You will gather in a cabana to go over a safety briefing. It also means great lighting for photos and more forgiving temperatures for donning wetsuits and standing in the sun. The animals are fresh and ready to interact early in the day. When you get to the park and are ushered into the Welcome Center, your day’s schedule is set. Children ages 6-12 must be accompanied by a paying adult who is also participating in the dolphin swim experience. Please note, children must be at least 6 years old to swim with dolphins. Experiences and Upgrades at Discovery Cove So, that in itself is worth it for a no-fuss beach day experience. This is like an elevated day at the beach, if the beach were crowd controlled to a manageable level, came with spa-level changing rooms, towels, and beach/lounge chairs and umbrellas, and was within a short walk of slushies and soft pretzels with no need for cash or cards. The thing that stood out most to us is that you COULD have a great day without any upgrades. Truly – you don’t really notice an impact to your snorkel experience despite many people all around! It looks like too many other swimmers to ever have a meaningful experience, but there are so many fishes and rays, you really do not notice other explorers at all. The Grand Reef is alive with color both underwater and at the surface with lots of blue and yellow snorkels and neoprene peeking out from the water. With just over 1,000 visitors accepted daily, Discovery Cove’s carrying capacity allows your day to be mostly crowd free. Complimentary life jackets for the littles are available in several locations to keep kids on the surface safely. The river does reach pretty serious depths of 8+ feet and changes are somewhat erratic. There are float noodles available at Serenity Bay for the Wind Away River. With all of the included experiences, we found we could while away a day no-problem just floating and playing as we would in a pool or waterpark. If you’re just looking for an elevated pool experience with a few extra amenities to keep busy, but not as busy as a waterpark, this is the place to spend your day!

Access to really nice locker rooms, showers, beach chairs, and umbrellas all over the sandy site.

Mask, snorkel (which you get to keep), wetsuits, and reef safe sunscreen.

Freshwater Oasis (where the otters are).Included with your general admission ticket: Here are the things included with your admission ticket. If you haven’t heard of or considered Discovery Cove for your vacation, we’ll start with a little primer. Instead, I would describe Discovery Cove as “one of the most meaningful ways to splurge on a family day in Orlando.”

Other parks will drain your wallet throughout the day, while you pay upfront for everything here, making it seem more costly. I have seen Discovery Cove described as “one of the more expensive park offerings in Orlando.” However, I think this is only because the costs are upfront. Cost Comparisons Between Discovery Cove and Disney’s Animal Kingdom.Experiences and Upgrades at Discovery Cove.Here are all of Trekaroo’s favorite things to do in Orlando with kids. Here’s our complete Discovery Cove review. The reservations only, all-inclusive day resort comes at a cost (just like Disney, Universal, LegoLand, and other spots) and we wanted to know if it was worth it. Discovery Cove was the perfect spot to add some depth to our itinerary.Īs a former wildlife biologist and mom to animal-loving kids, zoos have long been a staple in our vacation albums.ĭiscovery Cove is under the SeaWorld umbrella of experiences, and offers a water-centric experience that is literally immersive. With only one day before heading over to Crystal River to hang out with resident manatees, I decided to make the trip about responsible animal interactions and fostering ideas about ethical tourism. As animal lovers, we have long wondered, is Disovery Cove worth it? Truth be told, the cost was always a barrier and I wanted to be sure that the splurge was worth the splash!Īfter several memories made at Disney’s Animal Kingdom over the years, we wanted a new way to learn about and interact with animals. Orlando is an absolute playground of possibilities when it comes to family vacations.

Discovery park of america photos