SeaWorld San Diego is an animal theme park, oceanarium, outside aquarium and marine mammal park, in San Diego, California, United States, inside Mission Bay Park. It is owned and operated by SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment.
SeaWorld San Diego is a member of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA). Adjacent to the property is the Hubbs-SeaWorld Research Institute, which conducts research on marine biology and provides education and outreach on marine issues to the general public, including information in park exhibits.
History
Previous entrance replaced by Explorer’s Reef on March 21, 2014.
SeaWorld is located on San Diego mission bay. SeaWorld was founded on March 21, 1964 by four graduates of the University of California, Los Angeles. Although their original idea of an underwater restaurant was not feasible at the time, the idea was expanded into a 22-acre (8.9 ha) marine zoological park along the shore of Mission Bay in San Diego. After an investment of about $1.5 million, the park opened with 45 employees, several dolphins, sea lions and two seawater aquariums. It successfully hosted more than 400,000 visitors in its first year of operation.
Initially held as a private partnership, SeaWorld offered its stock publicly in 1968 enabling it to expand and open additional parks. The second SeaWorld location, SeaWorld Ohio, opened in 1970, followed by SeaWorld Orlando in 1973 and SeaWorld San Antonio (the largest of the parks) in 1988. The partnership later sold SeaWorld Ohio to Six Flags in January 2001. Harcourt Brace Jovanovich owned the parks between 1976 and 1989, when Anheuser-Busch Companies, Inc. purchased them. After InBev acquired Anheuser-Busch, it sold SeaWorld San Diego and the rest of the company’s theme parks to the Blackstone Group in December 2009, which operates the park through its SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment division.
SeaWorld currently leases the land from the City of San Diego with the lease expiring in 2048. The premises must be used as a marine mammal park and no other marine mammal park may be operated by SeaWorld within 560 miles of the City limits.
The park was closed between March 16, 2020, and April 12, 2021 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and two stay at home orders issued by California Governor Gavin
Maps
Contact
Opening Hours
Video
FAQ's
What safety precautions will you continue to have in place?
SeaWorld will continue to have enhanced cleaning protocols in place and hand sanitizer will be available throughout the park.
Can I use my Teacher or Preschool Fun Card?
2022 Teacher and Preschool Fun Card Holders get unlimited admission (blockout dates apply).
Can I use my previously purchased Single-Day or Multi-Day ticket?
Yes, previously purchased tickets will be accepted.
Why am I only able to add one person to my Dolphin Encounter purchase?
The reservation pricing shown is for one guest. You will be able to add up to 5 additional guests to your reservation when you check in to the Dolphin Encounter interaction inside the park.
Can I smoke at SeaWorld?
For the convenience of guests who wish to smoke, SeaWorld provides Designated Smoking Areas (this includes Electronic Cigarettes). Please refer to the park map for directions to these areas.
Is there free Wi-Fi for guests at SeaWorld San Diego?
We offer free Wi-Fi to our guests but please note that signal reception may vary by location and device type. After entering the park, select SeaWorldGuest to connect.
What credit cards are accepted at SeaWorld?
MasterCard, Visa, American Express, Discover and JCB are accepted at all ticket booths, restaurants and gift shops with proper identification. Sorry, personal checks not accepted.
