Originally, I was supposed to have a solo day at SeaWrold, since the rest of my group was eiter at the Expo, or at Universal IOA that day. I got to the park and went straight to Manta, as it usually gets long lines. I went over to ride Penguin Trek, and I bumped into Evan and Will in line. I asked if I could join them and we would decided to hang out for the day. The exit of the ride has a Penguin exhibit, which is pretty neat.
After Penguin Trek, we took a walk over to ride Kraken. Surprisingly, it was running pretty good so we rode it twice. Evan and Will rode Journey to Atlantis, so I held their stuff since I don't like water rides.
My Thursday during the IAAPA trip would be split up with two parks, SeaWorld Orlando, and Epic Universe. SeaWorld would be during the day, and would be an easy day. With low waits, fun rides, and encountering Evan, Will, and others it was a pretty fun day at SeaWorld.
We decided we needed some Mako in our lives, so we went over to ride. It was on one train, but was a walk on. We would ride it 4 times, 2 in the back, one in the front, and one in the middle. Many people say Mako is the best B&M hyper in the US, but I still believe Goliath at SFoG is better. 4 laps on Mako were great, but we wanted to get some more rides in elsewhere. Besides it was only 11 am and the park opened at 10.
We rode Super Grover for the credit, and went over to ride Expedition Odyssey. I found that Expedition Odyssey as a ride system was actually pretty good, however the ride itself was not very good. Mack has potential for this concept, SeaWorld just needs to improve a few things on their end.
We rode Super Grover for the credit, and went over to ride Expedition Odyssey. I found that Expedition Odyssey as a ride system was actually pretty good, however the ride itself was not very good. Mack has potential for this concept, SeaWorld just needs to improve a few things on their end.
We would get some lunch, and the food was ok. If I had to pay for it, I would be disappointed. It was filling, which was good. We rode Ice Breaker, and waited about 20 minutes for it. Ice Breaker has a good swing launch, but it is not worth a long wait with the slow ops it has. We decided to take it slow for a bit since it was 12:30, and we went to see some of the animal exhibits. We saw the dolphins, sea lions, and the Orca show. overall, we took it slow since we rode so much so quickly.
Except for my first visit in 2014, I haven't really taken the time to see the animals. I really enjoyed seeing the animals and taking it slow all day. The dolphins were really fun to watch, since they were all younger. I think a lot of people who visit for just the rides miss the animals, and they should take the time to see them.
Except for my first visit in 2014, I haven't really taken the time to see the animals. I really enjoyed seeing the animals and taking it slow all day. The dolphins were really fun to watch, since they were all younger. I think a lot of people who visit for just the rides miss the animals, and they should take the time to see them.
I would break off from the group since Evan and Will wanted to go back to Mako and Manta. I wanted to ride Pipeline a few times before leaving for Epic Universe. Pipeline is a really fun standup coaster, and it was fun to ride it in the front and back a few times. I think that it is the second best standup behind Georgia Scorcher.
After my 4 rides on Pipeline, I had enough time to get a reride on Manta, before Audrey picked me up to head to IAAPA Celebrates at Epic Universe. I got to reride in the back since there was no line, and it was a very forceful ride. After my last rides, I went to the pickup loop and waited for Audrey, ready to experience Epic for the first time.
After my 4 rides on Pipeline, I had enough time to get a reride on Manta, before Audrey picked me up to head to IAAPA Celebrates at Epic Universe. I got to reride in the back since there was no line, and it was a very forceful ride. After my last rides, I went to the pickup loop and waited for Audrey, ready to experience Epic for the first time.
SeaWorld Orlando has potential. United Parks needs to get their act together to save this park. It has a solid ride lineup, and a solid collection of other attractions, but it could use a few flat rides. It also needs better food and operations to be better. It isn't the destination people travel to, but they do visit because it is cheap and close. There are people who care deeply here, but management doesn't seem to. I had a good day, but I also am not very picky sometimes. I like the park, but it needs to be improved.