Can you do Sea World in 6 hours?

[LindsayinNJ]

My friend and I just decided to add on a Sea World experience to my Sept trip! The thing is: we will have about 6/7 hours total to explore.

I like rollercoasters, but I'd rather see the animals if it would take up too much time..
I love manta rays and will def spend time at the lagoon/nursery.
I love all marine animals.
I decided I don't want to see: A'Lure or Pets Ahoy.
The penguin exhibit will be closed when I go.


I need to know:
Must Sees
Don't Miss(es)
Worst shows/rides
Best shows/rides
How are wait times usually for rides?
Should I skip Clyde & Seamore? Are there a lot of tricks the sea lions do? Is it more for kids?
How early should I line up for One Ocean?

Please help!

[wildHoney]

Clyde and Seamore is my favourite show to watch at Sea World. Been three times now and that is the one show we have to do! It is rather funny especially the warm-up mime (before the show stars)

[kara-bo-bara]

To be honest, you can probably do it in less. The last time I was there I was bored out of my mind after 3 hours. The only cool thing we did there was wait 2 hours in line in order to feed some dolphins.

[crazybones27]

They just opened a new turtle reserve thing there. I forget now what it's called, but it's new . I would NEVER miss Clyde and Seymor. I love that show to much to skip it each time we actually go. I can't help with if it's possible in a half day since I haven't been since 2004 or 2006, but for me Sea World is my second favorite next to Disney. I could spend the whole day just doing the shows and enjoying the animals.

[Phylers]

I like rollercoasters, but I'd rather see the animals if it would take up too much time..

September should be pretty quiet, and even in the dead of Summer, the lines really aren't that bad. Of the four thrill rides, I'd probably rank them as Manta, Wild Arctic (the ride is kind of lame, but afterwards, you leave through the arctic display, and I polar bears ), Kraken ("we can see the Wawa from up here!" ), and Journey to Atlantis. Atlantis is a cool ride, but you can walk away drenched to the core, and I'm not a fan of that kind of soaking.

I love manta rays and will def spend time at the lagoon/nursery.

There are no manta rays at Sea World. There are plenty of different ray species, some exotic, many common, but none of the Sea World tanks are big enough to hold mantas in captivity. The only manta rays in captivity in the United States reside at the Georgia Aquarium outside Atlanta.

I decided I don't want to see: A'Lure or Pets Ahoy.

Pets Ahoy is actually a very cute show, but A'Lure, like its predecessor, is just a bunch of lame Asian-influenced acrobatics the likes of which Cirque du Suhbluh has inflicted upon the world for decades. If there's an advantageous time, I'd recommend giving Pets Ahoy a shot.

The penguin exhibit will be closed when I go.

Which is heartbreaking. I don't go to Sea World all that often, but I surely miss what was one of my favorite attractions. (I've actually been inside the old penguin habitat, too. Fun fact - penguins don't feel "feathery;" they feel very soft. )

I need to know:
Must Sees
Don't Miss(es)
Worst shows/rides
Best shows/rides
How are wait times usually for rides?
Should I skip Clyde & Seamore? Are there a lot of tricks the sea lions do? Is it more for kids?

Definitely feed the sea lions and seals, maybe feed the dolphins (crazybones27 will disagree with my order ), see the sharks, see the ray aquarium, see the aquarium in the Atlantis gift shop, then pick and choose amongst the likes of the alligators, manatees, sea turtles (manatees and turtles are together, actually), shows, and exotic animals. Yes, exotic animals. Back where the clydesdales used to live, they have a garden area where they do exotic animal encounters. You can meet the likes of owls, kangaroos, etc.

Clyde and Seamore is probably the best show in the park, and it would remain so even if it didn't have adorable otters (). Blue Horizons is one-half cool dolphin show and one-half incredibly stupid (and roundly mocked, even by Sea World ) human show.

How early should I line up for One Ocean?

Is "never" a choice? The whale show before One Ocean (Believe ) was so terrible that I can't really watch the whales any more (all the controversy didn't help). If you have to see one, see Shamu Rocks at night. It's more high-energy, and it doesn't feature the goofy, treacly video bits.

Bottom line, can you do Sea World in 7 hours? Yes, so long as you don't intend to do all of it. If you want to see the bulk of the rides, shows, and exhibits, 7 hours is probably pushing it. With local knowledge and some luck in terms of showtimes, it's probably doable, though.

... Polar bear:

[rogpalmeruk]

gonna say I've only got a day in Sea world in october....so its going to be a case of seeing the main sights like the whale show, shark tank, rays, and kraken/manta

[crazybones27]

Phylers is right I do disagree, definitely feed the Dolphins first .

[MsDisneyFan]

Don't skip Clyde and Seamore! It's such a cute show. As far as the rides, I think Journey to Atlantis is not to be missed, but like Phylers said you will get wet! If you've been to Six Flags at all then you don't need to do ride Kraken. I wasn't overly impressed with it I haven't experienced Manta, but it looks fun.

Personally, I never miss the underwater viewing areas. I haven't been to SeaWorld since 2008 so my knowledge may not be very up to date. I am super bummed that the Clydesdales are no longer in Seaworld- that would've been a "must see". Blue Horizons is a fun show to see but I don't know if I would call it a "must see".

[mariemb]

I think it's doable if you plan out your day with the shows you want to see, and then fit everything else in around that. I haven't been to Sea World since 2001 so I'm sure it's changed a lot since then. But, the Kraken was fun and I skipped all the feedings. The dolphins looked " beat up" and it broke my heart. The seals area was so loud with them begging for food that it turned me off so I stayed away from that area as well. But the dolphin show, Whale show and the otters were so cute! And then I spent a bunch of time with the Manatees and turtles because I love them! And the Shark exhibit... I'm a huge Jaws an so there was no way I could miss that! Sorry I can't remember the names of shows or exhibits... I went after 9/11 so we did every theme park in the Orlando for free because my fiancé was in the military. It's all a blur now!

[Phylers]

The dolphins looked " beat up" and it broke my heart.

All of Sea World can make you feel a little ... squicky if you really think about it. I polar bears, but I hate how small the display enclosure is at Sea World, for instance, and their sharks really need some TLC. I'm hoping that they'll sink some money into the place with all their record earnings of late.

The seals area was so loud with them begging for food that it turned me off so I stayed away from that area as well.

Whaaaaat? How could you not feed the sea lions? The begging is part of the fun. Some will bark, but most just bob up and down or wave at you. And you get pics like this:



"Is that fish for me? "



"It was totally for me. "

[gedorm]

Turtle trek is the new show/movie ad I thought it was kind of meh. Def go see shamu, it's always pretty cool.

[Silvered]

They don't have ponies at Sea World anymore, why would you want to go?

I actually do enjoy Sea World a lot but it's all about the ponies

[ShadowEon]

I would definitely say that 6hrs is enough,probably less would be fine. I think I went for about 3-4 hours for the couple of times that I had went, but then again I wasn't trying to do EVERYTHING. Overall, I enjoy Seaworld and its my second favorite amusement park (Disney World being the first) but really just because I like looking at all the animals.