under less rushed conditions, so the food is often of higher quality.

The service

In-park restaurants are immediately visible and are the places where most park guests focus their dining expectations. Those restaurants, particularly the popular ones, handle a mind-boggling volume of customers, and it is part of their job to move patrons in and out in a quick, efficient way.

If you’re grabbing a quick bite before you head off to your next ride, that speed may be an advantage, but if you’re interested in a slow, enjoyable meal off your feet, it’s hardly ideal. Resort restaurants, because of lower pressure, treat their guests to high-quality service without the time constraints of park dining.

The value

The resort restaurants frequently provide higher-quality menu items, greater diversity, and equal or larger portions for prices comparable to or lower than the park restaurants. If you’re looking for a truly great meal or the best value on your Disney Dining Plan, resort restaurants may be your best bet.

For example, take the dearly beloved Le Cellier Steakhouse in Epcot’s Canada pavilion. The dining experience here is really lovely; the dim stone-roofed dining area is delightful, and the steaks are great (that mushroom risotto is out of this world). But the restaurant is almost always booked to capacity, guests are moved in and out constantly, and the prices at Le Cellier have recently received an increase that reflects its popularity, including its rise to a two-credit dining experience on the Dining Plan.

A few steps beyond the International Gateway (the path leading out between England and France at Epcot) is the Yachtsman Steakhouse, a beautifully luxurious location at the Yacht Club Resort. The restaurant features dry-aged steaks, truffle mac-n-cheese, and a mouthwatering variety of desserts. It is rarely booked to capacity, and its servers encourage guests to take their time and enjoy their meals. The prices are equivalent to the park restaurant… and the Dining Plan credit is exactly the same.

Given the choice, Yachtsman is a better experience, has better food, and represents a better value.

There are so many other examples that illustrate the value of looking beyond the parks to the other offerings Disney provides. Among my favorites is Sanaa, a restaurant at the Animal Kingdom Lodge – Kidani Village area. Sanaa (which is open for lunch, and usually not busy at that time) offers delectable, unique Indian and African dishes and personable, knowledgeable servers that can help even the pickiest guest find something they will enjoy. Their mango smoothies are to die for, and when it’s in season, their butternut squash soup is the best I’ve ever had.

Furthermore, the restaurant is located directly on the resort’s savannah, and it’s a special experience to see cranes, zebra, and giraffe grazing just outside your dining location with neither a bustling crowd nor the blistering heat to interrupt your enjoyment. If you’d like to take it a step further, Sanaa even features a “Dine with Animal Specialists” option – learn more.

It is worth noting that Disney transportation provides access to all on-property resorts, and that guests with dining reservations are welcome to park at any resort free of charge. You will have to show your photo ID to the guard at the gate, and some resorts are strict about access at certain times of the year (i.e., the Boardwalk and Yacht & Beach Clubs are strict during the Food and Wine Festival in an attempt to prevent guests from abusing the free parking to access World Showcase).

So, where’s the best place to eat at Disney? Well, that depends on your taste, the kind of experience you’re looking for, and how you want to schedule your day. But no matter what kind of meal you’re considering, do not overlook the dining options outside the park gates. Amazing options await you if only you remember to look at the Disney resorts!

Have other suggestions for the best Disney dining? Let the world know below.

The post Disney’s best dining? Not in the parks appeared first on Orlando Informer.

In Busch Gardens’ defense, this is an attraction like no other. At 335 feet, it’s the tallest free-standing drop tower in North America, and the only one of its kind to rotate the seats so that you’re looking at the ground as you fall. It’s a technically complicated behemoth, to put it mildly, and with a complicated ride comes lots of challenges.

My family and I have watched this attraction being built from the beginning, and as the size of the structure grew, so did our anticipation to ride it. With Falcon’s Fury up and running now, we decided to go check it out. My husband (the biggest adrenaline junkie in the family) was so excited that he’d finally get to ride this, he could hardly contain himself on the drive to Tampa.

I had declared quite a while ago that there was no way I’d ever get on this thing, so my husband and daughter began quickly emptying their pockets of anything that might fall and handing them over to me for safe keeping. (I like a good coaster, but racing downward at 60 mph while watching the ground approach? That’s just way too far over the line of comfort for me.)

My family later told me that signs inside the queue repeatedly informed you that if you didn’t take loose items out of your pockets and they fall from the ride, you could face ejection from the park. This ride is so high up in the air that they’re really serious about this!

As they stood in line waiting their turn, watching group after group ride before them, my husband’s excitement increased… but my daughter was beginning to have second thoughts.

When they finally stood at the gate, being next to board the ride, the fear was evident on my her face. But she decided to go through with it – “I’ll never know if I like it or not if I don’t ride it,” she said. And after being strapped into the ride, and as the car began to ascend, the fear was plain on my daughter’s face, and the joy of finally riding it plain on my husband’s.

Once you near the top of the tower, the seats tilt downward and face you towards the ground. Once those seats start tilting, the screams of the riders echo through the park. (I’m not sure which is louder – the screams or the ride itself!) You hear a very loud click as they lock into place. After that, you spend anywhere from one to five seconds – it’s random each time – before you plummet towards the ground.

While Falcon’s Fury itself has begun providing the option the purchase a picture of your descent, with a good zoom on a camera you can see your family members’ faces at the top of the ride as well. True to their characters, my family’s facial expressions weren’t a surprise. The look on my daughter’s face was pretty clear – she was terrified. And my husband’s face had a grin from ear to ear.

But after the four-second delay and the subsequent drop, my daughter’s face changed to one of delight – and once she let go of the restraints to throw her hands in the air on the way down, I knew she had conquered her fear. She came off the ride jumping up and down with excitement and couldn’t wait to ride again.

They said that, as the ride goes up, it is peaceful and offers a beautiful view of the Tampa area… but as you look out over the park, you begin to realize you’re heading higher than any of the other rides. They both agreed that as you pass the top of Sheikra (at 200-feet-tall), your heart starts beating a bit faster.

Once you’ve reached the top of the tower and the seats began to tilt, that’s when the adrenaline kicks in. They said you can really feel the safety harness holding you in place – and the longer you hang there, the more time you have to realize that the safety harness is the only thing holding you there in mid-air. And they both agreed the actual plunge as the ride speeds towards the ground is the best part by far.

When I asked them to describe it, they both were tongue-tied and explained that “awesome” doesn’t begin to cover it, and that there really aren’t words to adequately describe it – it’s just something that has to be experienced.

We started to head out of the Pantopia area. However, my family noticed the line for Falcon’s Fury was the shortest we’d yet seen. We even checked with the employees at the ride entrance to make sure it was still open, the line was that short. They confirmed it was, and that my family members had better get on fast to take advantage of the short wait. Once again I was left holding everything as they took off into the queue.

When they came off Falcon’s Fury for the second time, they again declared how awesome it was.

With it being Busch Gardens’ newest ride, the lines are bound to be long most of the time. And with it being the first attraction of its kind, there are bound to be technical issues from time to time. But both of my family members have decreed that it’s well worth standing in line for, and that it’s worth the inconvenience of a few technical problems every once in a while just to be able to have the chance to ride.

Have you already ridden Falcon’s Fury? Try to describe the experience to all the rest of us in the comments below.

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The post Riding Busch Garden’s Falcon’s Fury for the first time appeared first on Orlando Informer.

Lately, however, Orlando is beginning to look more like “The City Growing,” as International Drive is gaining steam as the newest amusement hub – and, arguably, the biggest thing to hit I-Drive is The Orlando Eye. As we approach the final countdown to opening day, there are a few things you should know about Orlando’s next big thing.

It is the center of an entire entertainment complex
The Orlando Eye serves as the anchoring focal point of the new I-Drive 360 complex, which will be home to a variety of shops, restaurants, and attractions. Already open, Carrabba’s, Yard House, Outback Steakhouse, and Tin Roof are serving as introductory ambassadors to the new development.

Tin Roof is a great spot for food, drinks, and live music.

Delicious dessert options will soon be available at Sugar Factory and Ben & Jerry’s, while McFadden’s Saloon and Cowgirls Rockbar will share in the nightlife spotlight. Coming attractions include Skeletons: Animals Unveiled, Sea Life Orlando Aquarium, and Madame Tussauds Orlando.

There will be no shortage of options at I-Drive 360, and parking is available for free at the site’s sizable garage.

It is the brainchild of familiar faces
The companies behind I-Drive 360 and The Orlando Eye are Unicorp National Development, Inc. and Merlin Entertainments. Unicorp is the Dr. Phillips-based company behind the Dellagio complex and the recently-announced, 420-foot-tall StarFlyer attraction, which is slated to debut in 2016.

The Orlando Eye looms at 400 feet.

Merlin Entertainments masterminded Central Florida’s Legoland (which will be connected to I-Drive 360 via daily shuttles) and the famous London Eye. The Orlando Eye will stand at 400 feet while London’s is slightly larger, at 443 feet. (At these heights, 43 feet doesn’t seem to be a tremendous difference, does it?)

Its general manager is no stranger to Merlin’s big concepts
The general manager of The Orlando Eye, Robin Goodchild, is the former head of operations at The London Eye. He has been on-hand for all of the recent progress at the site and received the honor of adding the “golden bolt” for the installation of the final passenger capsule on Thursday, February 5.

Robin Goodchild installs the “golden bolt” to attach the final passenger capsule.

The thing Goodchild is most anxious to share when The Orlando Eye opens, he has said, is the view of a Florida sunset from high above the ground. He recently experienced a preview from the roof of the offices there, and he marveled at the beauty of it. The Eye will more than double that vantage point and Goodchild is eager to soak it all in – as am I.

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It is a massive undertaking, now in the home stretch

Though the planning phase of the mammoth Ferris wheel began in 2011, construction did not begin until late 2013 – after all, a project of this magnitude is no small feat.

The Orlando Eye is starting to take shape.

Over the second half of 2014, the Eye truly started taking shape, and progress has continued at an impressive speed ever since: on January 20, the first passenger capsule was installed; on February 5, the 30th – and final – capsule was attached. Crews are now working to complete the boarding platform, where visitors will load and unload from the observation wheel. LED lighting connections are also being added at this time.

The outer wheel begins to form.

Goodchild was pleased to report that they’ve encountered very few setbacks on their journey. The one thing that did pose a challenge should come as no surprise to anyone familiar with Orlando: unpredictable weather.

Its passenger capsules will provide a luxurious experience
Each of the 30 passenger capsules will feature a center bench, along with room to move about the vehicle for up to 15 guests. Additionally, they will be temperature-controlled and feature lighting and audio enhancements.

The passenger capsules will feature high-tech perks.

Touchscreen tablets will be mounted in each capsule to provide information on the surrounding sights for on-board guests. The wheel will travel at about 1 mph, taking approximately 20 minutes to complete a full rotation.

All 30 capsules are now installed.

The Orlando Eye will also be available for “buy-out” events and parties. Champagne flights and private capsules will be possible, as well.

There’s more than meets the eye
The flight experience is only part of the complete package at The Orlando Eye. Prior to a spin on the wheel, guests will enjoy a brief, 4D film preview.

The 4-D pre-flight experience theater, during construction.

There will also be opportunities for fun, green-screen-enhanced souvenir photos. The “Terminal Building” will contain a food court and lounge, directly beneath the Ferris wheel, with surreal views from below the glass ceiling.

The grounds of the I-Drive 360 complex will provide an extension of the overall experience with a centralized, colorfully-lit fountain dancing to a themed soundtrack. The expansive surrounding landscape is lush and inviting – perfect for a midday picnic.

The I-Drive 360 grounds are open and inviting

While Orlando’s theme parks will always be the thing that put the city on every tourist’s vacation map, there is no reason to limit a visit to the parks alone. With the growth of International Drive and the potential of I-Drive 360, specifically, there’s more reason than ever to stay and play for an extra day.

As progress continues, it’s clear to see that I-Drive is fast becoming an amusement opportunity that’s hard to overlook; after all, it’s impossible to ignore the appeal of the “Eye” in the sky.

Will you be visiting I-Drive 360 or riding the Orlando Eye? Or does the whole undertaking fail to catch your eye (and hard-earned vacation dollar)? The comments await below.

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The post 6 Things You Need to Know about The Orlando Eye appeared first on Orlando Informer.

As we entered the park, we stopped to pay our respects to Gwazi. Busch Gardens is permanently closing this coaster on February 1, and since that was only a few days away, lots of people flocked to take one last ride on the wooden giant.

It was Florida’s first wooden coaster when it opened in 1999, but now it’s become too expensive to maintain – it takes an entire maintenance crew six hours every single night to double-check every inch of the track and each and every bolt. And now that the ride isn’t drawing in the guests that it used to, it’s just not cost-effective to operate anymore. Since both my husband and I had ridden it before, and since both of us remembered very vividly how much the wooden coaster rattled our bones, we chose not to ride it one final time; we just stopped by and bid it a farewell.

As we continued down the path, we found more signs of change at Busch Gardens. The pathway had detour signs up just outside the Xcursions store, which redirect you through Gwazi Park. While we could clearly see the construction beyond the walls (they’ve completely torn the building down where the “Critters Castaway” show used to be), it wasn’t clear exactly what was going to be built in this rather big area. There is also a large metal frame for a new topiary coming for the Food and Wine Festival in March, but as it doesn’t take up all of the space they’ve cleared, it’ll be interesting to see what fills in the rest.

The path still takes you by the flamingos (which were defending their territory against a large group of seagulls while we were there), and to Walkabout Way and Sesame Street’s Safari of Fun – it’s just slightly rerouted, is all.

As we walked past the Sesame Street area, we were delighted to see Grover and Cookie Monster out greeting guests – even without our children clamoring to see them, it was neat to see them interact with the children there. With the crowd levels so low, there were several times where they weren’t being hugged or talked to by a child and just danced to the music playing in the area, or came up behind children to surprise them. It was quite entertaining to watch.

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More signs of change and construction could be found in Pantopia. The Pantopia Grill has been closed for renovations until early summertime. This restaurant was already repainted and renamed to coincide with the opening of Falcon’s Fury, but now it’s getting a major overhaul: the park has confirmed that when it reopens, it’ll be a food court-style venue similar to Expedition Café at SeaWorld Orlando – but, much to my husband’s disappointment, it doesn’t appear that the corned beef sandwich he loved so much will be returning to the menu. There’s also going to be a Starbucks added to the food court, as well, so that, at least, is great news for coffee lovers!

(With the Pantopia Grill currently closed, though, be aware that lines at the other restaurants are longer than usual. When we stopped for lunch at the Zambia Smokehouse, we were quite surprised to find all four serving lines open but that there was still a 20-minute wait to get our food.)

Busch Gardens Tampa has also added a new food truck to the area. The Pantopia Food Truck is actually the same one seen at last year’s Howl-O-Scream and Christmas Town, except now it says “Pantopia Food Truck” on the side. No one in my family is a big taco fan, so we’ve yet to try the food from here, but I have heard many people say that the tacos and taco fries are tasty.

We also found that photographers are now taking your picture as you ride Falcon’s Fury, a fact that my husband was quick to try out. (Such a significant sacrifice for him to ride his favorite ride just so we could see how the picture came out, right?) Right now, you only get your photo taken if you sit in rows one, three, five, or seven, and it’s only a temporary test that they’re running, but they do come out great.

They take one picture as the seats tilt towards the ground, and then another just as it starts to drop, so you can choose which one you want. The pictures are $16.00 for one, or they’ll add it to your Photokey for you. I won’t be surprised if this becomes a permanent thing, as we saw everyone coming off the ride check out their photos, and hopefully you can eventually get your picture taken no matter what row you’re in. (Until then, though, if you ask to sit in one of the designated rows, the team members will make sure it happens without an issue.)

We left Pantopia and headed to see the gorillas – I was excited to see the new baby gorilla, named Enzi, as we haven’t been to the park since he has been born. While we couldn’t see him at all when we first got to the area, the trainer soon showed up and began to feed the gorillas, and mom and baby quickly emerged from the back. This little guy is so cute, but – man – is he hard to get a picture of since he’s so small! (I circled him in the photos below to help point him out).

With another gorilla (Mary) expecting a baby this spring, the gorilla exhibit is sure to be a crowded one this year.

After a quick ride on Cheetah Hunt (only a five-minute wait!), we headed out of the park. While my husband is still upset over the loss of his corned beef sandwich, I just can’t wait to see the results of all these changes. This year will definitely be an exciting one at Busch Gardens Tampa!

Will this be the greatest year yet for Busch Gardens Tampa (especially since it’ll be such a quiet one for Universal Orlando), or is the park on a permanent downward slide? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

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The post What’s New at Busch Gardens Tampa (February 2015) appeared first on Orlando Informer.

After over 35 years as Timbuktu, the land has been completely revitalized and is now called Pantopia.

Dramatic orange, purple, and blue paint colors really set Pantopia apart from the rest of the park. Your old favorites are found here (the Scorpion rollercoaster, the Sand Serpent, the Phoenix, Busch Fliers, etc.), and, later this summer, the new Falcon’s Fury will be opening to add to the rides located in this area.

But there’s so much to be found here that’s brand new – and utterly captivating.

Pantopia: The backstory and a quick tour

In a time long forgotten, a strange and mystical Key Master dropped from the sky at this very spot. The legendary doors of Pantopia tell the rich history of the travelers that have both come before – starting with the mysterious Key Master himself – and that are currently still residing in this land. Guests can explore these doors and learn all of the area’s myriad secrets. (If you look around, you’ll see thousands of keys placed throughout Pantopia – in the walls, in the artwork, on the statues… everywhere.)

The excitement builds as you make your way through Transportation Plaza, where the caretaker here has created sculptures from the tuk tuks, trucks, planes, bikes, and wagons other travelers have left behind.

And just around the corner is Botanica, an oasis of intricate botanical sculptures that captures the flowing patterns of animal feathers, fur, and scales, representing all the elements of Pantopia.

Finally, the last of the new stops is the Sitting Place, a modern-day watering hole whose trees are covered in twinkling lights and lanterns.

Pantopia: The new shows

The Pantopia Grill (formerly known as the Desert Grill) has the same great food on hand, but an all-new show to go alongside it. “Burn the Floor: Untapped” is a new production set to music that will get you dancing in your seat. There is such a variety of music (they go from the Italian hit “Volare,” to an amazingly good version of “Stairway to Heaven,” to Brian Setzer’s “Jump, Jive, an’ Wail”) that there’s sure to be something for everyone. And depending on where you sit, you might even find yourself up close to one of the dancers! (Hint: look for tables near the front with “Reserved Seating” signs on them and no benches – that’s where the dancers will be.)

The Pantopia Theater has had many names and seen many shows over its many years at Busch Gardens, and now it’s home to an all-new animal performance. The animals from the long-running “Critter Castaways” are taking on showbiz now and are starring in “Opening Night Critters.” The premise is simple – two stagehands are trying and break into show business, and all the animals are there to help them – but the animals’ behaviors are anything but helpful: there are dogs sweeping the floor, birds singing into microphones, cats running amuck… and, surprisingly enough, there are even skunks, pigs, kangaroos, and emus to help lend a paw.

Pantopia: The new foods

A new grab-and-go snack area has emerged in Pantopia: Kettle Corn. Don’t let the name fool you – it has much more than just kettle corn: soft serve ice cream, Loaded French Fries, hot dogs, salads, and one of the largest Icee selections in the park. Located next to the Pantopia Theater, it’s a great place to grab a snack while waiting on the next “Opening Night Critters” show.

The main food attraction in Pantopia, though, is Twisted Tails Pretzels. I know what you’re thinking: pretzels have been in theme parks forever – what in the world could be the attraction here? Trust me when I tell you that these are pretzels like you’ve never seen before: hot dogs wrapped in pretzels, pizza pretzels, and, best of all, the Bacon Pretzel Fury – and this just begins to scratch the surface of what they offer.

In the interest of making sure I could accurately report on this place for you, my family tried many of the different selections here, and I can honestly say that not only was there not one bad thing on the menu, but also that you have to try the beer-cheese dipping sauce for their pretzel nuggets – it was amazing!

Busch Gardens has truly outdone itself with this newly revitalized area, and once Falcon’s Fury opens, this will be the place to be in the park. If you haven’t been to Busch Gardens recently, you need to come back to experience the magic of Pantopia as soon as humanly possible.

To read all of our Busch Gardens Tampa articles, be sure to to check out the OI Blog Archive. Or you can chat away about this and all the other Central Florida vacation destinations in the OI Community Forums.

Pantopia at Busch Gardens Tampa – photo gallery

Click any image to view it full-screen. When the full-screen image is open, click to the right or use the right arrow on your keyboard to advance through the gallery.

The post Pantopia at Busch Gardens Tampa: Tour the park’s newest land and learn its secrets appeared first on Orlando Informer.

As we walked through Busch Gardens trying to figure out what to do first, we saw a sign we couldn’t believe – Rhino Rally had reopened! After all this time of waiting for it, we of course moved quickly into the line and discovered – no line! We hopped right on the truck that was sitting there waiting for us.

As the bumpy ride started, we saw the elephants, and then we got to see a water buffalo actually in the water (much to our guide’s delight). After passing the Invisible White Rhino (that’s what the guide called it – and since we couldn’t see the rhino, we chose to believe her), we reached the end of the rally.

All in all, it was a short ride, but we’re very pleased to see it back again.

We headed over to Pantopia to check out the construction progress on Falcon’s Fury, and we found another surprise – the walls were down around the queue, so you can see all the way up to the ride itself now. And they even have a test seat out now, which, of course, my husband had to check out.

While news has come out that the ride won’t be open until late this summer, they have started to paint the tower itself with a flame-like pattern. I’ve heard rumors that the final painting will resemble a sunset in its coloring, so we’re excited to see the final result.

We strolled around the park riding the Montu (there was a small delay because someone lost their shoe – really, people, how many times do they have to tell you to take them off?), walked through the Edge of Africa exhibit (saw the cutest baby deer-like animal… with no sign, we had no clue what kind of animal it was, but it was really adorable), and watched as gorillas seemed to defy gravity while sleeping.

Finally, as sunset approached, the Summer Nights activities throughout the park began to kick off. Various DJ booths enticed kids to hula hoop in one of the most unusual hula hoop contests I’d ever seen (the small kids didn’t understand “you’re out,” so it was a hysterical, never-ending contest where, finally, they declared everyone a winner). In between the contests, the DJ played crowd-favorites for everyone to dance to (“Cha Cha Slide,” “Cupid Shuffle,” etc.) and really got everyone’s party energy started.

At 8:00pm, they opened the gates to Gwazi Field, where the main Summer Nights festivities were being held. Lots of food and beer booths lined the pathways, as well as vendors with squid-like hats (not sure what they had to do with summer or Busch Gardens, but they were everywhere you turned) and an assortment of light-up wands, necklaces, and headgear.

For some reason, though, they only had two of the food booths open. We’d planned on having dinner from the food here at the field, so we were highly disappointed by the lack of selection and ended up just getting popcorn to get us through the show (all the other restaurants in the park had already closed, so that wasn’t an option, either). When I asked about the food booths, I was told it was just a miscommunication that night and that they weren’t staffed to have the booths opened. They said that wouldn’t be an issue on any other night.

As we moved in to find our seats for the show, the pre-show had already started. There were people in Summer Nights outfits dancing throughout the audience, and a DJ with a wireless mic walking through the crowd. To continue the party that was started outside the gates, they again played “Cupid Shuffle,” “Cha Cha Slide,” and other party favorites to get everyone psyched up for the “Kinetix” show to come.

This pre-show kept every kid entertained – and with an hour wait and lots of children around, it obviously worked very well, because I didn’t hear one child complain about being bored while waiting.

After the Summer Nights group danced their way off the field, a countdown began… and then the “Kinetix” show began. I’d never seen this before and was excited to see if it lived up to all the hype I’d heard about it. Within the first five minutes of the show, I could see that “Kinetix” exceeded the hype. High-energy acrobatics set to energizing rock songs – and even a man that balanced on a stack of chairs. I can’t imagine anywhere else that you could get a combo like that in one show. It was amazing and mesmerizing.

And right on cue, as the show ended, the fireworks began right behind us – big, booming fireworks, perfectly timed to the music booming through the speakers. And the finale, while very short, was blindingly good.

The high-energy music and fantastic shows kept us dancing and talking all the way to the car. This was our first Summer Night celebration at Busch Gardens, but it won’t be our last.

Thanks for reading my trip report! To continue learning about Busch Gardens Tampa, check out the BGT archive on the OI Blog. Or you can catch up on all our trip reports.

Busch Gardens Tampa trip report – photo gallery

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Generation Nature LIVE

The first show they previewed for us was a new weekend daytime show called “Generation Nature LIVE.” Different leaders in animal training, rescue, and preservation will present specific stories of rescue and survival of animals they’ve cared for. This show is all about inspiring kids to be “game changers” for nature, and showing just a few simple ways they can do that.

In our preview show, they talked about how simple plastic bags, such as the ones from grocery stores, are causing lots of harm to sea turtles. When these plastic bags get into the water, they look just like a jellyfish to the sea turtle and they eat them… then, obviously, can’t digest them.

Each show will be different – different speakers, different animals presented, and different stories, so you can see it many times and never get the same exact experience.

After each “Generation Nation LIVE” show, multiple animal ambassadors will be outside in the Sea Garden. We got the pleasure of seeing an otter, an opossum, a tawny frogmouth, a cockatoo, Maddie the bald eagle, and two of the most adorable miniature horses I’ve ever seen. Once again, the animals will be different each time to give everyone an opportunity to meet their favorite at some point.

(And for those collecting them, yes, they have the trading cards for each of the animals that are there.)

Shamu’s Celebration: Light up the Night

After seven years of the “Shamu Rocks” nighttime show appearing each summer, SeaWorld has a brand-new nighttime Shamu show: “Shamu’s Celebration: Light up the Night.” This incredible high-energy show, complete with an all-new original soundtrack, will blow you away!

There is a DJ that provides the music and MCing (and an awesome pre-show that will have everyone up and dancing), new lighting in the stadium to spotlight the whales, and even some new whale behaviors to see (our favorite was the youngest whale shimming down the edge of the slide-out area – it was just adorable!) At the end of each show – which came as a surprise to us – they even have a short fireworks display to enhance the finale.

With “Shamu’s Celebration” being the last show at SeaWorld each evening, the remainder of the park has already closed. Unfortunately, that means they funnel everyone from Shamu Stadium down the exact same path and over the bridge. To say it’s crowded and hot is an understatement – and we only experienced this at a preview event with the stadium only half full.

If you go to the Shamu show, I highly recommend just staying in your seats until the majority of the stadium has cleared before you venture outside. If you wait for the crush of people to clear, it’s actually a pleasant walk with beautiful sights, as the waterway is lit up at night.

At the end of the shuffling, crowded journey, you’ll find Shamu’s Dance Party in full swing in the Village Square at the front of the park (the same place they have the Christmas tree each year). This party will start every night one hour prior to park closing and will rock on until 30 minutes after the park closes. They have party favorites pumping over the PA system, quite a lot of room for dancers to strut their stuff, countless bubbles from multiple machines on the rooftops, and even some characters dancing in the crowd (to clarify here, I’m referring to SeaWorld characters, and not any of the other guests).

We got to see Pete and Penny the Penguins doing the “Cupid Shuffle” and “YMCA,” and a very talented performer on stilts doing the electric slide. I practically had to drag my daughter out of there, she was having so much fun!

I was so grateful for the chance to preview these shows, and my family will be back many times this summer to see them again.

If you only see one show at SeaWorld this summer, you have to make it “Shamu’s Celebration: Light up the Night.” Even with the crowd control issues afterwards, it is absolutely the most amazing show, and my new favorite at SeaWorld!

To read more about SeaWorld Orlando, please see our OI Blog Archive, or you can keep the conversation going in the OI Community Forums.

Universal Orlando Resort trip report – photo gallery

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Well, if you’ve got older kids, you’ll probably choose a park with more thrills. With younger children, you’d probably choose a park with magical princesses and characters they know. But what if you have really little ones – toddlers or infants? Which park can you go to where the entire family will have fun?

With the opening of Duplo Valley at LEGOLAND Florida, this park now fits that description perfectly.

LEGOLAND had a Duplo Barn for toddlers since the beginning, but as Adrian Jones, General Manger of LEGOLAND Florida, said, it just wasn’t as fantastic a place as the park wanted to have for toddlers. So they closed down the old Duplo Barn and, as of Friday, May 23, have unveiled the new and much improved Duplo Valley. Much more than just a barn, there are now rides, a splash pad, and an air-conditioned play area for the younger ones.

Let’s break them down one by one:

The Duplo Tractor ride simulates a tractor ride through a farm. Here, kids see larger-than-life chickens, bunnies, and goats as they ride around a short track (or, in their minds, drive around it – each seat has its own steering wheel). Around the outside of the area, there are signs explaining what each animal is, with a large and easy-for-little-hands-to-push button that activates that animal’s sound. What toddler doesn’t like to push buttons?

The Splash ‘n Play splash pad area also has its own buttons. But when you press these, you don’t hear animal noises – you get squirted with water! (Yes, parents, you’ll want to bring a bathing suit for your child for this one… or, at least, a very absorbent towel. Your kids will get soaked here.)

The Duplo Train is a charming ride aboard a life-sized, well, Duplo train. And the best part of this ride is the height restriction – there isn’t one! Any child that is able to sit upright is able to hop aboard, as long as an adult accompanies them. So once your child has learned to sit up by themselves, the whole family can enjoy a ride on this adorable train.

The return of the Duplo Farm as the air-conditioned play area is a wonderful spot on hot days.

There are child-sized playgrounds (aimed for ages two to five) on top of the soft rubber playground surfaces that is common these days… and it’s all surrounded by blissfully cool air conditioning. They’ve even got a separate room for toddlers to play in, complete with large, soft Duplo bricks, where they can build to their hearts’ content (oh, and parents – the air conditioning in the toddler room is even cooler than the rest of the building!).

My favorite spot in the Duplo Farm was the baby care area.

This section is much more than a chair for nursing and a pull-down changing table – it’s a complete area. Four rocking chairs are separated into stalls with curtains for privacy for nursing (and mini-rocking chairs are there, too, for any of baby’s siblings). They have four separate baby changing areas – not a pull-down changing table, but a real, solid table, complete with soap and paper towels, if you need them. To top it off, they have two highchairs for feeding time, a microwave to warm the food up in if needed, and they even have a bottle warmer. They have absolutely thought of everything you could need, including a cell phone charging area for the parents – cord included!

Adrian Jones explained to several of us that, while Duplo Valley is a wonderful place for toddlers, they’re well aware that parents don’t want to spend all day listening to farm animals and riding the Duplo Train; they want to enjoy the park themselves, as well as let their older children enjoy it, too – and they want to do it without having timed “swap-offs” of Duplo Valley duty.

So they’re working on a plan to incorporate Tot Spots throughout the park, so that while big brother rides the rollercoaster, little sister has a place to play, as well. This will be similar to the “play with Legos while your parents hold your spot in line” areas they have now – but it will be more elaborate and filled with Duplos for the younger ones. He didn’t have a date for when this will be in place, but he said five such areas are being planned for the park. While LEGOLAND Florida now has something for all kids, from one year of age and up, the addition of the Tot Spots would truly make this a park for the entire family.

The bottom line? If you have little ones, or if you are just really young at heart, check out the new Duplo Valley at LEGOLAND Florida. And make sure to bring your camera – those little kid smiles are priceless, and you’ll see a lot of them here.

You can read up more on LEGOLAND Florida in the OI Blog archive.

Duplo Valley at LEGOLAND Florida – photo gallery

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Our first stop was Antarctica. We visit this exhibit almost every time we come to the park, as the penguins are just so darn cute. However, while Puck’s journey was exciting the first few times we did it, the ride has unfortunately gotten a little tiresome when we really just want to see the penguins. Someone told us that if you request a walking tour (instead of a mild or wild ride), you can skip the ride – and they were right! At the point where the line splits into mild or wild, we simply asked the attendant for a walking tour, and, after waiting just a moment, someone came to walk us straight to the penguins.

The big bonus was that the ride was experiencing technical difficulties, so we only shared the penguin exhibit with three or four other families! This is definitely the way we’ll experience Antarctica: Empire of the Penguin from now on.

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As we left the squabbling penguins and headed towards the recently reopened Shamu Stadium, we came across an animal ambassador in the newly-opened Sea Gardens (a garden area near Terrace Garden Buffet where animal ambassadors often appear). Jackie was showing off their African Fish Eagle named Phoenix and patiently answering everyone’s questions about the bird (and repeating quite often that Phoenix wasn’t the Bald Eagle people kept mistaking her for).

The kids even received some of the new animal trading cards that the ambassador team is giving out these days.

Once we were finally seated at Shamu Stadium, we were somewhat shocked that everything looked exactly the same as it was before. Sure, it was obviously cleaned up, and the lines painted on the ground to guide the crowds have clearly been redone, but we were expecting more of a change after the length of time they had the stadium closed for refurbishment. But once the show started, our disappointment quickly disappeared – it’s the exact same awe-inspiring show it was before, with high-flying whales and lots of splashes!

When we were waiting for the show to begin, we got a treat – the Surprise Patrol showed up in Shamu Stadium with quite the fanfare, and three lucky families, chosen at random, received prizes: a free meal, a free stuffed Shamu toy, and a free funnel cake. As part of SeaWorld’s 50th anniversary, the Surprise Patrol randomly appears and gives away all sorts of goodies, and since you never know where they’ll show up, it was really cool to see them in action.

For lunch, we decided to try someplace new: Expedition Cafe in Antarctica, which serves non-traditional theme park food with an international flair. For those less daring in their food choices, or just dead-set on eating traditional park food, they also have hot dogs and chicken nuggets (both are listed as kids’ meals on the menu, but we found out you could get them as adult meals, as well).

We chose some sandwiches (the turkey club croissant was pretty good, and my daughter said the Italian hero was delicious), an adult hot dog meal (which my son said was kind of bland but palatable), and the three-piece fried chicken meal (the breading on the chicken was good, but the meat itself was flavorless. However, the mac and cheese was really good), and we only paid $42 for everything. It was great to have such a wide variety of choices for everyone, and this feature has made Expedition Cafe a must-visit again for us.

After a quick stroll through Pacific Preserve to see the Sea Lions (boy, were they loud today) and a wonderfully air-conditioned ride on the Sky Tower (the new wrap for the 50th anniversary still allows for a great view, but pictures don’t come out because of the screen they use), I discovered a surprise while waiting for my family to ride Journey to Atlantis. The walkway to the left of the ride (through the smoking area) has been closed off; there’s a wall now standing in the middle of the walkway for no apparent reason. We peeked behind the wall and found nothing – it’s just a wall in the middle of the sidewalk. I’m not sure why it’s there, or for how long it’ll be there, but, for now, it’s a large blue and purple blockade.

After stopping at the Dolphin Nursery to wish the mother dolphins Happy Mother’s Day, we found another surprise: the Sweet Sailin’ candy shop (near the front of the park) has been temporarily closed for refurbishment. There was no official sign indicating how long they’ll be closed, but an employee walked out of the shop wafting the fragrant aroma of fresh paint into the area, so hopefully they’re putting on the final touches and will be open again soon.

Spending Mother’s Day at SeaWorld may not be the traditional way to celebrate the holiday, but it was a wonderful day full of family togetherness. What mother could ask for more?

I hope you enjoyed this trip report! To keep learning more, you can view our SeaWorld blog archive, or you can catch up on all of our trip reports.

SeaWorld Orlando trip report – photo gallery

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Orlando Informer was invited to a preview event for the media yesterday, and Dan asked if I wanted to check this out. Ride one of the most terrifying water slides I’d ever seen? Why, of course I couldn’t miss that…

As we entered Aquatica, we could see Ihu’s Breakaway Falls towering over the rest of the park. The brightly-colored slides twisted around the tower, but I couldn’t help but notice just how far they seemed to drop before you went into the corkscrews at the bottom. And as we got closer to the ride, I had to wonder what I’d gotten myself into.

We climbed all 126 stairs to the top of the slide. (Yes, you read that right – 126 stairs. Talk about a workout!) When we got to the top and saw the tubes, I couldn’t tell if my heart was beating so fast from the climb to get up there or from the fear I was about to face. A pleasant voice said “Welcome – please step inside,” and I couldn’t help but wonder why it sounded so cheerful about the fact it was about to send me screaming back to Earth. My heartbeat got so loud, it seemed, it echoed off of the tube’s walls, and shortly after I gave the attendant my thumbs-up, I was screaming my way back down to earth.

See – I really rode it! Okay, so maybe I actually still have my clothes on (only bathing suits are allowed on the slide), and even my flip-flops, too (again, not allowed on the slide)… but it really looks like I rode it, doesn’t it?

Truth is, shortly before this event, I discovered a medical issue that kept me from riding Ihu’s. But I brought along a designated rider (my husband), and that’s actually how he described the whole lead-up to the ride. And, yes, your heartbeat does echo in the tubes – they’ve piped in a heartbeat sound effect to ratchet up your adrenaline. Not only did he agree that the heartbeat effect really works, but he said the slide itself was incredible. He actually even rode it twice, he liked it so much!

[youtube_video]TO4NmlQt8FM[/youtube_video]

This whole event was fantastic and very informative. I even got to meet Ihu (pronounced Ee-hu) herself – she’s where the name of the ride comes from. Ihu was quite possibly the roundest iguana I’d ever seen.

They had a photo opportunity set up near the actual ride for those who wanted to “brave” the falls without actually riding it (which is how I got my picture taken “riding” it), and you can actually get these pictures made with up to three of your family members in the same photo. It was a fun time taking the pictures (“Look up,” “Now make a face like the floor just gave out”), and they’re a great keepsake for the less daring of your party.

For the daring ones, though, there are four different slides you can choose from. The orange slide is the longest one, at 420 feet; the green slide has the shortest drop (which is still over 28 feet, though); the blue slide has the steepest incline (with the breakaway box); and the purple slide is the unique one. At first glance it seems to be the easiest way out, as there isn’t a breakaway box at the top of this one (it’s a traditional sit-down-and-push-yourself-off slide), but it’s actually the steepest of all four slides.

My husband rode the blue side and said it didn’t seem all that steep to him, but the way that the water splashes in your face as you go down this tube made it difficult to breathe at times. The second ride was in the green tube, and he said it didn’t seem nearly as fast until he hit the corkscrews, which sent you moving much faster than the blue one did – and the bonus was not a lot of water in your face.

He wanted to try more tubes, but the lines were getting much longer as they went ahead and let groups of the public on to ride, so we decided to call it a day. We have definitely decided we’ll have to find a time to go back to Aquatica – he can try the other paths, and I’ll actually get to ride it for real.

To continue learning about all the SeaWorld parks in Orlando, check out our archive on the OI Blog. Want to see all the other new attractions for this year that have us all excited? Read our definitive guide for 2014 (Ihu’s was only number seven!).

Ihu’s Breakaway Falls – photo gallery

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Since we had arrived in time to hear the National Anthem (all SeaWorld parks start their day with the National Anthem), we made a dash for Cheetah Hunt as the rope dropped. It turned out to be a great call, as we only waited five minutes before we got our chance to ride.

After the thrill, it was time to introduce our friend to the birds of Lory Landing… and they didn’t disappoint us at all. The two girls had a blast as the birds hopped back and forth between them to drain their cups of nectar.

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As we exited Lory Landing, we noticed maintenance workers standing on the top hill on SheiKra. Obviously the ride had some sort of issue, and we wondered how long it would be before it was fixed.

As we waited, we explored the new Refresh Market that had opened adjacent to the Stanleyville train station. We found they serve several different types of flavored lemonades (they even had a watermelon lemonade) and different Gold Peak Teas (finally – diet sweet tea in an amusement park!)… and they all work with the 99-cent souvenir cup program.

As we oohed and aahed over the new flavors, they began to run empty cars through SheiKra. The girls decided the lemonade hadn’t cooled them off enough and that it was time to cool off in the water spray from the coaster’s empty cars. (It’s amazing how wet you can get just by standing there!)

Since the wait dragged on for the coaster to allow riders again, and since the girls were already wet, we opted to take a quick, no-wait ride on the nearby Stanley Falls Flume, which is a classic flume ride with one short and one big drop. The girls came off complaining they didn’t get very wet – and I got off absolutely drenched. Just more proof that you never know how wet you’re going to get on a flume ride.

After I made the parental decree that everyone was wet enough, we decided to take a quick Skyride over to the other side of the park to get some lunch at Crown Colony. Our chicken fingers and pizzas were quickly scarfed down as we enjoyed the view of the Seregenti Plain.

After lunch (and since we were mostly dry at that point), we decided to go see “Iceploration.” In all the times we’ve been to the park before, we always said we wanted to see it, but we’d just never managed to actually do it. Wow – what we had been missing!

Ice skaters, acrobats, and actors all blend this show together wonderfully. The live animals that pop up from time to time in the show (real huskies pulling an actual dogsled across the ice, for instance) just make it that much more exciting. And, afterwards, we got to meet some of the cast that came out front and even got to pet one of the sled dogs!

We went from “Iceploration” to check out the changes in Pantopia (the area formerly named Timbuktu). With the land having an official opening date of May 1 – Falcon’s Fury is delayed, but everything else is still on track – we weren’t disappointed in the amount of changes since our last visit. Everything has bright new colors, and lots of little details have been added throughout the area. Signs are changed out (Desert Grill has become Pantopia Grill, Timbuktu Photos is now Pantopia photos, etc.), and murals and artwork abound.

There are still many construction walls at this point, but it does look like the area should hit its opening date without a problem.

The biggest change we noticed is in the centerpiece of Pantopia – Falcon’s Fury. The construction walls still surround this massive structure, but there are quite a few peepholes where major changes can be seen. Signage is in place (including the rules of the ride), and I was even able to see their testing dummies strapped into the seats!

While the ride opening has been delayed due to some technical issues (we did overhear one park employee say they were shooting for a mid-May or early June opening date), I knew test runs had been happening for several weeks now. So while the children went off for carousel rides and a trip down the Sand Serpent, I waited and hoped for a test run… but no luck.

Having seen how much our friend was enjoying the animal exhibits, we decided she had to ride the Serengeti Express train. Giraffes and zebras came so close, the train had to stop.

But the biggest attraction came when, in the distance, we could see Falcon’s Fury rising for a test run. The animals were quickly forgotten as most of the train was mesmerized by the new attraction.

The seats rose slowly to the top, at which point an obvious bounce was seen as they locked into place. A few seconds later, they were plummeting towards the earth. The train as a group let out a very loud “Oh!” in appreciation for just how quickly this drops, and ended up startling the nearby animals. We all got to see two such drops – an exhilarating surprise on this otherwise uneventful train ride!

Curious (or terrified of) what this experience will look like for the riders? Thanks to Busch Garden’s newly published point-of-view video, you can see exactly what it’ll be like:

[youtube_video]4FkqKZQL__c[/youtube_video]

As we left the park after trying once more to ride SheiKrah (it had come back up and was accepting riders earlier but had stopped running again due to more mechanical issues), our friend just gushed on and on about how wonderful Busch Gardens is, and how she really hoped to come back again sometime to see the things we just simply ran out of time to do… and to ride Cheetah Hunt once more, of course.

To continue learning about Busch Gardens, check out the BGT archive on the OI Blog. Or you can catch up on all our trip reports.

Busch Gardens Tampa trip report – photo gallery

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Terry Prather, president of SeaWorld Orlando Parks, kicked off the festivities last Friday, March 21 with promises of all-new experiences and surprises in store for everyone – for 18 months, SeaWorld will be celebrating in lots of new ways.  (One of the best surprises was the announcement that Shamu Stadium will reopen on April 11!)

SeaWorld has opened the all-new SEA Garden next to Nautilus Theater, which is where you can learn more about – and get close to – various animals, most of them rescued, including eagles, spoonbills, flamingos, and more. During the Just for Kids event, animal ambassadors will greet guests in this new section of the park (which is fully shaded!) and hold story time for children, as well.

This is also the area where SeaWorld is showcasing its commitment to the environment with four giant sea-life sculptures from the Washed Ashore Project. These sculptures were created from garbage that has wound up in the oceans, with some weighing more than half a ton – and all being incredibly impressive.

Not only have banners celebrating its 50th anniversary been added to lampposts throughout the park, but signs have also been placed that highlight some of the most memorable moments in SeaWorld’s history, such as the first dolphin rescue in 1974 and the first birth of a killer whale at the SeaWorld parks in 1985.

SeaWorld has also added more spontaneous performances. If you’ve enjoyed watching the antics of the Longshoremen, you’ll truly enjoy the newest addition, Splash Dance. They are a local landscaping team that loses control of their hoses and sprayers and, before long, are soaked from head to toe. This show turns the entire area into a splash zone.

One of the biggest surprises they are offering comes courtesy of the SeaWorld Surprise Squad. This group will be roaming the park and, at random intervals, will select various guests to receive prizes. They’ll be giving away special gifts, including exclusive access to rides, behind-the-scenes experiences, food, park tickets, and much more. There is no way to plan to experience this surprise, though – it’ll simply be a very lucky day for the people in the right place at the right time.

Merchandise celebrating SeaWorld’s 50th is found in almost every store now. There is even a shop at the entrance of the park that was renamed the Official SeaWorld’s 50th Store. A large selection of special merchandise can be found in any of these stops, including shirts, pins, bags, and iPod covers.

A new nighttime Shamu show will debut on June 21, called “Shamu’s Celebration: Light up the Night.” This show, which is similar in energy to the “Shamu Rocks” show that was held in past summers, will include new, original music, as well as new killer whale behaviors. While not yet officially announced, I was told by an employee that “Clyde and Seamore Take Pirate Island” will close next year and will reopen with an entirely new show in 2015.

SeaWorld’s Sea of Surprises is sure to surprise many people – the entire park feels remade, and the energy of the celebration is contagious!

For more information, here is SeaWorld’s official press release on the start of the event:

SeaWorld’s 50th celebration is a Sea of Surprises

SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment has launched a multi-park celebration to commemorate a key event in the company’s history: the opening of the original SeaWorld in March 1964 on Mission Bay in San Diego.

SeaWorld Orlando opened nine years later, on December 15, 1973.

SeaWorld’s 50th celebration features a Sea of Surprises throughout an 18-month celebration highlighting the most memorable SeaWorld experiences in San Diego, Orlando, and San Antonio.

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For nearly five decades, SeaWorld has surprised and amazed guests with unique entertainment, thrilling rides, and up-close encounters with animals. During SeaWorld’s 50th celebration, visitors will be invited to take part in the excitement through new interactive experiences, shows and pathway performances, even more up-close animal encounters throughout the park, and the SeaWorld Surprise Squad, which treats guests with prizes every day.

SeaWorld Orlando’s 50th Celebration “Sea of Surprises” Highlights:

• Park pathways come to life with spontaneous entertainment. Bubble Blowout is sure to be a guest favorite, with a fantastical vehicle creating bubbles of all sizes and shapes throughout Shamu’s Happy Harbor. Engaging performances with sea-inspired costumes and props will pop up at unexpected moments to surprise guests throughout the day, like Splash Dance, near Nautilus Theater.
• On June 21, a new nighttime Shamu show, “Shamu’s Celebration: Light up the Night,” debuts. The high-energy show will include new, original music and production elements, as well as new killer whale behaviors.
• The SeaWorld Surprise Squad will roam SeaWorld Orlando on a daily basis, giving away, at random, prizes and special gifts, including exclusive access to rides, behind-the-scenes experiences, Shamu-themed merchandise, reserved show seating, and more.
• SeaWorld guests are often greeted by an animal ambassador, many of whom were orphaned or injured in the wild and given a second chance thanks to the SeaWorld Animal Rescue Team. As part of SeaWorld’s 50th celebration, there will be more surprise encounters with animal ambassadors throughout the day.
• Share the wonder of close-up encounters with amazing animal friends and learn how SeaWorld cares for the natural world at the all-new SEA Garden. Completely re-designed, the SEA Garden is where guests can learn more about SeaWorld’s animals, many of them rescued, including eagles, spoonbills, opossums, and more.
• To showcase SeaWorld’s commitment to the environment and passion for protecting the ocean, four giant sea-life sculptures will be displayed at the SEA Garden. SeaWorld commissioned environmental art group the Washed Ashore Project for a collection of larger-than-life sea-themed sculptures – many weighing more than half a ton. The material used to create these pieces comes from the billions of pounds of garbage – mostly plastics – that wind up in our oceans. These amazing works of art point to the urgent need to protect marine animals from such dangers and preserve their ocean habitats. On display at SeaWorld Orlando are a parrot fish, sea horse, sea anemone reef, and octopus.
• As part of its continuing commitment to new technology that enhances the guest experience, SeaWorld’s 50th celebration will include new ways for fans to connect to the parks and each other though digital devices. The parks will be launching a variety of enhancements, from interactive apps that provide fun new ways to experience the park to new games and video content.

To keep learning more, you can check out everything in our SeaWorld blog archive, including monthly trip reports!

Sea of Surprises – photo gallery

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The signature lighthouse at the entrance was covered in a thin wrapping. While it doesn’t show in pictures, in person you could see through it enough to know they were adding in some details for the celebration. The top half of a statue commemorating the anniversary could be seen behind construction walls as you entered the park. Even the construction walls themselves were redone and now highlighted memorable moments in SeaWorld’s 50-year history.

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Since we had left the house quickly in the morning, we decided to make our first stop in the park a quick breakfast at the Seafire Inn Cafe. We were pleasantly surprised to find large portions for a very low price (the four of us had breakfast for under $20), and the chocolate chip muffin was absolutely delicious!

After breakfast, we walked over to Shamu Up Close, thinking we’d get better views before the afternoon crowds arrived. We had guessed correctly – while there was a large group of kids from a group trip, there was no one else over there.

We got to watch up-close as the whales sunned themselves in the warm weather and swam around, showing off just how graceful they really are. As we moved to the underwater viewing area, we received quite the treat – we got to watch the mini-show from underwater. While we couldn’t see the flips and splashes, it was fascinating to watch the three whales move in sync under the water.

Shamu Up Close is only open through April during which time Shamu Stadium is going through a refurbishment on the show pool. We were told by a Team Member from the education department that, despite the rumors, it truly is just a refurbishment, and when the stadium reopens in April, it will still be the same One Ocean Shamu show. There will be a new nighttime show this summer, but the regular daytime show will remain the same.

The crane is still on-site at the stadium, indicating construction is continuing, but we didn’t see any other signs of activity on this Sunday. Even after finding a gate that had been left open, we still couldn’t see inside the stadium at all – just some construction equipment sitting idly.

We also found the construction walls near the Garden Terrace Buffet were still in place.

We were able to get a peak over the wall and found workers assembling a wooden fence, but what will be the final result of this construction is still a mystery.

At Pacific Point Preserve, we listened to the Animal Ambassador explain that the sea lions were in their breeding season, and that’s why the male was so vocal and active.

They have two alpha-male sea lions, but during breeding season, only one is on display, to prevent fighting. The females didn’t seem to notice him, though, and were instead lined up on the rocks at the edge of the pool, hoping to catch the fish thrown by guests.

We continued our tour with a ride on Kraken (no wait at all), cooled off on Journey into Atlantis (the recent maintenance fixed the animatronics that weren’t working), and then headed off to find lunch.

We decided to try the Terrace Garden Buffet. The signs promoting the all-you-can-eat-pizza-and-salad bar drew us in, and we paid our $15 a person to eat. The area is very clean and well set-up – and the unlimited (non-alcoholic) beverages are really nice after walking the park for so long.

There were several different pastas to choose from, along with many different sauces to put on them… but there were only four pizza choices, and the salad bar consisted of one tray of premade tossed salad, one tray of coleslaw, and one tray of sliced oranges. We were disappointed in the selections, and we all agreed the pizza tasted a little too much like cardboard. This will be our one and only time eating at this buffet.

Trying to kill time, we walked over to the Dolphin Nursery. The three babies were very cute, but they weren’t overly active today and, therefore, didn’t hold my children’s interest.

So with still more time to kill, my family rode Manta (no wait) while I checked out the aquarium (the octopus was really active and drew quite a crowd).

Finally, with only 20 minutes until show time, we headed over to see Pets Ahoy.

We had never stopped to see the Pets Ahoy show before, and we were pleasantly surprised at how good it was! While one amusingly misguided cat stole the show at the beginning by deciding to explore rather than perform the behavior she was supposed to, the rest of the animals performed wonderfully. Dogs jumped rope, cats balanced on high platforms, and one dog won over his girlfriend with flowers and a nice car. They even had trained rats and skunks performing.

The show delighted us, and, as we left, we discussed how we’ll have to make that a stop more often.

As we headed out of the park, we saw the Longshoremen amusing everyone with their tactics to deliver a package onto a boat in the harbor (they were planning to catapult themselves onto the boat).

But the best part of the performance was the ad-lib shouting contest they had with a small child who just kept yelling bye at them.

As we walked to the car, occasionally screaming “bye” at each other and laughing, we all discussed how much fun we’d had, and how we can’t wait to see what SeaWorld has in store for its 50th anniversary Sea of Surprises celebration. (Remember, we’ll have a special post about the celebration early next week!)

Now for some news…

Behind the Falls: Ihu’s Breakaway Falls dropping at Aquatica May 9

Are you ready to drop? Follow Aquatica Orlando’s Vice President Bryan Nadeau Behind the Falls for an insider’s look into Ihu’s Breakaway Falls – the tallest, steepest, and only multi-drop tower slide of its kind in Orlando and all of the southern United States – dropping only at Aquatica Orlando on May 9.

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At nearly 80 feet tall, Ihu’s Breakaway Falls is where you’ll face your fears and each other. Offering four unique slide paths, you’ll step into one of three “breakaway boxes” and watch each other fall one-by-one or test your bravery on a fourth open slide for a different, but just as thrilling, experience. You’ll never know who’s going to breakaway first – and the anticipation of who drops next is part of the wild ride!

Just for Kids: SeaWorld’s kids’ festival is back and better than ever

Shamu and Crew invites families to experience SeaWorld’s 50th Celebration through the eyes of a child. Sing, dance, and play the day away Saturdays at SeaWorld Orlando’s Just for Kids Festival, which runs from March 22 to April 12 and is included with park admission.

Families can experience warm-hearted, whimsical fun and make lasting memories as they dance along to jammin’ DJs at the new Rockin’ Rockhopper Party in Antarctica: Empire of the Penguin, get up close with adorable animal friends at the all-new SEA Garden, and meet some of their favorite children’s television stars. Additionally, kids can go on an educational treasure hunt as they look for the Sea Star icons throughout the park, where they’ll discover fun, educational activities. At each location, they will collect a stamp and a limited edition Explorer’s card. After visiting all four locations, they’ll receive a coupon to redeem for a special SeaWorld prize at select gift shops.

Then end the night with Shamu and Crew at the Shamu Dance Party at the Village Square, located at the front of the park. The party begins one hour prior to park closing with a stilt walker emcee who fills the square with music that the whole family can dance to, including popular line-dancing songs and party favorites. The Shamu Dance Party continues until 30 minutes after park closing. Visit SeaWorldOrlando.com for complete details.

I hope you enjoyed this trip report! To keep learning more, you can view our SeaWorld blog archive, or you can catch up on all of our trip reports.

SeaWorld Orlando trip report – photo gallery

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We got there early enough that the crowds had yet to arrive, so we hurried over to Antarctica before a line formed. The sign informed us of a 15-minute wait, but there was no wait at all – I’ve never seen Antarctica this empty before.

We enjoyed our ride through Puck’s journey and were delighted to enter the penguin exhibit. Many of the older chicks are losing their down and are able to swim now, so the water was full of very active penguins leaping out of the water – so active that we even thought one was going to jump over the glass right at us, causing the kids to squeal with delight.

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As we left the cold area of the penguins and wandered towards the underwater viewing area, we discovered that this season’s chicks were all gathered in one spot where we could see them clearly.

The nearby trainer patiently answered everyone’s questions as she showed off some actual penguin eggs that didn’t hatch.

We made our way through the park, stopping for some family members to brave the chill and ride Journey to Atlantis (now that it’s reopened from its maintenance), and then shuffled through a crowded Shark Encounter to see the sharks swimming overhead.

As we rounded the corner towards Shamu Stadium, we were surprised to find the area surrounded by green construction walls. The only sign explaining the work being done was that it would be part of the Sea of Surprises program starting March 21, which celebrates SeaWorld’s 50th anniversary.

There was no way to see over the walls, so I’m very anxious to find out what’s going on back there.

Also under construction is Shamu Stadium; it’s still closed as they resurface and do maintenance on the main pool.

Tarps now cover portions of the stadium’s seating, and, as I found out from the Sky Tower, the entire area is covered up to prevent anyone from seeing what’s going on. SeaWorld definitely knows how to hide their construction really well.

With their biggest show closed for renovations, SeaWorld has opened Shamu Up Close to still allow guests to see the killer whales.

This visit, I got through the line in time to see one of the mini-shows they do each hour. The whales performed some of their signature jumps, which are incredibly impressive when you’re only 25 feet away from them!

We then headed to the underwater viewing area, which is just breathtaking. These massive creatures swim by so gracefully.

At one point, all the whales even came right up to the glass, as if looking through to see everyone. Simply amazing!

At this point, we stopped somewhere different for lunch – Mango Joe’s Cafe.

This lunch spot near Wild Arctic had some great burgers (I highly recommend the Joe Double), as well as a nice outdoor patio seating area.

We put this one on the “must repeat” restaurant list.

We then ventured to Shamu’s Happy Harbor to see the rides for the younger crowd.

We are always impressed, as these are not your typical kiddy rides. They have a sea-themed carousel, a miniature drop tower, and even a kiddy rollercoaster. My teenagers just had to ride the kiddy coaster and found it to be actually “kinda cool” (their exact words – high praise from teenagers). The coaster even took their picture as they went down the hill, just like the big coasters.

Next we made a quick run through Wild Arctic (the ride portion is now open again), the dolphin nursery, and took a quick ride on Manta.

Finally, it was time to head to the Bands, Brew & BBQ section of the park. The enticing aroma of barbecue permeated the area as I entered the pathway.

Places to sample different craft brews, as well as offerings from some of the area’s most delicious barbecue establishments, line the walkways, with plenty of tables and chairs for seating along the waterfront.

Local bands perform to the crowds, and a kid’s area is even available inside Ports of Call with games, animals, and character meets-‘n-greets.

While I didn’t sample any of the beer or barbecue in the area (too close to driving-home-time), the smells definitely tempted me. Instead, we plugged on to Bayside Stadium to see Larry the Cable Guy.

We had arrived 30 minutes prior to showtime only to find the stadium completely full already. Plenty of lawn seating was still available on either side of the stadium, though, with televisions set up so we could see the action.

Signs had been posted throughout the park warning guests that Larry the Cable Guy’s routine might not be for everyone, but as he started, it was obvious some people had chosen to ignore them.

As the Viagra jokes began, families with small children began to leave the area. We tried to grab seats inside the stadium as others left but were unable to… other families were quicker.

We soon gave up our quest for an actual seat and just sat on the lawn to watch it on the monitor. The sound quality from the show was very good (and was piped through the entire Bands, Brew & BBQ area for those who didn’t want lawn seating), and we found the experience very enjoyable despite our lack of seats.

The positive side to sitting on the lawn was that, as the show ended, we found it worked really well in getting out ahead of the crowd leaving the theater.

We drove home with my son repeating the jokes he’d heard (I’m hoping he forgets some of them before going back to school) and the whole family already asking if we could go back for another show before the event ends on March 9.

I hope you enjoyed this trip report! To keep learning more, you can view our SeaWorld blog archive, or you can catch up on all of our trip reports.

SeaWorld Orlando trip report – photo gallery

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We arrived five minutes after the park opened and found very little crowds. We all decided Cheetah Hunt needed to be the very first stop before the wait time got too long. What a smart move that was – a zero-minute wait time was posted, and we could have literally walked right onto the coaster, but we decided to wait the whopping five minutes and stand in line for the front row. I’ve loved this coaster since the first time I rode it – but riding it in the front row was absolutely breathtaking. I came up over the hills, and it looked just like I’d fly right off the track!

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Noticing the crowds were still low, we headed over to SheiKra to check the line there. With a posted five-minute wait time, my family quickly raced off to ride on it. As they exited the ride, they were bouncing with excitement – the wait time had been overestimated and ended up being no wait at all. So, as we had on Cheetah Hunt, they waited the five minutes and rode front row. While my husband said it was the best ride ever, my daughter explained that the five-second wait at the top of the hill was a bit much as she looked straight down the drop. So, apparently, the front row of SheiKra is only for true daredevils.

We decided to try somewhere different for lunch and ended up at the Crown Colony Cafe.

With the current passholder deal of two meals and dessert for $20, our entire lunch (including drinks) was only a pleasing $50.Everyone agreed the pizza and chicken fingers were delicious, and the view of the animals from the deck was amazing. We’ll definitely be back here again.

As we waited for our food to settle, we wandered the park, checking out the animals as we went. As we came to the Animal Care Center, we stumbled onto the end of a procedure they’d been performing.

A wild pelican had been brought in by officials with a broken wing, and while Busch Gardens was checking it out, they also discovered multiple fish hooks stuck in his stomach. When we came in, the pelican was waking up from anesthesia, and the vet was explaining to the crowd that, after the pelican recovers from the three-hour surgery it had just endured to put pins in his broken wing, they will do a second surgery to remove the fish hooks.

She said it would take time for him to heal but was optimistic about his chances to be released back into the wild again.

Happy to hear the bird would do well, we then headed over to check out the Falcon’s Fury construction. The crown is now in place at the top of the ride, and what appears to be support beams are now in place down the sides of the tower. This ride makes everything else in the park look tiny – it’s absolutely huge!

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The entire Timbuktu area of the park will be converting to Pantopia with the addition of the new ride, and we could definitely see the progress they had made in that direction.

The new paint colors are going up all around, and the construction walls have expanded to include a majority of the area.

Unfortunately, when they moved the construction walls, one of my peepholes into the construction area was removed. I spoke to a nearby employee to see if another one had taken its place, and he explained that not only was the peephole gone now, but so was the employee’s path to the main office.

In the course of this conversation, he said several employees had complained about the much longer walk to the office, but that management had told him it would only be for two months. I walked away wondering if that had just happened – did he really just tell me that the construction walls will be down in two months’ time? This would put Falcon’s Fury with an opening date of mid-April. That would be incredible! (Later in the day, I also talked to another employee who hadn’t heard of the mid-April time frame, but he did tell me they would absolutely be having events for passholders to ride it before the general public!)

It was almost time for the elephant interaction area to open (it only opens two or three times a day), so we decided to check that out. This area provides guests with an unique opportunity to see the elephant trainers work with the animals on their behaviors. Rosie the elephant came over to the wall and performed some crowd-pleasing displays for us, and the favorite was when she sprayed water on the crowd.

As the crowd thinned a bit, I took the opportunity to talk to the trainer about the male elephant that recently arrived at the park but is not on display yet. She let me know that Spike should be out with the herd in the next two or three months. She explained that the elephant enclosure was designed for female elephants, and now that there is a male, there are several changes that need to be made to ensure everyone’s safety (exterior walls need to be raised to an eight-foot height, the moat that separates the public from the elephants needs to be deepened, etc.).

I asked if these modifications were the reason that Rhino Rally was closed – it’s been closed for “refurbishment” for many months now, but there are no signs of any work being done to it at all – and she replied that she was “told just the other day that Rhino Rally will be reopening on Memorial Day and staying open through Labor Day.” They are still debating on whether the track for the area will be modified with the new enclosure, or whether the enclosure will be modified around the current track that is there. Either way, though, I was happy to know the ride will reopen, as it’s a great way to get closer to the animals.

Deciding we’d had enough fun with the usual park stuff, we headed over to the Bands, Brew, and BBQ area. 30 different booths of craft beers, and many of those booths with four or five different brews to try – what’s not to like about that? We stood in a quick line to get our unlimited beer sampling wristbands and sampling cup ($30 for the wristband and a four-ounce sampling cup versus the $6.95 per 10-ounce beer charge) and started sampling. We found some really good brews from some breweries I’d never heard of and found some really bad beers from other breweries.

The barbecue sold in this area was delicious (the grilled corn on the cob won our favorite of the night). They even had a photo-op set up in the field where you could take your picture appearing to hold up Falcon’s Fury in the distance, which the kids found really cool.

We watched some of the Marshall Tucker Band concert but soon decided that, with school and work the next day, it was time to start the drive back home. But we all agreed – we’ll be back to celebrate more Bands, Brew & BBQ before the event ends on March 9.

Thanks for reading my trip report! To continue learning about Busch Gardens Tampa, check out the BGT archive on the OI Blog. Or you can catch up on all our trip reports.

To see who is performing at Bands, Brew & BBQ this upcoming weekend, visit the official site.

Busch Gardens Tampa trip report – photo gallery

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Our first stop was at the dolphin nursery, where all the pregnant dolphins and mothers with young calves are kept. Whether it was the dark blue of our jackets, or the fact that we moved away from the crowds towards the end of the pool, it seemed that we had somehow gotten the dolphins complete attention. Every time they swam by our group, they repeatedly popped their heads out of the water as if to say “hi”, and they seemed to enjoy the fact that we all waved and said hello in response.

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In fact, several times the dolphins stopped swimming in circles, swam right up to the edge, and repeatedly popped their heads out of the water to see us over the concrete edge. They were so entertaining that eventually the crowd moved down towards our end of the pool in hopes of saying hello to the dolphins as well.

As we continued our journey through the park, we heard quite the commotion coming from nearby and decided to investigate. Turns out the Long Shore Men had come out with their bucket and ladder to clean a statue. With their Laurel and Hardy antics, they entertained the children and adults in the crowd that had stopped to watch.

After repeated problems with the ladder, and after violating safety rules in hysterical ways, they were unable to clean the statue and wished us all a great day in the park.

We were still talking about them as we passed the Sky Tower (which was closed due to high winds), went through the Shark Encounter (always a cool sight to see), and even as we stopped for lunch (Spice Mill Restaurant as usual).

We finished our lunch with 15 minutes until the next Clyde and Seamore show – and, as we were directly across from the stadium, we decided to grab some seats for the next show.

Even with the crowds, we managed to grab some great seats (although the benches were really cold in the frigid temperatures of the day). We watched the mime as he had fun with the guests, and then watched Clyde and Seamore’s clever antics as the show progressed.

The SeaWorld employees in this show have always amazed me with their ability to improvise when things don’t go quite as planned (they are working with animals after all), but their improvisation with the bird that dropped in to steal some fish was some of the funniest I’ve seen yet. Captain Squid even chased the bird with a sword at one point – the crowd couldn’t stop laughing!

The Wild Days Sea Rescue event was the special event of the day. Chuck Cureau (supervisor of animal training at SeaWorld San Diego) talked with members of SeaWorld’s rescue team regarding their various rescues. They told stories of orphaned baby manatees, mass beaching of whales, sea turtles affected by the cold, and how they helped save an entire generation of flamingo chicks in Mexico.

They also brought out some animals that had been rescued, including a few Bald Eagles that had fallen from the nest as chicks and were hand-raised, which led the government to deem them unreleasable (turns out Bald Eagles grow into their bald heads as they mature – just like humans do!). It was really amazing to hear their stories and learn of their successes.

Our next stop brings us to the biggest change at SeaWorld this month: Shamu Stadium is closed for maintenance until April.  The main tank is having the acrylic reapplied, and repairs and cleaning are being performed throughout the entire tank.  While we couldn’t see inside the stadium due to the fences and tarps that surround the building, we could see some large air ducts going into the stadium, and the construction cranes could be seen throughout the park.

With Shamu Stadium, SeaWorld’s marquee attraction, closed for so long of a time, the park has come up with a way that everyone can still see the killer whales.

The “Shamu Up Close” experience was created, and the backstage area of Shamu Stadium has been converted to hold crowds. When we first walked in, we saw the whales from above the water just being themselves. (The number of whales, and which whales are on view, varies each day) Then, each hour, the trainers put on a 5 minute mini-show where they showcase some of the whales skills and teach guests a little more about killer whales.

Aside from the mini-show, the other 55 minutes the whales are just swimming around being themselves. It was fascinating to watch the young whale sun it’s belly, and another whale swim around sticking her tongue out for no apparent reason. What I didn’t know was that the best was still to come…

From the above ground viewing, we followed down a short path lined with conservation statements and statues, leading us to an area where we could see those same whales from under the water. I’ve been going to SeaWorld since I was a child, and never have I seen the whales this closely.

The grace with which these giant creatures swim is absolutely awe inspiring – and they’ll swim right up next to the glass, giving you up close views of the whales like you’ve never seen before. Simply breathtaking!

As we left Shamu and continued our journey through the park, we hit Antarctica, Turtle Trek, and the Manta Aquarium (the giant manta finally came out where we could see it!).

While these sights were really cool, we all agreed that nothing could compare to the amazing time we’d spent at Shamu Up Close.

We left the park as it closed and talked of nothing but the amazing views at Shamu Up Close all the way home. We can hardly wait to return next month to see them again!

I hope you enjoyed this trip report! To keep learning more, you can view SeaWorld blog archive, or you can catch up on all of our trip reports (Orlando Informer now publishes monthly trip reports for Universal Studios Florida, Islands of Adventure, SeaWorld, Busch Gardens, and one of the four Walt Disney World parks).

SeaWorld Orlando trip report – photo gallery

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The post SeaWorld Orlando trip report – January 2014 (dolphin encounters, Wild Days Sea Rescue & Shamu Up Close) appeared first on Orlando Informer.

Last time we were at Busch Gardens, an Animal Care employee in Lory Landing told us to visit the exhibit early in the morning because the birds were hungrier then and more interactive. So we tested that advice, and it proved to be more accurate than we could have imagined. Not only were the birds hungrier, but we also found the Animal Care Team was handing out cups of nectar for free (usually $3 each). So the entire family found themselves with nectar cups in their hands, and birds all over them. They jumped on our arms and heads, and sometimes we even found ourselves with multiple birds on our arms fighting over the nectar. What a delight!

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As we continued our journey through the park, we found signs of construction in unexpected places. The Stanleyville train station has a large section surrounded by construction walls – no signs said what was coming there, so that was quite the surprise to us. We also found the pool that fuels the SheiKra’s tidal wave effect had been significantly lowered. A staff member nearby informed us it was due to the cold weather.

But the biggest construction we saw during our visit was the expected: Falcons Fury. The column sections providing the height are now all in place, and this thing is massive! You can see it from anywhere in the park, and it absolutely looms over every other ride.

We noticed that crews have scaffolding in place that surrounds the tower itself, and it raises and lowers up the tower as they work on it, much like a window washer’s workspace on a high rise building. We could not only hear the sounds of construction when we were right next to it, but the bangs and clangs can be heard throughout the park as well.

In addition, everywhere we went we could hear guests talking about it, and opinions ranged from the amusing versions of “no way will I ride it” to the excited “I can’t wait!”

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Stopping for lunch at the nearby Desert Grill proved to be quite the treat for our pocketbooks. With the 30% discount for Pass Holders this month, our lunch for seven people only cost us $60.00!

And for that $60.00 we got plates piled high with delicious food, including a turkey club sandwich and the big corned beef sandwich I mentioned in November’s trip report.

After eating, we decided to let our food settle before attempting any more coasters, so we walked to several animal exhibits.

To our surprise, we found out that Jambo Junction actually housed unique animal exhibits; we had always thought this building, tucked back into the trees, was a restaurant. As we walked through, we even stumbled upon a group that was feeding the flamingos housed there. I’ve never seen flamingos run towards people the way these birds ran towards this group of people with their metal buckets. A few of the flamingos were checking out the crowd at the rail as well, apparently thinking we’d have some extra food ourselves, and came right up to us. Trying to touch them proved unfruitful though, as they would easily duck our attempts. We all got some good laughs as we tried, and discovered that flamingos are really loud when they’re that close to you.

As we walked through the Edge of Africa displays, we came across a group of Animal Care employees standing inside the meerkat exhibit.  They explained to us that only one meerkat was on display at the moment as the others were “elsewhere”.

Unfortunately, being alone meant the meerkat had no one else to cuddle up with to stay warm in the frigid temperatures that are expected over the next few nights. So they were setting up a warm place for her to sleep. This consisted of a small animal carrier set on the ground filled and surrounded by straw, as well as a warming lamp setup above it.

With our food now settled, it was time for more rides!

The Montu was only a quick 15 minute wait, but we weren’t so lucky with Cheetah Hunt. Its wait was over 50 minutes long (and was still at that when we checked 20 minutes before park closing). As we waited, we could see the queue for Cheetah Hunt had even been redesigned to hold more people. Since the redesign consists of temporary plastic barriers, we speculated whether this was a permanent change or just a temporary measure for the recent holiday crowds.

My family has ridden SheiKra many times, but I had never been brave enough to try it. Whether it was the good mood of having such a great day, or possibly the beer I’d consumed, something made me finally decide to go ahead and try this coaster. For those not familiar, it goes up a hill to start, just like any other coaster, but instead of sending you screaming down the hill right away, it has a unique twist: the car reaches the edge of the plunge, then it stops there for five seconds before sending you speeding on your way.

That’s five seconds of sitting there dangling over the edge – it may seem like a short time, but when I was hanging there, I got WAY too much time to reconsider my decision to ride this coaster!

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If you like the feeling of free fall, you’ll enjoy this coaster. It truly felt like I was falling out of the sky as I came down that first hill. While I enjoyed the breakneck speeds and fast twists of this coaster, free falling isn’t an experience I enjoy. So I’ll let my family continue to ride this one without me from now on.

With my dignity still slightly intact, we left the park as it closed. Having the extra family members made it much more enjoyable, and we’re already talking about who else we could bring this month with our remaining free tickets. For other Busch Gardens Pass Holders, if you’re interested in getting your free tickets, visit this page. Oh, and if you’re a SeaWorld Orlando Pass Holder, they are offering the same thing.

Thanks for reading my trip report! To continue learning about Busch Gardens Tampa, check out the BGT archive on the OI Blog. Or you can catch up on all our trip reports.

Busch Gardens Tampa trip report – photo gallery

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The post Busch Gardens Tampa trip report – January 2014 (hungry birds at Lory Landing, Falcon’s Fury construction, first ride on SheiKra) appeared first on Orlando Informer.

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Even after reading reports on Twitter that the Antarctica ride was having problems, we decided to risk it and ride it anyway. It’s always such an amazing not-to-miss experience for my family to be that close to the penguins, and the mere 20 minute wait time sealed the deal for us.

During our ride we noticed one door between sections of the ride wasn’t closing, but the ride cars were still moving through without an issue, and we were able to see our beloved penguins without any problems.

Moving to the underwater dolphin viewing area, we noticed a crowd in one area and had to see what was going on. The dolphins were engaging with the guests through the glass, and we soon found out why.

One group was tossing a bag of cotton candy back and forth just skimming the glass with each toss. The dolphins had actually stopped swimming to watch, and bobbed their heads back and forth like they were at a tennis match – they were fascinated by the moving object. The group eventually stopped and moved on, but my children were excited to see if it would work for them. So I gave in and bought a bag myself.  Yep – worked for them too.

I asked a staff member nearby about it, and he explained that dolphins are generally curious creatures, and and when shown something out of the ordinary flying back and forth, they likely just wanted to figure out what it was. Eventually the dolphin will tire of the game and move on, but another one will soon take his place. The staff member said, since it was mentally stimulating to the dolphins and not harming them in any way, that we were welcome to do it whenever we’d like.

Great entertainment, stimulating to the animals, and even a snack for later – sounds like a winner to me!

Continuing to our next stop, a wonderful surprise came while we were waiting for the Blue Horizon dolphin show. A pod of pilot whales that Sea World had rescued off the Florida Keys were deemed unreleasable a year ago, and SeaWorld has been working with them ever since with the hopes that one day they’ll be part of the Blue Horizons show. The whales have the signals down and are enjoying learning the new tricks, but they had never been in front of an audience before. So we got to witness their first training session before a live audience.

Three of the whales didn’t seem to care about us at all, but the fourth whale seemed to enjoy the applause from the audience more than the reinforcement from her trainer  Even the trainers got some laughs out of it as they tried to get that particular whale to go back into her pool just behind the main show pool.

After that unannounced preshow, the main Blue Horizons show started, and it was as magnificent as ever: Dolphins leaping high into the air, aerial acrobatics, high-divers, and birds all combine to make this show such a wonderful visual showcase.

After the show, we stopped for a quick lunch at Spice Mill Restaurant — always the restaurant of choice with our picky eaters.

Once our meal settled, it was back to park touring as we rode high into the air on the Skytower, caught a no wait ride on the Kraken, and a chilly ride on Journey to Atlantis.

We all agreed that the best part of the Christmas shows we’d seen in November was Shamu Christmas Miracles, so we chose to see it again.

The stadium was not nearly as crowded as last time, and we were able to get great seats to enjoy Shamu’s high jumping skills — and crowd talents — all set to such emotionally uplifting music.

As the temperature in the air was dropping, a quick stroll through Christmas Village offered the chance for us to warm up: we picked up delicious (and VERY affordable) hot chocolates for the kids, and Cranberry Hot Toddies for the adults.

I could smell the rum in my Hot Toddy when it was handed to me, so I was surprised to take the first sip and find you couldn’t taste the alcohol in it at all. What I did taste was a wonderful blend of warm cranberry and cinnamon that was absolutely delightful. It was so good in fact, I had to go back to the stand to ask exactly how it was made, so I could try to duplicate it at home.

With the chill in the air deepening, and our feet aching from walking all day, we opted to call it at night.

As we sang along to the Christmas music and enjoyed the decorations on the way out, we noticed the signs at the exit of the park announced the “Wild Days” weekends starting in January. The conversation on the way home was a mix of excitement for Christmas, and excitement over SeaWorld’s next event, which is advertised to include even more animal interactions than a typical visit.

I hope you enjoyed this trip report! To see a formal listing of everything SeaWorld is doing for the holidays, check out this blog post. Otherwise, you can view all of our blog posts filed under SeaWorld, or you can catch up on all of our trip reports.

Update: SeaWorld Groupon tickets

This week SeaWorld began offering tickets through Groupon at a nearly 40% discount, allowing guests to purchase admission for $59.00 versus the regular online price of $82.00 or the at-the-gate price of almost $100. There are a few restrictions: The tickets must be used by March 31st, the busy week between Christmas and New Years — December 25 through January 2 — is blocked out, and apparently the offers ends in a week and a half.

Check out the Groupon deal

View SeaWorld’s regular ticket offers

SeaWorld Orlando trip report – photo gallery

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The post SeaWorld Orlando trip report – December 2013 (penguin & dolphin encounters, Christmas shows, Groupon deal) [UPDATED] appeared first on Orlando Informer.

I got to the Busch Gardens two hours before the daytime scheduled closing time, only to find that I had grossly overestimated the crowds on this weekday night (this was Thursday, December 12). The parking lot was mostly empty, and the park wasn’t crowded at all. Not wanting to waste daylight, I hurried over to check the progress on the construction for Falcon’s Fury, Busch Gardens’ new 335 foot drop tower that will plunge guests to the earth face-down at 60 miles per hour.

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The plastic covered fencing surrounding the construction area has been removed, and sturdier wooden walls are now in their place. But even those walls can’t hide the fact that Falcon’s Fury is rising into the sky! Three tower pieces have now been installed, and roughly 100 feet of steel has risen.  It’s already casting shadows on the nearby palm trees, and yet it’s only one-third of the eventual height. It’s clear that this ride will tower over everything at the park. A few workers were present, but no construction was being performed when I was there. Still, it was quite a thrill to see the ride taking shape.

UPDATE: Busch Gardens published a new construction video to YouTube, which you can see directly below this text. It’s followed by two of my photos shot during my visit last weekend.

[youtube_video]TfjEq8kxw0k[/youtube_video]

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With an hour left until the park closed to transition to Christmas Town, I found myself in an unusual position – time to kill in a nearly empty park.  What to do?  Ride the coasters with non-existent wait times, of course! I stored my stuff in a locker (only 50 cents per use with no time limit) and rushed over to ride my favorite coaster in the park – Cheetah Hunt. After an amazingly short five minute wait, I was off and racing at Cheetah speeds. After that, I raced to the Montu, where I was able to walk on the coaster with no wait at all.

Another welcome surprise came with the park closing announcement. Turns out, if you have a Christmas Town ticket, you don’t have to leave Busch Gardens for the hour time gap; you can simply visit one of the designated locations to wait. With no rush to leave, I wandered around. It was a surreal feeling walking through such a large amusement park with what seemed like only a hundred other people. No lines anywhere, no crowds, and plenty of opportunities to enjoy the Christmas lights coming on as the sun was setting.

Snow World, the first part of Busch Gardens Christmas Town that I explored, opened up early at 5:30pm, and I was among the small crowd that was let in just as the gates opened.

This is the first place I’ve seen in Florida where you can play in the snow – REAL snow, not the bubble snow usually found this time of year that my family commonly refers to as “Florida snow”. There are targets that you can throw snowballs at, slides where guests race fellow park-goers on tubes, and an area for just playing in the snow. How they manage to get all that snow in one tent and not have it melt quickly in the unseasonably warm temperatures we’re having is a mystery to me – but watching the kids play like they’re really at the North Pole made me completely forget that I’ll start sweating again as soon as I step out of the tent.

Important tip: They do not allow flip flops or sandals in the snow at all due to concerns of frostbite (it’s real snow after all). However, they offer a “shoe exchange” program where they’ll loan you a pair of boots while they hold your warm weather shoes — and all for no extra charge!

The Christmas lights and music everywhere got me in such a Christmas spirit. Every area of Busch Gardens has its own Christmas-named theming: Timbuktu becomes Holiday Hills, Nairobi becomes Penguin Point (complete with African penguins), and Bird Gardens transforms into an overload of neon pink that anywhere else would be considered tacky – but here is breathtakingly beautiful.  (Turns out those new flamingo statues I admired last month are actually part of the Christmas lighting.) Every Christmas “town” even has their own themed music. I couldn’t help but sing along and dance to the music as I walked through the park.

Feeling so festive, at this point I suddenly had an overwhelming desire to go visit Santa at his house.

The magic of the house is so uplifting that I found myself smiling and giggling as I talked to Mrs. Claus while waiting to see Santa Claus. And I didn’t even have my children with me!

Along with the beauty of all the lights, there are lots of specialty Christmas shows during the Christmas Town event. I chose to see “Angels on Ice” – a mix of ice skating and aerial acrobatics. While that might seem like an odd mix, it turns out that mixing them ends up with an impressive display of talent.

I also got to enjoy the Carol of the Bells light show with fantastically timed lights to an awesome arrangement of Carol of the Bells that I’ve never heard before. After the two photos below, see the full 5-minute show in my video.

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Roughly two hours after the official Christmas town opening, the crowds were really starting to pick up  The entire park isn’t open during the event, and the limitations on available walking paths became quite obvious as more people arrived to experience the winter wonderland. The park started to implement a waiting list and pager system for the more popular attractions (Snow World and Santa’s House), reinforcing what I’d noticed myself – the crowds were getting much heavier as the evening progressed.

I opted to keep the joy of the event fresh in my mind and leave before the crowd levels became frustrating.

My time at Busch Gardens filled me to the brim with the holiday spirit, and with a determination that next year I’ll bring the whole family to experience this magical event.

Official website for Busch Gardens Christmas Town 2013

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Thanks for reading my trip report! To continue learning about Busch Gardens Tampa, check out the BGT archive on the OI Blog. Or you can catch up on all our trip reports.

Busch Gardens Tampa & Christmas Town 2013 – photo gallery

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The post Busch Gardens Tampa trip report – December 2013 (Christmas Town special event, Falcon’s Fury update) appeared first on Orlando Informer.

We arrived at the park, sailed through the ticket gate, and hurried our way to the first Christmas show of the night: Clyde & Seamore’s Countdown to Christmas. The Christmas decorations throughout our walk were very festive: large nutcrackers, snowman light poles, and even elves that worked outside their workshop while interacting with guests.

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We stopped for a moment to listen as the elves asked everyone for background information on the squirrels that kept stalking them. Kids were entertained as the elves explained that they were concerned the squirrels might mess up their workshop and ruin Christmas.

We arrived at the Sea Lion & Otter Theater 30 minutes before show time as recommended by the guide, only to find the theater filled almost to capacity. As we took our seats in the nosebleed section, we settled in to watch the antics of the mime. He certainly didn’t disappoint us, and we all laughed along as he stole a girlfriend from one guest and a beer from another. When he led the Christmas sing-a-long, complete with flash cards for the words, the laughter was really flowing.

The show didn’t disappoint either. It was full of laughs as Clyde and Seamore journeyed to the mall (getting stuck in traffic on I4 was hilarious), shopped for all their Christmas presents (Clyde taking Glamor shots was awesome — he smiled for the pictures and everything!), and decorated their “house” for Christmas.

As the show ended, snow fell on the crowd (Florida snow made out of bubbles, that is) and everyone quickly jostled to leave the theater.

The Christmas shows were scheduled very close together – so close, in fact, it was impossible to see them all in one night. We debated on going to the most popular show in the park “O Wondrous Night”, but it was scheduled so close to Shamu Christmas Miracles that we were afraid we’d miss Shamu, and that wasn’t an option for us. As we oohed and aahed over the Christmas lights that were turning on, we made our way towards the Nautilus Theater to work out our options.

It was 90 minutes until the “O Wondrous Night” show time, and already the line for the show was enormous. I talked to a SeaWorld team member who gave us the tip that the best time to come to the show is 15 minutes AFTER the first show starts. You’re guaranteed a spot in line that way, but you’ll still have an hour wait (there’s no getting away from the long wait, apparently).

We opted to catch the Sea of Trees performance — absolutely incredible effects — on the way to the Shamu show.

[youtube_video]R3QIHeYoToQ[/youtube_video]

After discovering the shortage of seats at the Clyde & Seamore show, we decided to arrive at Shamu much earlier than the park-recommended 30 minutes until show time, and were very glad we did. We arrived an hour early, just as they started letting people into Shamu Stadium. This time we were able to secure a better seat, but it still wasn’t the primo seats you’d expect to get when you arrived that far before show time.

With 45 minutes still to go, we looked around and noticed the 5,000 seat theater was already mostly full.

To bide time before the main event, they showed Christmas karaoke on the big screens, and they had a live musician performing Christmas carols. With all the entertainment, my kids, normally easily bored, stayed completely entertained.

The Shamu show itself was wonderful, featuring great music, an amazing light show, and of course the high jumping killer whales stealing the spotlight. We saw quite a few people quickly scurrying away when the splashing began, so be warned: the splash zone for this show is truly a splash zone for the show.

After the Shamu show, we tried to see the Polar Express Experience (housed in the building where you’ll find Wild Artic the rest of the year).

Unfortunately, everyone at the Shamu show had the same idea. By the time we got there, the line stretched throughout the queue, so we opted to skip the experience. We did get to see a great a cappella group entertaining guests nearby though.

Next, we decided to stroll through the Christmas Village.

Here we found lots of individual enjoyments: a massive model train display, lots of fast casual food spots with holiday goodies (hot chocolate, hot toddies, s’mores, and more), and we stumbled across some wintery penguin characters ready for photo ops.

Our final destination was the Holiday Reflections fireworks show at the Bayside Stadium. At first we thought this was odd, because the Winter Wonderland on Ice show was happening at the Bayside Stadium, and it was still going 10 minutes before the fireworks were scheduled to start. Nevertheless, we found some empty seats on the sides of the stadium, and we proceeded to wait and see if the show was running late or what exactly was going on.

To our surprise the fireworks started immediately after the end of Winter Wonderland on Ice – there wasn’t a break between the two shows at all.

Although you would be able to see the fireworks anywhere in the park, but the best vantage point is inside Bayside Stadium. Here we saw the fountains, the Christmas trees in the lagoon, and the fireworks themselves, all beautifully synchronized to Christmas music.

It was a simply dazzling ending to a wonderful holiday evening at the park. We left as excited as when we arrived, knowing that we would be able to come back for another visit and experience the rest of the Christmas attractions that SeaWorld Orlando has to offer.

I hope you enjoyed this trip report! To see a formal listing of everything SeaWorld is doing for the holidays, check out this blog post. Otherwise, you can view all of our blog posts filed under SeaWorld, or you can catch up on all of our trip reports.

Tip: Experience the most popular holiday from the best seats (thus avoiding a bit of the hassle we ran into) by purchasing Christmas Show Seating. This new offering provides guests with reserved seating at Shamu Christmas Miracles, O Wondrous Night, Winter Wonderland on Ice, and Clyde & Seamore’s Countdown to Christmas, plus front-of-the-line access to THE POLAR EXPRESS Experience.

SeaWorld Orlando trip report – photo gallery

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The post SeaWorld Orlando trip report – November 2013 (the holidays are here as SeaWorld’s Christmas Celebration begins) appeared first on Orlando Informer.

Now let’s see what’s new at Busch Gardens…

My family and I spent an animal-filled day at Busch Gardens Tampa on Sunday. While the crowds were lower and activity slower at the park, the animals were really active as they enjoyed the great Central Florida autumn weather. And seeing the Christmas decorations was a wonderful reminder that the holidays are almost here!

The highlight of the day was the Busch Gardens’ Animal Care Center. At this building guests can watch animal care workers prepare foods for all the animals in the park, and guests can also view any veterinary procedures being performed. My children were lucky enough to be asked to help make banana fish popsicles for the gorillas.  The “banana fish” part of the popsicle turned out to be mashed up bananas frozen into fish-shaped ice cubes, then stuck onto a larger block of blue-colored ice that contained whole bananas.

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As my kids proceeded to “decorate” the larger block of ice with the fish shapes, the Animal Care workers explained that foods like this are designed to stimulate and entertain the animals at the zoo. They explained that, just like children, animals get bored, and anyone with kids knows that a child left bored for too long will find creative methods to relieve the boredom. Foods like this help the animals find constructive ways to alleviate their boredom while at the same time meeting their nutritional needs.

Just as we thought this activity would be the most memorable of the day, one of the keepers came from the back to announce that a wildlife emergency had just come in and the vets were on their way. We shuffled to the next room to see the Busch Garden vets in action. As we waited, the education staff brought out a large python (well, they called him small, but I still insist he was large!) for the children to touch — it was a fantastic way to keep the children entertained while waiting.

Finally the vet arrived, and we learned that a wild Osprey had been brought in by local law enforcement after hitting a power line. We got our first glimpse of the bird as the veterinary technician brought him in and put him under anesthesia so he could be checked out. We watched through the glass wall as the vet checked his wound and cleaned the large hole in his wing. Not only could we see everything going on through the glass wall, but there were cameras throughout the room to show more detailed images of the bird. They even displayed the x-ray for everyone to see!

After the procedure, the vet put on the microphone and explained to everyone that the bird had not broken any bones, but he would be kept under Busch Gardens care until the wound in his wing healed. The vet then fielded questions from the crowd that had gathered, patiently providing answers everything from the detailed “Were any primary feathers injured?”, to the simple, “How old is the bird?”.  They then brought the bird up to the window for everyone to have a closer look — absolutely breathtaking to see their animal rescue program in action!

After such excitement, a relaxing lunch was in order. We chose the Desert Grill and weren’t disappointed: quite a variety of food, and the pricing was excellent — our group of 4 ate for less than $40. I highly recommend the corned beef sandwich; it had more delicious meat on there than at most delis!

In the spring of 2014, Busch Gardens will have a new attraction: Falcon’s Fury. This drop tower will take you up 335 feet, rotate so you’re facing downward, and then dive towards the ground like a falcon at 60 mph. While other members of my family can’t wait to ride it, I’m just excited to watch the structure go up. Once complete, Falcon’s Fury will be the tallest free-standing drop tower in North America, and the first one to have the seats rotate so you face the ground!

[youtube_video]y4uKOsogphs[/youtube_video]

We stopped to check on the construction and discovered all the previously seen steel posts have been hammered into the ground now. With all the previous work now underground, the area looks almost empty except for a few construction vehicles. I know the steel tubes that will make up the main shaft have been delivered to Busch Gardens already, so I’m really hoping the tower starts going up soon.

As we continued our tour, we next saw tiger cubs lying about in the sun, then we got some great views of the adults from the tiger pop up area.

After that, we stopped by to feed the birds at Lory Landing. With nothing between us and the birds, these little guys climbed all over everyone to get something to eat.

At our next stop we found some new flamingo statues had been installed around the flamingo enclosure next to Walkabout Way. These statues were placed all around the area and our personal favorite were the statues of the flying flamingos.

For us no visit to Busch Gardens is complete without a ride on Cheetah Hunt. This incredibly smooth coaster launches you three separate times as ride down an impressively long track (three-quarters of a mile!). The elaborate African theming on this ride is really detailed, almost making it a shame that the ride’s speed prevents you from being able to appreciate it all. Cheetah Hunt is definitely a favorite of our family, and the 30 minute line (the longest one we encountered during our day) was well worth the wait.

As we left the park, the advertisements for the upcoming Christmas Town events really got us excited about our next visit. We spent the car ride home wondering aloud just how amazing the park will look when all the holiday decorations are up.

To continue reading about Busch Gardens, check out the BGT archive on the OI Blog. Or you can catch up on all our trip reports.

Busch Gardens Tampa trip report – photo gallery

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The post Busch Garden Tampa trip report – November 2013 (hands-on at the Animal Care Center, Falcon’s Fury construction & more) appeared first on Orlando Informer.

The first stop of every SeaWorld trip for us is Antarctica (since it opened this past summer). As we arrived we noticed the wait time was 40 minutes and decided to wait it out, as the ride time would only increase later in the day. We have taken this voyage many times since the attraction opened and were expecting the journey of Puck to be the same, but we were pleasantly surprised to see they had added steam geysers into the entertainment as our iceberg glided around the ice cavern room.

Even though we visit frequently, I never tire of viewing the penguins so close. Watching them move around their habit without any glass in between us and their icy home always gives me goosebumps – and not just from the temperature of the room!

When we’d had enough of the chill in the room, we moved to the outside viewing. There we found a penguin who was posing for pictures – he stood directly in front of everyone on the steps of their enclosure, and struck many different poses while continuing to look at the crowd as if making sure that people were still watching him. Who knew that models existed even in the penguin world?

After leaving Antarctica we went right next door to the Kraken. Even with the crowds in the park, the wait time posted was only 5 minutes. As always it was a smooth ride, highlighted by the exhilarating “near misses” with the concrete that make this ride so much fun. This is a coaster I could ride over and over again.  Make sure to see the Kraken eggs at the ride exit; even though they no longer contain eels, they’re still quite a sight!

Turtle Trek was our next stop. We were pleasantly surprised to find a 15 minute wait time when we arrived, and I have to say this was the most pleasant wait of the entire day. The first section of the queue has guests standing outside with an aquarium window full of fish and an absolutely outstanding employee who kept my children completely entertained, teasing them about their Halloween hats while we waited.

The second section of the queue is indoors and has two giant aquariums. The first is the underwater viewing of the manatee’s habitat; we lucked out and had one of the manatees resting underwater near us. The second aquarium is the underwater viewing of the sea turtles, and it was quite busy with many large sea turtles swimming around us entertained. The staff member in the room was explaining SeaWorld’s marine rescue efforts nationwide, and she was pleasant and patient with the children asking questions about the specific turtles and the signs of the permanent injuries they could see.

The wait in this room didn’t seem long enough to see everything, as 10 minutes after we entered we headed in to the main attraction.

As we donned our 3D glasses and found positions to stand around the room, they explained the movie: we would be seeing through the eyes of a sea turtle as she journeyed from a hatching to an adult and returned to the same beach to lay her eggs. This movie is incredible, and the 3D effects are so good that I found myself jumping in surprise as the sea turtle faced countless perils. After the movie we exited not through the gift shop as most rides do, but through the above-ground viewing area of the same habitats we’d seen underwater. They even have a video game setup in this area where children can take their turn racing to the beach using unique turtle shaped controllers. Again, the staff member nearby was explaining how the habits’ residents had come to SeaWorld and exactly why several of them had been deemed “non-releasable”.

After a quick pause at a drink cart, we moved to the underwater viewing of the dolphins. They were especially active during our visit, and we found ourselves spending quite a bit of time watching them chase each other through the tank and play tag (the kids viewing the exhibit kept us informed of who was “it”). This is such a peaceful place to hang out, cool off a bit, and remember what caused SeaWorld to become a long lasting park – the animals.

By now SeaWorld’s Halloween Spooktacular events had opened and everyone in the park flocked in that direction, so we decided to avoid the crowds and grab lunch at the Spice Mill restaurant. The hamburgers were better than expected, and our group of five paid a little over $50 for burgers, fries, and drinks for all – not bad for a theme park prices.

After lunch, we decided to check out the Sky Tower to get a bird’s eye view of the Spooktacular area. With only a 20 minute wait, we boarded the pleasantly air conditioned cabin and rose into the sky. The views afforded to guests from up here are amazing — you can see the entire track of the roller coasters, the backstage area of the Shamu show, and also some of Orlando’s other parks in the distance.

Back on solid ground we entered the Underwater Sea Fantasy trail. The Spooktacular area was fantastic in its theming with bubble making machines everywhere! However, there were so many people walking through such a small area that it was difficult to truly enjoy the festivities.

As we continued down the trail, we were handed our trick-or-treat bags and maps of the Spooktacular area. Then we discovered that trick-or-treating here would not be as easy as we thought. While the stations were set up along the trail with easy to read signs, the queues were not long enough for the crowds. This caused one line to bled into the next. After four stations, my kids were tired of standing in line and wanted to move on to the next thing: the party zone.

The party zone was in the Altantis Bayside Stadium, and the space was setup really well. They had a large covered area to provide shade for the dancers with large jellyfish creations hung from the top, which enhanced the undersea theming of the event. The DJ was playing crowd-favorite dance tunes (YMCA was a huge hit), and many kids danced along with Penelope’s Party Crew (large dancing pumpkin characters). My kids were surprised to find a trick-or-treat station tucked in here without a line, and they were thrilled to grab a rather large package of Airheads candy.

As we left the party area, our group agreed that the Spooktacular area set the festive mood just right but was too crowded. We opted not to complete to the second half of the trail and instead made our way to Wild Arctic.

This experience didn’t start well because the attraction was having technical issues and we could only take the walking path instead of the “helicopter” motion ride. Once we entered, we found out the movie wasn’t running at all, and they bypassed us straight into the animal exhibits. There the experience got much better as we were happy to see that the polar bear was actually awake! We’ve walked through the exhibits many times and he always seems to be sleeping, so this time we were thrilled that he was up and exploring his enclosure. Apparently Halloween is celebrated by polar bears too, because his orange play ball floating in the water was a jack-o-lantern!

Next we traveled to the other side of the park to go on Journey of Atlantis, which is a great ride once you forgive it for not having an understandable story. Then it was time for our last stop, Manta. I have found that the first loop puts enough negative G forces on me to trigger motion sickness, so I sat out, but others in my group loved it (and indeed they ride it every time we visit).

While waiting for the others in my group, I spent my time viewing the Manta aquariums, often missed by guests. It has some of the most unique animals in the the small aquariums on the sides (the leafy sea dragon is my favorite; it’s just the strangest looking thing!). But the big aquarium is the draw. This huge space has schools of fish swimming around and more mantas than you can count. The Manta aquariums also have an area where guests can stand and be surrounded by the water — even overhead.

We decided not to see any shows this past visit and the crowds were large, but we still had a great time. Now my family is looking forward to the Christmas Celebration at SeaWorld starting November 23rd!

Editor’s note: We’re happy to have Salina join our group of contributors and, among other endeavors, help us provide monthly SeaWorld trip reports for our readers!

[sws_author_bio user=”SalinaBristor” size=”105″ authorposts=”More OI posts by Salina” name_format=”About the author”] [/sws_author_bio]

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