We fell asleep to the peaceful countenances and gliding of the Beluga whales, and woke up to two polar bears attacking the frozen peanut butter-and-fish snack we'd prepared for them the evening previous.

Family sleepovers at SeaWorld in Orlando lend a whole new meaning to camping in the wild. In essence you are sleeping in the Arctic Circle, inside sleeping bags spread before floor-to-ceiling plexiglass aquariums, where whales swim on one side and big white "Coca-cola bears" prowl on the other.

We didn't put cola in the bears' snack (otherwise known by animal trainers as EEDs - environmental enhancement devices), but we did use practically every other goodie on hand: marshmallows, Fruit Loops, Cheerios, apples, raisins, and - the piece de resistance - capelin fish.

The kids helped trainers pour in the ingredients, the first activity in our Hot Summer Nights Sleepover, one of several themed family sleepovers throughout the year. Counselors demonstrated the power of the animals that would be eating our culinary masterpieces in the morning with two white buckets labeled "Before" and "After." The first showed a bucket in which the trainers might hide food for the polar bears, to give them something to play with - an EED. The "After" bucket was smashed, clawed and chewed to near pulp. A graphic and succinct way of demonstrating polar bear strength.

We spied on harbor seals, then attended the Shamu Rocks America show, an energizing and splashy (literally) night-time presentation of killer whale feats. We sneaked in the back door and walked through the Wild Arctic exhibit to see the polar bears for the first time. Only one sleeping white lump was visible in the climate-controlled, domed habitat. Down below, where we would sleep, Beluga whales sang to each other and a baby cuddled with its mother, much like we'd be doing later in the chilly setting. Much later. Sleepovers, you know, don't necessarily imply sleep, and true to definition, we were up past midnight.

Down below, where we would sleep, Beluga whales sang to each other and a baby cuddled with its mother, much like we'd be doing later in the chilly setting.


After a pizza party we watched the finale laser and fireworks show. Back at SeaWorld's Education Center we made a family-portrait craft, and then headed to the Arctic with bedrolls. Aaron and I positioned our sleeping bags so as to wake up to the polar bears' underwater world, a giant aquarium full of fish.

Wake-up call came (groan!) at 6:30 a.m., so we could witness the bears' appreciation of our EEDs, which were hidden in cardboard boxes. Twins Snow and Klondike tore the boxes with little etiquette and chewed on their custom-made popsicles so close to the plexiglass, we felt as though we were in the room with them - though we knew that trainers don't even get into a room with these dangerous, albeit cuddly-looking, creatures. Counselors unobtrusively slipped in bits of knowledge as we watched. We learned, for instance, that the bears have black skin and that their fur hairs are actually clear.

Hungry after watching the bears devour their snack, we finished off our sleepover with corn flakes and muffins before the shows, action and crowds of SeaWorld even started. Made us feel sneaky, and very privileged.

Parents and kids grades K through 5 can sign up for family sleepovers, which run from 7 p.m. Friday until 8 a.m. Saturday. Bring your own sleeping bag. Participants receive a special Saturday admission rate to SeaWorld.

A handful of other Tampa Bay attractions also offer excellent family adventures:

Busch Gardens Tampa Bay runs three-day Family Fun Adventure Camps on weekends from March to October. Kids must be 8 or older and lodging is at nearby hotels.

The Lowry Park Zoo in Tampa offers Summertime Zoo Tots Camps, for ages 1 ½ to 5 years, with an adult. Activities include games, songs, animal visitors, arts and crafts, and adventures behind the scenes. Other zoo family programs (for ages 6 to 16) include sleepovers and field adventures.

The Museum of Science & Industry (MOSI) in Tampa offers day programs, field trips, camp-ins, and the highly respected Verizon Challenger space education program. The programs are appropriate for a range of ages.