My family visited the Gulfarium Marine Adventure Park in June of 2012 and they certainly seem to have worked out all the kinks since some of the other reviewers visited. The dolphin show and the sea lion show were a lot of fun and very informational. As a tip, several reviewers mentioned that they had a hard time seeing the at the dolphin show, and I could see how that would happen. If you can, I’d recommend standing along the fence and watching from there… front row! The rest of the park was entertaining and you got to get close enough to the animals to get a good view of them and watch them interact with each other.
I will agree that the park is a little smaller than I anticipated, however I thought the price was fair for the attraction ($19 per adult) and we all ended up spending a good amount of time there watching the animals. If you’re not an animal lover… well frankly, I’m not sure why you’d visit a place like this. If you are an animal lover, you’ll find plenty to keep yourself occupied with. If you don’t go to the shows or sit and watch the animals, you could certainly buzz through the place in about 20 minutes; but seriously, if that is your plan just don’t go.
My wife and I bought the sea lion encounter for my two neices (8 and 10) and they REALLY enjoyed it. I thought the price was fair for this as well ($26 per person, which is way cheaper then we’ve paid at other places) and the girls will remember if forever. Getting to touch and interact with animals like this is a rare occasion and worth every penny in my opinion. As a tip, if you’re interested in doing some of the encounters, BOOK THEM ONLINE! We almost didn’t get to do any them because they were all booked for the entire day except the sea lion one. The girl working the kiosk said that several of the encounters were booked solid several days out! Plan ahead and don’t be disappointed.
–Dan Thompson