Our First Trip to Sea World to Enjoy Holiday Festivities …….

[hayesdvc]

As DVC members and AP holders, DW and I purchased Black Friday Fun Pass and Quick Queue for our coming early December trip to enjoy our first Christmas festivities at SW.

We know that only certain days of the week they do the "Christmas Celebration" which is the day we are planning to go. We are not interested in any animal shows, however, all other shows, decorations, parades, etc are a must.

What do we have to do and any recommendations on places to eat are appreciated.

TIA

 

[CynBeth]

We like Sharks Underwater Grill. We found out when we were there this time last year you can’t reserve online anymore you have to go there when it first opens. We had no clue and luckily they could still take us had a short wait but I would not chance that. The holiday shows are pretty much only at night. In the past they had a special holiday show reserved seating package but did not offer that last year. I think the parade in the Sesame area and possibly the Elmo show were the only holiday things during the day. Our favorite holiday shows are O Wonderous Night where they use animal puppets to tell the Christmas story from the perspective of animals with real animals at the end and Winter Wonderland on Ice it is an ice skating show. I believe there were 2 times offered for both of those shows but if there is no package or not interested in getting it need to get in line about 30-45 minutes ahead of time to ensure you get a seat. There is also certain times the lights on the waterfront trees dance to music and in the area with holiday booths every once in a while is snow. There used to be a holiday whale show but last year had fireworks instead. I would enjoy the rides, animal exhibits/feedings, and animal shows during the day so you can end the night with all of the fantastic holiday things.

 

[CAPSLOCK]

If you're planning to spend a whole day at SW, I would grab the all day dining deal that is currently on sale for $29.99. 2 meals & you will have saved money. Anything else is just icing on the cake. Or, SW's event food booths tend to be very good, but only open at 5pm for the holiday offerings.

 

[jsmla]

If going during the Christmas Celebration I recommend getting the tasting lanyard and eating at the holiday food booths. It’s fun trying the different offerings and the quality is superior to the quick service places.

Unless you plan on purchasing reserved seating I recommend arriving very early for the O Wondrous Night show. People begin lining up an hour ahead of showtime.

 

[bloomcruisers]

Just did a full day at SeaWorld, including the holiday events. Crowds weren't bad at all the whole day. you could get a seat at any of the aquatic shows right up to show time. Didn't have any wee ones with us so skipped the Sesame Street Christmas show and parade this time. But really enjoyed Oh Wondrous night and the ice skating show.

Got in line for the 5:00 Oh Wondrous Night at 4:30 and had great seats in the center section a couple rows behind the reserved seats. Be aware the line entering on the left is for wheelchair access only and people accompanying them. The line for everyone else is on the right and winds around so you actually enter into the front right of the theater. But the show was as Wondrous as I remembered from prior years.

The Ice skating show was the same as previous years and I recognized many of the same skaters. The show was still very lovely. I was a bit disappointed that there were no fireworks following the 2nd show. I had been expecting them based on reports I read somewhere. Maybe they are just not held on Fridays?

We also did the all day dining deal and got 3 meals in so it was definitely worth the $30 Black Friday deal. Had fish and chips at the Seaport Grill, Orange chicken and veggies with fried rice by the penguins, and the Altitude burger with waffle fries by Shamu stadium. Food was all decent and definitely a bargain with the dining deal.

The sea of trees performance was lovely, we got photos with Santa, saw the regular dolphin and sea lion shows and 2 orca shows. Thought we remembered the evening orca show being different than the daytime show so went to 2. But it was the same show. All in all a very nice day. Highly recommend it for a change of pace from Disney.

 

[bloomcruisers]

Update to my earlier post about no fireworks. It is a sad story. Apparently there was an explosion at the warehouse where the fireworks are stored that caused 4 deaths including the guy who programs the shows. The explosion was on Dec 1 so surprised I hadn't seen anything about it. The victims were all very young including a teenager who survived. Very sad.

 

[MrKnight]

Update to my earlier post about no fireworks. It is a sad story. Apparently there was an explosion at the warehouse where the fireworks are stored that caused 4 deaths including the guy who programs the shows. The explosion was on Dec 1 so surprised I hadn't seen anything about it. The victims were all very young including a teenager who survived. Very sad.

While this is a very tragic and sad incident, it is NOT related to SeaWorld, not sure how this is relevant to this thread?

 

[bloomcruisers]

While this is a very tragic and sad incident, it is NOT related to SeaWorld, not sure how this is relevant to this thread?

It's relevant because it is the reason there are no fireworks this weekend. I got the information from SeaWorld's Facebook post. People who are going this weekend expecting fireworks following the final ice skating show will not get them and this is why.

 

[CAPSLOCK]

Wondered why there were no fireworks shows on Fri - they were on the schedule online but not the paper schedule/map that SW distributed.

 

[Joanna71985]

The sea of trees performance was lovely, we got photos with Santa, saw the regular dolphin and sea lion shows and 2 orca shows. Thought we remembered the evening orca show being different than the daytime show so went to 2. But it was the same show. All in all a very nice day. Highly recommend it for a change of pace from Disney.

There hasn't been a separate killer whale show since 2019 (now during the summer/Christmas events, it's the same show all day

While this is a very tragic and sad incident, it is NOT related to SeaWorld, not sure how this is relevant to this thread?

The warehouse is the one that sends the fireworks to SW (hence why there hasn't been a show since the accident)

 

[bloomcruisers]

There hasn't been a separate killer whale show since 2019 (now during the summer/Christmas events, it's the same show all day

I guess that must be when we last went. LOL
I was beginning to think I had imagined the different shows.

 

[MrKnight]

There hasn't been a separate killer whale show since 2019 (now during the summer/Christmas events, it's the same show all day

I think the poster was referencing the former Shamu Rocks nighttime show which was sadly retired, I very much miss Shamu Rocks, IMHO this was one of the best live shows ever offered at SW Orlando, the energy, vibrancy, and excitement that this show once provided has left a huge gap in the nighttime SW experience.. While the new replacement "Orca Encounter" show does on occasion have evening showtimes, the show is frankly very tame and very generic compared to any of the pre-2019 shows..

The warehouse is the one that sends the fireworks to SW (hence why there hasn't been a show since the accident)

If this is the case then I stand corrected on relevancy, I was just trying to clarify that this incident did not occur on SW property nor was it a SW-operated warehouse as that seems to have been implied in an earlier post in this thread.. Thanks for the clarification!

 

[Joanna71985]

I think the poster was referencing the former Shamu Rocks nighttime show which was sadly retired, I very much miss Shamu Rocks, IMHO this was one of the best live shows ever offered at SW Orlando, the energy, vibrancy, and excitement that this show once provided has left a huge gap in the nighttime SW experience.. While the new replacement "Orca Encounter" show does on occasion have evening showtimes, the show is frankly very tame and very generic compared to any of the pre-2019 shows..


If this is the case then I stand corrected on relevancy, I was just trying to clarify that this incident did not occur on SW property nor was it a SW-operated warehouse as that seems to have been implied in an earlier post in this thread.. Thanks for the clarification!

I know which show they were referring to. Both Light Up the Night (the summer show) and Miracles (the Christmas show) ended in 2019. Now the only show is Orca Encounter. It's the same regardless if done during the daytime or evening

 

[bloomcruisers]

I know which show they were referring to. Both Light Up the Night (the summer show) and Miracles (the Christmas show) ended in 2019. Now the only show is Orca Encounter. It's the same regardless if done during the daytime or evening

Yes. I was the poster and it was Miracles. I remember now that you named it.