Fitz’s Fit Family “Discovery Cove” Vacation – Swimming with Dolphins

Fitz's Fit Family and Yoko

Sea World’s Discovery Cove offers a wondrous opportunity for adventurous ocean lovers and those who fantasize about riding sweet dolphins to make their dreams come true. This theme park, which feels more like a five-star resort, offers guests an entire day full of aquatic fun for a very fair price. What??? Yes, I said the price is fair. Not because I’m wealthy and have no concept of a dollar, but when you lay the contents of this package out on a table … it’s a pretty great deal. I’ll get down to the financial nitty gritty later though.

My family of four spent the day at Discovery Cove last week (yes, I purchased our tickets) and enjoyed a day we will never forget. I grew up on Ft. Lauderdale beach in love with the sea and the animals in it. Our eight year old daughter, Ginger, shares this passion and has pined for the opportunity to swim with dolphins since she was about 18 months old.  With this in mind, my husband, Rob, and I were eager to share this experience with her. Our six year old son, Parker, was thrilled to participate if you can imagine that. We’re an athletic family and if we’re going to spend a big chunk of money on anything, it’s going to be on adventure and laughs, not fancy food or clothes.

The two girls laughing!

We began our day with a lovely breakfast buffet (included in the price of admission) and immediately darted over to the Aviary once we were done. Inside, exotic and unusual birds from around the world landed on our shoulders, arms and heads to get a nibble of the food we were provided with in cute little cups. The morning is the best time to go, because that’s when the birds are the hungriest after a long night without guests feeding them. We all had a blast and returned several more times throughout the day. With each visit, I got pooped on and my meanie kids and husband enjoyed fantastic laughs at my expense.

We then went to the locker areas to receive and dress in our complimentary wet suits or wet suit vests. Two things of note: First, the wet suits helped significantly when it came to dealing with the chilly salt water. I highly recommend them. Second, not one person looked good in their wet suit; every last one of us looked like a nerdy Star Trek character from the 80’s. We were all in that geeky ship together though, so don’t be foolish and reject yours. We got dressed, grabbed our complimentary mask, snorkel and sunblock and then headed to Dolphin Bay for our early appointment to swim with Yoko (that was our dolphin’s name).

Parker and Parrots

When we arrived to meet Yoko, we were greeted by a delightful trainer, Alexis, who made our 30 minute experience very special. Once we entered the water, Yoko quickly approached and the touching, talking and joking with her began. She was sweet, smart, athletic and even reminded me of our awesome dog, Piper. Wouldn’t it be nice to have a dolphin as a pet? I think so. We and the four other guests in our group each took turns hugging and kissing Yoko, while posing for pro Discovery Cove photographers. The last thing we each got to do was go for a ride with Yoko. After swimming out in very deep or shallow water (depending on your confidence), Yoko joined each one of us individually and rode us back to shore. I certainly enjoyed my ride, but nothing compares with watching Ginger’s happy little head explode with joy. Was it a rockstar Mommy moment for me? You betcha!

After our fabulous time with Miss Yoko, we headed over to the Grand Reef which is a giant “pool” of salt water loaded with hundreds of sting rays and thousands of tropical fish. We spent hours swimming, wading and touching the sting rays. Some were gargantuan and some were cute and small. All of them were soft, squishy and fun to touch. I’d say about 90% of the guests in the reef were comfortable with all of this, but on occasion we’d hear a few funny screams from folks who basically got too excited.  Maybe they were just afraid of all the humans in ugly wetsuits though. Who knows? It was a perfect opportunity for the folks who love the ocean and relish an opportunity to swim with the safe stuff and not stress about sharks.

The other cool thing to do was swimming in the fresh water beach, which thankfully was warm, and swimming around Wind-Away River. Mind you, I did not call it a “lazy river”, because it is definitely NOT for the lazy. Inner-tubes are not available, so if you want to work your way around this river … you’re going to have to swim. Some pool noodles are available, but swimming is the way to go. Especially if you’re a fitness fanatic, and since you’re here at Fitzness.com … I’m going to assume you are. The four of us swam at least 10-12 laps around Wind-Away River and giggled our heads off while doing so. It’s full of fun waterfalls, dips, interesting textures and even takes guests through the Aviary. The kids enjoyed all of the athletic play, while Rob and I enjoyed the chance to get some legitimate exercise on our adventure.

We arrived at 7:45 AM, and left at 5:30 PM feeling like we had spent our money wisely. It was a day of nonstop fun, up-close and personal animal interactions and athletic adventure. Of course, it’s hard to put a dollar amount on joy, but I’m going to do it so you’ll feel more convinced to give Discovery Cove a go! The price of  Dolphin Swim Day Resort Packages range from $199 to $329 per person (depending on the season), and this is what’s included.

• A reserved 30-minute dolphin interaction – this experience alone at a place like Atlantis in the Bahamas will cost you $130.
• Snorkeling with thousands of rays and tropical fish plus hand feeding exotic birds in a free-flight aviary – swimming on the reef at Atlantis costs $79 and you only get to enjoy the reef for one hour. No birds included in that price either.
• Continental breakfast, lunch, unlimited snacks, drinks and select alcoholic beverages – breakfast and lunch buffets come at a pretty penny in some hotels, not to mention the price of daiquiris and beer (please don’t drink to many of those though). I’d say, most folks will consume 50 bucks worth of food and drinks.
• Complimentary use of wetsuits, masks and snorkels (you can take the snorkel home with you) – most places charge extra for this stuff.
• Choice of a 14 day, unlimited use pass to either SeaWorld Orlando, Aquatica or Busch Gardens Tampa Bay – A single-day adult ticket to Sea World will cost you $79. Unlimited access to one of these parks for two weeks is more than awesome!
• Free sunblock – they’re mostly just trying to protect the animals, by ensuring you won’t use sunblocks that are dangerous to them, but either way … you’ll save about $10 worth throughout the day.

So yes, I have to say I told you so … the price of a day at Discovery Cove is very FAIR! If you’re planning your next vacation, swimming with dolphins would make your dreams come true and you have some extra time to devote to one of the other Busch theme parks, you’d be crazy not head to Sea World’s Discovery Cove. If you do go, please squeak out a big hello to Yoko for me!