Trip Report MILESTONE TRIP! First Orlando Visit, Final Disney Park!

Suchomimus · Dec 3, 2021

D Hulk said:
a bit like that metallic brake smell if you’ve ever followed a truck down a steep mountain road.

So that's what was causing that smell. I was beginning to think that I was near one of Virginia's many coal mines. I should warn that driver before... Nevermind, I've lost the truck. I looked down to write that just as that truck was rounding a tight bend, but then I heard a loud BUMP and the truck's gone. All that's left is a knocked off cooler but no truck. I shall try to catch up to it further down the road now and return it.

D Hulk · Dec 4, 2021

Upon first returning to Stanleyville, the first order of business was another ride on SheiKra. This put me at 3 for 3 on both SheiKra and Cheetah Hunt, which felt good and nourishing.

Other than that, my only agenda was, ummm, leaving. (Unless, of course, Montu revived.) The entire southwestern stretch of Busch Gardens remained unseen by me, so I set out on the fairly tedious stretch connecting Stanleyville to Morocco, taking me past the Sesame Street section and into an unknown wilderness.

There is precious little to be seen in this underdeveloped section of BGT. There is natural arboreal landscaping, which I found to be consistently pleasant. So much more enjoyable than some parks' wide open unshaded concrete expanses. There was a smattering of animal exhibits as well, such as a flamboyance of flamingoes, and a rather random mob of kangaroos. The latter doesn't fit BGT's African theme, though I suppose there's an unwritten rule that every zoo will have kangaroos.

There was also a outdoor amphitheater stage, presently serving no active purpose. I wouldn't be surprised at all if this is the next section of the park to see major investment after Iron Gwazi opens up and serves its purpose.

Speaking of...there she was again, in all her stately glory, standing silent and inoperational despite having been complete for over a year. Soon, though! I fully intend a return visit to BGT in roughly April of 2022 while my Platinum Pass is still good (as part of a trip out to Busch Gardens Williamsburg as well). Iron Gwazi seriously looks like a trip-worthy roller coaster!

Meanwhile, best as I could tell, Montu was still dead. I was pretty exhausted at this point, so I passed up another ride on Cheetah Hunt. I also passed up a walk down a nearby gorilla trail I'd only just learned about. Instead, I departed through Morocco's exit and returned to my rental car. From the parking lot, directly in Montu's shadow, it was clear as day that she still wasn't running.

It was around 3:30 by now, and I have no regrets with how my Busch Gardens visit went. At the moment, I craved that hourlong drive back to Orlando, since it meant an hour off of my feet inside a Hyundai's air conditioning. The drive was mostly uneventful. I amused myself by observing place names along the way, places such as Auburndale, Clermont, and Kissimmee...

HOLD UP, I'M IN KISSIMMEE?!

The roller coaster hunt resumes!

For Kissimmee is home to Fun Spot Kissimmee, which in turn is home to four roller coaster credits. I would be a fool to pass up this opportunity! Better than a drive back down here later.

So with the 5 o'clock hour approaching, I began a brisk, brief tour of Kissimmee's Fun Spot to add a few more thrills to an already coaster-heavy day.

The Fun Spots are essentially permanent carnivals. They are by their very nature the least impressive, least essential parks in the Orlando region. Their pleasures are more modest, a bit like the slightly seedy, chintzy joys you'd find at a traveling circus or a county fair. I visited a few places like this in the past summer while I was out padding my coaster count. I enjoy these sorts of places, sometimes a bit ironically for their kitsch value, but enjoyment is enjoyment. This would be a fun hourlong break!

There is no admission ticket for Fun Spot. Instead it's pay-per-ride. You can either get a roughly $60 all-day wristband - which seemed exorbitantly priced unless you're really superduper insane crazy into go-karts - or you can pay a-la-carte. I did the latter, making a mental tally of the four coasters I needed, and paying the $5 or $10 per coaster to get enough tokens. Which was still vastly overpriced, and not something I'd recommend for most travelers, but it was worth it to me as a coaster enthusiast.

Kissimmee Fun Spot's carnies - let's call the "cast members" here "carnies," why not - were incredibly friendly & attentive. I kinda had the place to myself, so I received special VIP treatment. The ticket girl gave me extra tokens for free. The ride ops were chatty, cordial, and consistently gave me the best seat in the house.

As an example, I started with Galaxy Spin, an off-the-shelf spinning Wild Mouse. The operator asked me if I wanted the car with the wildest spinning - hard yes! - so he cycled through a few trains until the ricketiest, ramshacklest car came up. Hooray! This was the day's best Wild Mouse, beating out Busch's Sand Serpent. It was also my favorite ride at Fun Spot. Supposedly Primeval Whirl was a bit like this? The ride was creaky & janky - at carnivals that's actually a positive! - and the spinning was absolutely out-of-control. For a meager Wild Mouse, Galaxy Spin was a blast.

Next up? I'll probably polish off Fun Spot.

Suchomimus · Dec 4, 2021

D Hulk said:
The latter doesn't fit BGT's African theme, though I suppose there's an unwritten rule that every zoo will have kangaroos.

Busch Gardens used to have 2 other theme parks; one in Houston, the other in Los Angeles with the former themed to Asia. If whomever owns BG decides to reexpand their zoo theme park presence into the 2 states, I’d imagine that the the Texas one would be themed to the Americas due to Texas being in the Midwest and their geographical connection to the rest of the Americas and the one in CA would be themed around Australasia because of the Pacific and the local Asian communities, and you can probably where I’m headed with this when it comes to the animals.

PiratesMansion · Dec 4, 2021

D Hulk said:
Supposedly Primeval Whirl was a bit like this?

Yep, exact same ride model, albeit with a different manufacturer. The Disney versions were made by Reverchon, and then around 2004 Zamperla got the rights to the exact same design. The only difference was the in the restraints-the Disney model was older, and used over an over the shoulder restraint shared by each pair of riders instead of the individual lap bars the newer models use. The Disney cars also may or may not have had some sort of spinning governor on them-I don't recall for sure whether or not that was the case.

A bummer that you missed Montu, but at least you'll have another opportunity when you return for Iron Gwazi! And the Williamsburg park is wonderful-I don't know if the coasters are as good as Tampa's, but the atmosphere is superior-at its best it's as if you combined Disneyland and World Showcase in the middle of a Virginia forest. Make sure to see the Celtic Fyre show in Ireland if it's running while you're there-it's one of the best theme park shows out there and I'm amazed it's still around! And of course Kings Dominion is only an hour away, which is a fun place to compare and contrast with Kings Island, and has some good coasters and atmosphere of its own.

D Hulk · Dec 6, 2021

Let's just assume that Sundays are my days off now.

Anyway, back to Fun Spot Kissimmee, where I still had to locate and ride 3 more roller coasters in order to tie a bow on this day. I wanted to do Hurricane next, and put off MineBlower until the end since it has a reputation for roughness.

The only problem was I couldn't find Hurricane! I wandered all over the corner where it was listed on the map, finding only go-karts and midway games and fried lard stands. Fun Spot is only a few acres large, at max, so it stymied me how they could possibly hide a semi-major roller coaster. And there were no available carnies to ask!

Ultimately, MineBlower loomed before me. Since I was right there, I resigned myself to riding it next. How bad could it be, anyway? At the very least it's a rare wooden coaster with an inversion!

That zero-G roll inversion is absolutely MineBlower's standout moment. The trains hurtle upside down directly over the loading station. It's the finest moment on-ride as well, taken immediately after the lift hill and first drop. The whole coaster is structured around achieving this moment, which is surprisingly smooth and thrilling.

The problem is with the remainder of MineBlower's layout. There simply isn't enough square footage available to burn off all the kinetic energy created by that high-speed roll. So trains rampage through the remaining out-and-back layout with a reckless infernal abandon, shaking like a North Korean rocket in the valleys. The results were just as rough & nauseating as MineBlower's reputation suggested. It was painful enough to earn the dubious spot as my least favorite coaster in Florida. Got an instant pounding headache from this!

Which is a total shame, since MineBlower is a Gravity Group creation. They're usually extremely reliable wooden coaster manufacturers; The Voyage at Holiday World is my favorite pure woodie (#2 overall). Gravity Group did what they could with this assignment, but it proved beyond their capabilities.

But hey, from MineBlower's lift hill I finally spotted Hurricane. Wouldn't you know it, there's a second Fun Spot spot, physically separated from the main park by an unrelated stretch of seedy kitsch known as Old Town Kissimmee. I wandered out through this dilapidated ghost town forgotten by both time and youth, past façades which conformed to every known negative Floridian stereotype.

In spite of this, I kinda somewhat enjoyed Old Town Kissimee - not that I lingered here for the slightest moment - for its undisputable character and its oddity.

Across several lanes of traffic, I discovered Hurricane's tiny plot of land. There she was, an E&F Miler traveling carnival ride swaying precariously in the total lack of a breeze. And there wasn't a single ride operator or amusement park patron to be seen. Not a soul! Would Hurricane go the way of Montu and slip me by?

Why, no! Because one of Fun Spot's janitors spotted me staring longingly at Hurricane from the plaza, and he offered me a ride. These Fun Spot employees really are the greatest!

The janitor abandoned his impressive pile of swept carnival flotsam, and we used his skeleton key to reach Hurricane's loading platform. After a brief startup sequence (the coaster's machinery groaned and moaned and sputtered reassuringly), and a quick scan of my ride tokens, I boarded the rear car and headed out into the unknown.

Hurricane was rough & rickety in the classic traveling carnival style, which I expected and I didn't mind. I even liked it. Certainly it felt like a 5-star massage after MineBlower. Afterwards I said so much to the janitor, who was visibly interested in my feedback. Then he smiled, with a wry little grin, unprompted, and said "You know, this ride was the inspiration for Final Destination 3!" That's the second time today that someone's referenced that movie to me! I nodded along, disbelieving but happy to play along. I thanked the mighty janitor for this fantastic favor, and we parted ways. What a memorable brief experience!

D Hulk · Dec 6, 2021

Yes, I rode this.

The only Fun Spot ride remaining was Kiddie Coaster, a kiddie coaster. You'll see these things at every traveling carnival and two-fit fun center. Some places won't even let adults ride 'em! That's the caliber we're talkin' 'bout here.

The carnie, to his immense credit, grasped what I was up to. "What number is this?" he asked. "234," I replied. And I was off, along a modified oval track with a central helix. Barely 5 feet (if that) separated the upper and lower tracks. I physically ducked down each time I passed under that, not sure about the clearance.

And each time the train pulled into the station, I flashed the carnie a big dumb thumbs up. And the ride continued! I'd estimate now that I got six whopping circuits on Kiddie Coaster, which totally punched above its weight class. Did I mention that Fun Spot's employees were all, to a person, excellent. Best customer service in all of Florida, even?!

Because of those awesome Fun Spot employees and their small favors, I had a few tokens remaining as I exited through the arcade. That was enough for a game or two. I selected Stern's Star Trek pinball machine. The ball got stuck in the upper playfield at one point, and an attendant was quick to unstick it. Truly kings among men!

A 20 or so minute drive due north returned me to Disney World around late afternoon. It was a little surreal reaching Swan by car. It was almost like seeing this place in a different light, now that I was newly liberated.

My first agenda was simply to recover in my hotel room...much warranted after a glorious coaster-filled day. After cooling off and relaxing for around 90 minutes or thereabouts, my next agenda became dinner. I no longer had any dining reservations planned out - there were zero openings available so close to the 50th - which cut off all the fancier-looking table service restaurants in Swan, Dolphin, and beyond. Besides, I didn't much feel like a proper full course meal at this point.

I wanted ice cream for dinner!

Once that was settled, I made the laborious trek on foot over to the Beach & Yacht Club. (Still not gettin' any more used to the unending, mostly empty, needlessly vast long distances separating everything in Disney World.) I paused at Beaches & Cream's quick service window, where I threw all caution to the wind and I ordered the Mini Mickey Sink. What I wanted was the Kitchen Sink, which serves four, because I'm gluttonous, but I guess that's not permitted by law so I went with the next best thing.

What is this?! Three scoops of the three classic flavors - vanilla, chocolate, & strawberry - topped with basically every topping on hand ranging from hot fudge to whipped cream to sprinkles, and then for funsies they throw in peanut butter and sandwich cookies and a big ol' brownie. If I may be so bold, it wasn't enough! I scarfed the sweet, nourishing goo down hungrily, then I abandoned my souvenir Mickey buttocks on the table and I vanished into the night.

After a day of meat, beer, French fries and ice cream, the only major food group missing was liquor. Bidding Yacht Club farewell, I headed down the lighthouse dock to grab a Friendship boat over to the Boardwalk.

In normal daylight hours, when time's a-wastin', this would've seemed inconveniently slow. But finally my exhaustion had brought me down to Walt Disney World's slow touring pace, so in this moment I didn't at all mind the freaking 25 minutes it took to reach the nearest thing on-property.

I went to Abracadabar - which doesn't get bolded, since I first went here on Epcot night. I ordered the same as last time, and I just got an Old Fashioned. Sometimes you just need a nice nightcap!

Halfway through my drink, right around 9 o'clock, the sounds of explosions rocketed out from Epcot. This was Harmonious, doing guest previews two nights of its official premiere on October 1st. Think this was its first-ever public showing? Whatever it was, it drew the crowds. Within 10 minutes of the show's conclusion I could see the trickle of Boardwalk guests outside grow into a torrent, and then a tsunami. I retained my precious bar counter seat, enjoying a second Old Fashioned why not while I waited for these masses to ebb. Fully satisfied at last with what turned out to be - in my estimate - a very productive and satisfying day full of contrasts and thrills, I turned in for the night.

One more full day to go!

D Hulk · Dec 7, 2021

October 30th
Day 10

First up on the docket for this day would be SeaWorld Orlando.

They wouldn't open until 10 AM, leaving me plenty of time - too much time really - to loiter about, pre-pack a little for my travel day, and grab an exceedingly unimpressive egg sandwich from the lobby deli. I had time enough to slowly digest said sandwich plus coffee, and even return to my room for a quarter hour or so to no end below taking off. Based on the nearly nonexistent crowds at Busch Gardens the day before, I figured there was no rush getting to SeaWorld early for a rope drop.

It probably took around 10 minutes to drive from Swan to SeaWorld, which made it easier to get to than the nearest Walt Disney World theme parks honestly. I pulled into SeaWorld's parking lot gates around 9:55...well behind of some rather unexpectedly large crowds who were already here ahead of me! Uh-oh! Did I mistime this?

At the very least my Platinum Pass gave me preferred VIP parking near the entry gates. I drove past many acres of parking lot which were already full to bursting. Hundreds of guests were already assembled for SeaWorld's entry sequence. I settled in for a day of long, long lines.

My panic subsided quickly as I approached these masses. Oh, I realized, this is simply the Disney World stroller set! Whatever they were here for, it wasn't the same as me. I was here hunting roller coasters - all other concerns were secondary - and these guests weren't going to be remotely interested or even physically able to do those terrors.

Having seen the three SeaWorld parks in this past year, I can confidently say that Orlando is their crown jewel. (Busch Gardens Tampa still tops it.) It's a Goldilocks situation. San Diego is too small, with a reduced attraction lineup. San Antonio is too large, with acres of desert sage separating everything. Orlando is juuust right, large enough to contain everything they need, while still feeling usable and compact. The place-making is nice here, not fantastic, but clean and well manicured. At times the "sea" theme comes across a little abstract - at other times it's like a budget version of DisneySea, even - so it lacks the specificity of Busch Gardens.

Like Busch, SeaWorld has a flamboyance! There were animal exhibits all along the walkways throughout the park. Best as I can figure, the family crowds were here for this. In that regard, SeaWorld is like a combination of a zoo and an aquarium, on a theme park scale. Plus, there are the coasters, if you're into that sort of thing. I was!

I began with Manta, a B&M flying coaster. This ride sure makes an impression from the main walkway with that simulated water splash effect. The ride keeps fairly low to the ground, except for its initial lift hill, twisting around rockwork and trees and largely obscuring its layout from view. I found the photo-worthy queue marquee, and I went inside.

At this time, 20 or so minutes after a crowded park opening, I was the only person in Manta's queue. Uncoordinated switchbacks coursed through a subterranean manta ray exhibit, and sometimes the route passed straight through puddles of stillwater. Not a great look, SeaWorld!

Eventually I reached a section where the lights weren't working (!), so I broke out my iPhone flashlight to find my way. After one or two turns down pitch black corners, I discovered another park guest lost and cowering in the dark. No, seriously! This poor man in his 50s had gotten lost. Leading the way with my flashlight, I forged a path upstairs to the load station.

We struck up a brief friendship in that time. Despite his age, my new friend was a fledgling coaster enthusiast, having just discovered his latest passion. This would be his first flying coaster! We discussed that model a little bit; I gave advice for riding in a Superman position. We rode alongside each other, and he had an absolute hollering blast!

So what is a flying coaster, you might ask? Well, you ride facing forward in a flying position, held under the track on your chest. This position which really emphasizes the positive G-forces; flying coasters are among the most intense I've done. They're also typically some of my favorite B&Ms, particularly the unbeatable duo of Tatsu and Flying Dinosaur. Manta is smaller and less intense than those behemoths, but it's still oodles of fun if your body is prepared.

Manta surprised me by going with a pretzel loop right after the initial drop. Flying coaster typically reserve these catastrophically intense maneuvers for their climaxes. That was Manta's highlight. The remaining layout mostly sticks low, with the occasional inversion and turnaround. It felt like a trench run! There were almost constant near-misses with rockwork and waterways, mere feet from riders. That "splashdown" drenched my arms. if that coffee hadn't woken me up, Manta sure did! A great start.

PerGron · Dec 7, 2021

D Hulk said:
So what is a flying coaster, you might ask? Well, you ride facing forward in a flying position, held under the track on your chest. This position which really emphasizes the positive G-forces; flying coasters are among the most intense I've done. They're also typically some of my favorite B&Ms, particularly the unbeatable duo of Tatsu and Flying Dinosaur. Manta is smaller and less intense than those behemoths, but it's still oodles of fun if your body is prepared.

Manta surprised me by going with a pretzel loop right after the initial drop. Flying coaster typically reserve these catastrophically intense maneuvers for their climaxes. That was Manta's highlight. The remaining layout mostly sticks low, with the occasional inversion and turnaround. It felt like a trench run! There were almost constant near-misses with rockwork and waterways, mere feet from riders. That "splashdown" drenched my arms. if that coffee hadn't woken me up, Manta sure did! A great start.

I’m no coaster person, but I do love animals and honestly out of the respect for the manta ray, Manta is my favorite coaster I’ve been on. The way it moves is so true to the way manta rays move in real life that even if this is a cookie-cutter copy-paste ride (I’m not sure if it is or not) the theming and base is just so cool and well done

D Hulk · Dec 7, 2021

With SeaWorld's other big rides not opening until 11, I paid a visit to Empire of the Penguin in the interim.

The area's troubled trackless dark ride wasn't operating on this day, so team members saw us directly into the enclosed penguin exhibit. Presumably, when this section first opened, it was intended as SeaWorld's answer to Harry Potter - somehow - so there was a bit more budget and effort put into some traditional theme park stylings. That included the dark ride, and it included the elaborately themed icy rockwork which seems designed to make this into an Antarctic Hogsmeade.

Time has passed, and it seems that Empire of the Penguin has settled into its natural role as an extremely elaborate animal exhibit. Which is more fitting for SeaWorld, anyhow. The glacial placemaking is only moderately effective in Florida's climate...at least on the outside. On the inside, though...

The penguins' habitat was chilled to nearly freezing temperatures. Animal experts staffing the space were clad in massive parkas. Having just arrived from the humid outdoors, dressed in shorts and a T-shirt, I was gratefully overwhelmed by the cool temperatures. SeaWorld's air conditioning overall put Disney World's to shame, but this is next level! For as long as I was comfortable, I remained, watching the penguins interact and swim and generally be penguins. (And smell like penguins too. Woof!)

Cuteness!

I liked this exhibit! Had I come in expecting some major E-ticket, I might've been underwhelmed, but taken as an animal walkthrough, and in contrast to the similar walkthroughs at San Diego & San Antonio, it was wonderful. Charming and approachable for a casual visitor, and seemingly well made from a zookeeping perspective as well. I had a good conversation with the staffers, asking about the different penguin species, their diets, preferred temperatures, et cetera, which was the most genuinely educational thing on the whole trip. @PerGron, I'd be curious to hear your opinion on this.

It was 11 by now, time for Kraken, a B&M floorless coaster. (SeaWorld Orlando is known in the coaster community for its trio of world class B&Ms, incidentally.) Like most floorless coasters, Kraken follows the standard B&M inversion formula, the formula which was first established by Kumba down in Tampa. Y'now, lift, drop, vertical loop, cobra roll, a corkscrew or two. The second vertical loop is Kraken's variation on tradition.

Kraken's a pretty good example of the floorless genre - floorless coasters generally being classic looping coasters like Kumba or Hulk only, well, floorless, which is mostly a gimmick. Not a standout ride, but it gets the job done.

While most of SeaWorld is carefully landscaped to be competitive with Disney World, Kraken and Mako share acreage that's hidden away from the central walkways. Most likely, the only guests who will see this bare naked tangle of steel - such a common sight in the more barebones coaster parks - will be the coaster enthusiast types who don't mind such scenery.

Up towards the main walkways, Kraken impresses. Its tracks intertwining with the lagoons and rocky canyons much like the better Busch Gardens coasters. In these moments, with its soothing aquamarine track, Kraken is a pretty enough sight.

Not sure if this one is remotely true to real life krakens. There wasn't much of a zoological component here that was comparable to Manta.

PerGron said:
I’m no coaster person, but I do love animals and honestly out of the respect for the manta ray, Manta is my favorite coaster I’ve been on. The way it moves is so true to the way manta rays move in real life that even if this is a cookie-cutter copy-paste ride (I’m not sure if it is or not) the theming and base is just so cool and well done

Manta is a genuinely good coaster as a coaster. It's by no means a copy-paste; this layout was designed exclusively for SeaWorld. I'm pleased to know that it serves its edutainment/zoological purpose just as well.

PerGron · Dec 7, 2021

D Hulk said:
@PerGron, I'd be curious to hear your opinion on this.

The penguin and sea lion exhibits at SeaWorld Orlando are two of my top 5 favorite exhibits I've ever seen. The way they get equal parts land and water, the depth, the temperature, and correct social structure, plus making artificial snow (and they let the penguins raise their own eggs which almost nobody does) really put them over the top. I haven't ever seen a penguin enclosure anywhere that has topped it

MickeyCB · Dec 7, 2021

D Hulk said:
Why, no! Because one of Fun Spot's janitors spotted me staring longingly at Hurricane from the plaza, and he offered me a ride. These Fun Spot employees really are the greatest!

The janitor abandoned his impressive pile of swept carnival flotsam, and we used his skeleton key to reach Hurricane's loading platform. After a brief startup sequence (the coaster's machinery groaned and moaned and sputtered reassuringly), and a quick scan of my ride tokens, I boarded the rear car and headed out into the unknown.

Hurricane was rough & rickety in the classic traveling carnival style, which I expected and I didn't mind. I even liked it. Certainly it felt like a 5-star massage after MineBlower. Afterwards I said so much to the janitor, who was visibly interested in my feedback. Then he smiled, with a wry little grin, unprompted, and said "You know, this ride was the inspiration for Final Destination 3!" That's the second time today that someone's referenced that movie to me! I nodded along, disbelieving but happy to play along. I thanked the mighty janitor for this fantastic favor, and we parted ways. What a memorable brief experience!

You... are either crackerjacks or very very brave!

D Hulk · Dec 8, 2021

Journey into Atlantis came next. Thus far, my SeaWorld day was shaping up to be like my Busch Gardens day: minimal, nearly nonexistent wait times at every ride. That was surely the case on Journey. This seemed odd to me, considering the day's SeaWorld crowds could rival what I'd seen lately at the Disney World parks, until it occurred to me that Disney World guests do not like rides! Which is just surreal. Am I not understanding something here?

Journey into Atlantis was a curiosity. It's an early model Mack Rides water coaster - yes, technically this counts as a coaster credit (#237) - which seems to have fallen from greatness like the lost city of Atlantis itself. The ride system generally fuses a calming boat ride like Pirates of the Caribbean with shoot-the-chutes drops like River Adventure and mild coaster track segments which are less intense than Big Thunder. In this model, SeaWorld clearly saw the potential for a Disney-level attraction, and with more care and budget perhaps they might've succeeded. The on-ride thematic material felt neglected, sometimes even confusing.

Which leaves the ride system. It's an interesting experiment, but as a hybrid I feel the Mack Rides water coaster doesn't live up to its individual components. The single boat-sized car makes the coaster section rough & jagged. The water segments are too brief. The ride orders its elements oddly as well. That big centerpiece drop is midway through; it feels like the climax.

Too bad this ride system is outdated now. Disney Imagineering could've done something interesting with this back in the day.

Still early in the day, and with a whole lot already under my belt, I took it easy strolling down the pathways as I continued along SeaWorld's loop-like layout. There is some genuinely pleasant landscape architecture and placemaking filling the spaces, far better than at the other two SeaWorlds.

I ducked into the Shark Encounter aquarium. Like Empire of the Penguin, this exceeded my expectations...which were set by the other SeaWorlds. Shark Encounter feels like it meets or even betters some of the world class aquariums I've visited. There are plentiful tank exhibits throughout of sharks and other underwater beasties, with generous amounts of wraparound tunnels. Shark Encounter felt brand new, or at least very recently refreshed, with little of the neglect or aging I found in Epcot's Seas.

A few more pics. Shark Encounter was a nice diversion.

Well, back to the main course. Back to roller coasters! For Shark Encounter is merely the next door appetizer to the leviathan which put SeaWorld Orlando on the map for me...Mako!

This is the crown jewel in SeaWorld's B&M coaster collection...a glistening 200' tall hyper coaster which dominates its skyline. Mako has a sterling reputation in the coaster community as possibly be best hyper coaster B&M has done. (A "hyper coaster" is anything between 200' and 299'.) Mako is especially famous for its floater airtime. This celebrated coaster sensation is hard to come by. While the more common ejector airtime whips you violently up out of your seat - Velocicoaster and the various RMCs are all very good at this - floater airtime is a gentler, more graceful sensation where you slowly ease up out of your seat as the train crests a parabolic hill. Done correctly, like Mako does, this is a transcendent feeling where you briefly exit the train and become one with the coaster forces for several sustained seconds. And Mako does this repeatedly, back-to-back!

Kraken on the left and Mako on the right.

Mako lived up to expectations! Its layout is simplicity itself. The 200' drop gets you up to speed; by coaster standards, it's good but it isn't super tall nor the ride's highlight. You then follow a minimalist out-and-back course around a lagoon, with an L-turn in the middle. There are several floater hills along the way. Mako finally performs a celebratory helix over the walkways at the very end, which feels mostly for passersby below.

But those hills! At least four times on the ride, you experience unmistakable, prolonged floater airtime. If Mako didn't have those L-turns, there would be even more. Without a doubt, this is the most floater that I've felt on any single roller coaster...which automatically pushes Mako towards the front of my rankings. It's not the best floater I've felt - against all odds, it was a single hill from back row on Titan at Six Flags Over Texas which achieved that, but I'm told that floater on Titan is extremely rare - but it's very good floater, and very plentiful. While for me Islands of Adventure has the better coasters, I wouldn't argue if someone told me that Mako was their favorite Florida coaster.

All in all I did 4 rides on Mako. I immediately U-turned back into the queue after my first ride...along with the same half dozen or so people who were marathoning this. I paused to catch my breath before then grabbing rides #3 & #4. Mako is one of the best B&Ms that I've done, hands down.

MickeyCB said:
You... are either crackerjacks or very very brave!

amjt660 · Dec 8, 2021

MickeyCB said:
You... are either crackerjacks or very very brave!

I am sure the janitor had all the maintenance records available at his disposal for Hulk to review before riding
He keeps the maintenance records in his file with his training certificate

Hulk took this video just before the janitor started the coaster

Max

DisneyAndUniversalFan · Dec 8, 2021

Great report on SeaWorld. As always. Where does it rank with the Disney and Universal parks for you?

D Hulk · Dec 8, 2021

Back into systematic, ride-by-ride, knock 'em down mode! My next victim would be Infinity Falls, SeaWorld's fairly new entry into the river rafting genre. Infinity Falls notably has (for now) the world's tallest raft ride drop. (Silver Dollar City: "Hold my beer.") It's overall an interesting piece of engineering, between that massive drop, the vertical lift hill, and the impressive slalom of rapids leading up to that climax. Infinity Falls wholly satisfies as a raft ride, which is to say that it offers a generous ride time and it gets you suitably soaked.

Too soaked, even! Getting off of this, I felt like my outfit was just about done for the day, that I needed to return to my hotel for a change. Which is how I felt after Popeye's at Islands of Adventure as well, the main difference being that Infinity Falls caught me off guard and I wasn't dressed for it.

And since I brought up Popeye's, well, Infinity Falls cannot quite match it for quality, but it comes damn close. The rapids are nearly as rough and tumble here, the soaking just about as good, and the two decades' of improved tech does wonders. I'm not sure what the theme is here - "generic tropical" is the best I can muster up - but whatever it is, SeaWorld sure went all out in realizing it. There is some nice, varied rockwork and some lush vegetation.

I made my way along SeaWorld's loop route to Sesame Street Land. And while SeaWorld is indeed laid out on a loop circling a lagoon, like Islands of Adventure or World Showcase, SeaWorld feels distinctly more lopsided with most of the big rides and animal exhibits in the upper half of the park which I'd already traveled. Sesame Street Land feels very cut off down in its own corner, which can be a good thing for a segregated kiddie area, but it wound up feeling slightly isolated. There was life here, though, visible in the splash pads and the adorable kid-friendly flat rides. The toddler target audience was having a blast!

I'd come for Super Grover's Box Car Derby, another junior coaster in the vein of Air Grover & Woodie Woodpecker & Barnstormer & Hippogriff et al. I rode this for the credit, and I continued on. Like with the others, Super Grover serves its purpose catering to the younger set, and it has a clean, cute look.

Next I entered SeaWorld's doldrums. Following Sesame Street Land, attractions completely peter out on this edge of the lagoon. The big draw down here is the lagoon itself, which is visible at length from a massive pier bridge spanning nearly the entire width of the park. This pier provides wonderful panoramic views of the entire opposite shore. There was a nice breeze, too, cooled by the lagoon waters, making this long trek relaxing and worth taking at a casual pace, not like some of the more horrendous, sunbaked death marches I'd encountered at certain Orlando theme parks (*Epcot!*).

To SeaWorld's credit, they're making efforts to revitalize this dead corner of the park. Seen above is Ice Breaker, a new Premier Rides launch coaster set to open in 2022...another postponed victim of the pandemic. A launch coaster would certainly fill a gap in SeaWorld's ride lineup. It'd get me to return, too, if I happen to be in the area for the higher-priority Iron Gwazi next year.

Spike!

At one moment, it almost seemed like that return trip wouldn't be needed. There I was, silently admiring Ice Breaker's structure, when I caught glimpse of the load platform. There they were, huge crowds in civilian outfits, milling about like some sort of guest preview, or something! My mind raced. Are they letting passholders ride this early?! No...unlikely...the coaster clearly wasn't operating. And yet I stared for a while, hoping for an extremely unlikely additional coaster credit. I wasn't the only one either; other passholders appeared to stare, and we were all thinking the same thing: "Can I ride this?" Eventually, we all gave up. We walked away saddened like Charlie Brown. :cry:

But I took my precious time crossing that pier bridge - incredible panoramic view seen above - sneaking the occasional peak at Ice Breaker trying to will it into operation.

I reached the furthest shore, back near the entry area where this rather brisk park tour began. (It was barely past noon already!) The coastal placemaking along this stretch is where SeaWorld comes closest to DisneySea's high standards, with a vaguely Mediterranean fishing village aesthetic. When it wants to be, this can be a very pretty park!

DisneyAndUniversalFan said:
Great report on SeaWorld. As always. Where does it rank with the Disney and Universal parks for you?

Tell you what, when I near the end of this report, I'll provide a ranking of all the Florida parks I visited.

D Hulk · Dec 9, 2021

In took under three hours to complete a SeaWorld circuit. I now found myself back near the entry, still soaking wet from Infinity Falls, and with no more major must-do agenda for the day. It seemed like the best immediate course of action was to return to Swan to regroup and change my clothes. Being a SeaWorld annual passholder made this decision easier.

But I implore you, do not follow my example! SeaWorld is far, far more than its rides.

No day at SeaWorld is complete without the animal shows.

Which is to say, I was about to have an incomplete day at SeaWorld. The first animal show was still two-and-a-half hours away. Besides, just prior to this trip, I'd done extensive touring at both San Diego and San Antonio. I'd thoroughly enjoyed the comprehensive animal show roster at both other parks. The shows were largely similar between the two Sans, so as delightful and restful as the shows were, I wasn't in the mood for an encore performance.

Though, as these pictures attest, I was in no hurry. I paused at a dolphin encounter to enjoy some unstructured marine mammal interaction. What I saw of SeaWorld Orlando's interactive animal experiences impressed me, more than the similar offerings at their sister parks.

Stepping inside a random structure - to briefly enjoy amazing air conditioning and to confirm that Disney World was whiffing it in this category - I found this model of Kraken. That's neat!

I also took a little detour by the entrance for a second and last ride on Manta. Just as pulse-poundingly intense as before! I thought that maybe Manta's winds would dry my outfit, which it would've in a desert climate, but in tropical humidity that doesn't work.

So I returned to my conveniently nearby rental car, and I drove the brief, easy 10 minutes back to my Disney World hotel.

The whole day ahead of me was an open book. I pondered my various options. Should I go back to SeaWorld for shows? Should I add Legoland to the agenda and get some expensive coaster credits? Should I do Fun Spot Orlando? Or...

Should I give Epcot another chance?

It had been eating away at my soul those past several days - and for the months since my trip - how little I enjoyed my first visit to Epcot. There is no point in rehashing what I disliked. I tried touring it like you would any other theme park or tourist destination worldwide, which didn't play out. But I didn't eat or drink, and I assumed at this point that possibly if I approached World Showcase from a culinary perspective (I was very hungry), perhaps its elusive pleasures would reveal themselves to me.

This was sort of a Hail Mary play. I had no tickets lined up, so at 2 o'clock when Swan's theme park liaison came on duty, I paid him a visit and I arranged a pricey day-of ticket. With plans to overspend on food & drink as well. Come hell or high water, I was gonna make Epcot enjoyable or die trying! (I eventually died trying.)

So that cements it. Slightly after 2, I found myself on foot traversing a familiar pedestrian path past Beach & Yacht Club towards Epcot's International Gateway. The was a "man on a mission" moment. Though I hate walking at Disney World, it was worth it for Epcot's big make-or-break challenge.

I reentered Epcot with one plan: DRINKING AROUND THE WORLD!

Surely, I would eat around most of the world as well. Didn't want to get hammered, just wanted to try meeting World Showcase on its own terms. I had no plans on doing any rides, no, SeaWorld's amazing coasters had abundantly scratched that itch, bless them. Let the faux-international bar crawl commence!

D Hulk · Dec 9, 2021

Rules for Drinking Around the World:

One alcoholic beverage is to be procured and guzzled at every World Showcase pavilion. Substitutions from neighboring Food & Wine Festival carts are allowed. There are no specific drink or restaurant requirements.

Snacking Around the World is an optional sub-category, one I'll be participating in only intermittently as stomach space allows.

For my route, I selected a counterclockwise direction. Given the choice to start with French or British food, this was a no-brainer. It was a reversal of my previous WS tour, as well. This proved to be my preferred WS order by a substantial margin. The sightlines approaching individual pavilions were consistently better, despite the constant intrusion of World Showcase Lagoon, and the sun was at my back for the entire journey.

I'm pretty sure Les Halles Boulangerie-Patisserie is the eatery I selected in France. Or maybe it was La Creperie de Paris? Apart from the food, Epcot's restaurant design rarely made any impression, since it consistently strikes a median representative balance for its host nation. In other words, these places all felt generic.

At any rate, I found myself in a place specializing in desserts. There were sandwiches, too, but out of pure cussedness I figured on beginning the afternoon nosh with a sweet. And, of course, an alcoholic drink to go with it, no matter how poorly paired my selections might've been.

Those selections? A mimosa and a crème bruleé. I ate the dessert standing up in an adjoining dining room. Seating was consistently hard to come by every time I passed through Epcot, which was one reason I found this legendarily restful park to be the most stressful & discomforting of all Disney's 12 parks.

The crème bruleé was pretty bland and it had an odd texture. It'd been sitting in a display case for heavens knows how long. The mimosa...well, it had booze in it, and it was cold. It was fine. I carried it with me through the streets of "Paris" after finishing my sweet. Drinking in public is one of Epcot's meagre pleasures, and a decidedly un-Disney pleasure at that.

I take issue with the notion that eating & drinking is an essential part of Epcot. If this is such a crucial cornerstone to appreciating World Showcase, it's shouldn't be an upcharge! Or rather, since Epcot is more of a shopping district than a theme park by most sane definitions, there shouldn't be an obscene $109+ cover charge to enter.

In Morocco, I stopped at Tangierine Café. To counter the Gallic sweetness, I went with a more typical lunch order here, choosing a Moroccan beer and grilled mystery meat with couscous.

It was...fine. Epcot's food is fine. Pretty blandly spiced, light on flavors, generally playing it safe for a potential picky American audience. I only found one dish which I'd never eaten before (school bread). This is Epcot's overall culinary playbook. I found Epcot's food generally to be not terribly authentic and extremely overrated.

I said my peace on an earlier day that World Showcase is actively not trying to offer authentic international experiences, that the whole thing is a sanitized, sterilized, stereotyped, Americanized fantasy for Orlando tourists to pretend like they're worldly for a day. This is fiction masquerading as documentary. It's Fantasyland for adults, only it doesn't have the honesty to admit that. If it tried to be more overtly make believe, if it didn't strive to be World Substitute, I would take much less issue. I see comments all the time that from fans who breathlessly praise World Showcase (who crow how they "literally" traveled around the world!) but refuse to learn more about the nations it represents, and I fear that World Showcase's noblest goals are failing.

Let's get drunk!

DisneyAndUniversalFan · Dec 9, 2021

D Hulk said:
Tell you what, when I near the end of this report, I'll provide a ranking of all the Florida parks I visited.

Sounds good man, can't wait. You always have great rankings.

D Hulk · Dec 10, 2021

My third stop on Drinking Around the World was the Japan Pavilion, my favorite place in World Showcase. Apart from some food commentary, I intend to make the rest of this Epcot recap purely descriptive. What I did, and where. More focus on pictures. No more airing of grievances. Think that would be better for everyone. Cool?

I selected the Katsura Grill quick service restaurant for this pavilion's food & drink combo. I got an Asahi beer, and a tonkotsu ramen.

Disney Corporation ramen

Proper, restaurant-prepared ramen is one of my very favorite dishes in the entire world! It is perfect Japanese comfort food, kind of like chicken noodle soup, so very much better than those 25 cent dried ramen packets. It's kind of my bellwether dish for assessing any restaurant which serves it, since the dish is so simple and yet so complex. My late mother did the same thing with chile rellenos.

It saddened me that Epcot's ramen was the worst restaurant ramen that I've had. The broth, which can be so deliriously rich and deep with flavor from boiling in a cauldron for the better part of a day, was watery and pallid here. The noodles tasted prepackaged, not made in-house from scratch. Which is perhaps asking a lot of a theme park restaurant, but it's the standard created by the ramen restaurants I've enjoyed in both Japan and the U.S., and it's the standard which I feel World Showcase should strive for.

Local small business ramen

Anticipating this post yesterday - and because it was cold & rainy - I went down to Ramen Yukinoya in Arcadia for a little compare 'n' contrast. It was delightful! This is the quality which I (unreasonably?) expected from Epcot.

At least you can never go wrong with Asahi! After slurping down my noodles, I followed a familiar exploration route through the Japan Pavilion while enjoying my beer. I discovered a little Remy figurine in the gardens commemorating Food & Wine. Simply wandering this section remained for me one of World Showcase's genuine joys.

I took the Asahi on a return tour of Mitsukoshi Department Store.

Selfies with Pikachu! (It still boggles my mind to see this in a Disney park.)

Once the Asahi was all gone, I proceeded towards Drink #4 at the American Adventure.

I stopped at Block & Hans. This time, full from ramen, there was no need for a snack. I switched to merely drinking, and I forfeited the minor Snacking Around the World challenge.

For my one drink, I went with a beer flight. Drinks ranged from a blonde, to an ale, to an IPA, to a cider, light to heavy, which was the order in which I drank them. This counts as a single drink, right? For quality and variety, this was the highest quality "single" drink of the entire Drinking Around the World enterprise.

Zipadeelady · Dec 10, 2021

We ate at Katsura Grill once, 5 years ago. We've never been back.