About the area and the Hotels Near Seaworld San Antonio
Introduction
Seaworld is a theme park located in San Antonio, TX, featuring rollercoasters and other theme park rides. This park’s roots began in 1986 when two Iowa businessmen decided to open an amusement park focusing on education and conservation of the ocean.
History Seaworld San Antonio
Many of today’s visitors feel that Seaworld needs to bring back some educational attractions from its early years. In 1988, the park opened with a Penguin Encounter and a large aquarium. In 1991, the park added Wild Arctic, one of the first Virtual Reality Simulators in an amusement park. In 1992 Seaworld San Antonio‘s 200 ft Sky Tower ride was erected, and in 1994, a new Shamu show was introduced called “Believe”. Recently, the park has become more focused on thrill rides and not education like it was originally intended.
Seaworld San Antonio Attraction
Believe – The Shamu show is located in the Nautilus Theatre, which replaced “Shamu Adventure.”
Blue Horizons – A dolphin and bird show located in the Nautilus Theatre.
Boomerang – A steel rollercoaster that was installed in 1986 when the park opened. It is one of only two Boomerangs located at a Seaworld park.
Calypso – A steel rollercoaster that was installed in 1989 and is the sister coaster of Ricochet located at Carowinds Amusement Park. It was moved to Frontier City amusement Park in 2004.
Dolphin Cove – An interactive attraction that allows visitors to touch dolphins and watch them play.
Dolphin Theatre – The place to see the Blue Horizons and Dolphin Days shows.
Journey to Atlantis – A Shoot-the-Chutes water ride that opened in 1998 and is currently the only one located at a Seaworld Park
Jubilee – A show featuring performances from all of Seaworld’s animal trainers inside the Nautilus Theatre.
Lone Star Café – A counter service restaurant that serves sandwiches, salads, and sides for lunch and dinner.
Manta – A floorless roller coaster that opened in 2012 to replace Steel Eel.
Attendance at Seaworld San Antonio
In 2014, Seaworld San Antonio had over 2 million visitors. This is the first time that number had broken 2 million since 2010 when it was at 2.081 million visitors. The attendance numbers do not include special events like “Bayside Skyride” and “Sesame Street Presents: Sea of Fun.”
The park also opened a new attraction in 2014 called “Aquatica,” a water park that replaced the old Waterpark named “White Water Bay.” In 2016, the attendance numbers were 1.6 million visitors, and White Water Bay was renamed Aquatica San Antonio. The drop in attendance may be due to the opening of the new water park.
The numbers have also been affected by the loss of Shamu and the constant changes in management over the years. It has dropped from 2.7 million visitors in 2002 to its current attendance levels.
Hotels Near Seaworld San Antonio
San Antonio has many attractions to offer guests, and it’s no surprise that many hotels have popped up in recent years to cater to them. There are five brand-name hotels located within 0.5 miles of the park. These hotels offer a variety of amenities, including pools and fitness centers.
Transportation to Seaworld San Antonio
San Antonio is situated in the south-central part of Texas, near the Rio Grande River, and it only takes about an hour to drive from downtown San Antonio to Seaworld. If you’re planning to spend all day at Seaworld, it is recommended to take a taxi there since parking costs $15. The taxi fare should come out to about $30.
Things to Do at Seaworld San Antonio
The first thing you should do is take a picture with Shamu! He will be out at the entrance of Seaworld when you first arrive. The only animals inside Seaworld that are free to see are the stingrays and fish in Stingray Bay. There are also other animals outside, like sea turtles and polar bears. You can watch them swim around in their little pools for free! If you want to get closer to these animals or feed them, you have to pay extra.
You can also go swimming with the dolphins, but it costs about $160, so many people can’t afford to do this (sadly). If you’re not too fond of Seaworld, you can also go cycling with the Shamu show.
You can also visit the pavilion and see where they breed all of their animals and what goes into taking care of them. You can also do presentations to take pictures with Seaworld’s newest baby animals! They often have seminars on Saturdays that teach about these things as well.
A new thing going on at Seaworld is a Dolphin Trainer for a Day program. You can spend 3 hours learning about different parts of the dolphin training process and seeing where they train the dolphins to do tricks.
Conclusion
Seaworld San Antonio is one of the biggest theme parks in Texas and is located inside Westover Hills Blvd. You can find some hotels near Seaworld San Antonio that are only minutes away from the park for your convenience. The attendance numbers have dropped over the years because of changes in management and the loss of Shamu, but it’s still one of the biggest theme parks in Texas.
