![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() The talks are entertaining and informative, and Harrison was fascinated! He has repeated what he learned about Winter to anyone who will listen, and is amazed at what she can do without her tail. There are hourly presentations and educational talks at the aquarium, and a couple of them focus on these two dolphins. Her companion, Hope, was rescued as a very young calf too, and was deemed to be too young to release back into the wild. It really was amazing to see Winter swimming and playing with her toys with such an obvious injury, but truly heartwarming at the same time. We were able to see both Winter and her companion, Hope, in both the underwater viewing locations and from up above in the Winter Zone. The aquarium sits on two levels, with the lower level providing underwater viewing, and the upper level dedicated to viewing the tanks from above. The residents at the aquarium include a number of animals, but the stars here are of course Winter and her friends, Hope and Nicholas. The animals here were all rescued, and while the goal of a rescued animal is always for them to be rehabilitated and returned to the wild, sometimes it’s just not possible. The website also suggests the Island Way Grill (a restaurant within walking distance) for dinner, and we had the most amazing fresh seafood there before beginning our drive back to Orlando.Ĭlearwater Marine Aquarium isn’t your typical aquarium with rows of glass tanks with hundreds of species of fish. There is a small snack bar selling mostly things like popcorn, ice cream, candy, and cold drinks (although they do have pizza by the slice, and some deli wraps too) and the prices were very reasonable. ![]() The wristband they give you when you purchase your tickets is good for the whole day, so you can leave to hit the beach or get some lunch, and then come back later. The website suggests planning to spend 2-3 hours at the aquarium and, visiting with a 4-year old and a 14-month old, that time seemed about perfect to us – although I’d imagine if you had older kids, especially those interested in working with marine animals in the future, you could easily spend more time there. Parking is in a neighboring garage, and is $6 a day for aquarium visitors. The drive from the Orlando area is an easy one on I-4 West, and once you hit the Tampa area, there are some spectacular bridges to drive over.Įxcluding holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas, the aquarium is open every day (you can find their hours here) and tickets can be bought online in advance or at the door. General information on Clearwater Marine AquariumĬlearwater Marine Aquarium is located on the west coast of Florida, a little under two hours from Central Florida. We decided to use Memorial Day to go and visit her and her aquarium buddies, and had a fantastic day! Here’s what you’ll need to know about visiting Clearwater Marine Aquarium with kids. It’s rare to hear a tale like this and be able to visit the animal in question, so after watching the movie a few weeks ago, Harrison was beyond excited to learn that Winter lived just a few hours from us in Clearwater, Florida. Winter is now 11 years old, and is living out the rest of her days in comfort at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium. She learned to swim without her tail, although if you’ve seen the movie, you know that a prosthetic tail was made for her. Despite the odds, Winter not only survived, but thrived, going on to inspire people across the world to overcome seemingly impossible obstacles. She sustained such severe injuries to her tail that it couldn’t be saved, and rescuers assumed she wouldn’t survive much longer. The movie is based on the real life story of the 2-month old dolphin who was rescued off the coast of Florida after becoming entangled in a crab trap line. If you’ve seen the movie A Dolphin Tale, or maybe even if you haven’t, you’ll have heard of Winter the dolphin. ![]()
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