Discovery Cove - The World's Most Expensive Theme Park?
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 21 ก.ย. 2024
- Discovery Cove is one of the most unique theme parks out there, working as an all-inclusive experience combining a water park and a zoo. You'll swim up to an island with monkeys, feed exotic birds in an aviary that has a lazy river flowing through it and you'll swim among various species of rays and tropical fish. While I have a lot of issues with how SeaWorld and Busch Gardens parks operate, Discovery Cove is different, presented as a luxury experience and really elevating itself among the other parks in the chain. Still, the park pre-add-ons and tax was over $600 for admission for two. The question today is: "Is it worth the steep price?"
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I really enjoy the videos on the channel but I think there is some additional info about the pricing that could have been mentioned in this video:
1) Unlike Disney/ Universal, the Discovery Cove website has frequent discounts for visits booked a few months in advance (they also hold a Black Friday sale on the website as well). For example, while I can't post the image in a TH-cam comment, on Oct 28, 2023 they were showing certain dates in December 2023 as low as $153.60 for a day resort + three park package (one day at Discovery Cove without dolphin swim + unlimited 14 day admission to Aquatica, Sea World, and Busch Gardens).
2) While some add-ons are not worth the price, if you are interested in visiting any of the other parks owned by the same company then the multi-park add on can be a good deal. I'm not trying to shill for Discovery Cove, but the day resort + three park package that my family booked for out early December visit in 2023 cost less than our one day, base ticket/ no Park Hopper visit to Magic Kingdom. This particular package also cames with free parking at all of the included parks which saved a good $25 or so dollars each day in parking alone compared to visiting a different park.
TL;DR If you book only one day at Discovery Cove with no discounts and no added parks then yes it's expensive. But Discovery Cove offers packages and discounts which do not have comparable offerings from Disney/ Universal in terms of price per day/ park, in my experience. As mentioned in the video the other parks don't measure up to Disney/ Universal but if you are primarily interested in roller coasters (Iron Gwazi, Cheetah Hunt, Mako, Manta, etc.) then you might find the price makes up for it.
Agreed on this. I would imagine that half or more of Discovery Cove's guests are visiting as part of a multi-day vacation that includes Aquatica and Sea World. This was the only way my wife and I could justify it.
yeah definitely don't pay sticker at seaworld. they run promotions a lot.
I think I went in September a few years back and used a passmember discount. I think we paid around $115 each for the day. They also upsold me on the Seaventure add on as I was checking out. They offered it for 10-15$ off. I think we paid $40 each. It was really cool, although should be avoided if you are claustrophobic. The downside to saving the 10-15$ is we didn't get to choose a time, so they sent us at 9am and still a bit cold out, but whatever. The things we do to save a few dollars.
Overall, would highly recommend.
Discount priced FOMO fire sales are not prices. They're shitty sales tactics and shouldn't be relied on, or factored in even reviewing any product.
The price is the original price.
@@paulpatterson5077 Well that all depends how frequent the sales are. If a product or service has historically been repeatedly discounted or seasonally bundled with other benefits this should be mentioned to the audience. It would be irresponsible for a reviewer not to mention how dependibly Seaworld/United Parks runs significant discounts and it's fair to take these into consideration when assessing the value of the park.
Zoologist here; Discovery Cove operates identically to other SeaWorld Parks, with animals being exchanged freely between the parks as needed for breeding and whatnot. This is something to keep in mind regarding the ethics of this park.
Also, when "off duty," dolphins are kept in much smaller pools behind the larger lagoons used for interaction. You can view this part of the park in satellite images/Google Earth if you'd like to see for yourself.
Former dolphin trainer (not Discovery Cove) with friends/previous coworkers who are currently at Discovery Cove:
While they do move the dolphins into the back holding pools to swap out social groups for the interactions, they're given the larger pools in the evening after all the guests leave. Also, the same group of dolphins isn't kept in the back all day.
A sample schedule might look like this:
Dolphin Groups A and C are in the back for the 10AM session while Groups B and D are in the larger interaction pools. Then for the 11AM session they'll swap. And so on.
It's both for the safety of the animals and the guests to minimize temptation for people to just rush into the water when a trainer and/or lifeguard isn't there to stop them.
By "session", do you mean it as a time for the dolphins to do an interaction?
Also, all work and no play makes Dolphin Jack a dull boy! :D
I think a big part of discovery cove is the atmosphere. While describing each individual thing doesn't necessarily make it sound like it's worth the money, there's a definite value to the feeling it provides when it's all put together. It's genuinely just such a relaxed vibe, especially with things like food being included in the price. And the park has an *extremely* low capacity, I'm talking about a thousand a day, and none of the experiences use a queue, so it's going to feel very intimate and exclusive. It was, all in all, the most relaxing day I've ever had in Orlando, just drifting from place to place and enjoying myself, grabbing snacks when I so desired.
Yeah, I feel like it's a bit difficult to convey the value over video, but you described it well.
As one who prefers to be on the move, animals and sea life are the only thing that can slow me down. We had such an amazing time with the scuba area and lazy river. We can hardly wait to go back sometime. Pricing is not a big deal - SeaWorld annual pass discount for the win.
I love some of the little "secret" exhibits they have under the water. Windows under the water in some places to view some more dangerous fish that can't be in direct proximity to guests like moray eels. These have no indication above water that the little portholes even exist, you just got to discover them
What, where was that? I didn't see anything like that at all
@PoseidonEntertainment The side of the main reef. Just off the shallows in between the shore and the sharks. It caught me off guard when I saw them the first time.
@@RadBaronGA I'll have to look for that next time I go then. I'm disappointed to have somehow missed it
@@PoseidonEntertainment yeah, hug the outter wall and keep diving to the bottom and you will find it
Yeah, an ambassador told my wife and I about it when we went in 2018.
I imagine the price point also helps keep the crowds down to keep a relaxed, naturalistic atmosphere. The intensity of the upcharges are a part of that, as well, I think.
There is a cut off to how many people they allow in the park so its never too crowded.
@sxyblnd2002 That cutoff is probably a backup in case the price point doesn't work for certain days. It's just the right economic move to try to set the price high enough where only as many people as the cutoff point want to buy a ticket anyway.
Yeah, I wouldn't describe it as crowded. You might bump into people in the reef closest to shore, but if you swim further in, there won't be too many people.
Probably because it might be cheaper to just fly to the Bahamas and do the SAME thing...
Just being able to swim with all those fish and rays is worth the price; you can’t have that experience even in the ocean with wildlife. The bird encounters are also really cool. I like just floating down the river. Honestly, you summed it all up perfectly when you said this is like doing the “excursions” on a cruise. That’s exactly what this is like. The cocktails are really good too and they are STRONG. I thought the food was as good as most cruises too.
Oh gosh, I remember going to a week-long camp here as a kid. Must have been 2004 or 2005, and I had the best time of my life. I remember camping out in the dolphin exhibit one night instead of being in a hotel, and watching that the dolphins never stopped swimming all night long.
This sounds like the beginning of a really cool short story/piece of writing. I love/am grateful to have some of those dreamy kid memories of summer.
There really is something to places like this bringing out that wonder again
Dolphins sleep with only half their brain at once, which is why they’re always on the move! :)
They have to actively think to breathe, for obvious reasons, rather than breathing automatically like we do. Also helps for them to look out for predators while the other half of the brain sleeps.
It's wild to me that getting up close to some flamingos, has a decent chance of being more expensive than a 45 min underwater excusion.
You can interact and feed free-roaming flamingos at Sarasota Jungle Gardens.
I love discovery cove! As a former sea world park worker, it was definitely worth with the employees discount of $50 per person.
that’s a crazy discount
This is my absolute favorite place to go in Florida. I love nothing more than spending a whole day in their river and floating around. It's so relaxing and I wish I could go more often.
Never been
This reminds me of XPLOR in Mexico where it has multiple attractions you can experience like waterslides, cave swimming, off-roading, and other stuff but you don’t really wait for any of them and food is included. It’s more expensive then an average theme park but the experience is much more relaxed.
XPLOR kicked ass. Fantastic theme park.
I’ve been to Xel-Ha and it was unlike any theme park I’ve been to in the US. I like how the food was included and the lazy river (which looked like a real river) was really fun!!
i went to all of the theme parks its so much fun 100% worth it
Spent my 40th birthday here! It was so nice to swim with the dolphins and sting rays. I loved going to Orlando, I even got my husband into the water😅
Went here as a kid and it was definitely a family favorite. We spent a few hours just swimming with the rays and fish
Went here for my sister's 18th birthday 10 years ago... Had no idea my parents spent this much on it, especially for the dolphin encounter. Love them so much
It was probably significantly cheaper a decade ago
@@PoseidonEntertainment you're right, I hope so. I wonder if there's a way to check, like the wayback machine...
Earliest I could find was 2018, day resort + dolphin swim was $199 per person, current website starts at $274 per person... yikes
I got 2 day passes and dolphin encounters in 2018 for $200 total. But that was with a military discount. It also came with a 10 day pass to Sea World, Aquatica and Busch Gardens.
It wouldn’t be a Sunday without this guy dogging on some form of themed entertainment
He literally recommends going to this place at the end. Did you watch the whole video?
@@zeronightex you got me wrong, I like his negativity
@@jazzflute **constructive criticism**
@@jazzflute He wasn't negative. He was very honest and gave a great view of this place. He said the food was just standard, and it is, and the hours are too short, and they are. I did everything possible to stay as long as I could before they threw me out bodily! LOL
Yours has really become one of my favourite channels on youtube, you have a very relaxing/calming type of presentation while still being totally professional and high quality in production. Plus it’s clear how much time/effort/work you put into the research and making of all your videos, and I really appreciate it! Hope you continue to enjoy producing this work for us to watch 😄
Custodians at discovery cove only get paid $12 an hour
That's terrible. A fast food worker gets $1 an hour more....
CPs at Disney get paid more to stand there and wave a light wand.
Beyond coincidental that this comes out on my birthday, the day after I went to Discovery Cove for said birthday! The price is steep, but I think it's well worth it: I got an exclusive birthday tag, faculty AND even random people were saying happy birthday, food was decent, cabana was awesome (our host was awesome!) and we did technically get a ONCE IN A LIFETIME EXPERIENCE with the dolphins. The secrets were fun too, and so were the surprise animal encounters! Only personal grife I had was that it feels like its 24 years old (Maybe thats just because I'm so used to mainlined things like Volcano Bay or Aquatica). Hack for anyone reading this: BUY DURING OFFSEASON! THE PRICE BECOMES REASONABLE AND THINGS LIKE A CABANA ARE THROWN IN FOR FREE!
What feels old about it? I didn't really get that impression, but yeah, I suppose it is not very recently built
@@PoseidonEntertainment The lazy river didn’t necessarily feel lazy; Had to do more work to go around the lap (I’m younger and like to speed past people in the river, but for most who just wanna float and be carried, it was WAY slower than like Volcano Bay’s lazy river for example) The random rocks at your feet like you pointed out too were a big thing in my childhood 10-15 years ago, but a huge no no now, and it was very weird that you couldn’t tell when you could stub your toe, when you could put your feet on the ground, etc.. I wasn’t really impacted by the aviary animals in that portion, quite loved it actually, but I do get the chance for unpredictability with the birds and their actions. The overall architecture reminded me alot of like Aquatica and the winter haven botanical gardens when they came out; Not very ‘modern’ by more popular water park standards. But again, all of it is personal, more so observations that didn’t really impact my experience all that much, and I still vastly agree with alot of stuff you said in the video, great analysis!
I've only ever heard this park by name but never knew what it was until now. I didn't expect all this lol
thanks, poseidon
Discovery Cove strikes me as a one-and-done sort of experience.
That said: I genuinely feel it's more worth checking out at some point than Disney World (at least in its current state)
This looks amazing and well worth a visit - if I wasn't absolutely terrified of everything in there.
Ah yes, there was lots of screaming in the reef as fish swam between people's legs or they were grazed by the rays
@@PoseidonEntertainment Not only that - I'm also scared of birds.
Went to the Florida parks a lot growing up and Discovery Cove always sort of confounded me. My family never went, and the only things offered were sort of “all the premium up charge experiences you can get a Sea World” (of course, not literally, but that was the vibe I got). Excited to see this video and get a bit more analysis and information on it!
It's completely different than Sea World other than that they both have fish
@@weston407 I was more talking about the things offered in Discovery Cove being the same sort of things you can pay extra for at base Sea World rather than the park experiences overall. Like my impression of DC growing up was “an entire park of upcharges”
You say it's about Six hundred dollars for two people but u forgot to mention you get 14 days free admission to Sea World. If you plan early enough you can get it for 150.(Without the Dolphine experience. Also it would cost you an extra 2 hundred dollars just to eat at any of the other theme parks. Another point he didn't make is if you wear prescription glasses they have googles with every prescription available first come and first serve.
I wasn't looking at deals like that, but as others have mentioned, the value can go up a lot more if you bundle everything together.
I love discovery cove! I think my family will probably go every time we visit Orlando. We love snorkeling on cruises, but some days are a miss. With Discovery Cove, you’ll always see the fish! Plus free food and sodas is awesome! We went on a whim for our honeymoon and LOVED it!
Yeah, I like the guarantee that you'll actually get to swim with animals
@@PoseidonEntertainment I do have to say that we were not one even remotely interested in any of the add-ons. Too much for not enough. We also weren’t going to drink enough for bottomless alcohol.
As someone who went during a good week in the Winter, I had an amazing time. I recommend it with a park hopper, as in the right season, the main water park is completely empty. So I spent a day where the limits to how many times I could do a slide were based on how fast I could climb the towers.
I love that park! We always go right at opening, have nice breakfast, then search for a good spot and change. I could spend hours in the aviary. Last time, they renovated the main restaurant, so they only offered lunch boxes, which was a bit of a letdown. Then we stay right until closing time, so we get the most out of the day.
Last time, they told us that wearing the wet suits was voluntary, which surprised me.
Voluntary, even with the dolphins? It seemed to be required there as everyone was wearing one and at the very least, vests were required in the reef.
Didn‘t pay attention to the Dolphin Swim, still might be mandatory there. I always thought it might help the Lifeguards seeing the guests.
As they said it was up to us if we wanted to wear a suit, I decided not to take one for the River, as I always got very hot and sweaty out of the water in the aviary. But later in the day I still picked one up for the reef, as the water feels pretty cold when coming in from the hot Florida sun.
I also like that they provide fish-friendly sun screen for free. When we went there the first time, they only provided each guest with a sample-sized portion.
If you need glasses to be able to see clearly, you can get prescription dive masks at Guest Relations for free.
As we usually have our „homebase“ between the river and the dolphin pond, we usually get snacks from the bar across the river, near the aviary. I only discovered on our last visit that the bar near the back of the park, where the reef is, offers pizza. It was pretty good.
Finally, if you don‘t feel like geringer, there is also a land-based access to the aviary.
i went with my Ex back in 2021, it was certainty worth the one time experience. getting to swim with the rays and dolphins was truly incredible.
I loved Discovery Cove when I went when I was a young teen. It was so much fun when I went. Our dolphin knocked the fish bucket out of her trainer's hand. 😂 It's one of those parks that you can do once or twice though and be satisfied. Since I've done it, I don't really feel the need to go back, at least until I have kids of my own.
I love much of Discovery Cove. I don't love the holding pools they keep the dolphins in when they aren't doing guest interactions. Even if they had free reign of the entire dolphin area, it's just not enough space for a dolphin to be happy and healthy. And I think that's evident by how long they survive in captivity here compared to in the wild.
How large are the holding pools?
@PoseidonEntertainment If I use the measurement tool on Google Earth, the hexagon shaped backpools are approximately 1,370 square feet, which is about the size of a 3 bed/2 bath single family home.
unfortunately they intentionally keep the holding pools small so that the dolphins are more likely to want to participate when it’s time for the guest interactions. if they’re bored senseless in their holding tanks, they’ll want to come out and take instruction so they can have any semblance of mental enrichment for the day :(
I'd definitely recommend it for a relaxation day. A lot of unique experiences to be had even without doing the up charges.
The only time I went was as a kid in 2010 and I remember it vividly. I think it was worth it for how unique it is. It’s very well curated and guarantees you some amazing experiences that are rare if you were to go snorkel in the wild. We were nerdy, animal loving kids and while Disney and Seaworld were fun, this had its own special kind of magic for us.
We did the dolphin encounter and I still remember being amazed I could hold onto their fin while they swam. Since then I’ve gone swimming with wild dolphins in Florida too and I prefer that, but it’s definitely for older individuals with strong swimming skills who are happy to spend an entire day on a boat sailing around to find them.
This is way more straightforward though. I remember not being prepared to encounter that glass where the sharks were and I was probably 100 feet away or more and caught a glimpse of the grouper and gasped through my snorkel. It terrified me and I had to swim up for air. My dad laughed but now I’m still scared of groupers over a decade later haha.
I like your sentiment, but it's illegal to interact with dolphins in U.S. waters lol
@@PoseidonEntertainment Oh I’m aware of those laws and this specific wild dolphin tour I’m referring to intentionally follows those regulations. It’s done in a legal way with no interaction. There’s no chasing them or touching or feeding them. Nothing that tries to influence their natural behaviors by enticing them to get closer or following them to their feeding areas. It’s hours of waiting to see if they swim past.
Because of that It’s really up to chance if you see them or not. If you do get lucky enough to see them, it’s just looking from a distance for about 30 seconds while you’re also in the water before they’re too far away to see anymore, so “swimming with” was probably too strong a term to use in my previous comment. Anyone who wants interaction like at discovery cove would be EXTREMELY disappointed with that kind of tour because of the lack of interaction. You’d get a better view at any aquarium.
It was my childhood dream to go here. Just went for the first time for my seconr wedding anniversary last week. It did not disappoint! It was even better thsn I hoped. I am a huge marine biology nerd, so the dolphin encounter was nothing short of my favorite experience ever. Watching this video made me realize we didn't even do everything in the park! We never found the pretzels or fed the birds. Wow. I could easily go back in a heartbeat. Next time I want to do SeaVenture and the Sharks too. Love this place. Just wish the food was a bit better.
Based on your videos it looks like the park isn't overlay packed with people, which I'm sure is both a result of the price and a benefit thereof. Nothing is worse than paying well over 100$ to get into Disney only for find it impossible to do much because there are so many other people there. This sounds exactly like the type of place I'd be willing to pay a little more for in order to avoid the crowds
Compared to when I went in 2020, my most recent trip was much more "crowded", but even then, it still wasn't a lot of people.
Discovery Cove is my favorite park& I go once or twice a year & enjoy thoroughly. The snorkeling is fabulous & the food is good too! It’s a unique experience & well worth the price.
Worth every dollar!
Love discovery cove, it's one of the best places to visit as is so relaxing with lovely things to do.
I’m so proud of how much you have grown overtime… Such wonderfully produced and well researched videos.
Never been, but your gorgeous footage had me looking up swimsuits because I wanna go splash in the pretty water like in your video!
As a former em ployee....the cheapest you can add dolphin swims or is $50 and those are usually during slow seasons like fall and winter or whern they're expecting particularly bad weather. I think going to DC is worth it if you go when it isn't peak pricing.
I looked directly at the pricing on the website and it was definitely cheaper than $50 on some days. Granted, it was already included in a package price
I love the experience of swimming in the grand reef as well as the huge immersive lazy river! I love that it gets to 8 feet deep. I do not see any value in getting the day beds or cabanas as one is constantly moving around the park through the day. My disappointment resides in the food quality! For how much we pay they can serve real eggs. Last time i went 4/27 they were serving powdered eggs! I will go again as it a really fun unique place but they need to reevaluate all the points you touched upon. Great video!
Went as a kid and loved it. DC served as a great final day of vacation, a way to unwind after the craziness of the big parks. I've wanted to go back ever since.
Discovery Cove is often the BEST reviewed themed attraction in Orlando. My family has done it twice & have no problem with pricing. SeaVenture was AMAZING!!!! On our 2nd visit we did a private cabana right next to the Grand Reef and used it down time just relaxing there. FYI, in 2023 Adventure Island in Tampa rolled out their version of SeaVenture, but closed it later in the season before I could try it. It was a virtual reality snorkeling thing... now that I think about it really isn't the same thing, lol!
I haven't been keeping up with Adventure Island, but I had no idea they tried something like that there
@@PoseidonEntertainment Yeah, it was adjacent to their Paradise Lagoon in the NE of the park. It was 25 bucks and before I could there... it was gone. If you Google AI VR snorkeling, it might come up.
Seaventure is definitely worth it!
the bubbly blue intro card made me smile a lot more than i expected. i can't even find more word for this compliment, just really liked the bubble and the cyan. :3
Weirdly, I edited the title card for my Art of the Rollercoaster video. It fit too well not to use here too
Very overrated in my opinion. The dolphin experience was not worth it, it was mostly just standing around in the pool for 20 minutes. The water park itself is fine but not worth the expense.
For the price, I was disappointed with all the standing around waiting. It's worth doing once tho.
it about them take photos with dolphins. they want high prices on photos packaging
I'm going in June, and decided quickly after a bit of research to not do the dolphin swim. Even though it would only be $40 extra for me, you seem to have more or just as much dolphin contact at SeaWorld for similar or less money, only you're not in the water.
I've swam with dolphins twice elsewhere and then you really got a lot of direct contact, two people per dolphin and each person takes several laps around the pool, on the dolphin's dorsal fin or laying on its belly. I expected more from Discovery Cove than 10 people per dolphin and each just being dragged for a few meters.
I think the dolphin swim is beneficial if you actually want to touch and interact with them legally or ethically. It's illegal to interact with wild dolphins in U.S. waters and while I'm unsure of the laws in Mexico or various Caribbean countries where you can interact with them in the ocean on excursions, it's not something that you should really be doing for their own health in safety. Still, I agree that for me it was just a one time thing, although I see why it's appealing to many tourists.
@@PoseidonEntertainment I don't think anyone here is criticizing the ethics of the dolphin swim, but the quality. You are one of nine people with one dolphin, and only get towed for a few meters. While at other dolphinariums, you may get solid one-on-one contact with one or two dolphins, with a lot more swimming and interactions.
Thank you Poseidon this theme park sounds amazing; I would love to go here someday.
This park is like a long lost core memory. We went here whwn i was a toddler with extended family.
I also remember a really hard to find alligator experience with the cutest gift shop with tons of animal plushies. That was on a field trip as a toddler, and my dad and I tried to find it again but child brain didnt understand navigation.
As well as I think Jungle Island? You should totally do a video on that one if you havent 😁😆
We did this a while back and loved it, while expensive it’s similar to other theme parks when you consider the food and drinks. Was worth it for the unique experience and much more relaxing.
Whoa... It's like River County (without slides) combined with Discovery Island! Cool concept but not for that price. (Edit: very misleading thumbnail, it's under 300 per person, which is worth it if you're interested in an up close experience with exotic animals)
Depends on time of year and if you are a florida resident. when we went it was 149.00 and includes the upgraded drink package.
How is it misleading? I explained the pricing included hidden fees and taxes, bringing it to over $600 for two people. I would have put $700 with the drink package, but that felt misleading since it was an add-on.
I wouldn't trust Seaworld to take care of a frog, much less a park full of animals.
I did the VIP experience and proposed to my fiancé (with a dolphin) a few years ago. It was awesome and the best day of our trip by far (hell one of the best days of our lives). We can't wait to go back!
Its worth going once in a while if you don’t do the dolphin swim
Also: is it still on a reservation system? I remember one giant pro being it wasn’t packed because it was limited to around 1500 guests per day.
I don't recall there ever being a reservation system, but when I went during COVID, there were arrival windows that you had to choose. I think the high price and limited number of tickets already limits park capacity.
The management of this place is pathetic. I have a friend who quit here because she ended up in the hospital due to the diving experience. She was an aquarist with a masters and got paid the same as the lifeguards. Lifeguards are asleep, she had to rescue someone from the reef without any equipment. People get blackout and stand on the rays and fish. There’s no care for the animals here.
Love your channel! Seeing Poseidon Entertainment across the screen elevates that!
I just spent about $600 on 2 one day multi park tickets for universal where nothing is included so $600 for 2 people to eat free all day honestly sounds amazing. Even if the dolphin experience is an additional $100 per person that’s still probably what you would spend eating at the park in a day.
Thank you for covering Discovery Cove - I've always wanted to go!!!
Discovery Cove always felt like the sort of thing that one does primarily to post about it on social media.
I was there opening day and it was an interesting experience. I loved interacting with the wildlife, especially the rays
The price right now is approximately $150 plus tax due to a promotion, for anyone curious. I paid for my day package today, and am going tomorrow. Funny how this video randomly popped up in my feed just before I go.
It is absolutely worth the price. I have an average salary, and I still feel the price point is more than justified. It is hard to describe how incredible the experience is until you actually get there. This will be my third time going. Save up and buy a ticket to experience this at some point, even if you only do it one time.
I probably could have saved a lot more, but I wanted to see what the experience was like during higher pricing. Still a great experience despite this being the case
I remember doing this place as a kid. Loved it.
My local Aquatica water park in San Antonio used to have a bird aviary alot like the one at Discovery Cove. I'm so mad that they removed it. It was my favorite thing there.
Can’t wait for you to talk about Fantasy Springs!!
I had an absolute blast there and we left around 2. The dolphin experience was cool but kind of a one and done like you pointed out.
The snorkeling and aviary were a huge hit, not only for myself, but also niece and nephew.
We rolled up and hit the beer tent at open and by 2pm I think the beer math made it to be 17 MK Ultras.
Such a blast, plus almost became a in-park celebrity, as I had a heart shaved in my chest hair like a Care Bear. I probably had about 5 or so strangers ask to take pictures with me and quite a few people say they heard I was in the park. Absolute great time!
A bit pricey though, but we all had a blast
I can't remember how much it was, but when I went to Sea World with my friend back in high school, I got to feed and pet the dolphins. That was my favorite part of the whole trip because I finally got to do something that I've always wanted to do, but I couldn't. Didn't stop talking about it for months after that
Videos have been great lately so glad I found your channel last year!
Honestly, there is a lot more value than I expected from SeaWorld/United Parks.
There is a lot of up charges, but besides the dolphins, most of it seems to just be improved versions of something found in the base ticket or available at SeaWorld proper for cheaper.
It feels like the park equivalent of Free-To-Play games. Have the core game/experience for free(part of base admission), but have lots of slightly better ad ons for the whales.
I think that the ability to think you are exploring untamed territory is an exiting feeling and it is commonly felt in these kind of attractions. I think that any entertainment experience that has this is normally a fun time and I wish there was more of these style attractions
Went last year with my 7 year old twins. This was our 2nd visit having been 8 years ago with my son. We paid something like £800 but that included 14 days admission and parking at Sea World and Busch Garden in Tampa. The drinks and food are very basic but overall a great experience and we visited the other parks a couple of times to get our money worth!
This looks awesome. I agree that nothing really compares to this park, amd if you're into this kind of thing, it can be worth it.
Got to go here once before because my dad was a Disney/ Fl. theme park completionist/ super fan. I’m pretty sure it was mostly because that only so many people will be in there with you so he wouldn’t have to talk or interact with anyone the entire day lol.
“The lazy river” and free swim salt water tank are pretty cool but they give you a vest you can’t dive in (unless your a strong swimmer) and the best thing is the aviary by far but I really don’t think this experience was worth the price for the experience at all. Go to typhoon lagoon in Disney and go in their shark tank snorkel experience, same thing.
For someone wanting to swim with sharks, it's not really a swim, but the wonders of wildlife aquarium in Springfield, Missouri owned by Bass pro shop offers a shark feeding frenzy experience. You sit inside one of those diving helmets like you showed for the adventure and they feed the sharks right in front of your face. It's really neat!
We did the helmet thing at DC and they took you right past a window of swimming sharks and some laying against the window on the bottom. Thats as close as I want to get. Went to the Lily Beach Resort in the Maldives and every night at 9 p.m. they would throw the left over fish, fish guts, etc, into the water by the dock. The rays, sharks and all other kinds of fish would start to gather at about 7 p.m. to wait.
Love this park and have been 3 times. They often have specials so on average I’ve paid about $200 per person. Said specials have included the dolphin encounter as well as multiple parks. I’ve also gone in the months of September, June and August so deals are not only during the ‘off’ or shoulder season. If you get the opportunity to enjoy this place, i highly suggest you do.
This is one of our favorite places. Like another commenter we've never paid full price to get in but would say we receive exceptional value.
I did the flamingo mingle on the first week of opening, and as someone who is a bird lover, I did enjoy it! I believe when I did it I paid about 50, and we got a good hour or so to sit with the flamingos and feed them in the lagoon, then walk them around the park. Always keep a good eye out for the Florida resident discounts and the deals they do around the holidays! Black Friday tickets are usually very cheap. I could spend days at discovery cove, and if they ever had an annual pass, I’d probably sell the rest of mine just for this 😂
My wife and I randomly went there and had the time of our lives. So much so that we now try to include it in every Disney trip. I consider this a good investment. The dolphin experience was ok but everything else was great.
I've been twice and never done the dolphin or additional experiences. But as a Brit who goes to Florida and does loads of parks, it is a lovely "all inclusive" chill day.
Just got back from my second trip to Discovery Cove. Loved it as much the second time around. We had a party of three and our total with the Seaventure Dive was less than $600 TOTAL. That’s a very good deal, especially if you love to relax and love animals
If you are visiting sea world already (and in my case also BG) you can get a combo pass that includes a day here and 14 days of admission to their other parks. I paid $250 for that which was a steal. Discovery cove was the highlight of my entire trip
In fairness, I have a SeaWorld/BGT pass, so it didn't make sense to look for any bundles. That's still remarkably cheap though.
Thanks for the video! I have never really done much research into Discovery Cove because we do a lot of cruises and have done excursions where we swam with stingrays, dolphins and sea turtles. I had no idea this place had this many cool features! I think we will for sure visit next time in Orlando. I wouldn't tell my better half about the aviary portion of the swim ( he's deathly afraid of birds) it'd be a fun surprise for sure! LOL
Been there and i can confidently say that them having a max number of people a day makes the experience much more calm and enjoyable vs a max packed any other park
Seaworld parks are always heavily discounted. If you payed full price, you didn’t bother trying a quick search. Discovery Cove is a good value relaxed water park, if you get the multi park bundle. Just skip the add-ons. The unlimited food and beer is also a Plus.
Did it twice. Worth it once. But really worth it. I still have my little snow globe me kissing the dolphin pic in there I can't lie. 🐬
My parents saved up to take the family to discovery cove and even living in FL my entire life and swimming in coral reefs frequently, DC was fun and memorable
I am so glad you did this video! I have always wanted to go to Discovery Cove but it just seemed like it was more money than I wanted to spend at the time especially with so many other options around. I’ll be interested to see if this sways me one way or the other. Thanks PE!
Did it though? As I edited the video, it occurred to me that it's hard to convey the experience through camera because it doesn't sound like there's a lot to do, even though I felt that what was there definitely takes up a whole day.
@@PoseidonEntertainment It actually did and you conveyed it beautifully and concisely. I told my husband that I definitely want to go now even though I don’t love the price point, it looks like a wonderful way to spend the day.
We have gone twice! As Florida residents, we get a cheaper price and both times the extra drink package was included. We have never done the dolphin encounter because we did it in Jamaica, but there is really no need. When a group is not there, the dolphins are swimming around close to everyone. We love the lazy river, its so relaxing, and the marmosets were adorable, as were the otters. We paid for the helmet underwater experience, it was okay and worth the price. The flamingos were not there when we went, so we would love to see that and an armadillo. Everything at this park is amazing. There is nothing but fun, relaxation and amazement with the animals. I love, love, love, how everything, even parking is included. Disney and Universal should take note. I hate the way those parks nickle and dime you to death! We will be back, its been about 3 years, we have been doing different things, the Maldives, Africa, but now its time to come back to Discovery Cove.
One advantage for someone from the West Coast is arriving on a red-eye, picking up a rental car, and going right there. Grab breakfast, take a nap, then have a relaxing first day in FL while you can’t even check into your hotel.
Whoa... I can't swim myself, but this... would be worth learning for.
I've only seen the intro but it already looks incredible. I think I just found my next vacation...
Georgia Aquarium does let you snorkel in their enormous tank - including with whale sharks and manta rays - but it's for a steep $250+.
I didn't know that, but $250 to snorkel with whale sharks might just be worth it.
as a former trainer- and despite the very good cover of conservation and education- it is also the worlds cruelest theme park.
How so? Are the animals kept in too small of enclosures or is it worse than just that?
Yes please if you have time elaborate. I'm genuinely interested to hear your experiences. It's important to educate so word can be passed along. Thank you!
@@princesspikachu3915 it’s just not adequate for animals with their intelligence… they are fed and have vet care- but it took me many many years of climbing the proverbial ladder to realize the career I loved actually wasn’t ok. I drank the kool aid for YEARS! I want to answer more but I just don’t know where to start…. Imagine if you’re kept in a walk in closet with a toilet. It’s a nice enough closet and clean but you never ever get to leave. A few times a day the closet door opens and there’s some interaction-some of which you may enjoy-but then the door closes and the closet is where you stay.
@@Hopper6663 I honestly don’t know where to start… happy to answer specific questions… I’m still sad over leaving the career I loved but it just no longer aligned with my moral compass and it took almost 12 years to even realize it. I thought I had the dream, and was the good guy…. Nope. :( It’s not AS bad if they are born in captivity but it’s still pretty cruel…. The ones that were taken from the wild it’s beyond cruel…
@@princesspikachu3915 and yes some of the “holding areas” are quite small backstage and hardly any have chillers making animals meant for cold water’s having to endure the florida summer in a tepid pool. The chlorine is added when the guests aren’t there and it makes their skin slough. So many things I can think of but I get sad. I really loved working with them and had a relationship with animals that I truly loved. My heart broke that the right thing to do after so long was the hardest thing to do.
Amazing experience. We had the day as a wedding adding gift and was amazing. The dolphin experience was cool. Kids loved it. They were hey have a huge fresh water pool and Yo swing with string rays
I'm going in a couple of weeks, so I'm really glad I found this fresh video with so many active commenters. 🙂
I'm really debating whether to do the shark swim ($79) or not. Since it's quite pricey, you're only floating at the surface, it's very brief, and you can see the sharks through the glass anyway (and other amazing large fish in the reef itself).
I initially wanted to do the full ~$200 experience with sharks, but decided no since I'm going alone this time, and would rather do that with company (more special to have someone to share it with).
What's interesting is that, depending on the season, you're not paying *that* much more than a single Disney day (after food and other possible add-ons). We've never paid more than $250 a head which includes the dolphin swim. It's certainly a luxury experience that justifies its price tag.
I'm massively biased as my wife and I both love the park (hell I proposed to her there), but it really is an incredible place for the right type of group. We did the shark experience on one trip and it's excellent.
I'm glad somebody with business money also had my old "swim next to animals" idea. Kinda sad they don't have sea lions there, tho, those were always the animals I pictured in my daydreams (behind glass, of course, I didn't have a death wish even back as a child)
Sea lions are cool, but they would definitely ruin the relaxed atmosphere lol
I remember the parrot going a little too hard on the pine nut in my hand and breaking skin. I knew he meant me no harm and I got a gnarly, permanent souvenir out of it lol
9/10 The dolphin encounter is nice once in a life, but doesn't need repeating. Would definitely go do everything else again at full price!
Ah yeah, I've unfortunately been bitten by parrots before lol.
You posted this just as we were driving down to Florida to go here.
Just visited typhoon lagoon for the first time in years, can’t tell you how disappointed I was to see they got rid of the shark reef snorkeling and sealed up the sub
It's still a great park, but yeah I agree. I wish I had experienced it when it was still open
@@PoseidonEntertainment was wonderful but ICE cold
The water in the lazy river was nice and warm, and of course we went on a cold day for Florida, so my family and I mostly stayed in the lazy river outside of snorkeling and getting our picture with the dolphins
Point: It’s not overpriced if people are paying for them. 🤷♀️ just because you won’t doesn’t mean they don’t sell them out at the higher prices. You did comment that the prices drop in the off season- so there you go.
I went to work at Sea World as a second job back when I also worked at Disney. I was expecting to maybe be ride operations, food service or something simple like that but then I was told I’d be working Discovery Cove. Oh! Uh… okay. You’ll be washing wet suits all day in a dark cold back area never seeing the light of day! 12hr shifts. I lasted a month.
I went last year - a bucket list experience to celebrate retirement from teaching. It was amazing!
If you can, be in the shadows of the reef while the handlers feed the rays -- I enjoyed hearing stories about some of the rays, and the rays swam so close, even bumping into me.
I did manage to stand above while the handlers were doing an early morning shark feeding. It was interesting to hear about the process and the different personalities of the sharks.