This post is in collaboration with Sea World.
Growing up with 2 siblings and a single mom, summer vacations were carefully planned, budgeted for and a road trip away. To me, summer always meant San Diego and Sea World. Now, many many years later, summer means a lot of things to my family but I still always try to head down to San Diego and Sea World has become one of our favorite placed to visit. Sofia is about to be a middle school kid (hold me!!), so finding a location that will have enough to entertain a tween, keep on our family budget and is fun for all of us, can be a bit of a struggle, yet Sea World keeps delivering on the family fun.
We headed down a few weeks ago after Sea World invited my family to come check out a few fun things they had in store for the summer. When we went last year, we got to see how much care the staff cared for and loved the animals and their rescue efforts. This time, we got more up-close experiences with the rescue efforts, as well as a taste of the fun new offerings in store like the Electric Ocean show, the Electric Eel ride and so much more. Check it out…
Sea World Rescue
Much like last year, the Sea World team took us on a special behind the scenes tour but this year we got to chat with a vet and some of his staff and they showed our family some of the things that they had to rescue animals from- like fishing hooks, plastic wrappers, ropes, and just junk humans don’t think about throwing into the ocean.
One animal had just been observed by x-ray to find the cause of what was ailing him, and we got to see firsthand (via x-ray) how the junk in the ocean can get trapped.
The little guy was rescued just in time, by the way. He’s doing great and they successfully removed the fishing hooks from his belly.
We also got to check out some of the tools used to examine animals, for the ailments and injuries you can’t see on the surface, as well as some animals that had been rescued and rehabilitated and were getting ready to be released.
The kids got to talk to one of the scientists working in the lab and got to see a couple slides from samples they were observing.
While this behind the scenes isn’t available to guests, I love that we get to see first hand how Sea World is truly committing to helping sea life and learning all about their rescue efforts.
Foooooooooooddddd
Learning can make you work up an appetite! Especially with two growing tweens, a growing man, I mean, husband, and me. We got to try Sea World’s Dining Plan which allows you to eat all day at select restaurants in the park. Now, I have picky eaters, so I usually stay away from these plans. But- this plan had all sorts of delicious restaurants and a wide variety of food to choose from. The kids opted for pizza, dessert, a side and a drink, while my husband and I opted for pastas, salads, fruits, and drinks. ALL were included in the dining plan!
I had the Shrimp Pesto and a slice of chocolate cake, and let me tell you- this tasted SO GOOD. I am still thinking about that pesto! It was super filling, and though you could use it for lunch and dinner, we really only needed to use it once cause we were so full. It was great to know that for one base price, we could eat well.
Electric Eel
Electric Eel is the tallest, fastest roller coaster in San Diego. It is a multi-launch coaster with high-energy twists, electrifying loops and inversions. You will be #EELectrified
Unfortunately, we didn’t get to ride the Electric Eel ride. The park was really crowded the day we went (hello summer!), and on a tight schedule that we had, getting from one side to the other took a little longer than we had, so the kids opted to do other things like feed sea lions, pet zebra sharks and eat some more. However, next time- we are all over this ride! I mean look at how cool it looks!
Electric Ocean
When the sun goes down, SeaWorld lights up with a celebration of illumination, featuring vibrant night shows with exhilarating performances. Immersed in exotic worlds of light, music and incomparable special effects, guests can experience their favorite SeaWorld rides and attractions in a whole new way—lit by the ocean glow. There’s marine life at every turn and distinctive entertainment throughout the park, including gigantic glowing schools of fish that immerse guests in an underwater world.
Cirque Electrique
This had to be the highlight for me. Just imagine Cirque de Soleil…on water cause that’s what the Electric Ocean show is like. I didn’t know what to expect when I sat down, but WOW! There was acrobatics on water, jet ski tricks, and more. Nights glow even brighter with the return of Electric Ocean, SeaWorld’s award-winning summer celebration. I was in awe of every second.
The Orca Encounter
Sea World made a commitment to no longer use the orcas they have for entertainment purposes. They only have 3 orcas, and they cannot be released back into the ocean- so now, they created a stunning educational show where you could see the orcas and learn about them at the same time. Using a giant IMAX like projection screen, the width of the stadium is full of videos of orcas and where they migrate to and from. The three orcas swim around as the trainers explain how they use their fins, how they use their calls, and more to an audience full of people. It also educated them on how we can make sure to keep these glorious animals safe in the ocean.
We only had a few hours at the park- but we experienced so much! I hope to go back before the end of summer to ride some of the rides and see some of the other shows we didn’t get to catch this time around.
SeaWorld San Diego is located at 500 Sea World Dr, San Diego, CA 92109
SeaWorld Tickets can be purchased online or in-person with advanced online sales starting at just $59.99 during the week. Multi-day and multi-park tickets are available along with season passes, many of which offer significant savings.
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