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Marineland theme park is
featured the largest killer whale habitat in the world, dolphin and sea-lion show, a deer feeding area, and an amusement park with roller-coaster rides. You can view the killer whales either above or below water—or get an even closer look in the "Friendship Cove,"
or in the majestic "Arctic beluga whales"
Traveller's
reviews on Marineland
If you're expecting the kind of entertainment you see at one of the cookie cutter parks, like Sea World, you'll be disappointed. Marineland is much better than that, it is now the Dolphin Conservation Center and it gives visitors the chance to get individual, personal interaction with a dolphin.
My family and I stopped in after driving by to check it out, the staff was extremely friendly, and did forewarn us that all we were about to see were dolphins. This is not the marineland of the past, it is compeltely renovated, including a brand new dolphin habitat. Going in to the habitat for general admission, you get to see the beautiful dolphins playing their habitats. Many of them have toys that they toss around, and sometimes out into the crowd to toss back. The dolphins are amazing, and for the general admission, you can also watch the dolphins interact with people in their programs.
If you expect to have a huge production and show and make the dolphins perform for your entertainment, this is not the place for you. But if you'd like to see someplace that respects the animals, the environment, and everything it stands for this is a great place to spend the afternoon!!
I would definetely recommend this to anyone, and hope to be able to go back soon to have a dolphin interaction experience!!
This place was a
complete waste of time and money. When my husband and I were in Florida,
we thought we would go here because we had heard good things about
Marineland. First you have to park down the road from the place and walk
and cross the busy street without a crosswalk. It looked nice on the
outside with flamingos outside. We were a little skeptical when we got to
the ticket booth because it was $27 dollars per adult and I choose to pet
the dolphins so that added $48 dollars to the price. When we got in, there
were no signs or directions of any kind, so we basically had to fend for
ourselves. We walk to one "exhibit" where there were a few fish,
nothing special. The next exhibit had a few turtles. There was also a tank
where you could snorkel if you wanted to pay the money (I wouldn't). Then
we went to see the dolphin show, which lasted all of ten minutes. Finally,
when it came time to pet the dolphins, I got to pet them, feed them a
fish, and then give them a few hand signals, which lasted about 5 minutes.
Not worth $48 dollars for five minutes. We had more fun playing with the
stray cats on the premises! All in all the entire visit to Marineland
lasted maybe a half hour. This was not because we wanted it to, it was
simply because there were only three tanks, including the dolphin tank! I
urge you to not waste your time and money on this! I would recommend going
to the Jacksonville Zoo instead. It is less money and you could spend a
whole day there!
What I disliked:
Expensive vs. other comparable venues.
Poor signage, needs more direction- I and twenty other people stood in the wrong line to get tickets to feed the whales for twenty minutes. After ten minutes of ticket sales, forty five minutes in line, tickets are sold out to feed the whales. If that is what you are here for, make sure you arrive at the park early and line up right away.
Little or no shade-this is definately a problem if you have children or babies.
Lots of walking with no in park transit system. Everything is pay as you go-feeding the fish, feeding the bears, feeding the whales, etc, etc, etc.
Majority of rides are a sideline attraction. This is NOT an amusement park.
Felt sorry for the deer as their enclosure looks like a urine and feces covered desert. No vegetation and little shade. Keep any loose objects tied down as the deer will make off with it. One ate half of my park map.
What I did like:
After the severe disappointment of not getting to feed the whales, my daughter got to pet a dolphin. Don't expect the same treatment, however, as this was an entirely unplanned event. One of the dolphin trainers after the show invited a couple of young ladies(twenty somethings) to come up and pet the dolphins. The rest of the crowd left in the stands believing this was part of the show, lined up to pet the dophins also (to the chagrin of the trainer). To his credit, he handled the situation well and allowed a very long line up of people to come up and pet the dolphins. Ironically, this was the only experience all day that I didn't have to put my hand in my pocket for.
Animal Feeding-Our three year old thoroughly enjoyed feeding the koi, black bears, and deer.
Marineland season begins around the middle of May and ends in early October. In the off-season the park is virtually empty, thus making it much easier to get good seats at the shows and less of a wait time at the touch and feed exhibits.
Marineland offers two shows. The first is at the King Waldorf Stadium, located to the left as you walk in the park. This 30-minute show features animated animal trainers showing off the exceptional abilities of the sea lions, walruses, and dolphins. Remember, if you get close enough your child may get picked to feed and pet a dolphin. The second show takes place at the Aquarium Dome located to the right of the front gate. This is an educational exhibit that children will enjoy.
Marineland offers Friendship Cove, an area where you can watch killer whales jump, splash, and perform different activities. If you don’t want to get wet, go around to the backside of the pool. Artic Cove is an area where the public can pet and feed Beluga whales. Sessions are at different times throughout the day and the cost is $8 CDN per person. The park also offers the public the opportunity to feed black bears and deer. Bear food cost $2 and is worth watching them perform for the food.
The park has plenty of rides so check out their web site for individual rides and height restrictions. I noticed several gift shops throughout the park and prices were typical of any entertainment park. Behind King Waldorf Stadium was an arcade for both adults and children. There were plenty of food vendors around the park, but few are open in the off-season. We ate in the restaurant located next to the King Waldorf Stadium. There was plenty of seating inside and out, the food was excellent, and prices were reasonable.
The only downfall to the park was the fact that the map was deceiving. The park is very spread out so plan on doing a lot of walking. Bring comfortable shoes and a blanket to rest in the grass. Make sure to take advantage of the locker rentals if you have items that you don’t have to carry. All in all, my family had a wonderful day at this park and I would recommend it as a definite see when you are in Niagara Falls.
This place has its hits and misses. As far as the amusement park at this place was concerned, my family really enjoyed it and we were all able to find a ride we liked. Although be warned that the lines are huge at times!! It is also quite obvious that this place is in it to get your money, too, because you can’t walk 2 feet without a gift shop or food cart of something of another. They also charge an arm and a leg for you to get the chance to pet their dolphins and beluga whales. Nevertheless, getting the chance to pet them is something that I do recommend, because if you’re like me, it was a once-in-a-life time opportunity! The shows that the animals perform are also really fun to go and see and had my kids rolling on the floor laughing (okay, and me too).
Overall, this park is a good place to spend a day with the family and is moderate in cost, although a lot can be spent here if you want to up your experience! My family used our Airmiles Points to pay for our entrance tickets, though, so it was pretty cheap for us.
We couldn't
understand why it was only $5.00 for an adult general admission. We were
told about the different programs. The cheapest was $65.00 per person -
kids or adults. The gentlemen explained that we would have 10 minutes to
touch and feed the dolphins along with 6 other people, there were 4 in our
group, and they took 10 people at a time. We asked if the dolphins
actually stayed where you could pet them and feed them for the 10 minutes.
He said they sometimes do, but there is a chance that some or all of us
may not get to touch the dolphins. We declined to attend any programs and
went for the general admission. The only thing we could see were 2
dolphins in 2 tanks, that mostly stayed on top of the water, where guest
could not see, as you sit looking through the glass at the tanks, if the
dolphins are underwater. There was no other marine life there at all.
Several people complained, but were ignored by the employees that were
there to help you. The tanks had dirty, almost murky water. The bottom and
parts of the sides of tthe tanks were covered in black stuff - looked like
mold. It was disgusting and depressing. Our whole time inside Marinland
lasted maybe 5 minutes. We asked for our money back, but were denied
because we walked through the gate area into Marineland. Do Not Go To
Marineland - you will be dissappointed!
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