Weeki Wachee Springs, Spring Hill, FL 34609

Weeki Wachee Springs in Weeki Wachee is a natural tourist attraction. Here, you can view underwater performances of "mermaids", which are women who wear fish tails along with other whimsical outfits in an aquarium-like setting. Buccaneer Bay is a water park and there are boat rides.
Seminole Indians gave the spring its name "Weeki Wachee," which means "Little Spring", or "Winding River" to their language. [3] Newt Perry (a stunt swimmer who promoted attraction) created the attraction in 1947. He based it on breathing through an underwater air hose. [4] The first theater had an 18-seat capacity. Later, a larger theater could hold 50 people. They were embedded in the limerock of the spring, with viewing windows that are below the water's surface. This allowed visitors to view the mermaids performing in the spring. Buccaneer bay was opened with water slides, lazy rivers, and a white sandy beach. It also featured the mermaid shows. [3]
Histories
Don Knotts (Elvis Presley), Esther Williams and Kevin Smith were some of the guests who visited the park. Hollywood has used the attraction and its Mermaids for filming movies like Mr. Peabody and the Mermaid (1948), Neptune's Daughter(499), and many others. It was owned at one time by ABC television, which led to increased publicity for the attraction. The Florida Department of Environmental Protection owns the park, which is a member of Florida's State Park System. [5]
Recent
Supergrass, an English band, shot their video for the song "Low C", at the Springs in 2005. They also shot a short documentary on the spring.
Thomas J. Kelly, a stand-up comedian, became the park’s first ever male Mermaid in summer 2006. His adventures were documented in a Web TV series. [6] Known as "The Little Merman",
Florida took Weeki Wachee Springs over as a State Park on November 1, 2008.
From May 22 to August 30, 2007, Weeki Wachee Spring discharge fell to a level which allowed cave divers to gain access to the cave system. Karst Underwater Research performed successful exploration dives, as well the necessary in-water compression to explore approximately 6,700ft in multiple passages at an approximate depth of 265 feet Fresh Water (ffw), with maximum depths of 407ffw. Weeki Wachee's springs make the cave system at 407 ffw the deepest freshwater cave system in the United States.
Scenes from Kelly Clarkson’s video, "Stronger (What doesn't kill you)", include scenes featuring the Weeki Wachee Springs Mermaids. [7]

This information was adapted from Florida Geological Survey Bulletin (66).
The spring is located on the west coast of US 19, in Weeki Wachee. Continue south for 0.2 mile from the intersection with US 19/SR50. Turn left (right) into Weeki Wachee Springs Park parking lots. You will find the spring vent in the large swimming pool that is used for mermaid shows.
Description - Weeki Wachee Springs flows out of the bottom of a conical depression, with gentle slopes to its sides. The spring pool measures 165ft east-west and 210ft north-south. Spring depth is 45ft above the vent in center of pool. The vent is neared by bare limestone. However, there is none around the pool edges. The water is clear and bright greenish blue. There is a boil in the center. The spring pool has a lot of native aquatic grasses and thick, filamentous alga. The spring is home of freshwater and saltwater fishes, as well as turtles. The Weeki Wachee River flows about 5 miles west to the Gulf of Mexico. The river flows through a swampy, densely wooded low-lying area. The nearest mountain to the spring's source is a rolling sand hill terrain that gently rises 15 feet above the ground. All uplands are developed, as is all the land that borders spring. U.S. 19 is located approximately 225 ft east the spring.
Utilization - Weekiwachee Spring has been extensively developed to be a tourist attraction. This attraction features an underwater mermaid show with a submerged observation space. It was purchased by the Southwest Florida Water Management District. The District leases it to a private company for the continuation and enhancement of the mermaid shows. You will find shops and other facilities all around the spring.

Weeki Wachee Water Well