Expectations for Aquatica? Guest services doesn’t make it exciting

Aquatica water park near Orlando, Florida is the SeaWorld answer to Disney World’s themed waters parks and expectations are high.

Next week at this time, I will be sunning myself while drinking icy cold drinks but I won’t say what will be in them right now. This will be our family’s first trip to the park. We spent two summers ago at the Disney Parks.

When it comes to theme parks, Disney, like them or not, (we love them) is the top of the food chain so naturally, we have more tempered enthusiasm for Aquatica. That being said, we have been told that their water park is actually better. We will see.

I will have a lot more to say about Aquatica when I get back home a week from Monday but there are already some concerns that I have. I reached out to SeaWorld via social media, phone, and email with some specific questions that their website does not answer and they didn’t reply. Not to any of them. In fact, I didn’t get so much as an automated message saying they received my inquiry.

First on our list of questions was the price for extra guests for cabana rentals. The nearly $300.00 rental for one day only allows for four guests but you can purchase additional access for up to seven total guests. The website says it is an additional $15 to $30.00 per person but does not tell you if that price range is for specific ages or time of year. The cabana pricing for a rental is by the time of year.

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Another issue that we are facing is food. Aquatica, like SeaWorld, do not allow food to be brought inside their parks and that includes snacks. They make exceptions for baby food and such and say that the restrictions can be waived due to dietary requirements. Yet they don’t specify which dietary requirements are acceptable and what proof you need to provide if not just your good word?

Still, we are excited to get back out into the travel world. Vaccinations are complete and the idea of getting out for even a quick four days is perfect, especially in June.

Crowds are going to be interesting. There have been some social media posts saying that the park is far too crowded and that due to this fact, the All-Day Dining Plan isn’t worth the $30.00 plus they charge because the lines are too long.

Those same lines are also said to tie up ride queues as well making the day a lot longer. One person who recently visited said that the wave pool was so packed that they could hardly move. While I’m not sure that is going to necessarily be the case, I will let you know after the fact, it seems a little exaggerated.

For the first time, we will be taking a toddler and that should be a lot of fun because he simply loves the water. Seeing him play and float and splash will be an incredible first-time experience for all of us and while my older kids continue to count the days and study the water rides continuously, it is clear that we all are ready to get back outside.