By Joanne Lewis, Travel Writer
With the weather warming up, now is the time to take the children to visit Shamu at the near-by San Diego Sea World. Sea World offers the opportunity to spend a weekend with your family being entertained and educated by the world’s most intriguing sea creatures. The enduring attractions of Sea World remain watching Shamu and the other whales perform stunningly graceful stunts at the invisible commands of their trainers, who manage to make the many shows entertain an audience of all ages.
Be warned that if you have no interest in getting soaking wet, sit in the rows further back or risk experiencing the wavemaking power of Shamu’s huge tail. Dolphins also marvel Sea World visitors. Dolphin Discovery showcases bottlenose dolphins and pilot whales in a splashy, high-energy show with some surprise comic moments. It’s a fast-paced show featuring tail-walks, spinning jumps and back-flips.
Bring your video camera if you have one as it is almost impossible to capture the speedy stunts with a still camera, and you will not want to forget the aquatic acrobatics performed by everyone’s favorite wet mammal. Sea World offers the rare opportunity to hand-feed friendly dolphins, seals and sea lions – so long as you are not squeamish about raw fish. Also watch out for hungry seagulls who do not care that the fish are not intended for them – one swooped and took the fish from my hand, much to my surprise.
Don’t miss out on a very different park after dark weekends May 26–June 10, then daily June 16–Sept. 3. For a limited time only, Summer Nights return to SeaWorld with the all-new nighttime show Shamu Rocks. Shamu Rocks combines incredible images from around the world with dazzling lighting effects, sizzling rock ‘n’ roll music and amazing behaviors to create SeaWorld’s hottest night show yet. Plus, Sea Lions Tonite, the acrobatics of Riptide, Cirque de la Mer and a fantastic fireworks extravaganza return.
Tickets & Info (800) 25-SHAMU. $57 for guests age 10+. $47 for guests ages 3 through 9. Free for guests 2 years old and younger. Buy and print your ticket at home now by visiting www.SeaWorldSanDiego.com.