As you probably know, today you’ll be able to buy discounted tickets to Discovery Cove, Sea World or two-day package for Busch Gardens/Sea World via Daily Getaways promotion (make sure to read the fine print):
So, I thought it may be good to repost my write-up from two years ago because my feelings on this matter haven’t changed. Without further ado:
Any time I see an online discussion on visiting a Sea World amusement park, there are always a few commenters who basically equate it to joining KKK.
So, I wanted to weigh in on this topic, especially since we just went to Sea World with my parents. First, I absolutely don’t think it’s wrong for bloggers to mention this particular deal. I make a point of not entangling destinations’ political climate or companies’ ethics with my blog’s content. My job, at least the way I view it, is to present information and let readers do their own research. Offended by a certain deal covered on the blog because you consider it to be unethical? Fair enough. Feel free to skip it. End of story.
I’ve seen other bloggers been heavily criticized for going to and subsequently writing about their trip to Maldives. The main reason was political situation (as perceived by readers) and hostility towards Western nations. It was indicated that miles and points bloggers have a moral obligation to boycott destinations that don’t align with US policy.
That’s a slippery slope. Where people choose to travel is their call to make, not mine. There are few countries I personally will not visit unless things change, and you would be surprised if I told you which ones. But I won’t because to me that’s not what miles and points blogging is about. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not throwing shade on those who choose to discuss those particular topics. That’s the beauty of having your own blog: you get to say whatever the heck you please.
To me, the situation with Sea World falls in the same category. I haven’t watched Blackfish documentary, but I’ve heard enough about it to know the gist of the issue at hand. The biggest problem conservationists have with Sea World has to do with breeding of Orca whales and training them to perform tricks. I actually agree with them completely. For one, I don’t think the whales belong in such a confined space.
There are many other issues as well. One of the reasons I haven’t been to this park in ten years is due to the fact that several trainers have been killed and Sea World still kept the Orca show going. Right now they no longer make trainers get in the water during shows but unfortunately, it’s too little too late for families who already lost their loved ones.
Sure, one can argue that trainers knew the risks, but it’s still wrong for company to put money ahead of human lives. And that’s unfortunately what brings in the bulk of the money: the whales. At least that was the case before all the controversy started. Recently, Sea World has announced that they plan to stop Orca breeding program. There is no doubt in my mind that profit and not remorse was behind this decision.
However, there is a flip side to this issue. I’ve seen people comment on that article and say that after witnessing Orca whales in-person, they decided to make donations to conservation efforts. Of course, there is no way of knowing whether those reviews are real or not.
But one thing is for sure: you do feel appreciation for those majestic creatures after seeing them up-close. Make no mistake about it, Sea World is in it to make money. That said, for families who can’t afford to see dolphins or other sea creatures in their natural habitat, and who already happen to be in Orlando to visit Disney, this is the next best thing.
My reason for going was my parents’ visit. We try to take them to one amusement park each time they come to US, and Sea World seemed like the logical choice. They’ve already been to Busch Gardens and Magic Kingdom, plus Disney prices are currently out of reach for my family’s budget. The fact that we could buy tickets for $50 (half of what Disney costs) was a major selling point. Plus, I knew they would enjoy Sea World and they did. Kids and my husband had a good time as well.
I, on the other hand, was miserable. As soon as I entered the park, my allergies went nuts. I don’t know what plant of flower set them off, but it was bad. My nose was dripping, my eyes were watery and I was sneezing non-stop. Universe trying to tell me something? You decide. Of course, since we paid all that money, I had no choice but stay and make the best of it.
So, here is my hazy and Claritin-influenced recollection of the day.
Sea World is working hard to repair its tarnished image. Too hard, if you ask me. There were all kinds of corny songs at the end of each performance about how we are one world/one family. The dolphin show was something else. They had birds flying, acrobats performing tricks, you name it. I turned to my husband and said: I think they are channeling Cirque du Soleil. His response: More like Cirque du Lame’. Spot on.
However, there are many good things about this park, and I really think your family will enjoy it. You can see giant turtles, penguins, manatees, walrus and more! You can even take picture with flamingoes.
They also have pretty cool rides like Atlantis and Manta Ray, which my daughter and my mom absolutely loved. My dad is too chicken for stuff like that.
Not to be missed, especially for small children is Pets Ahoy show (watch it on YouTube). I found this comment interesting: “This show emphasizes Sea World’s two main strengths: rehabilitating/rescuing animals and providing education to the public. Now if they would just free the Orcas, everything would be fine.”
The park is not as crowded as Disney, which makes for a more relaxing atmosphere. In other words, Sea World is about more than just whales and dolphins. Even if you decide to skip Orca show, I believe you’ll get your money’s worth during the visit. Well, unless you get horrible allergy to something. See Trip Advisor reviews of Sea World here
Of course, for some, the fact that the money goes to support Sea World corporation is a deal breaker. I respect that, which is why I mentioned Blackfish documentary. I think you definitely should do research and decide for yourself. But those are my two cents, whatever they are worth. I’m not going to lie, I still have mixed feelings on whether it was the right or wrong thing to do. But I do know this: my family had an amazing time, and my parents got to do things they simply can’t experience in their own country.
Edit: make sure to read the comment form Holly on other reasons you may want to skip Sea World.
Some alternatives to Sea World
Fortunately, when it comes to marine life, Sea World is not the only game in town. There is a newly opened Sea Life Aquarium Orlando, which is part of Merlin Entertainment, the same company that owns Legoland.
I haven’t been there, but reviews are pretty good. Plus, the tickets are more affordable at $20 for adults and $15 for kids. If you don’t care about rides/shows and simply want your kids to see some ocean life, this might do the trick.
If you are heading to Clearwater area, I highly recommend Clearwater Aquarium, a very good deal for the money and a fun experience for the whole family. I wrote about it before, and hope you check it out.
Of course, comparing Sea World to aquariums is sort of like comparing apples to oranges. The first one is a true amusement park, with something for everyone. Whether ethical considerations should outweigh potential fun with the family will be your call to make. Plus, if you do go, it will add up to a considerable expense, especially if you have two or three kids.
Readers, what are your thoughts on visiting Sea World?
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Author: Leana
Leana is the founder of Miles For Family. She enjoys beach vacations and visiting her family in Europe. Originally from Belarus, Leana resides in central Florida with her husband and two children.
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The trans-species inbred/hybrid is finally starting to realize the orca swims in the wild with social construct and did not want to entertain those with no intelligence. Maybe next they can start an agenda of the end of insults to earth’s IQ. Glad to see one of their torturers met some justice.
That was me up there, lol! Forgot to add my name. ;-P
@Debra I will watch the documentary. Honestly, I have no illusions about Sea World and the fact that it is a large corporation that is mostly in it for the money. I guess I have always looked at it as value exchange. I give them my hard earned money, and we get to enjoy parts of Sea World that don’t violate my conscience. I realize it’s probably a half- butt way of looking at things. 😉 The fact that they put trainers in danger for so long bothers me, though they did finally make changes.
As far as my SIL goes, I’m terrified of her more than I’m terrified of violating my principles. Maybe we’ll boycott the place after she takes them!
That is hilarious that you fear your SIL more than your principles! But I get it, you’ve got to pick your battles in life. You may watch the documentary and come to a different conclusion, and that’s ok. But I was surprised how strongly it worked on me, and I’m *not* surprised it’s contributed to Seaworld’s downfall far more than the actual death which led to the making of the documentary–by a filmmaker who used to take her son to Seaworld, no less, and claims her original intent was to make an unbiased documentary, before she got to uncovering the alarming facts.
@Debra Well, I was half joking about fearing my SIL! But I certainly have to pick my battles with her. She already paid for tickets, plus I’m not giving up my getaway with the hubby. 🙂
In 2005 I went to a business conference in Orlando, and the key note speaker was the original orca trainer from SeaWorld. He was fascinating to hear. Of course, this was before any controversy. Our group had a private Shamu show at night, and it was unbelievably awesome.
My husband and I watched Blackfish, and it was horrifying. Then, SeaWorld came out with their own version of events and we didn’t know what to think of everything. I do feel like SeaWorld has taken a lot of steps in the right direction with the discontinuation of the orca breeding and shows. The cats/dogs from the Pets Ahoy show are all rescues, and the parks are focusing on conservation.
We have taken our family to SeaWorld twice since the Blackfish documentary. SeaWorld is the nicest theme park in Texas, and we have gotten tickets in the $40-$50 range. The park is turning into more of a “ride” park with aquariums on the side. But, it’s nowhere near the quality of the Disney parks.
@Nancy I agree that Sea World is not on the same level as Disney when it comes to quality. But tickets are cheaper, and there is a lot to entertain kids even if you skip the orca and dolphin encounters.
You know, I probably should watch Blackfish at some point. But I do agree, Sea World seems to be taking a step in the right direction with the latest conservation efforts. I’m not planning to visit the park in a near future, but won’t be preventing my SIL from taking the kids.
You really should watch Blackfish, Leana! It is fascinating and horrifying. I am not a huge animal lover by any means; my husband is vegetarian for moral reasons and I rather defiantly continue to eat as much meat as I want, heh! I enjoyed Seaworld as a child and probably would have thought it a nice experience to pass on to my family if I the film hadn’t been made. While it is obvious that there is a heavy emotional bias to it, it is very hard to have *any* tolerance of Seaworld after seeing it. It might make you feel differently about your SIL taking your kids there.
I have read some of Seaworld’s rebuttals and found them very superficial. The suffering of the orcas makes me cringe, as well as the danger all those trainers were put in for so long. And sadly, there’s a lot of information out there supporting the suffering of most, if not all marine mammals in amusement parks, not just the orcas. And all for the greed of a company that pretends to be in animal protection. It just completely turns me off giving money to them or any similar company for the rest of my life. But that’s just me, everyone has to make their own decision based on the information they have.
The SeaWorld shows have all gotten super cheesy, but I do love the aquariums and the kids like to feed the seals and pet the rays. They took out the manatees a few years ago from San Diego, and I was pretty bummed about that — one of my favorite mammals. I have heard that Discovery Cove is super nice and includes meals so the Daily Getaway Deal is a decent price, but we won’t be able to go this year.
I do have to admit out of all the theme parks they do have the best food as I usually hate amusement park food.
@Stephanie I’ve been thinking about trying out Discovery Cove. Daily Getaways promo is actually a pretty decent deal, but for four people it still adds up to a small fortune. I may get it next year, though. My SIL ended up buying tickets to Sea World. She will be taking the kids to Orlando in the fall for a weekend. That means my husband and I will get to have a couple’s getaway. #winning
I have always felt a little guilty for visiting zoos and aquariums. My daughter loves animals so I was excited when I saw a new Planet Earth on Netflix. However, she got so upset after a few minutes, we had to turn it off. It showed bloody injured penguins, baby iguanas being eaten by dozens of snakes, etc. She was in tears and said, “That was intense. Animals in zoos have it made!” She’s still talking about that poor penguin and wondering if he made it. So maybe if the zoo or aquarium is well run and focuses on conservation, I won’t feel so bad for those animals.
@Jennifer That’s an interesting viewpoint, for sure! Life in the wild isn’t always rosy.
I agree with you that it does depend on the zoo and its policies. I grew up in Soviet Union and our city had a zoo. Looking back on it, that Place was absolutely terrible. It basically amounted to a prison for animals. They have made some changes, but I refuse to take my kids there when we are visiting my family. Zoos in US are in a different category. Many still consider them to be a glorified animal prison, which is fair enough. But more effort there goes into making the animals somewhat comfortable and entertained.
offtopic, but – would be really curious to hear about those “few countries you personally will not visit”!
@V Ha! I don’t want to open a can of worms, sorry. 🙂 It has to do with human rights violations and religious intolerance.
The other problem with Sea World is that they capture baby dolphins and killer whales in the wild, stealing from their parents in the process. I don’t go to Sea World and I don’t go to zoos in the same reason. I also do not eat meat. I do like to observe animals that are free to live their lives, so I will go on certain snorkel trips.
There have been exceptions to this. For example, we were in Barcelona in October last year when the whole city was marching to separate from Spain. We wanted to get out of the streets that day so we went to the aquarium. I wasn’t happy and I felt uncomfortable, but you do what you have to do sometimes.
Anyway, I try not to be *too* judgmental but I think Sea World is unethical and would never give them my money. They steal babies from their mothers.
@Holly I respect your position. In fact, I’ll edit the post and encourage readers to see your comment. You bring up some valid points about zoos. I will say that it depends on the zoo. Some truly go out of their way to make sure the animals have a comfortable habitat. Then there are also places like Theater of the Seas in the Florida Keys: https://theaterofthesea.com
They claim on the website that most of their animals are non-releasable (as in, they would not make it in the wild due to injuries). Obviously, I can’t verify those claims, but to me, it takes some of the ethical considerations out of it.
That said, I totally respect your position to not go to zoos or eat meat. It’s a free country, and you should do what works for you.
Holly you are just so perfect!
@Ramsey Can you please be civil? Nobody said anything about perfection.
We were there last month and loved it. We always enjoy the relaxed vibe at SeaWorld so much more than Disney. We hated some of the new shows (the sea lion show is painful) but enjoyed the penguins (skip the long line for the stupid ride and just go see the penguins). Our kids love roller coasters and SeaWorld delivers on that one. We will continue to visit!
@Michelle My parents really enjoyed the park, though I wish it wasn’t so hot the day we went. The new roller coaster is actually pretty good. Not “Busch Gardens” good, but still. I agree, some shows are just not that great.
Well NEVER to SeaWorld those tanks are the size of a hotel swimming pool! How would you like it if you were forced to have children over and over and your kids were abused by others, taken away from you, or dead much too soon?