Have you dove Disney's Epcot Dive Quest?
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scubagal28
Contributor
There were only 4 divers the day I was there. The video guy asked which ones were going to get the video so he knew which ones to shoot the footage of. Only two of us got the video so there was plenty of footage of me. Plus...my family was there and he took video of me in the tank in front of them which I thought was great.
F106A
Contributor
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I've done it several times over the years. First time in '96?? or ... well, a few years ago, anyway. Last time: 10/25/08. Those aquarium fish never looked as healthy as their cousins in the wild, but, maybe that's the nature of aquariums. The experience has always been fun. WDW staff are enthusiastic, colorful and very informative. (Except this last time the main guy was sort of ... bland.) If you have your people there observing, you can get them in the video as well. And backstage, too. The tourists (you're a "cast member" whilst on the tour) will be in awe of you. You may even have some approach you later and ask if it was really you. There are a few sharks, in the 4-6' range. A total non-issue. Just like in real water. The interaction with your peeps and the Coral Reef restaurant folks is the most fun.
My personal, and very valid, advice is to go for it. Discounts abound.
YMMV. HTH.
My personal, and very valid, advice is to go for it. Discounts abound.
YMMV. HTH.
mike_s
Contributor
compared to ours, we had maybe 12-15 people diving with us. Thus the reason for so little time per diver.
7 minutes divinged by 15 people is under 30 seconds per diver average.
7 minutes divinged by 15 people is under 30 seconds per diver average.
John_B
Grasshopper
I did this last year on my birthday, the point was to have my 5-year old daughter see her daddy underwater from behind the glass but she got sick that day (and it was raining buckets!) so I wound up doing the DiveQuest thing on my own. You absolutely, positively cannot reschedule. Period. At least I got a t-shirt two sizes too big. And kids and I are actually pretty big fans of the Disney experience. :shrug:
The tourwas interesting, including seeing behind the Disney curtain, but in retrospect from a diving perspective I'd have been much happier driving down Florida's Turnpike for a day to get on a charter out of WPB or Boyton or Pompano or wherever; or just doing the normal Disney parks experience.
The tourwas interesting, including seeing behind the Disney curtain, but in retrospect from a diving perspective I'd have been much happier driving down Florida's Turnpike for a day to get on a charter out of WPB or Boyton or Pompano or wherever; or just doing the normal Disney parks experience.
pickens_46929
Contributor
Can't comment on the recent status of the fish... have done it 3 times in 5 or 6 years... once with daughters, once with a buddy and once by myself when I was down there on business and just had to get wet. It's always good because it's a nice dive in an incredible environment. PADI Dive Society, AAA, etc. all have discounts. Think maximum I've seen is 15% but there may be better one's to be had.
mike_s
Contributor
As for price, there's plenty of discounts available - all the major cert agencies, AAA, the various guidebooks... Usually 10-15% discount.
coldwaterlloyd
Contributor
I did the dive in 1999 . It was a blast . I hope the issues with the fish is resolved , when we did it the creatures looked healthy . It is expensive but what is'nt nowadays . The above report tells it all other than the fact it is "more fun than a barrow full of monkeys"
metaldector
Contributor
I noticed this thread stopped in January with several comments on the status of the fish in the Living Seas at Epcot. I got to dive it yesterday. A friend (instructor) received two free passes for his work in the tank with the "cast members" so I can't speak on the cost of the dive, but the exit was into the Epcot park so the dive while costing something includes the Epcot park.
The point of this post is the status of the fish. I have dived all over the world and have seen a lot of oceans so I think I can compare real life environments to artificial environments. While the overall experience was good the fish did look stressed. Many had white skin growth, and were missing tail fins. The lack of small hatchlings (fry) in the water was quite apparent. The artificial coral looked real but provides no "energy" to the aquarium. No gobies, no eels, no stargazers, no flounders, etc made for a sterile environment. I suspect that Disney wants free swimming fish and not bottom dwellers as the "guest" behind the glass wouldn't see them anyway. The two large Goliath Gropers looked very stressed and actually were scraping themselves on the bottom of the tank, rolling from side to side. Was it to clean their scales or an act of bordom? Sharks swam a pattern around the tank usually in pairs. Their pattern of swimming showed a "conditioning" pattern, in other words much like a prisoner who has conditioned themselves to the never changing routine.
Did I enjoy myself? Sure, I was with a friend and the dive in the tank was a unique experience. The "cast" was great, the facilities great, and I'm sure that most everyone that paid to do this felt it was worth the price, but the fish are not the most health I seen.
The point of this post is the status of the fish. I have dived all over the world and have seen a lot of oceans so I think I can compare real life environments to artificial environments. While the overall experience was good the fish did look stressed. Many had white skin growth, and were missing tail fins. The lack of small hatchlings (fry) in the water was quite apparent. The artificial coral looked real but provides no "energy" to the aquarium. No gobies, no eels, no stargazers, no flounders, etc made for a sterile environment. I suspect that Disney wants free swimming fish and not bottom dwellers as the "guest" behind the glass wouldn't see them anyway. The two large Goliath Gropers looked very stressed and actually were scraping themselves on the bottom of the tank, rolling from side to side. Was it to clean their scales or an act of bordom? Sharks swam a pattern around the tank usually in pairs. Their pattern of swimming showed a "conditioning" pattern, in other words much like a prisoner who has conditioned themselves to the never changing routine.
Did I enjoy myself? Sure, I was with a friend and the dive in the tank was a unique experience. The "cast" was great, the facilities great, and I'm sure that most everyone that paid to do this felt it was worth the price, but the fish are not the most health I seen.
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