Aqua seas tour

[pooh's pal eeyore]

Has anyone recently taken the Aqua Seas tour at Epcot and can fill me in on the experience? I haven't been able to find out much about it other than the Disney website.

[Strmchsr]

It's a great tour! Did it with my DS last year when he was 9, then DW did it with him this May while I did DiveQuest. Now that we're all 3 scuba certified they'll be joining me on DiveQuest.

Essentially you get a 45-60 min backstage tour of the aquarium where they show you how they take care of all of the various animals. After the tour you get a short instructional briefing (stuff such as do not touch the animals). Then you go to the lockerrooms. Once you change into your wetsuit (Disney provides it, you only need to bring your swimsuit) you are led through the Living Seas and up to the top of the aquarium. It's kind of cool since you walk through the guest area in your wetsuit and are part of the "show." Once up top you are given mask and fins then fitted with a snorkel vest and given a regulator and tank. The AquaSeas tour is NOT a dive and you do not have to have any scuba experience to do it. The snorkel vest will keep you floating, but the regulator ensures that you don't get water in a snorkel. You can stay head down and enjoy the wildlife. You're then set free in the tank and can swim around for 30-40 min. It's fun to see all the different fish up close and to see guests waiving at you at taking pictures. The sharks usually stay near the bottom so you don't get too close to them (though I had a sandtiger swim 12" from my face during DiveQuest) but the turtles and other fish will usually get plenty close).

It really is a blast to do, and its open to anyone 8 years old and up (DiveQuest is 10 and up and, as I mentioned, you already have to be scuba certified). If you have any other questions - feel free to ask.