Aquatica - SeaWorld Orlando

SeaWorld has this Groupon deal for Aquatica until the end of June for $29. I had never been, but i had heard decent things, so we decided to check it out the weekend of June 12. Their new raft ride, Ray Rush, just opened so we came up with a plan to knock out all that popular stuff early.

We got to the park early, fully knowing it'd be insane to get in anytime after. Sure enough around 11am, the park was already at capacity with lines of cars sitting on International Drive, up the ramp onto 528 and extending onto Interstate 4. That said, the lines weren't atrocious.

Upon entering, we hit Dolphin Plunge. This body slide winds a bit before it hits a straight-away chute that takes you through a dolphin preserve before dumping you out into the pool. Feel like the only real way to ride this slide is by sitting straight-up, a general no-no for waterparks; but laying completely flat, you just zoom through the preserve and can't get an eye on anything. It didn't help that the chute glass was smudgey either. Decent slide, but way too overhyped for what the result is.

We ran over to Ray Rush next. Looked to be about a 45 minute wait. We figured that'd probably be the shortest it was all day so we took advantage. Great ride, as it begins by propelling you down a straight-away with some a sharp left turn that sends you up the chute wall. You make your way down to a water sphere with a few splash moments before being sent down into a half funnel. A couple of side climbs there before making your way down the final turns that are lit up inside. Cool touch and then you splash down.

We skipped Walhalla Wave... been on one family raft, you've been on them all. Taumata Racers were next. Being a goer of Action Park back in the day, I knew how to pick up some speed; unfortunately, this ended in a painful landing in the pool at the end as the mats weren't terribly stiff. This resulted in feeling every bump all the way. Ouch.

Did the double on Tassie's Twisters. It was a short slide, but pretty high speed as you make your way around the bowl. I think double is the way to go here as what's the point of going slow on single? Despite being a fun short slide, Tassie's Twisters has one of the dumbest ride entrances ever. You have to grab a tube AND RIDE in Loggerhead Lane (the lazy river) and then exit at Tassie's entrance. It might provide line control, but it's incredibly annoying. Speaking of Loggerhead Lane, it's a pretty short lazy river but it's all right. It provides some nice scenes with aquariums and the dolphin tank.

Whanau Way and Omaka Raka were next. Unlike Tassie, wasn't a fan of the double here as it was very short. The single tube ride was excellent for heavier people like myself though, as you get some great airtime up the sidewalls. I think there were three sidewall funnels on Omaka Raka. It looked a little aged, but I honestly thought it was one of the best slides in the park.

Breakaway Falls was next. We both did the non-drop purple slide first. Ironically enough, this had a huge top speed compared to the bottom-drop slides. It was insanely fast coming out of the exit that I thought I was gonna land on my face as I entered the splash-down. I did the orange bottom-drop in terms of those three slides. You enter your capsule and there are instructions over the loudspeaker inside letting you know what to do. After the attendant gives the green light, a countdown ensues. 3, 2, 1 and the gate opens... was actually a lot smoother of a drop than I thought it'd be. In terms of the four slides at Breakaway, I'd still probably prefer the purple.

Roa's Rapids was the last of the attractions. A fast-moving lazy river, this provided a lot of fun moments. The key was to ride the sides as you'll end up sitting right on a jet and being propelled to the nth degree. Life jackets are not required for the Rapids, but I'd suggest if only for the fact that it's easier to lay down that way. Just keep in mind there are going to be a billion people in the Rapids and they all want to try to stop themselves against the flow for some reason.

Anyway, that's our trip to Aquatica. Got on everything besides Walhalla... we'll make sure to ride the family raft at Adventure Island though. Here's my breakdown:

1. Ray Rush

2. Breakaway Falls (purple)

3. Roa's Rapids

4. Omaka Raka

5. Breakaway Falls (bottom-drops)

6. Tassie's Twisters

7. Dolphin Plunge

8. Whanau Way

9. Taumata Racers

10. Loggerhead Lane