Discovery Cove - ???

we are going to Florida and I was thinking my DD, who would be 13 would love to swim with the dolphins?

Can anyone tell me pros and cons.

Not sure DH or I would do it, I may, he is not a big water person. How is the experience if you don't do the swim with the dolphins? Are there a lot of other things to do? Would you reccomend?

TIA

Re: Discovery Cove - ???

We just got back from Discovery Cove last week and enjoyed it. There are plenty of things to do if you don't swim with the dolphins but that was honestly the best part of the experience. I don't know if I would spend all that money to just snorkel and swim. Just my opinion.

Discovery Cove - ???

It was a long time ago that I went, but I loved it and hope to take my kids to the dolphin swim one day when they are all old enough. IIRC, the dolphin interaction mostly takes place in water where you can stand. Then, each person takes a turn getting a short tow by holding onto the dolphin's fin. I'm sure they wouldn't force you to do the dolphin tow if you are uncomfortable and I'm also pretty sure you can wear a life vest. If you have any concerns, I would call and ask.
If I didn't go in the water at all, I guess I would go for DD's enjoyment, but it's still pretty expensive without the dolphin swim. I think it includes Sea World admission, which could make the cost more reasonable if you were planning to spend a day at Sea World anyway.

Re: Discovery Cove - ???

We loved Discovery Cove. We didn't have kids at the time, but we did the dolphin swim. You don't interact with the dolphins *that* much. It seemed more like an hand-on educational show and then a few staged photo ops. Also it was group of like 8 other people I didn't know, and I didn't enjoy that. Everyone is wearing a life vest, but you do need to be able to tread water if you want to be towed by the dolphin IIRC. The dolphin tow was extremely brief.

I just really enjoyed the park itself. Yes it's expensive, but so is Disney and at least DC is all inclusive (including alcohol) AND I think it includes admission to other parks. We spent a lot of time snorkeling and floating down the lazy river. They make sure it's never overcrowded so we always found lounge chairs. Overall it was a pleasant day.

If my kids showed an interest in dolphins I would absolutely take them. But I would also go back just for the park itself.