ORLANDO, Fla. — SeaWorld Orlando visitors can now spy the beginnings of the theme park’s next roller coaster. Vertical construction has begun on the site, with work now topping the construction walls.
The light blue steel is going upright from the ground for the thrill ride, which will operate near the front of SeaWorld and adjacent to its parking lot, close to the Ports of Call gateway. It will eventually be one of the first attractions that arriving guests can see. These first posts are a few feet from the sidewalk that parkgoers use to walk to SeaWorld’s entrance.
SeaWorld confirmed the new ride in June, but it did not reveal its name or its features. A video simulation shows a blue-and-yellow, 24-passenger train on the rails. The company used the hashtag #HighSurfAdvisory with its initial announcement.
The park says the new coaster will be ready in 2023. It will be SeaWorld Orlando’s seventh coaster, and the park started marketing itself as the “coaster capital of Orlando.” Ice Breaker, its sixth coaster, debuted nearby in February. Its other roller coasters include Mako, Manta, Kraken, Journey to Atlantis and Super Grover’s Box Car Derby, a kiddie coaster in the park’s Sesame Street Land.
SeaWorld’s next coaster could be in the running to be Central Florida’s next coaster, although Walt Disney World this week said its Tron/Lightcycle Run thrill ride will open at Magic Kingdom sometime in spring 2023. The region has had two roller coasters open in ‘22, including Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind at Epcot and Iron Gwazi at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay.
Other projects currently in the works include Legoland Florida’s Pirate River Quest, a boat ride set to debut Nov. 2; Epcot’s Journey of Water attraction, said to be completed next year, and Universal Orlando’s Epic Universe theme park, which has targeted a 2025 opening.
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