The movie is about a mermaid princess named Ariel. She and her best friend, a fish named Flounder, explore the ocean looking for human things. They talk to a seagull named Scuttle who explains each thing that they find (but not accurately). Ariel does not like living in the sea and wants to live on land, where people are. One day she sees a ship of people and meets a prince named Eric. She saves his life from drowning. When Ariel's father, King Triton, finds out that she saved a human man from drowning, he destroys all the things she has kept in her grotto. After that, two eels named Flotsam and Jetsam tell her about a seawitch named Ursula. They tell her that Ursula can make her dreams come true. She follows them to Ursula's lair where she has magic potions. She uses her magic to turn Ariel into a human for exactly three days, in exchange for her voice. In order to stay human, she has to kiss Prince Eric, or else she will turn back into a mermaid and belong to Ursula. Eric shows her his palace and helps her adapt. On the second day, Sebastian the crab gathers the other sea animals together and they sing "Kiss the Girl", hoping to make Eric kiss Ariel. The plan almost works, but Flotsam and Jetsam cause the boat to sink. Ursula decides that enough is enough and uses Ariel's voice to turn herself into a beautiful girl named Vanessa. She casts a hypnotic spell on Eric to make him forget about Ariel. The next day, everyone finds out that Eric is getting married, and Ariel is very sad. Scuttle finds out that the girl Eric is marrying is Ursula in disguise. He tells Ariel and manages to create disruption, delaying the wedding. The seashell Ursula is wearing breaks and Ariel's voice comes back. She tries to kiss Eric, but the sun sets and she turns back into a mermaid. Ursula offers to let Ariel go if Triton takes her place. He accepts it and turns into a plant. With help from Sebastian and Flounder, Prince Eric and Ariel defeat Ursula. Ursula dies and all the plants she had turn back into mermaids. Finally King Triton gives Ariel her wish and she is allowed to marry Prince Eric.