Sweeping Changes to Seas Pavilion at EPCOT: Animals Moving, Tours Ending & Suspending
There’s about to be a sea change at the Living Seas pavilion at EPCOT, as Walt Disney World is embarking upon infrastructure work and is reevaluating its roster of mammals in the 5.7 million gallon aquarium. This post covers the animals that’ll be permanently relocated, along with the resulting suspension and end of certain tours of the Seas with Nemo & Friends, plus our commentary. (Updated January 15, 2025.)
Walt Disney World announced that three dolphins are moving out of their EPCOT aquarium habitat. This is coming as a result of recommendations by aquatic animal organizations, as well as state and federal agencies. Disney indicates the changes are due to infrastructure work, but also that Walt Disney World is making changes that require “careful thought, prioritizing the wellbeing of these sensitive marine mammals.”
With this in mind, Walt Disney World is working with experts and making changes recommended by the Manatee Rehabilitation Partnership (MRP) and the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Services (USFWS) that will result in changes at EPCOT. The Living Seas pavilion’s long-term residents relocated to another Florida-based rehabilitation center.
January 15, 2025 Update: In a change that continues the above changes to the Manatee Rehabilitation Partnership, both Lil Joe and Inigo (the latter of whom replaced Lou mere months ago), the two manatees who were living at EPCOT, have been relocated to another aquarium. This leaves the Living Seas pavilion’s manatee exhibit temporarily closed to guests.
As with the other relocations made last fall, the manatees reportedly moved to the Gulfarium Marine Adventure Park. New manatees are also expected to arrive within the next few weeks, with plans to reopen the exhibit once the relocation process is complete. As part of ongoing discussions and recommendations from the MRP and USFWS, the role served by EPCOT will change to one of critical care and rehabilitation for rescued manatees–and it’s unlikely the pavilion will have long-term residents going forward.
Walt Disney World hasn’t made any public-facing announcements about the ongoing changes at the Living Seas pavilion, and we wouldn’t expect one once the new manatees arrive in the coming weeks. It wouldn’t surprise us if they have something to share around World Oceans Day (June 8, 2025), but that’s a complete shot-in-the-dark guess. It all depends on whether the changes are fully rolled out and Disney is satisfied with the state of its conservation efforts.
Everything else reported below is from the original news of these changes back in the fall of last year, preserved for posterity…
According to Walt Disney World, Lou will move to a new home as part of a statewide manatee initiative recommended by the MRP and USFWS. These are the statewide agencies in charge of managing the rehabilitation and conservation of manatees throughout Florida, and this is part of statewide changes that are in the works for manatees.
Soon after Lou’s relocation, another manatee will come to EPCOT as a companion to Lil Joe, the remaining manatee in the Living Seas pavilion. “While we will greatly miss Lou, we do look forward to aiding this other manatee in the next stage of rehabilitation as we continue to do our part in addressing the manatee crisis in Florida, which has seen declining manatee populations in the past few years,” Walt Disney World said in a statement.
While Disney hasn’t said as much, it’s our guess that Lou the manatee is moving somewhere out of public view to live the rest of his life in comfort. It feels like he’s been there forever, and I have to imagine that he’s getting old. Not trying to be grim–as we’ve loved watching both Lou and Lil Joe and this is bittersweet news–but this move is probably being made with Lou’s best interests at heart.
The more significant change is that EPCOT’s trio of male dolphins will be relocated to the Gulfarium Marine Adventure Park in Fort Walton Beach, Florida in late October. Unlike the manatees, there are no replacement dolphins en route to EPCOT.
Dolphins have been part of the Living Seas pavilion since its debut in 1986, so this is a massive change. Walt Disney World has also indicated that there are no plans to reintroduce dolphins to EPCOT at a later date. In short, this means that dolphins will no longer live at EPCOT.
“This decision came after a comprehensive evaluation as to what is best for these dolphins as infrastructure work progresses at The Seas,” said Walt Disney World in a statement.
The three dolphins will be permanently relocated to the Gulfarium Marine Adventure Park in Florida which is accredited by the Alliance of Marine Mammal Parks & Aquariums and the International Marine Animals Trainer’s Association. Gulfarium opened its multimillion dollar Dolphin Oasis earlier this year, and offers dolphin encounters and a live show.
With this reevaluation of the aquatic life present in the Living Seas pavilion and infrastructure work of unknown nature occurring to the aquarium, there are naturally impacts to the special tours offered of the facilities.
Walt Disney World will continue to honor reservations for guests with previously-booked Dolphins in Depth and DiveQuest experiences through October 19. DiveQuest will return sometime in 2025, likely after the infrastructure work is completed. The Dolphins in Depth tour will not return, given that there won’t be dolphins.
Although there are changes on the horizon for the Living Seas Pavilion at EPCOT, the aquatic animals will continue to be the focus of the team. Cast Members affected by the moves of marine mammals will continue to do important work with other sea life. EPCOT will continue to be home to marine species, including sharks, sea turtles, jellyfish, angelfish, eagle rays, clownfish, and more.
Turning to commentary, let’s start by dispelling any misconceptions that this is a matter of budget cuts or penny-pinching on the part of Walt Disney World. Even though we’re getting close to the end of the fiscal year and start of the next when exactly that type of thing starts happening, that isn’t what this is. The dolphins, intelligent as they are, probably haven’t demanded raises (unless you count increases to the number of fish they’re fed each day, in which case, those requests are probably regular).
In all likelihood, this has more to do with evolving expectations and societal perceptions of cetaceans in captivity. The Living Seas aquarium space for the dolphins is small and it’s frankly a bit sad. Moving the dolphins to Gulfarium should, at minimum, give them more room and improve their quality of life. Aquariums having cetaceans in captivity has been controversial for at least a few years now, and I’m honestly surprised that Walt Disney World didn’t feel pressured to make this move before.
For the last several years, a group called the Dolphin Project has been running a negative review, letter-writing and petition campaign about “Disney’s Dismal Dolphins” that attempts to bring about the end to Walt Disney World’s dolphin program. It’s unclear whether that initiative has achieved success, or if Disney–which partners with variety of conservation organizations–has received outside advice that it’s time to move on. Either way, the outcome is the same.
One thing I found fascinating and downright disturbing is the history of dolphins in the Living Seas pavilion, dating back to its beginnings in 1985. Here’s the full history of their capture and deaths of the original dolphins for those who are curious. As someone who has loved this pavilion since I was a small child, that was tough to read. I’d like to think that: 1) it was a different era; 2) the positives from the number of kids who were inspired to get into conservation, marine biology, etc., outweighs the harm–a for the ‘greater good’ kind of scenario, even if it was undeniably bad for the individual creatures.
Nevertheless, this news is a little bittersweet. It’s the end of an era for dolphins in the Living Seas pavilion. Even as I had my misgivings about cetaceans in captivity, I’d be lying if I didn’t also admit that I still enjoy watching the dolphins. Maybe it makes me a hypocrite, but the Living Seas is a favorite midday escape, perfect as dark and cool counterprogramming to the sunny and hot summer days at Walt Disney World.
Just a couple of weeks ago, I happened to find myself in the Seas pavilion one evening as the crowds cleared out. Two of the dolphins were zooming around the tank, and I swear they were playing hide and seek with one another. It was adorable and a decompressing way to spend a bit of time after eating way too much mac & cheese in CommuniCore Hall.
Well, it was decompressing until one of the few other groups of guests in the entire pavilion started banging on the tank, trying to get the attention of the dolphins. I guess they felt left out and wanted to play hide and seek with the dolphins? In any case, this type of behavior is all too common, and it baffles me that grown adults don’t know better. (Then again, I see adults feeding ducks almost every time I’m in the parks, too.) Behavior like that is just sad, and further underscores why it’s probably time for Disney to move on from a dolphin exhibit. But I digress.
Ultimately, these are good changes on balance for the health and welfare of the mammals in the Living Seas at EPCOT. Still, there will be a negative impact to the guest experience, as dolphins are a highlight of the aquarium. Sure, sharks are cool and the rays fun to watch glide around. But dolphins are/were a big draw.
A bit tangential, but the best “compromise” I can think of is bringing out Scuba Mickey more often. We’ve had the good fortune of seeing him a few times in the last several years, as Scuba Mickey Mouse often makes rare appearances on World Oceans Day. I cannot even begin to tell you how awesome this is to see as an old school EPCOT Center fan. (I assume it’s awesome for anyone, though.) The Walt Disney World promotional VHS tapes of my childhood all contained footage of two characters in Future World: Figment and Scuba Mickey.
Between the Boy Meets World proposal at Coral Reef and footage of Scuba Mickey, the Living Seas pavilion held a special place in my heart as a kid. (It also physically held manatees, which were my favorite animal as a kid.) Mickey Mouse scuba diving in one of the largest man-made ocean environments on the planet is the kind of unforgettable “little thing” that absolutely defines (or should define) Walt Disney World.
It’s seemingly insignificant, but it leaves a lasting impression–an indelible memory that guests will cherish long after they’ve forgotten which rides they rode or shows they saw at EPCOT. In short, it seems like swapping a trio of dolphins for one gigantic aquatic mouse is a fair trade. One that will make as many or more magical moments for guests, and without any concerns about animal welfare. Win-win.
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YOUR THOUGHTS
What do you think about the changes coming to the Living Seas pavilion? Sad to see dolphins being retired from EPCOT, or do you understand and agree with the likely rationale for the decision? What do you think of Scuba Mickey as a “trade” for the three dolphins? Thoughts on the DiveQuest or Dolphins in Depth tours at EPCOT? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
I just had a day at EPCOT with family, including my teens (16, 19), and we spent a surprising amount of time in Living Seas enjoying the aquarium—the manatees, in particular. I’m glad Lil Joe will get a new friend, though sad to lose Lou. It’s so peaceful in there, and truly a place where old school EPCOT edutainment is alive and well. However, we all did take note of how… blah… the dolphin habit looked. It had been a few yeas since we’d been to that park, but it felt noticeably dank and sad for the dolphins. As you said, times have changed, and it’s important to do what’s best for those gorgeous animals. But I do agree the catch is that declining access for guests to view them leads to ignorance and apathy. Many people will never have the chance to see dolphins in the wild, so that’s always a concern.
Side note for anyone visiting the greater central Florida area: Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park, in Crystal River, has an outstanding manatee program in a beautiful natural setting.
Yes! Great recommendation.
I’m personally partial to Blue Spring State Park: https://www.floridastateparks.org/parks-and-trails/blue-spring-state-park
Crystal River National Wildlife Refuge is also great: https://www.fws.gov/refuge/crystal-river
These are especially excellent options in the winter–when the temperature drops, you can see hundreds of manatees! (We topped 300 on one especially cold January day.)
If you are a fan of Manatees (they are awesome!) but can’t get to Florida, for some reason Ohio has become a secondary Manatee hotbed, where you can see rescued Manatees being rehabilitated in great indoor habitats at both the Cincinnati and Columbus zoos.
The whole Living Seas concept is way past its due date. Finding Nemo was throwing a bone to an already dated attraction. Now that Nemo popularity has waned, it is definitely time to shut the whole thing down and either do an extensive re-theming or just build something completely new altogether.
The original concept of Living Seas was the 1986 version of Space 220. You were whisked away into an elevator to simulate going deep down under the sea. When you got off the elevator it opened up into what felt like an undersea base. Even as teenager, it was cool and believable. As the years of passed, many of its inner exhibits have been blocked off or take out altogether. Having visited this past summer, it felt so decrepid much like Imagination Pavilion. It is hard to imagine that both of these spaces were not part of the Epcot re-imagination.
As for the dolphins, we are now in a world where zoos and such will likely be a thing of the past in a generation or two, so I do not blame Disney for the move.
I agree that the Living Seas pavilion’s best days are behind it, but I certainly don’t agree with eliminating it entirely.
Money is finite and there are bigger fish to fry. I’d rather have this limp along for another decade than a repeat of the Giant EPCOT Dirt Pit. I can see why others would disagree–that’s just my perspective on this.
A critical correction to this article: Cory didn’t propose to Topanga in the aquarium at Coral Reef. His sign read, “I will chase you forever,” as he was trying to get her back. To be fair, I suppose you could argue he’s proposing to chase her forever. Topanga is the one who proposed, at their high school graduation.
All kidding aside, thank you for your thoughtful article. I appreciate the balance of “Aww, this kind of stinks, but it’s for the best.” Also, seriously, what is with adults banging on animal enclosures?!
Hahaha, thanks for the correction. I guess it’s time to rewatch Boy Meets World. For research.
I was thinking the same thing, trying to remember when that happened in Boy Meets World!
Then I remembered there’s the Full House episode where Danny tries to propose to Vicky and the Coral Reef Restaurant. There were so many sitcoms going to Disney that they all start to run together 🙂
Overall this is good news for the dolphins. The last time I was at that tank, I could only feel pity for them. I think that in light of places like the Georgia Aquarium, the Seas Pavilion feels so outdated and unimaginative now and keeping the dolphins there is a way of clinging on to the past.
While I’m fascinated by the differences I’ve just learned about manatees versus dolphins in captivity, the details that go beyond what Tom said above are probably off-topic. That being said, one thing to note is that this isn’t the first time manatees have been rehabilitated at The Living Seas, then released and “exchanged” for other ones.
https://people.com/pets/female-manatee-rehabilitated-disney-world-epcot-released/
This is good news for the dolphins 🙂 – I was hoping this was an announcement for a better nemo ride though lol
It is fair to note that Epcot’s Dolphin exhibit was state of the art, even ahead of its time when introduced in 1986. I’m not saying it was the best facility of that time, or even close, but it was a good and solid facility. Times have changed, but the exhibit has not.
Whenever, I think of the Blackfish scandal and Sea World’s surrender to it, I always think of The Law of Unintended Consequences. Each year 10s of millions of people came into contact with the orcas, developing a personal connection, which made people want to save them. Ditto the dolphins.
50 years from now, the number of people who see live orcas will be in the mere 10s of thousands per year. Without the personal connection so many people have, their odds of being hunted to extinction increases, because people won’t have that bond.
Disney ended up with a choice: Get rid of the dolphins of build them a new and dramatically increased habitat. This is that choice. Is it better for the dolphins? Of course. But in the long run, the loss of the personal connection they build with people could be far worse for dolphins as a species.
This is such a great comment, and I appreciate the nuanced perspective.
One thing I hated about that era of documentaries is that they existed largely as entertainment rather than education. There are countless examples like Blackfish that weaponized or exaggerated the truth, and didn’t zoom out to analyze the bigger picture. I’m not suggesting that every issue needs “both sides” treatment, but there are certainly some that should be viewed from a more holistic perspective.
A bit tangential, but we’ve seen something similar with environmentalists letting perfect be the enemy of good. (This has really gotten bad in California, where we’re starting to fall behind other states due to climate groups opposing proposals that should be good enough–resulting in something of a logjam.)
I’m torn on this one. More because I think the dolphins probably need more room, although I do recall an era when they swam freely in the entire (or more of it) tank. I generally think this is another social justice issue where it’s no longer considered cool by a large segment of generally ignorant people to have these creatures in captivity. Disney can save some coin and look good to those people.
As an aside, I absolutely love Sea World and it’s very clear that the blogger/influencer crowd is split on whether they think it should get any attention, very likely due to the Blackfish film. This site, for example, pretty much pretends SW and all of its other parks don’t exist. That isn’t accidental. I have never heard/read any explanation, so I have to assume that they view what SW does with its wild life to be evil, yet are perfectly OK with DAK …
I’ve seen Mickey scuba diving (it’s cool) and I’ve done the Dolphin in depth tour (an incredible lifetime experience). Sorry to disagree with you but that trade is equivalent to Jim Fregosi for Nolan Ryan.
Not so much a trade, but I was thinking more like Larry Csonka, Jim Kiick, and Paul Warfield joining the WFL.
Hi Chris,
Not bad. I, of course was referencing Tom’s line: “In short, it seems like swapping a trio of dolphins for one gigantic aquatic mouse is a fair trade.”, so I needed one of the worst trades in sports history. Not sure if you know this, but it wasn’t even one for one. The Mets gave up three other players along with Nolan Ryan. Fregosi, a decent player but at the end of his career, went on to play about a year and a half for the Mets. I think Nolan played for another 175 years.
Okay, so think of a scenario where the superstar demanded a trade or refused to play, and the team gave in and took what they could get.
Not saying the dolphins are being divas and demanding a trade…but similar idea.
I’ve only been to Epcot once and was surprised to stumble upon the Living Seas pavilion when exiting the Nemo attraction. We almost skipped Nemo since it looked like it was for kids but I’m glad we didn’t because we enjoyed the Living Seas pavilion immensely!
I loved seeing the dolphins and other animals. At the time, I did not really consider their wellbeing. Now I’m older and would like to think wiser, I do. I feel bad for the kids that will be unable to see them in the future but the dolphin’s wellbeing should absolutely take priority.
I guess I assumed (bad word, I know) that since the manatees were rescue animals, so were the dolphins. But then I also assumed everyone who visited EPCOT knew about the Living Seas Pavilion.
because why should there be anything educational at the educational theme park?
What is this even in reference to? They’re rehousing dolphins that never should’ve been there to begin with, it’s a positive change.
Great article and I agree this news is both bittersweet and probably for the best.
Just wanted to add here having really enjoyed visits to some nice aquariums in various U.S. cities, the Living Seas felt a bit dismal and dated to me on my last couple of visits (and the visibility in the tanks seems murkier and habitats are less “organic”). That may be an unpopular opinion but my point of reference is Animal Kingdom, which takes the concept of a zoo and pushes it to a new and innovative “Disneyfied” level. Aside from semi-decent attractions like the Nemo ride and (IMO superior) Turtle Talk with Crush, there’s nothing in the aquarium section of the Living Seas pavilion that feels remotely unique, modern, or envelope-pushing in 2024.
There are elements of other “old EPCOT Center” pavilions that really benefit from a nostalgic and/or timeless 1980s vibe. But I’m not feeling that when I walk around the Living Seas pavilion. Perhaps this “infrastructure work” will address some of my concerns?
I’m from Ohio and growing up we always saw the dolphin shows at Cedar Point and King’s Island. I think those were retired in the 90’s. I never gave much thought to the ethics of dolphins in captivity, to be honest. While I’ll miss the dolphins, this probably makes sense.
Didn’t Ohio have a SeaWorld once upon a time?
Yes it did! I went a few times as a kid. I don’t know the history of how they picked Ohio for a park. It was bought by six flags and briefly combined with a roller coaster park across the lake from it, but then the whole thing was bought by Cedar Fair and closed down.
I am hopeful that with the dolphin relocation the big tank can be expanded into their previously-separate area. We’ve done DiveQuest multiple times and it would be great to have more room for animals (and divers). The divemaster told us the dolphins have to be separate because they are a bit mean to the other animals (hence the bars AND the bubble wall between them and the main tank).
It bums me out that whenever I write about the Living Seas pavilion, I have readers not realizing it even exists. It isn’t your fault–the pavilion itself is way harder than it should be to find!
Here’s another thing many of you probably don’t know: you do NOT have to ride the Seas with Nemo & Friends to experience the exhibits. The entrance/exit is on the far left, past the queue for the ride itself. Just walk through there and you’re in the aquarium area!
I feel like I’ve failed some of you. I’ll remember this as I update and write new EPCOT planning resources.
Now that you mention it, your article “Best EPCOT Attractions & Ride Guide” only mentions the aquarium in passing, as part of the description of the Nemo ride. But I think you could list the aquarium itself as a separate attraction.
Not going to lie I didn’t know there were dolphins at Epcot until I saw headlines about the change today. I didn’t go into the seas pavilion on my last trip and the trip before we did finding Nemo but left pretty quickly. I am learning that when doing trips only every couple years with a large group and lots of kids a lot of Epcot gets sacrificed.
please tell me this means the aquarium will still be open. I had no idea this existed til reading this.
Tom – I rarely disagree with you , but I disagree with you this time on the dolphins. Disney is cutting its losses here. Providing a home for the dolphins is expensive, and Disney just cannot compete when it comes to the dolphin experience offered at other parks, such as SeaWorld. Unfortunately, as the number and quality of aquariums continues to increase, we may see further reductions in or even the closing of the Living Seas pavilion at Epcot in the future.
“Unfortunately, as the number and quality of aquariums continues to increase…”
Do you have any examples of aquariums in the United States that have recently increased their presence of cetaceans?
Several of the best aquariums in the U.S. already don’t have dolphins, and I’d hazard a guess that it’s only a matter of time before SeaWorld follows suit.
I’m no expert here but arm-chair analysis is that public opinion is souring on certain animals in captivity. SeaWorld in particular seemed to be hit hard by the Blackfish documentary (2013). I realize it focused on orcas, not dolphins. I still believe it influenced public opinion regarding intelligent animals in captivity in general.
I agree 100% that Disney loves to save money with cutbacks but in this case, I think they are primarily driven by fear of controversy and are trying to get on the right side of history.
Right, but that’s just patently untrue, isn’t it? Parks are moving away from housing species they never should’ve houses to begin with. This has zero to do with money.
We have dining reservations at the Coral Reef in early November. Will we still have marine life to view while we are dining?
Yes, you will!
A giant stingray was our dining companion the last time we ate at coral reef. We have a ridiculous amount of selfie with it. It’s been a couple of years, but honestly I don’t remember seeing any of the dolphins while we were dining. Still plenty of ocean life to view!