Did you know Shamu can wave??
Written: Apr 16 '01
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Product Rating:
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Pros: It is really a lot of fun!! A lot to see and do!
Cons: It can be pricey
The Bottom Line: This park is big. To really enjoy everything, you need a yearly pass so you can return over and over again.
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| trthomp's Full Review: Sea World California |
Around the end of March, we went to Sea World here in San Diego for the first time. Sea World was offering a “Fun Card” for only $41.95 for adults and $31.95 for children. Basically the pass allows the holder to pay for the price of a one day admission, and return any day (or at least almost) for the rest of the year. There are a few days that are blacked out for the Fun Card. These days are just the busiest days of the year, and we wouldn’t want to be there anyway.
We arrived at the ticket booth to purchase our passes. With a little thought, it quickly became clear that it was smarter for one of us to purchase a Silver Pass for only $30.00 more. Parking at Sea World for non pass holders and Fun Card members is $7.00 a day!!! The Silver Pass includes “complimentary parking. Once we visit 5 times, the difference in cost for the passes is more than made up.
On our first trip into the park, we were not really into visiting much. We made a beeline to the Shamu Close up. This is a big swimming area for the killer whales. All of the killer whales at Sea World have their own individual names, while performing, they are all SHAMU. Some of the whales that we got to “meet” on that visit were Ulysses, Flash, and Shamar. Ulysses is the biggest whale there. He is easily recognized due to his large curved dorsal fin. Flash is recognizable for less than appealing reasons - Flash has Epilepsy. He used to live in Canada, in a much smaller tank. During one of his seizures, he banged his face against the tanks wall, and he now has a large scar on the left side of he mouth. Then there is Shamar, the smallest whale. Shamar is the “baby”, and will be turning 3 in May.
The swimming area has a big glass wall on one side so visitors can really watch the whales swim and play. The swimming area can be viewed through glass wall or from above at surface level. There is a little side wading pool where kids and adults can get into the water that is about 18” deep. Here, they are separated from the whales by a piece of glass about 2 feet high. You are encouraged to splash water into the big pool where the whales are. The splashing indicates to them that someone is over there wanting to visit. Some of the whales like to watch the kids play in the water, so they will come over when the water is splashed. There is a ledge on the whale side for the whale to sit on and watch.
This swimming area is attached to the show pool, where the whales become SHAMU. Also attached to the show pool is a large holding tank type place, where the whales wait for their turn to perform. During the performances, the whales love to get people wet!! During one part of the show we saw, they pulled a little girl and her father from the audience. They told the father to put his hands over his head and wave. When he did, SHAMU spit water at him :-) They then told the little girl to wave her hands at shoulder level. She was very skeptical about doing this, but when she did she was rewarded by SHAMU waving back!! At various parts of the show, the whales will swim about and jump just to douse the audience! We whimped out since it was so cold, and spent $5.00 for adult size, and $4.00 for kid size ponchos to keep us dry!! We ended up needing them, as we got really wet!
Besides the great whale shows and exhibits, there are a lot of other things in the park. Southwest Airlines built a tower that rises high above the park. There is a “car” that has 2 levels. Each level has a row of seats that lines the inside of the circular car. Once the car is loaded, it begins to ascend the tower. While ascending, it rotates slowly. The wide open windows in the car provide you with a beautiful panoramic view of the Pacific Ocean, San Diego, and of course Sea World!! Another nice site seeing feature is a sky ride that takes you out over Mission Bay and back. You can take either ride for $2.75, or both for $3.75. After riding in the tower, the sky ride paled in comparison. On future trips, we will only enjoy the tower.
Other animals in the park include dolphins, flamingos, birds, sea otters, sea lions, sharks, various sea life, and Manatee. The dolphins do shows, but we haven’t been to one yet. The flamingos on display are just beautiful!! They have a bright orange color, since they are not fed shrimp but a diet that provides them with their needed minerals and nutrients. We saw a lot of wild bird that seemed to enjoy being around the whales to try to steal their fish :-) There were also 2 caged birds that were colorful and fun to watch.
We ate at the Ship Wreck Cafe, where the sea lions and otters are supposed to be. We did not see them there. There is also a sea lion show, but again we missed that. There is a special place for most of the sharks called Shark Encounter. This is where the visitor can view sharks close up. We seem to miss this one also. There is an are that has tide pools where you can view sea stars and other tide pool life. You are even allowed to pick up the sea stars!! There are also crabs on display in this area, but you view them inside little round tubes. Inside the building, you see ALL KINDS of fish in large tanks!
Surrounding the Ship Wreck Cafe is Ship Wreck Rapids, a fast paced water ride. There are round boats with several seats that spin around in the water. The main point of this ride is to get WET. There are buckets of water dumped on riders, waterfalls, and for 25 cents bystanders can shoot water canons at riders :-) Since it is still cold, we haven’t ventured onto this ride.
There is a variety of food establishments in the park. One is Dining with SHAMU. You need reservations for this, but it looks fun. Diners eat at tables that are right on the edge of a special swimming tank for some of the whales. No, the whales don’t splash diners :-)
We ate at the Ship Wreck Cafe. I found the prices to be very reasonable considering the surroundings. My husband and I ate salmon, 2 of our kids had hot dogs, and the other had chicken. I did not buy drinks here since we had some still form other stands in the park. Our total bill came to $27.87, after a 10% discount for being a card holder. Even with drinks, it would have totaled less than $35.00. The last time we went to Applebee’s, only 4 of us ate, and our bill totaled $28.00 PLUS TIP!!
This park is big. To really enjoy everything, you need a yearly pass so you can return over and over again. As the weather warms, we will be returning many times.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
trthomp
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Member: Terri
Location: Portland Area, Oregon
Reviews written: 189
Trusted by: 74 members
About Me:
God's idea of natural exfoliation is kitty kisses!!
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