Apparently, even Christmas decorations aren’t safe from holiday chaos.
This year, SEA LIFE Orlando is giving families a festive mission to tackle between fish sightings. The Sea Star Search with The Elf on the Shelf runs Nov. 20, 2026, through Jan. 3, 2027, and sends kids through the aquarium to help solve an underwater Christmas predicament.
The setup: Decorations have gone missing from the Undersea Christmas Tree, including the Christmas Sea Star meant for the top. Santa has dispatched his Scout Elves, who have located the decorations but apparently need your children to handle the remaining fieldwork.
Honestly, getting the kids invested in finding something other than the gift shop? We’ll take it.
Families start with an activity booklet and a lanyard featuring an empty sea star template. From there, they’ll work through six interactive challenge points around the aquarium, completing activities and collecting pieces to build their own Christmas Sea Star ornament.
Finish the search, and kids have a keepsake to bring home, plus the chance to collect an exclusive The Elf on the Shelf Christmas Star Certificate. A certificate and an ornament: solid compensation for saving Christmas during a family outing.
For families who enjoy having something to do while exploring an attraction, the scavenger hunt format adds a little purpose to the wandering. You can check out the marine life while the kids keep an eye out for their next challenge. Whether they’ll let you linger at a favorite habitat once they’re on a mission is another question.
The part parents will want to know: The activity is included with general admission. If SEA LIFE Orlando is already on your holiday outing list, this gives the visit an extra seasonal activity without a separate event ticket.
And if your household Elf on the Shelf already creates enough work every December, there’s something appealing about visiting elves whose activities someone else has organized.
The Sea Star Search with The Elf on the Shelf takes place at SEA LIFE Orlando from Nov. 20, 2026, through Jan. 3, 2027. Find details and tickets on the official event page.
