Dec 29th Epcot

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cra2

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Location
Central Florida
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Wife & I signed up for the late dive at Epcot on Dec 29th.
I think there are spots open if anyone else is interested.

Heard some of the new sharks are in, and also heard you can slip into the park afterwards (though "officially" I think you're just paying for the dive).

Anyone else have more current advice/tips?
 
cra2:
Wife & I signed up for the late dive at Epcot on Dec 29th.
I think there are spots open if anyone else is interested.

Heard some of the new sharks are in, and also heard you can slip into the park afterwards (though "officially" I think you're just paying for the dive).

Anyone else have more current advice/tips?

Sounds interesting...We will be in the area...what can you tell me about the dive? who to contact? time? etc....Thanks
 
Goofystan, if you do a search for Epcot & Living Seas on this board, you'll find info from guys who've actually been. I haven't done it yet.
And, if you do a search on the web for it, you'll find whole pages (with photos) devoted to it.

You dive in the Living Seas "reef tank" at Disney's Epcot.
You arrive at a special entrance and get carted backstage instead of walking through the park.

It's pricey - ($150 if I remember correctly), so people don't do it regularly.
But everyone who HAS done it says they enjoyed it & would recommend it.
You have to call disney reservations and book it with a credit card.

Someone said they'll let you go in small groups, so I was mentioning that we were going to see if any SBers wanted to form a group.

We're doing the latter of the two dives that day in order to get a little more dive time in vs. being rushed out for the next group. I think our dive's at 5:30pm or so.
Gotta go back and check our reservations. All I know for SURE is that I booked the "last" dive of the day.

Off the top of my head - hrmmm... what else do I remember people said?
Crystal clear water, probably around 20' deep, chilly water in the 70's.
They don't let you bring your own gear of any kind.
They provide the wetsuits and all gear.
Takes about 3 hours (45min in water).
You get a backstage briefing by their divers/biologists before-hand.
Then the dive.
Since you're IN the exhibit, you can go over to the glass and wave to the visitors while they take pictures of you.
Then a shower and thaw out watching a video of your dive and you get refreshments.
(I think you get your dive log stamped and a t-shirt. you have to pay $$ to buy the video)

It's a "pristine"-looking reef environment with TONS of every fish imaginable.
Turtles, rays, eels, and sharks.
Originally, I think they just had some nurse sharks, but more recently have been adding in a handful of other large species (like the gnarly looking saw tooth).

mail me if you're serious and we'll talk.
I can look up the info again if you can't find it.
cra2 "at" mindspring "dot" com
 
cra2:
Goofystan, if you do a search for Epcot & Living Seas on this board, you'll find info from guys who've actually been. I haven't done it yet.
And, if you do a search on the web for it, you'll find whole pages (with photos) devoted to it.

You dive in the Living Seas "reef tank" at Disney's Epcot.
You arrive at a special entrance and get carted backstage instead of walking through the park.

It's pricey - ($150 if I remember correctly), so people don't do it regularly.
But everyone who HAS done it says they enjoyed it & would recommend it.
You have to call disney reservations and book it with a credit card.

Someone said they'll let you go in small groups, so I was mentioning that we were going to see if any SBers wanted to form a group.

We're doing the latter of the two dives that day in order to get a little more dive time in vs. being rushed out for the next group. I think our dive's at 5:30pm or so.
Gotta go back and check our reservations. All I know for SURE is that I booked the "last" dive of the day.

Off the top of my head - hrmmm... what else do I remember people said?
Crystal clear water, probably around 20' deep, chilly water in the 70's.
They don't let you bring your own gear of any kind.
They provide the wetsuits and all gear.
Takes about 3 hours (45min in water).
You get a backstage briefing by their divers/biologists before-hand.
Then the dive.
Since you're IN the exhibit, you can go over to the glass and wave to the visitors while they take pictures of you.
Then a shower and thaw out watching a video of your dive and you get refreshments.
(I think you get your dive log stamped and a t-shirt. you have to pay $$ to buy the video)

It's a "pristine"-looking reef environment with TONS of every fish imaginable.
Turtles, rays, eels, and sharks.
Originally, I think they just had some nurse sharks, but more recently have been adding in a handful of other large species (like the gnarly looking saw tooth).

mail me if you're serious and we'll talk.
I can look up the info again if you can't find it.
cra2 "at" mindspring "dot" com

I am very interested.
 
FYI: I did this back in May of this year, and they gave a discount for certain certification agencies. I am PADI OW certified, and got the discount. I think it ended up costing about $120 - $130? As far as the discount goes, it wasn't a "special" or anything. I read about it from some folks that had done it a couple years before I went. Something to ask about when you call.......
 
I used to work for the Living Seas (way more fun than just doing the dive by the way)! I highly recommend it to anyone interested. It is a little pricey, but the money DOES NOT go to Disney. Not one penny. It all goes to the Disney Marine Conservation Fund to save marine animals and habitats. If anyone has any questions, feel free to private message me!
 
We did the dive about 2 years ago & probably will be taking the BIL & SIL there for "the experience" sometime this month. When we went it was $140/pp.

The only gear they allow you to use is your mask; they provide all the rest, including shorties. But be warned the water is definitely on the cool side!

If memory serves, they only allow people in groups of 6: two groups per day; twice a week. That's it. The dive itself only lasts about 30 mintues. All the rest is Disney indoctrination. :wink:

For us the best part of the dive was the people on the other side of the glass. They were WAY more fun than the critters. (Guess I'm a little jaded: we spent 2 years in the Bahamas on a sailboat running our own sail/dive charters, so I'm quite familiar with most of the inhabitants of the tank.)

The video is (of course) overpriced. There is a huge stock beginning & end part, with a small amount of YOUR dive sandwiched in between. IMHO, not worth the money.

Feel free to PM me if you want more info.
 
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