On my recent trip to SeaWorld Orlando I got a fresh (and extra wet) ride on Journey to Atlantis. Water roller coasters are a fairly recent development. They merge the chute the shoot water ride with roller coaster elements. There are three Journey to Atlantis water roller coasters at the three SeaWorld parks.
After boarding the ride’s boats, I shoved off into the world of Atlantis, the mythical underwater city. For a while, guests float their way through the elaborately themed scenery until the tour takes a turn. The female voice you’ve been hearing as your guide turns out to be Medusa. Spoiler Alert: She’s not very hospitable and apparently, she’d like to send riders down a large drop. Maybe she’s upset about the Bizarro re-theming. The boat rounds a corner and approaches a dark lift hill with glowing green eyes at the top. This has to be pretty freaky for younger kids. As you crest the hill, the doors swing open and you drop down the ride’s largest plunge. I’ve never really gotten that wet and I tend to sit towards the front middle.
Now outside for on-lookers to watch, the boat floats around a curve to the right. It just so happened that the skies had opened up since I had boarded. So, even though I survived the splash without getting too wet, I was getting rained on steadily. The boat passed a ride op standing at a kind of mid-point station. After a very brief pause, the boat dropped into a bit small stretch of rapids and then up another lift hill as Medusa starts talking trash again. In case you haven’t noticed, there have been zero roller coaster elements to this point. At the top of this lift, you find yourself once again in Atlantis.
This second indoor section was quite a bit shorter and the boat’s pace seemed quickened. Almost out of nowhere the boat dives into a black hole of sorts. During this drop it’s pitch black and you finally get to ride the rails as the boat’s on a tracked roller coaster section. I couldn’t see much, but riding that huge vehicle on that wide track feels pretty cool and it’s very different than your standard coaster. After a short swoop and a turn the boat emerged in the sunlight once again with another smaller splash. Then, the boat floated on back to the station.
Journey to Atlantis has solid theming. It’s also lengthy, so you shouldn’t feel cheated if you had a long wait. I understand that Journey to Atlantis might have been a kind of a prototype as it was MACK’s first water roller coaster, but I do wish it had a larger roller coaster section. Still, for guests used to a typical water ride, Journey to Atlantis will blow them away. I’ll give it a 6 as it provides an above average experience for a roller coaster. I just wish that more of it was like an actual roller coaster. Most of the points here are for the ride’s theming.
Final Rating – 6.0 (Above Average)
Journey to Atlantis is by no means a traditional roller coaster, but it’s as intense as roller coasters in my Traditional category. It’s a 2 out of 5 on my Thrill Scale for its medium-sized drops. It’s a great family ride as long as your younger kids won’t be too scared of Medusa.
Read about SeaWorld Orlando’s world-class 1-2 punch in my reviews of Kraken and Manta.
What do you think of Journey to Atlantis at SeaWorld? Leave a comment below. Images courtesy of CoasterImage.
May 9, 2012 at 17:04
I've never been to SeaWorld Orlando, and I've always thought this ride was just another one of your average water coasters. I thought it was just a coaster section with a large splashdown, and didn't know it had all those extensive theming elements. Good review CC.
May 9, 2012 at 17:05
I am glad to see you doing reviews of the stranger and rarer types of roller coasters (atlantis, harry potter, etc.). I remember Journey to Atlantis is a great water ride, one of the best I've been on, because of the theming, length, and roller coaster section.
May 10, 2012 at 11:53
I got absolutely soaked on this ride, at the part where the little dip is by the ride op after the main drop. If you sit in the front row, you will too.
May 11, 2012 at 11:08
The coaster element on this ride is more of a twisting drop than a true "coaster", even though technically the entire second indoor section is on a track vice floating. From what I know, though, the "coaster" element of the version at SeaWorld San Diego is a lot longer. The theming is a bit different to, as I don't think it has "Medusa" terrorizing you. I plan on checking it out next time I'm in San Diego (Manta should be open by then).
Also, I'm surprised you didn't mention that cheesy video that plays at the beginning of the ride with the guy telling the seahorse spirit to guide you!
Finally, have to agree with Aric. That one little dip is the wettest part of the ride, especially if you're sitting in the front seat. You think you've survived the worst part of the ride when the boat suddenly goes up a small 3 foot high lift hill for no good reason whatosever other than to dunk the front of the car back into the water. I love watching the pissed off people from the viewing area at that point!
May 14, 2012 at 09:02
The San Diego version was a lot of fun even if the "coaster" part wasn't all that much to it. I've always wanted to try this one though cause it has a much more extensive themeing package to it, too bad it was in rehab when I went. The only "upgrade" to the San Diego version was really the elevator lift which is cool at least from a technological standpoint and slightly longer coaster segment I think.
May 19, 2012 at 05:06
My daughter rode this with me when she was 4 years old and loved it! I thought she was going to be scared, but she was fine. She rode it 3 or 4 times. I like how there is more than one drop–it kind of surprised me that the 2nd drop was pretty big too.
July 9, 2012 at 11:09
how does this ride compare to Escape from Pompeii at the Busch Parks?