Dine With Shamu

The Dine with Shamu show and dinner was very nice. The whale show was great, but surprisingly the dinner buffet was very good. Lots of variety and different than typical park food. I would definitely recommend this show.

We loved it. Thought the food was great, large variety. Beer and wine included. The price for 3 of $ 105.00, plus a picture, not a bad deal. Got to see the whales up close and doing tricks. We were able to ask trainers all the questions we wanted. Great experience I would highly recommend.

The only reason I gave 2 stars is because of the whales, but I would never do this again. $ 175 for 5 people and the food was extremely disappointing. Not sure why so many people state they got free wine and/​or beer because ours we’re $ 8 a pop! The margaritas had no alcohol and were pretty much sweet n sour mix on ice. If you’ve been to such places as Ariel’s Grotto in Disneyland (which is the same price or LESS) do not think this will be anything close to that. You have to get up and wait in line to go through a buffet. The food was disgusting, with the exception of the dinner rolls and a few of the desserts. The whales we’re cool, but you can see. everything we saw for free by just standing in the viewing area. I felt totally ripped off. Would never do it again.

I have no idea why this is not a 5 star from everyone! This was amazing and worth every penny! First of all… food is organic farm-​to-​table and all was delicious. Free soda, beer, and wine (unlimited). Second of all… it is a back stage private show of the whales up close and personal!!! Our whole family loves every minute of it!!! I highly recommend doing this!

I’ll sum it up – you are paying for the private show and not for the quality of the food or the service. While we don’t necessarily regret doing this (our boys were so excited to see the whales so close to them), this is probably one of those things you’ll only do once. We made our reservations a few weeks before our visit towards the end of August, but I would think during the heightened season, you’ll want to book even earlier. There is probably 30 tables or so and they were completely full during our dinner. When you arrive over at Shamu stadium, there is an information area right there, and you would think that’s where you would check-​in, but it’s not. In fact, us and others, were confused as to where you go to check-​in because signage was not good. In turns out that you check-​in at the underwater viewing area, which to me is not the best place since you also have a bunch of other people down there not for dinner and simply viewing the whales. Anyway, once you check-​in, they give you your table number and tell you where to go for your complimentary 5×7 photo. I wasn’t aware we were getting a photo, so that was a nice bonus. I wish the photo was with the whales in the background, but ti’s simply a family photo with foliage as the background. Still, a nice commemorative for your trip to SeaWorld. Once seated at your table, you are free to go to the buffet and get whatever you like. I’m not sure if the selections vary from day to day or not. During our dinner, they had mojo chicken, a pasta dish, variety of salads and veggies, breads, a soup, and an assortment of desserts. For kids, there was mac-​n-​cheese, chicken nuggets, and fish sticks. Food was really not much better than what you could get anywhere else in the park. There was sufficient food though and if you wanted to go back for seconds, there was plenty to have. If you have a food allergy, you might want to check with them before making your reservations. We did not, and when we asked what was gluten-​free for my wife, they were unable to tell us. Evidently the chef who makes the food is not on-​site during the meal itself. About 30 minutes in, the trainers come out along with the whales and put on about a 15-​minute show for you and tell you all about their whales. You are pretty close to the whales and there isn’t much distance between their pool and your table. A piece of glass separates the two of you, but note that although they don’t try to get you wet, it could happen. In fact, some water did splash over our wall and got us a little bit, so take note if you have any electronics on the table. The whales will do some jumps in the middle of the tank away from the tables and will pop-​up out of the water and gently go back in when they are near the tables. Have your cameras ready as there are plenty of picture opportunities throughout. Complimentary wine is provided during your meal if you want it. Your server will take your drink order when you sit down and will take away plates as you are finished with them. I did ask our server for a few things, like a spoon and some extra napkins, which I finally got, but took a bit of time. I actually found the spoons myself and got it before our waitress came with one. What they are really good at is informing you at the end that tip was not included in the price. Oh, and the tray they put down with mints on it will also remind you that tip was not included in your ticket price. I think the tip tray would have been sufficient. The fact that they also had to tell me turned me off a bit. Considering that we payed close to $ 80 for the four of us, a 15−20% tip would have been $ 12 – 16 dollars, which I felt was simply to high for what they did. I wound up tipping $ 5. I tried to see what others were doing, but was unable to. The whole experience lasted about an hour. Again, I don’t regret doing it, but probably wouldn’t do it again.

The food is ok, but you’re really doing this for the experience.
It’s essentially a private show. Really nice experience, but wish the food was better.

Very confusing check in process. They have an old booth on the stadium side that says information Dine with Shamu. What it doesn’t tell you is the line starts the other end near the splash zone viewing window. While everyone has assigned seating they make folks wait with little instruction on what to do. Most folks took it upon themselves to line up in a line near the podium. Some rude ghetto folks decided that since there was no official line just hopped right in front. The check in person was too stupid realize that all the people (around 40) were in a line and helped those that just cut right in front. His reply was «oh, I didn’t know». Don’t expect the dining to be anything more than park food under heat lamps. It was okay but they plan to not make much food. After the first wave they are already changing out empty trays (too shallow). The meal comes with free soda and wine. Some tables of four or more face only one way to help folks see the whale show. The whale show is okay. If you’re on the end of the dining you might get a shot of the whale but the whale show is mostly in the center (ask for the center table). Book it early! Tips are not included and the wait staff will remind you. Overall it was okay. It is one of those do it once kind of events. #seaworld #orlando #shamu