Aqua Seas Tour

[fanofdisney]

I just registered my DH and 2 DSs for this. Has anyone done this before? I did a search here and saw a little bit of info from others but I am wondering if anyone has done this recently? It looks and sounds like it's going to be great but want to be sure.

[Mickey'sGirl]

My husband and DS11 did this in August, and had a FANTABULOUS time. My son is still talking about it, and my husband said that it is some of the best money we have ever spent at Disney. They had a photo taken of them in the water, and it is one of my favourite all time pictures -- their smiles are so huge!

I am sure my husband will post some more details later today...but I am SURE your family will not be disappointed! :thumbsup:

[fanofdisney]

Oh thank you soooo much! I assumed since it is Disney it would be great but I wanted to hear first hand how great it is. I am excited for them to do this. I can't go because we have a 6 DD who is too young for it but maybe next time. Thanks again:thumbsup:

[CanadianWDWFan]

As per my DW's request here is my report on the Epcot's Seas Aqua Tour. While it is a GREAT time, it is not DiveQuest!:D But that is another post.

What we did was meet the Dive Masters outside of the Main Epcot gates by Guest Relations at the appointed time. From there they make you "Honorary Cast Members" for the duration of the tour. For those of us that are certified divers, they took us aside and told us that we were not to try and dive down to any depth. This was to be a snorkeling adventure.

They then took us backstage and showed us the kitchen where all the meals were prepared. We were told that the Coral Reef restaurant gets second choice to the sea food when it is delivered. So these animals are fed really well. We then were taken to see the Manatees' and Dolphins' rest area. Keep in mind this is all behind the scenes so this is stuff that not everyone gets to see. We are shown a quick video and had to sign waivers before going down to the change rooms. They gave us all shortie wet suits and then proceeded to take us ON STAGE! Nothing like being paraded in front of all the guests with cameras and us wearing nothing but a wet suit!:D We are taken to the main viewing area of the tank area and then in the centre there is a spiral staircase where we are taken up to the top level. Once you reach the top it was explained to us the Epcot Geo-sphere could fit into the tank with something like 19 feet to spare on either side. So this tank is huge. Here we are given masks and are suited up with our flotation devices and scuba equipment. Now I have to say here that while we were to be only snorkeling we did use Scuba. This made it a lot easier since we didn't have to clean out the snorkel to breathe. Before putting on our masks they take pictures of us in our pairs and are presented with the picture at the end of the tour. The pictures are included in the price of the tour. There are floats on your back that kept us solidly on the surface, so even if I wanted to dive I couldn't get down to any depth. Before going in we were told to stay away from the Dolphin enclosure and not to touch any sea life. If you did touch any sea life it was a federal offence and you would be escorted out of the park. We were then paired up and then shown where the Dive Masters were, in case there were any problems. We were given about 40 minutes of snorkeling time. It was fun showing my DS11 around the "Seas". We were able to interact with the guests and view all the wonders that the Living Seas Pavilion had to offer. It sure was awesome watching the sharks swim below you and have the turtles and the rays check you out. The other fish did check us out and follow us a round a bit as well.

The 40 minutes went by so quickly that I was surprised when the tour was over. We were then shown back to the change rooms where we had nice hot showers and changed. After changing were were taken back up to the presentation room and given our T-shirts and pictures. We were then allowed to enter the park and enjoy the rest of the day at Epcot.

The entire tour was around 2-1/2 hours and we had arranged to meet my DW and other DS in the Living Seas after the tour. Whould I do this tour again? I sure would no questions asked.

[fanofdisney]

Wow, thanks for such a detailed report! It sounds wonderful. I think I will keep the part where you are "paraded" in front of the guests in your suits a secret from DH:secret:;);)

[Strmchsr]

:ditto: to the above posts. Did it with my DS8 in May and it was wonderful. Now that he and I are both scuba certified we're looking forward to Divequest next trip!

[Laughin' place]

We took the Tour in 6/08 and it was an all-time travel highlight. At the time, our sons were 14, 13, 12 and 10, they had the time of their lives (even the one who was 'afraid' of fish). Most highly recommended.