Sea World San Antonio

Hi K.,

We just got back from Sea World with our 1 and 2 year old boys and we had a BLAST!!!! We did not ride any rides and wouldn't have thought of doing that with the kids anyway. There are so many great things to do. I don't know how much the cabanas cost at the water park but we just put our things on some chairs and were fine. We were out at the water park the whole time that we didn't really need to be at our chairs. I wouldn't recommend renting the cabana. They have great little life jackets for the kiddos so no need to bring your floaties or life jackets if you don't want. We did get to the water park right when it opened on Sunday and we had plenty of choices for seating, life jackets, floats in the lazy river, etc. We also did the 2 day pass, one day for the shows and the next for the water park and lunch with Shamu. We arrived in the morning and left at 12:30 each day and returned at 3:30 (left for naps for all of us!) The boys especially enjoyed the dolphin pool (located near the shark reef and Clydesdale horse area). It cost $5 to feed the dolphins and they come right up to you! It was amazing. The boys also did really well at every show ESPECIALLY the Viva show. It's the acrobat show in Beluga Theater. I highly recommend this show! It was our favorite. We also paid $70 for the lunch with Shamu. The food was good (not great) but the boys LOVED being able to be a couple of feet away from Shamu. The trainers were super nice and very informative. They played with the whales and showed off cool tricks while we were eating. Have lots of cash handy at the park. If you have any questions, let me know. You will totally enjoy it. My oldest who is 2 keeps saying, "I go to SeaWorld". It was a great trip for our family. Enjoy!

3 moms found this helpful

We were there a week ago and rented a cabana and it was very worth it!  It had a delicious light lunch, a ton of cold waters and someone who works at sea world gaurding our stuff all day.  I have a one year old, and we were able to zip the cabana up and let her walk around while we relaxed without worrying too much about her wandering off.  She definitely needed the freedom to walk around, after being held in the water or in a stroller most of the day.  We had a great time.  Even my one year old had a great time!!  ps, you get free brand new beach towels in the cabana you get to keep..

2 moms found this helpful

we do this trip semi-anually for 15 yrs and stay at Westin La Cantera. It's worth it every time. My mom and I go to the spa on Sat. afternoon and the guys take the kids to the pool. I have stayed at Radisson and the Riverwalk Hyatt (I grew up in Austin...) and nothing compares to the Westin.

have fun!!!!
C.

1 mom found this helpful

Wow, I've been to Sea World SA many times and did not even know about the cabanas!
Sounds like a good deal to me, considering the ages of your kids. You don't want to have to be scrambling for a "spot".

Honestly, I'm not sure your kids will get a lot out of the Sea World experience at such young ages.
They'd probably be just as happy splashing around in a hotel pool! The best place I've found is The Hyatt Hill Country down the road from Sea World. They have a lazy river, a huge pool and a kids "camp" facility. It's a great relaxing place for a vacation. Sea World is fun, but it's a lot of work with small children, so not so much fun for mom and dad!
While you are there you may want to take them to the SA zoo. It's a good one.
There is a great little train through the park . Also the Witte Museum has the HEB tree house, much like our Science Place in Fair Park. I took my little one there a lot when he was two and three and he loved it.

Is Sea World an absulute? The kids do sound a little young to really enjoy all the aspects of the park. However, the Cabana is a definite plus, we were with family at the Dollywood waterpark and it was a lifesaver with the kids and adults. We did not have to fight for seats and we had a table to eat lunch and just take a break; definitly worth the money. If your gathering is for the adults to visit I agree with the other post the kids would be just as happy swimming in the hotel pool. I have three boys and that seems like all they care about when we go somewhere. Good Luck

Hi K.,

The kids we went with are older but I noticed that most of the strollers ended up in the Penguin exhibit. That room is dark and air conditioned and there was plenty of seating. (Located on the other side of the park near the rides.) A cabana is a great idea for the water play day. Otherwise, seating is first come first served and it's not all shaded.

I don't know about Sea World, but we just went to Hurricane Harbor in Dallas and the cabana was the way to go. My sister recommends the cabana at Sea World as well. It is definitely worth the money to have a place to sit in the shade. The little ones need a break from the sun especially when they are eating.

We just got back!

For the cabanas, we didn't get one but heard those are awesome for a larger group with older kids (who tend to spend most of their time at the water park). The Lost Lagoon is a bit of a walk from the rest of Sea World so unless you do plan on spending a lot of time in the water the cabanas are pretty expensive. They also aren't right on the water, where you'll want to be since your kids are so young.

If you will be spending more time seeing shows they all have shade. On our last day my dh got in line early for the Lost Lagoon (it opens at 12) and got us 3 seats in the shade by the wave pool where our kids (5-10) spent most of their day.