We had such a great time the day we visited Sea World, we definitely could have spent a second day there, but we just ran out of time. There is so much to do there: the animals, the water park, and the rides. We watched the Shamu show and the dolphin show, and I was very happy to see that the seating area in both of these arenas was covered. The kids had a lot of fun in the water-park area, and they would have been happy to spend the whole day there. After the water park, we hit the rides, and it was great to wait until the last part of the day, because there were no lines. Unfortunately, the Steel Eel was closed that day, but I walked right on the Great White without having to wait at all, and there were people on it that had been riding it over and over without getting off. The kids had a great time on the log ride and Rio Loco. One tip I would have would be to purchase your tickets on the Internet, because they had a deal where you could get a 2-day pass for the price of a 1-day pass.

Some of the guys in the group were thrilled to attend the Anheuser-Busch class to become brewmeisters (they even got a certificate!). There is something here for everyone.

We really enjoyed Shamu's show (watched both day and night shows as they are different). We did the Dine with Shamu (additional cost) -- the food was good, and the trainers were on hand for questions and pictures the entire time. Shamu was tableside and did a private show. We also did the Behind the Scenes Tour -- it was interesting and informative. The Sea Lion Show was funny. The ski show was impressive. The Bulaga Whale and Dolphin show was spectacular.

I would definitely recommend Sea World for families with children ages three and up or couples. We took our 16-month-old son and were only able to see the shows and aquariums, which was great, but at $40 a ticket, it seemed like we didn't get our money's worth.