Pirates Voyage Dinner & Show — Local services in Panama City Beach

My first time was enjoyable. We came with 3 people including my 83 year old aunt. But here’s WHAT Y’ALL WANNA READ:

Tips: Arrive early. There’s so much! Eat a small snack before the show. It’s one plate. The PROS:

Themeing They spared no expense. DO NOT SKIP BLACK BEARD’S CABIN BAR! It was so empty but the best part of the place! It’s a huge bar upstairs (ask where to go!) where PRE-SHOWS also take place! I had an entire show to myself!

Performers If you’ve been to Medieval Times, I can assure you, the SHOW is NOTHING LIKE MT. I loved the fact that there wa acrobatic work in this show, shout out to the animal performers! The handlers were so educated and knowledgeable. I even loved the fact they showcased islander culture through the HAKA. That was a surprise. Everyone did fantastic, if you cheer loud they will interact with you! They thrive off of it! (Coming from a former theatre girly, trust that.)

Food Service Workers PLEASE UNDERSTAND THAT EACH ITEM ON YOUR PLATE IS INTENTIONALLY SERVED AT DIFFERENT TIMES! This is to ensure the show runs smoothly and you don’t miss a thing digging into your food, they even have songs dedicated to the food or slowed down activity in between service. So, do NOT wait for all your food to end up on your plate or it will be cold— and it will be on you.

The service was great! They really do their best at accommodating SO many people, so please be patient, if they don’t bring your sweet tea fast enough, girl, they haven’t forgotten— but it’s almost 1 person for every 25 something people if not more. You do the math and pray for some patience. I got my food so fast, and it tasted great! (Pork was a lil over cooked but I wasn’t expecting Michelin here.)

Shoutout to the bartenders, too!

TIP YOUR WAITERS. CASH ONLY!!!!!! (They don’t accept credit/debit tips in the arena.)

The Show Super cool and interesting! I was a sucker for the plot, I enjoyed cheering on my team. These performers again are so talented, what they’re doing is NOT easy. Trust me, I would know, I tried a small acrobatic workshop class as a normal person and it was not for the weak, imagine the fun and strength you have to do it almost every day!

✨Everything was accessible!✨ (Not talking about disability accessibility, but they did good with that, too

No matter what you pay, you’re gonna get a lot if not the SAME experiences! Nothing was closed off, seats all around were pretty decent (although I do agree with some of the reviews, stick to the SIDES)

THE CONS

😕No difference with VIP😕 (MANAGEMENT PLEASE READ THIS ONE.)

Listen, I spent 354 dollars total for 3 people. I already did the research, I saw some red flags, I did it anyway because YOLO.

Would I do it again? Not until they add more perks and benefits. If it was cheaper, I wouldn’t care as much but from the tier beneath VIP it’s a 100 dollar difference for only a seat, a cheap flag, neat lanyard and ONE DIGITAL AND RANDOM PHOTO.

Let me talk on the photo system here, y’all doing not just us but the people y’all make walk around selling the photos dirty. I get the business behind it. But, it felt like a slap to the face, especially because we were put on spot with 3 really cool photos for 20$ each and told we can’t purchase them after— and they were confirmed to be shredded. (We asked.)

There’s nothing else special about VIP.

Lack of Communication A lot of front house did not know answers that might be crucial to ensuring smooth business operations and better guest service experiences. Whilst they’re running around dealing with a LOT of people, I understand it can be overwhelming. But let’s maintain a character if we got one and not break it to let me know that you don’t know, and let’s not go “Idk, this isn’t my area idk what to tell you, you’re better off asking someone else.” Everyone in front of house needs to be on same page!

Overall? Great time! Minor fixes, I’d do it again! Y’all got a great thing and even greater...

I am writing to express my profound disappointment and frustration regarding a recent experience with your establishment. What was intended to be a special celebration for my husband's 40th birthday ultimately fell far short of expectations, largely due to significant inconsistencies in service, quality, and overall customer experience.

From the outset, I encountered issues with pricing discrepancies between your online advertised rates and the figures provided when I called to book. This initial inconsistency was compounded by a notable lack of knowledge from your customer service representative during my booking. Specifically, when I inquired about recognizing my husband's birthday, I was explicitly advised to inform the bartenders and server upon arrival, with the assurance that they would make an announcement. Regrettably, despite following these instructions precisely, the bartenders seemed entirely unaware of any such arrangement, and our server struggled significantly to acknowledge the occasion, ultimately failing to do so. This was particularly disheartening given the personal significance of the event.

The quality of the food was uniformly subpar. My vegetarian meal was bland, unseasoned, and the vegetables were unappetizing. Members of my party described the brisket and pork as extremely dry and lacking moisture, the chicken as poorly seasoned, and the corn as overcooked. Even the beverages, such as the Coke Zero, were flat, and the sweet tea was excessively sweet. The apple turnover and coconut chocolate cake also lacked flavor, leading to a consensus that the food quality was, frankly, comparable to institutional fare, which is unacceptable given the price point.

Furthermore, the overall service was consistently poor. We experienced significant difficulties in simply getting attention from staff. A major frustration arose from the disregard for seating arrangements. Despite paying for premium seats, there was a complete lack of staff direction, allowing other patrons to aggressively occupy desired areas. This chaotic environment not only made the experience less enjoyable and personal but also felt incredibly disorganized, especially considering the substantial investment we made.

Finally, a particularly disappointing aspect of this experience was the handling of a cancellation request. Within 5-7 minutes of making a purchase totaling over $700, two elderly members of our party decided not to attend. Upon immediately calling back, the manager refused a refund for these two individuals, offering only a credit. While I understand that policies exist, I found this decision to be exceptionally disingenuous, especially given the very short timeframe between purchase and cancellation. A more empathetic and accommodating approach would have been greatly appreciated and, I believe, justified in this specific circumstance.

Considering the cumulative issues—the significant expense incurred, the pervasive lack of quality in both food and service, and the clear communication breakdowns—I find myself with little inclination to return in the future.

Additionally, I noticed animal interactions advertised online, but there were no options to purchase tickets, nor did the booking agent inform me of their availability or how to secure them. This further adds to the sense of a disjointed and incomplete customer experience.

I genuinely hope you will take these detailed concerns into serious...

I had never heard of this but the kids snuck off to play tourists at Pier Park and saw it. My youngest who never asks for anything asked to go there for her birthday. I googled it and after never hearing about it, it is 90% of my ads now. I checked with the base ITT to see if they had anything for it but they didn't but said to call them and see. By calling them we found out they had a $10 military discount but we weren't able to use it because we wanted to get the VIP package. We did save the online fees by calling. There was a 6 and and 8:30 show. We had to take the 8:30 as the VIP tix were sold out for the earlier. Got a call day of to tell us to get there about an hour and a half early. We got there a little earlier than that and could see why. People were already piling in. There is a metal detector walking in and I was made to walk a 2" pocket knife on a key chain back to truck. They went through the kids purses too. Being VIP we got through line a little faster. We got some family pics taken walking in the door. There is a big area with a bar and gift shop and some museum type stuff to check out while waiting for the pre show. There was supposed to be a Blackbeard's bar upstairs but I never made it up there. Everything seemed to be happening later than supposed to but I think the first show ran later so if we went to that show it would have been more on time. Didn't seem to hurt anything for our show. After the little pre-show that certified us as pirates, we were moved to our seats. The theater was set up as a big U in front of the stage that went through the middle of the U. We were in the center. The server was on the spot with the drink refills. He would bring out an item and place on plate of each person. We started with a bowl of soup. No spoon, you drink it from the bowl like a pirate,band a biscuit. Then they brought out a half a chicken, then mashed potatoes, then corn on the cob, then s scoop of pulled pork. I found everything to be bland and lacked salt and pepper but it wasn't until they were cleaning up after there was a rack with salt, pepper and some other stuff. I should have asked but I didn't. I think he was working two or three rows, but he was on his game and better than some restaurants where the server only has a couple tables. I felt bad. I never ordered an adult beverage so I never had an opportunity to close out anything with a credit card so I had to tip out with what cash I had left on me. I noticed people with more people in their party were tipping about the same I did but I felt he deserved more so make sure you have a good bit of cash on you. I am bad for not taking cash. For a VIP dinner and show for the three of us, we paid well over $300+. It is not something we would do a regular basis but special occasions or when...