Theater of the Sea Reviews (Islamorada, Florida)

Theater of the Sea, Islamorada

Manchester, England, United Kingdom

July 10, 2011

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Best of IgoUgo Do not miss Theater of the Sea on Islamorada. It is wonderful. Located at MM84.5 on Windley Key, it was founded in the 1940's and is America's oldest open-air aquarium and mammal show. It is actually the second oldest marine mammal facility in the ...Read more Do not miss Theater of the Sea on Islamorada. It is wonderful. Located at MM84.5 on Windley Key, it was founded in the 1940's and is America's oldest open-air aquarium and mammal show. It is actually the second oldest marine mammal facility in the world. Theater of the Sea does not try to compete with more modern, expensive parks, but this makes it all the better. It is a wonderful place to come for adults and children alike. It was one of the highlights of our holiday on the Florida Keys.

Admission is $26.95 for adults and $19.45 for children aged 3-10 (these prices do not include tax). You need about 3 hours to see all the shows.

The admission charge includes a parrot show, dolphin show, sea lion show, guided marine life tour and a 5 minute ride in a bottomless boat. You can have lunch at Nickys Grill - we had very good sandwiches here, and there is a lagoon side beach where you can sunbathe.

The shows are in small stadiums - not at all flashy, but very intimate and you are very close to the animals. The shows are entertaining but also highly educational, and all of them highlight conservation issues. The dolphins amazed us, not only with their jumps but also with the noises they were able to make from their blowholes - everything from an aeroplane noise to a realistic sound of a baby crying. The sealion show was funny, but demonstrated how intelligent these animals are, and children in the audience got to go up and toss a hoop to the sealion, which he caught.

The guided walks are also very good. We went on 2 of these - you only walk a short distance, but a guide accompanies you and tells you what you are seeing. The first one was along a boardwalk through lots of mangroves to the beach; the second was around the animals - turtles, alligators and many more, where they guide fed them, but also told us lots of information about the animals.

The bottomless boat ride is a lot of fun. It is short - less than 5 minutes up and down the dolphin lagoon, but a dolphin swam along with us, which was great fun.

There are also a number of programmes allowing visitors to swim with and interact with their dolphins and sealions. You need to book in advance, as these are very popular. Reservations are only taken by phone or in person. We did the swim with dolphins programme. It cost $175 per person, this includes 20 minutes orientation and about half an hour swimming time. There are 3 sessions - 10:00, 12:30 and 3:30. You have to be there on time. The cost of participating in these programmes includes the viewing of all shows. Observers can go too and pay $2 to accompany their party to the swim session.

You have to be 5 years old or older to participate. A parent is required to swim with children aged 5-7 and they recommend all participants are competent swimmers, although they do provide life-vests if you want one. They also provide flippers.

In our session with the dolphins, there were only 4 swimmers - it was amazing and I could not recommend this enough. You get to hold a hoop and the dolphin jumps through; hold on to the dorsal fins of 2 dolphins as they pull you around the lagoon; swim around the lagoon with the dolphin swimming next to you; get pulled along on the dolphin's stomach and get a dolphin hug and kiss. It really was tremendous, and having spoken to people who have done similar programmes, this one seemed to be the best. You got so much time, there were only 4 people in the water and you got to interact a lot with these wonderful animals.

Our 7 year old son, who is quite a good swimmer but did wear a life vest, absolutely adored this experience and said it was the best thing he had ever done - his face was a picture.

Observers get to stand right by the water's edge, so they see and hear everything and you can take some great photos. Close

From journal A Week in the Florida Keys

Roadside Seaside attraction

by weeblewobble46

Marietta, Georgia

October 14, 2010

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Best of IgoUgo We drove down to Islamorada Key to find one of the unique and old fashioned family style attractions still in existence.The Theater of the Sea has been around since 1946. It is not only a family friendly attraction, it is also a rehab facility for ...Read more We drove down to Islamorada Key to find one of the unique and old fashioned family style attractions still in existence.

The Theater of the Sea has been around since 1946. It is not only a family friendly attraction, it is also a rehab facility for injured sea creatures. It was originally a stone quarry for the railroad, then became a crab nursery after a hurricane knocked out the railroad. Lucky for us, it was then developed into the attraction that is now in place.

Enter through the gift shop...a lesson well taught by many theme parks. The shows are on a schedule that flows easily through the park. Start with the first show that is in progress when you arrive and follow the paths to succeeding shows. They are spaced about 30 minutes apart - short enough to keep the kids' attention, but long enough to actually entertain. The shows include a marine life tour (turtles, alligators and sharks), parrot show (where the birds show that they are smarter than we know), dolphin show, sea lion show, bottomless boat ride and nature walk (which ends at the small "beach"). From start to finish of your tour will be about 2 and a half hours. If you get thirsty, there is a cafe on site and water/cola machines around the turtle ponds. The only rest rooms are at the beginning of the tour, so be sure to take you little one as soon as you get in to the park. Otherwise, they will probably have to "go" when you are across the park - it is not a far walk, just makes you miss a show or two.

As for interactive acts, there are a few. You can pet a baby nurse shark at the end of the marine life tour, call out suggestions at the parrot show, get kissed by a dolphin or try to ring a sea lion with a hoop. During the bottomless boat ride, you will see a dolphin jump through a hoop that is suspended inside the boat. Keep your eye out for iguanas in the trees - we saw a bright orange one!

Keep in mind that this is not SeaWorld...this is a close up and informative day trip. It is memory inducing and not a hard hit on your wallet. Not too bad!!! Close

From journal Miami tourist discoveries

Theater of the Sea

by mtemail

Huntsville, Ohio

August 7, 2006

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Best of IgoUgo Theater of the SeaLocated at mile marker 84.5 in Islamorada, Florida Keys http://www.theaterofthesea.com/TEL 305.664.2431 This is about 30-40 minutes south of Key Largo on US 1. Having chose another location for the dolphin swim, I chose Theater of ...Read more Theater of the Sea
Located at mile marker 84.5 in Islamorada, Florida Keys
http://www.theaterofthesea.com/
TEL 305.664.2431

This is about 30-40 minutes south of Key Largo on US 1.

Having chose another location for the dolphin swim, I chose Theater of the Sea for the Sea Lion Swim. This was something none of us had ever experienced before and it was really a lot of fun!!!

It is a very unique experience which starts out with about a half hour explanation session followed by about 30 minutes of time with a sea lion. It is very hands on and interactive. It was very fun feeling this animal ...the maximum size of a group is 6 so since we had 8 we did it in two sessions three hours apart.

The sea lion does a whole array of behaviors with every participant (i.e. kisses, hugs, swim a-longs, and foot pushes). They have photographers available for video and still photography which needs to be arranged prior to your swim...and if you have spent the money to be there—spend the next 200.00 it will take to get the full gambit of photos and video—it is one of the few home movies you will actually watch (even more than once!!).

It costs about 140.00 per person which includes admission for the day to all of their events—they have a parrot show, a sea lion show and a dolphin show...they also have a very small lagoon with beautiful parrot fish where you can snorkel...there is also a lot of interesting exhibits of flowers and animals. It ends up being a full half day activity...the show times run so that you can see it all before and after your time with the sea lion. They also do the swim with the dolphins experience.

The Theater of the Sea is far more commercial than the Dolphin Plus location—but with that commercialism comes more things to experience for your group at the same cost. Reservations Have to be made prior...you wouldn’t want to walk in and be disappointed because no times were available (which was the case on the day we were there—and stated by the staff this is a frequent occurrence). They have a swim with the rays areas which is at an additional cost.
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From journal Key Largo with the family 2006

Theater of the Seas

by dmdad

Charlotte, North Carolina

April 20, 2004

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This park offers many things to do for young and old. The basic entry fee is $12. This includes a tour of the facility and a dolphin show, as well as a sea lion show. You can also schedule swimming with and trainer for a day activities with the ...Read more

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