Gatorland – Orlando Florida attraction review

Living in Orlando, I am always asked, what is your favorite thing to do?  That is such a tough question, for there are so many great attractions and things to see and do.  I have to say, one of my favorite, truly Florida Attractions that I LOVE is Gatorland.

In the late 1940’s the beginning of what is now Gatorland began being a wildlife exhibit with gators and snakes and today it still has that Florida feel, yet it’s not a little exhibit, but a true attraction with several shows featuring gators and other reptiles.

Entering into the famous Gator mouth isn’t the same as it was years ago.  Due to a fire a few years back, the mouth is still there, but it is no longer the main entrance.  Still, it’s one of those photo opportunities you don’t want to miss!

Once entering the park, you walk into a swamp filled with gators.  And these aren’t some tiny little things that you see at most theme parks.  These reptiles are HUGE!  Very impressive and very exciting.

The most famous of the Gatorland shows would have to be the gator wrestling.  This is an arena where a Gator Wrangler goes in and pulls out a gator from a moat like water pit around a concrete island filled with sand.  The Wrangler then gets on top of the gator, and as fun as it is to watch, at this time is a great lesson about the alligators.  At the end of the show, they take out a gator with its mouth taped shut for a photo opportunity for the general public.  FUN!!  And something you probably won’t find anywhere else.

Another fun show is the Gator Jumparoo Show!! My mouth hung open in awe as some of the largest alligators in the world actually jump four to five feet out of the water to retrieve meat from a trainer’s hand!  Shamu is supposed to do tricks, not gators!!  I love this show, and I love to see the reaction of the crowd as the gators do their thing.

Gatorland has many other great things to see and do, including a kids water park area, petting zoo, bird aviary, an array of different gators from all over the world, including a very special area for a few white alligators.  Rare and very cool to see.

It may be wrong, but I have to say, eating gator bites (yes, real gator tail) should probably make me feel guilty, but I am Florida girl, and I love me some gator!  The Gator Chow has other food on the menu, and overall it’s very reasonable. In fact, tickets are as low as $22.99 per adult and $14.99 per child.  Their website has a coupon you can download for $2.50 off per person.  There is a special Florida resident rate until the end of the year for $9.99 per person and if you are in the military, your ticket is free.

Sea World’s Spooktacular Halloween!

My family had the most amazing day at Seaworld’s Spooktacular Halloween event.  I wasn’t even aware that SeaWorld offered this incredible Halloween event,  I was already familiar with Disney’s “Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween”, and Universal’s “Halloween Horror Night”s and many of our guests come down at this time of year to take part in those events.  But SeaWorld’s Spooktacular Event was an unexpected surprise.

I’ve been to SeaWorld in the past, and have always loved this theme park.  I love the interactive aspect of SeaWorld.  The opportunity to feed dolphins and stingrays.   Children and adults alike experience such a thrill having  a hands-on-approach with nature.   The shows at SeaWorld are a combination of Broadway-meets-Cirque de Soliel–meets-Animal Kingdom.  We have always been enthralled by the acrobatic skills of the performers, as they dive from platforms high above our heads, and by dolphins that jump, flip, and spin to music,  while watching beautiful tropical birds in harmonious synchronized flight  all at the command of their trainers.

The Spooktacular event was just as enthralling .  The park was filled with children dressed as pirates,  superheros,  princesses, I even saw one child dressed as a cloud with rain!! The performers were a colorful array of customed mermaids,  sea fairies, octopuses , giant fish, and other sea creatures.  The children picked up candy bags at the park and could trick-or-treat at designated locations.  My 3 and 4 year old daughters were in complete awe with all the music and dancing, and of course, the unlimited candy.  My 10 and 12 year old, had just as much fun, filling their bags with candy and joining in the dances with the cast members.  At the end of the day,  we decided, that the SeaWorld Spooktacular would be part of our family’s Halloween tradition. 

For more information visit Seaworld’s Spooktacular Halloween page!

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