Trip Report Discovery Cove, SeaWorld and other stuff.

So we went to Orlando in September and while there we purchased SeaWorld annual passes. It was one of our mostly relaxation type trips. My wife had some vacation time left she needed to use or lose so we went back in October.
SeaWorld annual pass holders get a significant discount to Discovery Cove and since it is something we have talked about doing for a long time we decided to go ahead and spend a day there.
It was fantastic...better than we imagined. I hope this mostly non-Disney trip report is OK here and trust the mods will remove it if not.
So we went the week of Oct. 15-22 and the weather was fantastic. We stayed at a place called Marriott Grande Vista off of International Drive near SeaWorld. It is a beautiful property and we enjoyed it a lot. We went to SeaWorld several times, went to Discovery Cove and went over to WDW and went resort hopping too.
I will start out with Discovery Cove, the highlight of the trip. Here is the lobby:

 

[epcotisbest]

So since I am continuing to jump around, not following any specific order, let's head over here.

 

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Gotta get one of these. Yeah, we only get one and share it, and I don't get much, but more than I should have eaten.

 

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Lots of people hanging around the pool on a Thursday afternoon.

 

[DimpledDevil18]

Is it just me or is that the hugest Dole Whip I've ever seen? lol

 

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I did not find the fencing and riprap to be as intrusive as I had feared. That is a personal opinion. I know some people don't like it, but I am more understanding I guess. I just hope it serves it purpose well.

 

[epcotisbest]

OK, now lets head over here. We got to be the flag family and raised those flags a couple of years ago and that was a blast.

 

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Due to construction, the bicycles have been moved to the walkway heading from the main lobby to the bus stops and villas.

 

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Construction of the cabins is making real progress. Bet this is going to be a nice area once completed and landscaped.

 

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Here you can see the outline of the new villas pool. Not as free form as the old Hidden Springs pool and much larger. I am gonna withhold judgement until it is completed. I will say I remain saddened by the loss of Hidden Springs, which was my favorite spot onsite. I have mentioned before, heading to HS on a Monday morning, when everyone else was headed to the parks, made for a quiet, relaxing getaway.
We have been at HS early in the morning for hours, and been the only ones there. That won't ever happen again, but it was nice while it lasted.

 

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Inside the villas lobby and Carolwood Pacific room.

 

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Saw this outside. It was missing for awhile, but is back. The old buffalo topiary out front of the main building is still gone. Maybe it will make a return too!

 

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Back at Grande Vista:

 

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Hey @mergatroid you back home yet?

 

[epcotisbest]

Is it just me or is that the hugest Dole Whip I've ever seen? lol

It does pay to be kind to the young lady at Pineapple Lanai. I told her I missed making them myself at the self serve stand over at Captain Cook's because I usually made them fairly tall. She had a big smile on her face when she handed me this one and said she knew how to make them tall too. Little things like that create big impressions. My wife was amused too.

 

[mergatroid]

Hey @mergatroid you back home yet?

Indeed I am my friend, we flew out the day before the hurricane was due so have been back over 5 weeks now. Had a great time thanks, managed to do the new Frozen ride too and we both loved it. Will hopefully message you later when I've got a bit more time.

 

[mergatroid]

This hammock was way too close to the ground but I used it anyway.

View attachment 172897

I bet it wasn't before you got in it

 

[epcotisbest]

I bet it wasn't before you got in it

I spilled my coffee laughing when I read this!