We sure did end 2014 with a BANG! At the end of each year, my family and I started a tradition to travel to Orlando for New Year’s Eve at one of the amusement parks; the girls chosen to go to SeaWorld since we haven’t visited that park yet. I’m glad they chosen SeaWorld because they were doing an online deal with every paying adult, kids ages 9 and under goes for free! I only paid $200 and tax for our tickets!
I used my favorite website Priceline to help me score a low
price deal on a hotel room in Orlando right across the street from
SeaWorld. I did Priceline’s Express Deal,
which is you know what star rating and area the hotel will be located but do
not know what hotel it will be until you make a payment. Priceline placed me in the Renaissance SeaWorld and I only paid $104 plus tax a night when the normal price was over
$230 a night!
We were suppose to be in Orlando the day before New Year’s
Eve but arrived on New Year’s Eve day because Mr. M needed to help his clients
before we started our vacation. Since
the hotel was already paid for and I did the Express Deal which is
non-refundable I lost some money but I didn’t worry too much about it because
we got a great deal on our room anyway.
We got to Orlando early in the afternoon, checked in, looked
around the hotel which is beautiful, went to concierge desk to get our benefits
card ( benefits card is for hotel guests that paid the resort fee and get early
park entry to SeaWorld and Aquatica, 10% Off Dining, and 10% Off Merchandise), then we were off to SeaWorld!
It was an ugly day in Orlando on New Year’s Eve and I
thought it would rain throughout the evening but it stopped once we checked
into SeaWorld and it just stayed cold throughout the night. SeaWorld reminds me of a park called Six Flags Marine World
I use to go to when I was a kid living back in California. Marine World has animals as well as rides.
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| Lauren was upset because she didn't get her Starbacks. SMH! |
SeaWorld was beautifully decorated for Christmas and I felt
like I stepped foot in a Winter Wonderland.
The animals looked very well kept and I was telling Mr. M how brightly pink the flamingos were. I feel the animals look healthier at SeaWorld than a zoo. Also, there wasn’t a bad smell coming from the animals either.
The animals looked very well kept and I was telling Mr. M how brightly pink the flamingos were. I feel the animals look healthier at SeaWorld than a zoo. Also, there wasn’t a bad smell coming from the animals either.
But, I do like to mention something about the killer whales (orcas). My family and I watched the killer whale show and while sitting there watching the whales perform, I felt sadness cross my heart. These whales perform for our entertainment everything single day, several times a day. To me, I don’t feel this is right. So many questions were going through my mind like, “How do the trainers train these whales?” “How do SeaWorld capture these whales in the wild without harming the whales?” “How big are the tanks?”
You may have seen my post on Instagram about my thoughts on
the killer whales and a SeaWorld supporter answered some of my questions. Here is the dialogue:
Me: I really wonder how they train them and hope they are
not tortured.
seaworld_parks_rock:
They train the orcas using positive reinforcement. Positive reinforcement is when they reward
the whale if they do the behavior correctly.
If they don’t do the behavior correctly they will be ignored and asked
to do it again. If you noticed the
trainers had a whistle, each time the orca did a behavior right, they would
blow the whistle to let them know they did a good job.
Me: Thank you so much for this information
@seaworld_parks_rock! This make me feel
better.
seaworld_parks_rock: If you have any more questions let me
know! J
@missloumae
Me: One more question @seaworld_parks_rock, how do they
capture the orcas from the wild without hurting them?
seaworld_parks_rock: SeaWorld hasn’t captured any orcas from
the wild in 35 years. Two of the whales
out of the seven orcas in SeaWorld Orlando are from the wild.
If you think about it, these whales have been human
dependent for so long if you place them back in the wild they wouldn’t be able
to survive. Before this trip, I
contacted the company I go through to help me get a press trip for SeaWorld
but they told me they couldn’t due to blackout dates. I was hoping to be able to go behind the
scenes and interview the trainers but I guess that will be on another press
trip someday.
How do you feel about animals in captivity performing every
day?
During our time at SeaWorld, we rode rides, checked out more
animals, ate, ate, ate because with had an unlimited food deal pass (don’t get
it the food is very mediocre), dance to the DJ’s music, and waited for the
count down.
Overall, SeaWorld was fun!
I would love to go there again.
The next few days in Orlando, my family and I pretty much relaxed,
lounged by the pool, shopped, and visited several restaurants.
The weather was beautiful and it was time for us to go home
but before we hit the road, we went to Daytona Beach. It was a bright sunny day on a Saturday and
we were all not ready to go home yet so we hopped on Priceline and booked a
room at the Hilton Daytona Beach Resort for only $50!!!!! We
got a room on the 15th floor with the perfect ocean view. What a great way to end our trip!
If you ever go to SeaWorld stay at the Renaissance SeaWorld
or Hilton Orlando that is around the corner that I stayed in during a press trip in November. Both hotels are wonderful, great décor, and
have an awesome pool area. Also,
Renaissance SeaWorld if you pay the resort fee two kids eat breakfast free with
one paying adult meal. Their resort fee
is $20 a day but I think it is worth it.
These past few months I’ve done a lot of traveling but I’ll
be slowing down a bit because my wallet needs a break, I need a break, and plus
I need to focus on moving into my new place coming up. So far on my travel agenda is Destin, FL, and
somewhere in Texas, most likely San Antonio.
These trips will be in the summer. Mr. M has been talking about going to California, but we shall see if that happens.
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What a lovely Christmas! and your baby girl pouting b/c no starbucks had me rolling, so cute!!
ReplyDeleteLOL, my daughter was begging for Starbucks the whole day! But she got it the next day.
DeleteCute. We live right outside of Orlando and my boys have never been to Sea World. Maybe we will do that one weekend in February or March. Most of the time we visit the parks it is work related. This year we will have some fun.
ReplyDeleteFebruary and March are great months to go since it is during their slower season. SeaWorld may have some deals going on during that time so check their website before you go.
DeleteI am so glad that you took the time to seek out information regarding Sea World's practices. So many people judge and create opinions without doing their research. We live 25 mns from SA Sea World and we've never been to this one because of the cost (we have a lot of kids!).
ReplyDeleteThanks Aimee! I really want to get information through SeaWorld themselves about their training of animals and their habitat. I know SeaWorld works with bloggers so I'm hoping to one day score interviews with the trainers and get their input about raising animals in captivity and having them perform.
DeleteSince you stay next to a SeaWorld Aimee you should contact them to see if you can get press passes.
What a fantastic idea! How do you do that? I'm clueless..
DeleteGo on San Antonio SeaWorld website and go to Media Room page. On that page it will give you information on how to request tickets.
DeleteThanks! I am doing it now and if it works..
DeleteYou're welcome Aimee! Let me know how it goes.
DeleteI plan on traveling to New York for the first time this year and I am so excited!!!
ReplyDeleteI never have traveled to New York yet but it is definitely on my bucket list! Enjoy your trip Emerald!
Deleteaw, WOW! This totally looks fun. I LOVE everything about what you shared. Even seeing the photos of the animals. BEAUTIFUL captures. I'm originally from Florida (now living in GA). So yes! This place looks just like what you shared LOL. Totally HOT in FL though... GRRR... But either way, looks like you all had a blast!!
ReplyDeleteDo you have plans to travel again anywhere else soon?
Janelle
No travel plans until the summer for now Janelle.
DeleteI totally understand about your concern for the animals. A few years ago we watched a documentary about dolphins and they said that they dolphins at parks like Sea World are on ulcer medication. They said that all of the clapping during the shows is stressful to the dolphins and causes them to have ulcers. My husband and I swore off going to Sea World, but that was before we had kids. This summer when we traveled to Atlanta we went to the Georgia Aquarium and we didn't know they had a dolphin show. My son really wanted to see the show we watched it. We would probably even go to Sea World now if our kids wanted to go.
ReplyDeleteOMG I never knew about dolphins having ulcers. That is terrible! When I went to the Georgia Aquarium I was surprise too when I found out they had a dolphin show. It was free with our tickets so we went ahead and watched it.
DeleteThere is this documentary I've been hearing about called BlackFish about the captivity of killer whales and I want to watch that to see what it is like for the whales. I know after watching that I may not want to step foot into another SeaWorld but I'm very curious what that documentary has to say about it.
If you do decide to watch Blackfish, I suggest you take everything you hear/see with a grain of salt. Blackfish is a "mockumentary" and even the creators have admitted that most of the stuff in their film is false. It had an agenda, which was to cause people to hate SeaWorld. All of the trainers, except one (who was fired for kicking an otter...), never worked with whales. The otter-kicking one, never worked with Tilikum, the whale that the "documentary" is about. Almost all of the footage that they used is not only years older than most of the trainers, but not even from the trainer's times of being there, which is how they try to make it seem. One of the trainers interviewed even came out in another interview, after Blackfish, and claimed that she had been tricked about the film's agenda, here is her interview with National Geographic: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/01/140116-killer-whales-bridgette-pirtle-blackfish-ocean-animals-science/
DeleteTilikum's story is very real, though, sadly. He was taken from his family, he was kept in a tiny sea-pen with two abusive, adult female whales, and someone did die when she fell into the sea-pen with these three whales. Blackfish likes to make it seem as if Tilikum was solely responsible for the woman's death. In reality, no one knows which whale killed her, or her exact way of dying. Dawn, the trainer who died recently by Tilikum, was the only trainer allowed to work with him. He is also the only whale not allowed to have waterworks (where the trainer gets in the water) with him. She was training with him, and ended up talking to someone during the training session. Tilikum took some of her hand signals as tricks he needed to perform, so he did. He was not rewarded, though, since it was not what he was supposed to do, and became frustrated. He grabbed Dawn by her ponytail and pulled her under. To keep something tragic like this from happening again, SeaWorld has installed on the bottom of all the pool floors, except for the show pool, a lifting ability. If a trainer falls in, the floor will lift up to the surface to prevent them from drowning. They are also required to wear life-jackets, which have a little oxygen tank and mouthpiece attached to them, so they can breathe underwater if need be. Tilikum is psychologically scarred, but is still very loved and cared for by everyone at SeaWorld. He is the 12,000 lb male that comes out at the end of the Shamu Show, with his grandson. He is double the size of the second biggest whale at the Orlando location, Katina, who is 6,000 lbs.
Which brings me to another thing: the whales only perform if they want to. There are 7 whales in total. The reason Tilikum is not there every show is because if he does not want to perform, he doesn't. They do not force him to do anything he does not want to do. The other 6 whales take turns during shows. The shows are basically more training and enrichment for them, they are only on display just so average people like us can witness the power of these animals. If SeaWorld did not allow the public eye to see, they would still be doing the same things, because it is what they do to keep the whales entertain. As the woman you talked to said, the whales are only given positive reinforcement for their training, which is a type of Operant Conditioning.
SeaWorld has not taken whales since the 70s, and even then it was not by the same people who own SeaWorld now. Tilikum, and I think Katina, are the only two that are from the wild. All the others have been born in captivity and only know what it is like to live in captivity. Their trainers, the other whales, are their family. The whales love the trainers just as much as the traienrs love them. There are 7 pools, including the show pool, that the whales are allowed to swim in. The trainers switch it up to keep them from getting bored. It may not be 100 miles out in the ocean, but they do get to swim A LOT.
DeleteBlackfish likes to talk about how the whales rake each other and about their floppy dorsal fins. Rake marks can also be found on orcas in the wild, and even on dolphins! It is just a way of communicating when they are mad. Their fins are floppy because these whales spend a lot more time at the surface than wild orcas. There are even orcas in the wild that can be found with the bent-over dorsal fin. Their fins are made of cartilage and skin, just like our ears, so there is not much holding them up, and gravity is a very real thing. It is basically just sagging, not anything harmful or detrimental to their health.
Good has come out of all this SeaWorld hate. They have plans, and are starting construction, to create an Orca viewing area that is 4+ stories tall. It is called the Blue World Project, I would suggest looking it up to see more information about it!
A big problem with watching Blackfish, is that it really emotionally gets to you. It makes you want to say "Free the Whales!", which, in reality, is the worst possible thing you can do for them. Keiko, the only whale so far who has been "set free" is the best example of why "freeing the whales" is such a bad idea. Keiko was put in a sea-pen, which was to monitor and see how she would react to the not-so-sterile ocean. They had her in there for awhile and then let her roam the ocean, where she died soon after. She was so used to hand-feedings from her trainers that she kept coming up to boats and trying to get fed. I do not remember if she died from starvation or a disease/infection, but you can also look into that for your own research! Captive whales are so reliant on trainers for food and attention that, if set free, they will continue to come up to people, which will endanger them because they can get hit by boats or trapped in fishing lines. The ocean is also not as clean as their pools are, and they will be way more prone to infections and diseases. No one knows 100%, FOR SURE, how long whales can live in the wild, or in captivity, but I think the oldest is around 50 years old, and is in captivity. There is one whale in the wild who is thought to be over 100, but as I said, they do not know for sure.
It makes me sad that all of these anti-captivity people are so ready to attack SeaWorld, when the orcas in the wild are facing a much bigger crisis. The Southern Residents, one of the pods of whales being followed by scientists, and are dying. They are dying of starvation, due to whale watchers scaring away their fish with "noise pollution" and fisherman overfishing their food. Anti-captivity people thrive on the argument that you can "watch whales in the wild" and it would be so much better, but it is literally one of the biggest things killing off the wild orcas right now.
DeleteFor you and the person who posted this original comment, I would not believe everything you hear and see on "documentaries". Please, do some of your own research, and make sure that the sites you go on are not just a bunch of anti-captivity propaganda. The whole purpose of the "documentaries" is to emotionally get to you so that you are on there side. I really do hope you both take the time to research on your own because I would hate for more people to hate SeaWorld just from watching a bunch of documentaries full of lies! They do so much good, and yeah they are not perfect, but they are trying!
Thanks for reading this huge thing :D I hope I answered some questions and maybe inspired you guys to look for your own answers. If you have anymore questions I am totally willing to answer as many as I can. I am sure there are a couple of things I wanted to say that I cannot remember, that maybe will come up if you want to know more!
P.S. I LOVEEEE the Renaissance Hotel :D I have stayed there so many times since I was teeny tiny.
DeleteCaroline, you are soooooo awesome for answering my questions and you really helped me shed new light about SeaWorld. I have not watched BlackFish yet because I wanted to hear from other people their thoughts about whale captivity and them performing. I never knew how many whales are at SeaWorld so I thought that all whales there perform every show which seemed to me to be too much.
DeleteI'm hoping that some day I'm able to get behind the scene access at SeaWorld and able to interview the trainers.
I must admit, things has really changed watching these whale shows since I was little. When I was younger, the whales were doing a lot more tricks and the trainers were riding them. I'm happy that SeaWorld trainers doesn't do all that with the whales and the whales were just hopping out of the water and splashing people.
But I'll for sure do my own research and not base all my thoughts on BlackFish because I can tell that the documentary is just to bash SeaWorld.
If you stay after the Shamu show there are usually a couple trainers who hang around to answer questions. You can also talk to the educational people who stand around the animal areas. :)
DeleteSeaWorld also has "behind the scenes" tours. Granted, they're expensive, but you can learn about their rehabilitation ans have your own animal experiences. I totally want to do the beluga and arctic one :D
Trying to get a press behind the scenes thing would be neat, too, and probably more informative since you'd have more time.
The trainers stopped getting in the water with the whales during shows after Dawn's death. They do get in the water with them during behind the trainings not during shows to keep the whales used to having people in the water with them, since in a few years they are planning on doing waterworks for shows once again. Tilikum is and always was the only whale not allowed to have waterworks done with him, and it is sad that because of what he did he ruined it for the other whales for the time being. I am sure the whales enjoy the close contact with the trainers that built such a big familial bond with them.
If you saw the dolphin show, the trainers still do waterworks with dolphins and they used to do it with the pilot whales, too. I don't know what happened to the old pilot whales, but the new ones are still young and being trained so I didn't see any waterworks with them while I was there, just normal trainings like having them jump, splash, and get on the stage.
Honestly I am not a big fan of the breeding program, and I do believe they should just let the whales they have live out there lives there doing what they love, instead of artifically inseminating their whales. If it happens naturally well then fine, I would think it's pretty hard to stop two animals, that are thousands of pounds and incredibly large, from mating. Other than that I believe the whales perform because they want to, because they find it fun. If you read the interview with Brigitte, she tells of a day where there were no shows because the whales didn't want to do them. :)
Sorry for my bad grammar in some areas, haha, I typed all that on my phone D;
DeleteOh and the trainers have to continue waterworks with the whales, so that if one of them were to fall in the whales would know not to react and freak out.
DeleteNo problem with the grammar Caroline. I didn't get a chance to see the dolphin show, I was talking around but couldn't find it. Also, since I went during their busiest day I couldn't find educational people to talk to. But I did see them around other exhibits.
DeleteWhat is the Waterworks show? More stunts and water?
I'm not liking that breeding program either. I feel that whales should do this naturally. I just finished reading Brigitte's interview and I like the fact that the whales are not forced to perform if they do not want to.
Caroline, you sure do know a whole lot! I'm glad you've done a lot of research about SeaWorld and their practices.
Next time you go you should totally check out the dolphin show. It is way more visualing appealing than One Ocean, since they incorporate a story with birds and lots of colors and stuff. :)
DeleteWaterworks means that the trainers get in the water with the animals. So they used to do it during the shows, where they would ride the whales/dance with them in the water/jump off the whales nose/etc, but since Dawn's death they no longer do it during Shamu shows. The dolphin and the sea lion show, when it was there, did have waterworks with their animals. Only the Shamu show didn't because of all the Blackfish backlash.
The trainers do still get in the water with the whales, though, just not during shows. They have to, for the reason of if they fall in the whale will know to ignore the trainer instead of freaking out and possibly hurting the trainer. They also continue to do watwaterworks because they are planning on bringing it back into the Shamu show in a couple of years and need to keep the whales trained and ready for when that time comes. It is also great for bonding!
Blackfish bothered me so much at first and I was so conflicted because I have been going to Seaworld since as far back as I can rememver. I love that place and didn't want to believe it was as horrible as Black fish made it seem. So I decided to find out for my own and well now you know all I've found out!
Seaworld is a business so the upper people who make decisions obviously choose money over the well being of the animals. the trainers and people who work there and physically work with the animals just want to do what is best. boycotting seaworld may make them lose money, which always feels like a win, but that lost money is hurting the animals more than the higher ups. the expensive tickets and food all goes to feed these massive animalam without us they would not be able to keep up with the high demand of food these animals need. I am glad they are using some of their money to give the whales A LOT more space. they need and deserve it.
Thank you Caroline for all the clarification! I would hate to boycott SeaWorld and the animals end up being the ones hurting.
DeleteIt will be awhile before I go back to SeaWorld but next time I'll know a lot more and be more informed.
I haven't visited a seaworld since I was really young. We really need to plan the next time we are in Orlando.
ReplyDeleteYou should go Paris. I know you and S will have a lot of fun!
DeleteYes you did end 2014 with a bang! Wow, that hotel view tho. And your room? That looks like it was so much fun for your family. One day I'd love to do this for mine as well! #producreviewparty
ReplyDeleteGo during off-season Stacie to score great vacation deals.
DeleteThat's a beautiful pic of you in your striped dress! Wow @ the amazing rate for your room??? That's really awesome!
ReplyDeleteThanks Celeste! I got that dress from Old Navy. Priceline is always my favorite website to use to get great hotel deals.
DeleteNow that's what I call a great holiday tradition. My sons used to love to go to Orlando each year when they were young, and I kind of miss it as wall. However, the time has come to sell our timeshare because we haven't been on vacation since 2009 and I am wasting money paying the annual maintenance fee. Sea World is cool and I never had a problem with animals performing in "captivity". Hopefully, this year we will get a chance to get away in the summer.
ReplyDeleteI was thinking about getting a timeshare but then I thought it would be nothing but a money pit. Before you sale, have you thought about renting your timeshare because you never know you and hubby may need a little vacation down there every now and then to get away from the cold.
DeleteLooks like you had some much fun. I would love to go to Disney/Seaworld at Christmastime. We went in Oct of 2013, so we were there for the Halloween celebration. We drove to Daytona too.
ReplyDeletehttp://therantingsofadramaqueensmum.blogspot.com
Christmas time at the parks are so much fun and so beautifully decorated. You should go sometime during the holidays Kimberly.
DeleteOk to much fun wow! We hope to travel somewhere this year!
ReplyDeleteYou and the family need to have a family vacation, those are so much fun!
Deletewow!looks like you all had a fun time together.Beautiful pictures....
ReplyDeleteWe did have a great time, thanks Amila!
DeleteWhen I was young my mom used to take me to Sea World all the time on our days off. I have watched Sea World grow since the 90s and am tired of people who proclaim that Black Fish is gospel despite never stepping foot on Sea World property. As for the question "How do you feel about animals in captivity performing every day?". A lot of people fail to recognize that these shows are mental stimulation for the animals. It also gives Sea World (and other aquariums, parks or zoos) a chance to show guests how they are working with the animals and that they aren't just forcing their animals to sit in their tanks being bored all of the time. Thank you so much for looking past the nay sayers and asking questions before assuming!
ReplyDeleteThank you Cynthia for answering my question! Great point about the animals needing mental stimulation so they don't end up being bored. I really never given thought about that. I'm happy that the animals are not forced to perform if they do not want to.
Delete