“Mermaiding†in this day and age can mean either portraying artistically as a mermaid with costume tail, or swimming underwater like a mermaid with said tail. The performance aspect started in the early 20th Century, with the hobby and activity aspect starting up in the 1980s, even before Disney’s “The Little Mermaid†arrived in cinemas.
Still, the Disney animated classic was a big contributor to the eventual mermaiding subculture. And Walt Disney World looks to be harnessing some of that “Little Mermaid†magic for their summer 2019 special offer at four of their resort hotels.
“Mermaid School†will soon be available to participate in for Disney World guests who are staying at the Art of Animation Resort, Caribbean Beach Resort, Yacht Club Resort, and Beach Club Resort. Booking for this special swimming activity class starts mid-March, and will accept students four years old and above.
These resort hotels’ Mermaid School classes will be held twice a week on specific days: Art of Animation Resort will have theirs on Sundays and Thursdays; the Caribbean Beach Resort on Wednesdays and Fridays; both Beach Club and Yacht Club resorts will share their Mermaid classes on Tuesdays and Saturdays.
Disney World’s Mermaid school starts at 8 AM and lasts for an hour. Participants will be taught how to swim like Ariel and other mermaids. In addition, all will be fitted with their own swimming-tail suits in their size as part of the package, which is worth $50 per head.
The Mermaid School classes are brought to Disney World in cooperation with the Florida-based Mermaid Academy, which offers mermaiding lessons and also manufactures swimming tails. These tails will also be offered for sale during Mermaid School sessions at Disney World.
For more information on this, should you be staying at the hotels mentioned above during your Disney World trip, you can visit their official blog to enroll, or call 407-WDW-PLAY.