Thursday, November 1st: SeaWorld, day 2
We arrived at SeaWorld in time for park opening. We knew as soon as we pulled into the parking lot that we were in for a MUCH quieter day than we experienced on the weekend: the lot was crazy empty and there were almost no lines to enter. With it being a weekday in the off-season (meaning the locals were at work or in school) and the Spooktacular event having concluded, it was certain to be far less crowded. We were super excited to enjoy the park without crowds or lines.
We stopped for Photokey pictures after breezing through security and ticketing. Love the Photokey AP!
Once inside the park, we stopped at Guest Services and purchased tickets to the Walrus Up Close tour for later that afternoon. The tour was the November Passmember special offer, so this was the first day for the 30% off incentive.....at the deeply discounted price, we couldn't pass it up. The team member who assisted us had a bit of a hard time figuring out how to apply the discount (their computer system hadn't been updated to reflect the offer) but eventually he figured out a work-around with some assistance and we had passes in hand in short order
.
It turned out that the brief delay in obtaining our tour tickets worked out in our favor, because as we were waiting at Guest Services, one of the SeaWorld characters appeared for a meet-and-greet at the giant SeaWorld sign
. We managed to get photos with this very friendly shark with absolutely zero wait at all.
This day was starting out pretty darn fabulously.
While we had the all-day dining plan again this visit, neither one of us were really feeling like eating just yet. We decided to skip breakfast and grab an early lunch once hunger finally set in. For now, we opted for a ride on the SkyTower instead.
While the SkyTower is an extra charge for day guests, admission is free for pass members.....another nice little perk of having annual passes.
I'm also pretty sure that's a bit of an increase since our May visit. I'm certain it's gone from $2 per person to $5
.
It was another glorious day: deliciously warm (but not hot), a light breeze, some clouds in the sky but the sunshine was there too. Once again, we had appeared to hit the weather jackpot
. We are always so grateful when Mother Nature smiles on our vacations.
It was a marvelously peaceful twirl through the sky. We had the entire pod to ourselves, save for one other couple. It was a wonderful way to kick off our day in the park. And those views!
You can actually see how empty the park lot was from the top of this photo:
What a difference a few days makes!
The Waterfront is one of my favorite places in the park, so after we disembarked the SkyTower, we strolled around a bit and just soaked in the peaceful atmosphere and colorful sights. It's really, really hard not to be happy here
.
Since we hadn't taken time to visit Antarctica: Empire of the Penguin on our other SeaWorld day, we opted to head there next: if any attraction was going to have a line by later in the day, it was quite likely to be this one
. Popular with adults and children alike, it's family-friendly appeal always makes it a popular place.
Our timing turned out to be absolutely impeccable, because as we meandered along the walkway toward that section of the park, we encountered one of my favorite impromptu SeaWorld sights:
THE FLAMINGO PARADE!
They just strolled down the paved walkway like a cluster of runway models. There is something about flamingos that just oozes poise and class.....I think it's their amazing posture. Aside from the flamingos and their animal care ambassadors, we were literally some of the only other people in sight, which almost made it feel like this amazing little display was done just for us. Of course it wasn't, but how special to be right in the middle of that wonderful event!
We literally stood and watched them until they were completely out of sight.
Arriving at Antarctica, we were definitely in high spirits.
I am always impressed by this area of the park. SeaWorld did a GREAT job bringing frosty Antarctica to Florida.
It's always nice on no-crowd days to get these kind of photos. On busy days, you're hard pressed to not have some other guest standing against this showpiece.
Posted waits were 5 minutes, but we were ushered inside almost immediately. We watched the pre-ride video, then we were on our way into the ride queue.....having never found any benefit to the "wild" version (the spinning does nothing to enhance the experience
), we opted, as always, for the Mild side.
I know there are tons of critics who have nothing positive to say about this attraction, but on the whole, we enjoy it quite a lot. It's not revolutionary but its fun: and that's enough for us
.
Of course, they always leave the best for last: my favorite part is the Big Reveal, when the ride vehicle turns 180 degrees and the doors open up to the most wonderful sight of all:
It's crazy cold in this exhibit so we can never spend as much time there as we'd like to. Those penguins are so entertaining to watch. Whether they're doing their adorable little waddle across the rocks and snow or speeding like mini torpedos through the water, they just give your heart a big ol' squeeze.
When we couldn't stand the frosty air any longer, we moved out to the underwater viewing area where the temperature is a bit more civil.
Getting photos of them swimming that aren't blurry in that low light is almost an impossibility. They may have stout little bodies, but man....those little suckers can MOVE!
More to come!