I have always wondered what it would be like to step into the magic of Disney World and be on stage for a moment. Instead of walking on stage, I swam into it. As a recently certified scuba diver, and a Disney fanatic, I found a way to do both. Dive Quest at The Seas with Nemo and Friends in EPCOT allows any certified scuba diver the chance to act on stage for window in time.
My adventure began at 4:30 at the guest relations outside of EPCOT. While I waited with a group of other divers, it seemed like we were so far away from the magic, just sitting on a metal bench listening to the buses drive by in the parking lot. When our two leaders emerged and brought us behind the scenes, we were told that we would be going backstage and that if we wanted to post about it on twitter or facebook that was fine, but we couldn’t take picturesCrossing the barrier to backstage was like being at the theatre and having the power to walk into a movie. It was amazing to peak behind the curtain, walk backstage and see the designated buses for cast members, and a small slice of what it takes to support this one section of the park.
We did not dive in right away. Our guide brought us to the kitchen where the cast members were just cleaning up after preparing the meals for the animals in the tank. I learned that there are different dietary programs for all of the animals and that it takes hours to prepare these meals. The Cast Members interacted with us, even offered to let us clean if we wanted to, but no one in the group took them up on the offer.
From the kitchen we went to a classroom where we saw a brief video about the goal of Disney’s Wildlife fund, and how the money spent on our tour was going towards this fund, then we toured through the attraction walking behind the mantee pool, and straight out into the old sea base alpha area where the viewing areas of the attraction are located. We learned that the dolphins were isolated not for their safety, but because they would turn any animal into a toy. Our guide said you don’t see fish in there because they aren’t stupid and don’t want to be abused.
The tour was nice. The tidbits of information were interesting, but I wanted to dive into the blue water. After quickly changing into our wetsuits we stood ontop of the attraction with the water beneath us. This was my first salt water dive, and one with so many tropical fish made me excited. From a milk crate we grabbed our masks, attached our tanks and jumped into the water.
Our dive master, Bill, said we would do a quick tour following him and then we could split up and ‘play’. The depth was 25 feet, with a couple hundred feet of visibility the best conditions for a diver anywhere and hard to come by in the natural world. I partnered up with a guy named Shane. We followed Bill and did a tour of the tank, taking in the awes and wonder of the guests on the other side of the windows and the multiple fish as they swam with us. I got to watch as Shane interacted with his family at the Coral Reef restaurant. His daughter and I got to share a laugh as a giant ray swam over Shane’s head. The look of wonder on Shane’s face was enough to explain his feelings. We swam through the tank stopping at all the windows and posing for photos for guests. In a matter of minutes I went from being on vacation to becoming the star in someones vacation photo.
I got to swim with the giant rays, and turtles, and Shane and I even braved the sharks. Hovering on the bottom, I kept my arms close to my side as we kneeled side by side while the two sharks with rows of razor sharp teeth swam by. This was my first time being so close to a shark, and I was scared and amazed. They are an impressive creature and I look forward to swimming with more.
For forty minutes we swam through the tank giving high fives through the windows to eager kids and staring at the multiple fish. I even swam through some of the simulated coral, and nearly knocked myself out. I recovered and got to watch the giant rays glide through the water one more time before dive master Bill signaled us it was time to ascend.
After leaving the attraction and crossing that magic line of backstage to on stage, I was as giddy as a child. For a moment, I got to be one of the stars of the attraction. This special tour is not on the radar for most families that visit Walt Disney World, but I got to experience something that few of the many Disney World guests have done.