As a child I remember watching Free Willy for the first time and thinking “one day that will be me working with whales”. Every time I watched any one of the 3 movies in the series I got a sense of almost butterflies in my stomach. My fiancé often jokes with me because I still smile from beginning to end at 29 years old. Some things never change.
When I was 4 my grandmother and my mother took me to SeaWorld for the first time. When I found out I was going to see an Orca I barely could contain my excitement. I’ll never forget the first time I seen the whale show. Even then I kept thinking the same thing, one day that will be me.
My love for the animal is still just as deep today. Although I didn’t make it to becoming a Marine Biologist as desired (because life) I’ll still answer “what is your favorite animal” with the response, an orca whale.
Now as a mother of a 3 year old daughter who shares a love already for whales, dolphins and penguins, aquariums are a fun thing for us to do. Having the opportunity to visit SeaWorld this year was just the icing on the cake for aquarium run this year and just the beginning of a beautiful tradition. 
Entering SeaWorld everything is so gorgeous. I was in awe of all of the beauty in the park itself and not just the animals and rides they had to offer.
I’m going to list our top favorite places to see and things to do in SeaWorld because there are just too many to name.
Stingray Encounter @ Stingray Lagoon
It is exactly what it sounds like. You get to literally have an encounter with stingrays. They are so cute and so beyond soft. We fed them and they were very gentle. I honestly could have stayed here for hours just watching them show off by raising their sides up as if they were giving high fives as they swam by us.
Pacific Point Preserve
Feeding these beautiful animals was a huge thrill for the whole family. Hearing them bark and watching them get excited was seriously too cute to explain.
Empire of the Penguin Habitat
Okay, if you’ve ever seen Happy Feet.. you’ll love this habitat. We went on a little adventure in through an adventure of a penguin. It was so adorable and made quite the entrance into seeing all of these adorable little friends. The whole area is set up beautifully and makes you feel like you’re right in the Arctic. It was 93 degrees so it was definitely the place to cool off as well!
One Ocean
The absolute best part about this experience at SeaWorld was reliving my childhood memories and falling in love with the Orca all over again. Not only in One Ocean educational and informative but it is absolutely amazing to watch. If you go to SeaWorld this has to be what your day revolves around. There is nothing more amazing than watching these majestic animals interact and play. One Ocean is a must!
Having a 3 year old in 90 degree heat wasn’t 109% the easiest thing to do walking around a park trying to figure out what to see and do on top of the list. The One Ocean show was at the top of the list for our family but we made a bunch of other fun stops that were wonderful.
We will be sure to hit all of the spots we couldn’t this time and can’t wait for our next trip to SeaWorld!
