Walt Disney World With Kids (Fodor's, 2012) - Fodor's [146]
Another kick for kids is Shamu’s Happy Harbor, a play area that’s not only happy but huge, with an elaborate web of climbing nets, a ship with water-firing muskets, a splashy climb-through fountain area, ball pits to sink into, and padded pyramids to climb. After a few hours spent in shows or exhibits, drop by and let the kids just play for a while. You can usually hop right onto any of the six kiddie rides. “Shamu’s Happy Harbor is just that—happy,” said one dad from Pennsylvania. “We have three kids under 6, and we just parked the strollers and let them play for awhile. They loved getting wet and splashing around and there was absolutely no wait for the kiddie rides.”
A separate play area for smaller kids ensures that they don’t get tangled up in the webs, whacked by an older kid on a tire swing, or, worst of all, lost. Because several of the play areas involve water, some parents let kids wear their bathing suits under their shorts and totally cool off. There’s a midway and arcade next door where older kids can hang out while the younger ones play.
The Baby Care and Lost Child Center, which has a shady porch and rockers, is also in Shamu’s Happy Harbor—convenient, since this is the part of the park where you’re most likely to lose track of your child.
Helpful Hint
Appropriately, the crowd at SeaWorld moves in waves. The shows are timed so that you can move around the park in a circular fashion, taking in one show after another.
This also means, however, that if you want to visit standing exhibits, feed the animals, or play in Shamu’s Happy Harbor, some times are far more crowded than others. For example, Shamu’s Happy Harbor is virtually empty while the nearby Shamu show is going on, but the minute the show is over a flood of people head for the playground.
The solution? If you have young kids and would like to be able to play in the Harbor or interact with the animals in a calm unrushed manner, make note of when the shows are in session and visit the play area or standing exhibits then.
SeaWorld Adventure Camps
SeaWorld hosts educational camps for all age groups. Preschoolers (with a parent along) can participate in morning camps that explore how the animals are fed or how they play hide-and-seek in their environments. Grade-school-level children have lots of choices; there are weeklong camps that study dolphins, manatees, sharks, and other SeaWorld residents. Teenagers can participate in weeklong resident camps where they go behind the scenes of the park and assist the trainers in caring for the animals. Most of the day camps take place in summer, although some programs are offered periodically throughout the year. Prices begin at $200 per child for preschool camps, $280 per child for grade-school offerings.
Another neat option is the Family Sleepovers. Held in summer and on major holidays, these behind-the-scenes parties culminate in participants grabbing a sleeping bag and bedding down in the midst of one of SeaWorld’s exhibits. (At present you’re sleeping with the fishes, so to speak, in the manta exhibit.) Prices begin at $78 per person; if you’d like to include admission to SeaWorld for the day following the sleepover, the price rises to $113.
For information on all your options, call 800/406–2244 or visit www.seaworld.org.
Behind-the-Scenes Tours
It’s easy to get an insider’s look at SeaWorld thanks to tours where you see the animals up close and observe how trainers care for them.
The most elaborate is the dolphin tour ($50 adults, $40 children), which allows you to meet a trainer during your backstage visit and interact with a dolphin family. The penguin tour ($40 adults, $30 children), sea lion tour ($40 adults, $30 children), and Behind the Scenes tour ($30 adults, $20 children) are also family friendly and offer chances to interact with the animals. For younger kids, consider the Family Fun tour ($65 adults, $50 children). There’s less information, but you do get to feed the sea lions and dolphins, pat a penguin, get reserved seating for the