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Rank the SeaWorld Orlando coasters

Matt N

Matt N

CF Legend
Hi guys. SeaWorld Orlando is arguably one of the most iconic theme parks in Florida, and many of us have been there. So as I’m in a mood where I really miss Florida at the moment, I thought it might be fun to rank the park’s coasters; even though the park is not really known for its roller coasters, it arguably has one of the more respectable selections in Florida, and we haven’t had a good ranking thread in a while! Before I post my own ranking, I should point out that since becoming an enthusiast, I have visited SeaWorld once in August 2016, and barring Mako which I had 3 rides on, I only had 1 ride on each of the coasters. Also, when I give a coaster a rating out of 10, it’s on an overall spectrum of enjoyment, and in terms of position in my overall ranking, I have ridden 72 coasters in total. Anyway, before I ramble on too much, I’ll get the ball rolling with my personal ranking:
  1. Mako: It just had to be top, didn’t it? My 3 rides on Mako, back in August 2016, are still my favourite and most memorable coaster rides of all time, and I can say that with almost total certainty, despite how indecisive I am! I won’t go into too much detail, as you’ve all heard me gush about Mako enough by now, but in summary; loose lap bar + 13 year old who’s never ridden a B&M hyper before = WOW! The airtime is phenomenal, the ride is smooth and comfortable, it packs decent forces without being too intense; what’s not to love? I know B&M hypers are not necessarily a highly received ride type these days on the whole, but Mako is without a doubt the most fun I’ve ever had on a coaster, even nearly 4 years after my first ride! 10/10, #1 in overall rankings
  2. Kraken: Considering I’d mostly read negative reviews of it leading up to my visits to SeaWorld, I did not have overly high expectations of Kraken. But I rode it in the back row, and I was really pleasantly surprised! The ride had very good g-forces without necessarily being too intense to enjoy, I thought it kept its pace really well, I thought it was a lot smoother than reviews implied, and on the whole, I thought it was a very fun coaster; such a pleasant surprise! 9/10, #9 in overall rankings
  3. Manta: Now, Manta was unfortunately the polar opposite of Kraken in that I had high expectations for it and was somewhat underwhelmed, although I don’t necessarily think that that was the ride’s fault. Going in, I only really had Galactica at Alton Towers to go off of in terms of what I should have expected it to ride like, but I had read many rave reviews, saying things like “best coaster in Florida, easily” and I was told that it “annihilated Galactica in every conceivable category” (well, not necessarily told, but that was certainly the impression I got from reading reviews and comparisons between the different B&M flyers). Combine that with the fact that I do enjoy Galactica quite a lot, and I was naturally very excited. However, after my back row ride, I had a very controversial opinion of Manta; I honestly came off preferring Galactica, and by some distance. Now don’t get me wrong, I thought Manta was a good coaster, and it certainly lived up to the “Galactica on steroids” billing in intensity terms, but my praise didn’t extend much further than that. I can quite easily pinpoint the reason for this, and this is why I said that my disappointment wasn’t the ride’s fault; I found the pretzel loop way too intense to enjoy, and I didn’t think the rest of the layout was remarkable enough to make me love it. The swoopy bits were nice, and I enjoyed them, but I honestly think Galactica’s layout did more for me on the whole, and I actually found it quite rattly in comparison to Galactica. However, I should stress that my disappointment in Manta was probably more down to my intensity tolerance; if you like really intense coasters, you’ll love Manta. 6/10, #31 in overall rankings
  4. Journey to Atlantis: Now, I think that Journey to Atlantis is not a bad family attraction by any stretch, but I wasn’t overly enamoured with it in comparison to other family coasters I’ve done. The theming is very nice and really sets a nice scene for the attraction (I should point out that I rode before the refurbishment and edited storyline), with lots to look at and a very clear storyline. However, I wasn’t a huge lover of the ride system itself, as I was pretty much dry getting off and the coaster section wasn’t overly extensive (and I also thought it was a tad rough around the edges). Although having said that, I still liked it as far as family coasters go, and I’m being overly harsh on it with it being the prototype water coaster; it paved the way for many fantastic-looking attractions! 4/10 (but not a bad family coaster by any means), #50 in overall rankings
So, that’s my SWO coaster ranking! I think that the park has a very respectable coaster selection on the whole, and it only looks set to improve in the future; the ride selection looks to have improved substantially since I last went in 2016! Speaking of the rides I haven’t ridden, I wouldn’t like to think too much about where they’d go, but if I had to guess, I’d probably say that Box Car Derby would almost definitely be last, potentially second to last at a push, and Ice Breaker would probably be 2nd or 3rd. I wouldn’t like to guess too heavily, however.

But how do you rank SeaWorld Orlando’s coaster selection?
 
Matt N said:
Hi guys. SeaWorld Orlando is arguably one of the most iconic theme parks in Florida, and many of us have been there. So as I’m in a mood where I really miss Florida at the moment, I thought it might be fun to rank the park’s coasters; even though the park is not really known for its roller coasters, it arguably has one of the more respectable selections in Florida, and we haven’t had a good ranking thread in a while! Before I post my own ranking, I should point out that since becoming an enthusiast, I have visited SeaWorld once in August 2016, and barring Mako which I had 3 rides on, I only had 1 ride on each of the coasters. Also, when I give a coaster a rating out of 10, it’s on an overall spectrum of enjoyment, and in terms of position in my overall ranking, I have ridden 72 coasters in total. Anyway, before I ramble on too much, I’ll get the ball rolling with my personal ranking:
  1. Mako: It just had to be top, didn’t it? My 3 rides on Mako, back in August 2016, are still my favourite and most memorable coaster rides of all time, and I can say that with almost total certainty, despite how indecisive I am! I won’t go into too much detail, as you’ve all heard me gush about Mako enough by now, but in summary; loose lap bar + 13 year old who’s never ridden a B&M hyper before = WOW! The airtime is phenomenal, the ride is smooth and comfortable, it packs decent forces without being too intense; what’s not to love? I know B&M hypers are not necessarily a highly received ride type these days on the whole, but Mako is without a doubt the most fun I’ve ever had on a coaster, even nearly 4 years after my first ride! 10/10, #1 in overall rankings
  2. Kraken: Considering I’d mostly read negative reviews of it leading up to my visits to SeaWorld, I did not have overly high expectations of Kraken. But I rode it in the back row, and I was really pleasantly surprised! The ride had very good g-forces without necessarily being too intense to enjoy, I thought it kept its pace really well, I thought it was a lot smoother than reviews implied, and on the whole, I thought it was a very fun coaster; such a pleasant surprise! 9/10, #9 in overall rankings
  3. Manta: Now, Manta was unfortunately the polar opposite of Kraken in that I had high expectations for it and was somewhat underwhelmed, although I don’t necessarily think that that was the ride’s fault. Going in, I only really had Galactica at Alton Towers to go off of in terms of what I should have expected it to ride like, but I had read many rave reviews, saying things like “best coaster in Florida, easily” and I was told that it “annihilated Galactica in every conceivable category” (well, not necessarily told, but that was certainly the impression I got from reading reviews and comparisons between the different B&M flyers). Combine that with the fact that I do enjoy Galactica quite a lot, and I was naturally very excited. However, after my back row ride, I had a very controversial opinion of Manta; I honestly came off preferring Galactica, and by some distance. Now don’t get me wrong, I thought Manta was a good coaster, and it certainly lived up to the “Galactica on steroids” billing in intensity terms, but my praise didn’t extend much further than that. I can quite easily pinpoint the reason for this, and this is why I said that my disappointment wasn’t the ride’s fault; I found the pretzel loop way too intense to enjoy, and I didn’t think the rest of the layout was remarkable enough to make me love it. The swoopy bits were nice, and I enjoyed them, but I honestly think Galactica’s layout did more for me on the whole, and I actually found it quite rattly in comparison to Galactica. However, I should stress that my disappointment in Manta was probably more down to my intensity tolerance; if you like really intense coasters, you’ll love Manta. 6/10, #31 in overall rankings
  4. Journey to Atlantis: Now, I think that Journey to Atlantis is not a bad family attraction by any stretch, but I wasn’t overly enamoured with it in comparison to other family coasters I’ve done. The theming is very nice and really sets a nice scene for the attraction (I should point out that I rode before the refurbishment and edited storyline), with lots to look at and a very clear storyline. However, I wasn’t a huge lover of the ride system itself, as I was pretty much dry getting off and the coaster section wasn’t overly extensive (and I also thought it was a tad rough around the edges). Although having said that, I still liked it as far as family coasters go, and I’m being overly harsh on it with it being the prototype water coaster; it paved the way for many fantastic-looking attractions! 4/10 (but not a bad family coaster by any means), #50 in overall rankings
So, that’s my SWO coaster ranking! I think that the park has a very respectable coaster selection on the whole, and it only looks set to improve in the future; the ride selection looks to have improved substantially since I last went in 2016! Speaking of the rides I haven’t ridden, I wouldn’t like to think too much about where they’d go, but if I had to guess, I’d probably say that Box Car Derby would almost definitely be last, potentially second to last at a push, and Ice Breaker would probably be 2nd or 3rd. I wouldn’t like to guess too heavily, however.

But how do you rank SeaWorld Orlando’s coaster selection?
Click to expand...
1. Mako
2. Manta
3. Kraken

I'm not sure if I rode Super Grover's Box Car Derby back when it was Shamu Express or not, so I haven't counted it as a credit and won't count it in this list.
 
1. Mako - My favorite B&M hyper. While it follows a pretty rudimentary hyper layout, the way it rides is what makes it remarkable. With no seatbelts and a loose lap bar, you can get amazing floater on some hills that will keep you out of your seat for up to 5 seconds at a time. Not to mention the first drop in the back row is one of my favorites.

2. Manta - This is actually my 3rd favorite in Florida after Mako and Montu. I've yet to do a flyer more intense than this, but regardless of that the layout still holds up. Love the pretzel loop, has some fun rolls, and lovely interaction throughout.

3. Kraken - I used to really like this but my most recent ride wasn't the best, due a pretty noticeable rattle. Apparently they've taken great care of it since then, so I'm hopeful it rides well as it does have a pretty solid, if standard layout.

4. Journey to Atlantis - Great water ride, and the surprise coaster section makes it pretty special. But it just doesn't stand a chance when matching up with the big three.

5. Shamu Express - It's a +1.
 
1. Kraken. Good coaster, no complaints here.
2. Journey to Atlantis. Rode it once, 17 years ago. Meh.

Here endeth my experience of SeaWorld Orlando coasters.
 
Last edited:
1. Mako
2. Manta
3. Journey to Atlantis

During my visit Kraken was closed for the repainting so I didn't get the chance to ride it.
 
Sea World eh? I've done that now.

1. Mako - gorgeous
2. Ice Breaker - it's silly, but more my cup of tea than run of the mill B&Ms these days
3. Kraken - s'alright
4. Manta - probably better than Kraken, but clone
5. Journey to Atlantis
6. Grover
 
HeartlineCoaster said:
Sea World eh? I've done that now.

1. Mako - gorgeous
2. Ice Breaker - it's silly, but more my cup of tea than run of the mill B&Ms these days
3. Kraken - s'alright
4. Manta - probably better than Kraken, but clone
5. Journey to Atlantis
6. Grover
Click to expand...
I have one question with regard to the bolded.

If you don’t mind me asking; why is it that you say Kraken and Manta are run of the mill, but Mako isn’t? Mako follows a common formula for the ride type just the same as the other two, and your recent America trip reports suggest that you don’t overly like B&M Hypers when they follow the usual formula. What makes Mako different?

I’m never going to argue with someone putting it as their top SeaWorld coaster (heck, it’s my top all-time coaster!), but I was just interested to know why you rate Mako so highly because it seems to go against your opinions on other B&M Hyper Coasters.
 
Last edited:
1. Mako - still my overall number 1.
2. Manta - best flying coaster I've been on, that pretzel loop was amazing
3. Kraken - I'm not too bothered about standard sit down/floorless B&M coasters so I found this to be pretty average
4. Journey To Atlantis - Still an amazing ride but 'coaster' wise, it's at the bottom

Due to go back to SeaWorld soon so I may have an updated rankings here
 
1. Mako - awesome ride, loved the drop to the right under the first big turn
2. Ice Breaker - I thought this one had some great airtime, much more fun than I was expecting
3. Manta - maybe my favorite flyer, loved the splashdown
4. Kraken - fun ride, but not my favorite floorless
5. Journey to Atlantis - liked this one a lot, just not as much as the others
 
Woo hoo, I can answer this poll properly now, my last effort was a bit feable:

Howie said:
1. Kraken. Good coaster, no complaints here.
2. Journey to Atlantis. Rode it once, 17 years ago. Meh.

Here endeth my experience of SeaWorld Orlando coasters.
Click to expand...

Well... almost properly, I still haven't ridden Shamu Express (or whatever it's called nowadays) cos I ain't no ho, but here's the other 6:

1. Mako.
Bit of a no brainer really. I mean, who doesn't love a good B&M hyper? And Mako is indeed a really good B&M hyper.
Brill.

2. Kraken.
Didn't get to ride it this visit cos it was closed for annual maintenance so I haven't actually ridden Kraken since 2007! But I remember liking it lots. Great floorless coaster.

3. Manta.
Properly good flying coaster this, really liked it. Only beaten by Kraken because I generally prefer sit down coasters to flyers, but there's not much in it.

4. Ice Breaker.
Almost seems a shame to have this languishing down in fourth place cos I was very pleasantly surprised by Ice Breaker. Cracking little ride with punchy launches and way more airtime than expected.

5. Pipeline.
Pretty decent for a stand-up coaster but, fellas, you do have to be careful where the 'boys' are positioned before riding or they'll likely take a bruising.

6. Journey to Atlantis.
It's been even longer since I rode this one, went on it once in 2003 and the one thing I remember about it was getting absolutely soaked, sooooo..... nah.
 
Matt N said:
Hi guys. SeaWorld Orlando is arguably one of the most iconic theme parks in Florida, and many of us have been there. So as I’m in a mood where I really miss Florida at the moment, I thought it might be fun to rank the park’s coasters; even though the park is not really known for its roller coasters, it arguably has one of the more respectable selections in Florida, and we haven’t had a good ranking thread in a while! Before I post my own ranking, I should point out that since becoming an enthusiast, I have visited SeaWorld once in August 2016, and barring Mako which I had 3 rides on, I only had 1 ride on each of the coasters. Also, when I give a coaster a rating out of 10, it’s on an overall spectrum of enjoyment, and in terms of position in my overall ranking, I have ridden 72 coasters in total. Anyway, before I ramble on too much, I’ll get the ball rolling with my personal ranking:
  1. Mako: It just had to be top, didn’t it? My 3 rides on Mako, back in August 2016, are still my favourite and most memorable coaster rides of all time, and I can say that with almost total certainty, despite how indecisive I am! I won’t go into too much detail, as you’ve all heard me gush about Mako enough by now, but in summary; loose lap bar + 13 year old who’s never ridden a B&M hyper before = WOW! The airtime is phenomenal, the ride is smooth and comfortable, it packs decent forces without being too intense; what’s not to love? I know B&M hypers are not necessarily a highly received ride type these days on the whole, but Mako is without a doubt the most fun I’ve ever had on a coaster, even nearly 4 years after my first ride! 10/10, #1 in overall rankings
  2. Kraken: Considering I’d mostly read negative reviews of it leading up to my visits to SeaWorld, I did not have overly high expectations of Kraken. But I rode it in the back row, and I was really pleasantly surprised! The ride had very good g-forces without necessarily being too intense to enjoy, I thought it kept its pace really well, I thought it was a lot smoother than reviews implied, and on the whole, I thought it was a very fun coaster; such a pleasant surprise! 9/10, #9 in overall rankings
  3. Manta: Now, Manta was unfortunately the polar opposite of Kraken in that I had high expectations for it and was somewhat underwhelmed, although I don’t necessarily think that that was the ride’s fault. Going in, I only really had Galactica at Alton Towers to go off of in terms of what I should have expected it to ride like, but I had read many rave reviews, saying things like “best coaster in Florida, easily” and I was told that it “annihilated Galactica in every conceivable category” (well, not necessarily told, but that was certainly the impression I got from reading reviews and comparisons between the different B&M flyers). Combine that with the fact that I do enjoy Galactica quite a lot, and I was naturally very excited. However, after my back row ride, I had a very controversial opinion of Manta; I honestly came off preferring Galactica, and by some distance. Now don’t get me wrong, I thought Manta was a good coaster, and it certainly lived up to the “Galactica on steroids” billing in intensity terms, but my praise didn’t extend much further than that. I can quite easily pinpoint the reason for this, and this is why I said that my disappointment wasn’t the ride’s fault; I found the pretzel loop way too intense to enjoy, and I didn’t think the rest of the layout was remarkable enough to make me love it. The swoopy bits were nice, and I enjoyed them, but I honestly think Galactica’s layout did more for me on the whole, and I actually found it quite rattly in comparison to Galactica. However, I should stress that my disappointment in Manta was probably more down to my intensity tolerance; if you like really intense coasters, you’ll love Manta. 6/10, #31 in overall rankings
  4. Journey to Atlantis: Now, I think that Journey to Atlantis is not a bad family attraction by any stretch, but I wasn’t overly enamoured with it in comparison to other family coasters I’ve done. The theming is very nice and really sets a nice scene for the attraction (I should point out that I rode before the refurbishment and edited storyline), with lots to look at and a very clear storyline. However, I wasn’t a huge lover of the ride system itself, as I was pretty much dry getting off and the coaster section wasn’t overly extensive (and I also thought it was a tad rough around the edges). Although having said that, I still liked it as far as family coasters go, and I’m being overly harsh on it with it being the prototype water coaster; it paved the way for many fantastic-looking attractions! 4/10 (but not a bad family coaster by any means), #50 in overall rankings
So, that’s my SWO coaster ranking! I think that the park has a very respectable coaster selection on the whole, and it only looks set to improve in the future; the ride selection looks to have improved substantially since I last went in 2016! Speaking of the rides I haven’t ridden, I wouldn’t like to think too much about where they’d go, but if I had to guess, I’d probably say that Box Car Derby would almost definitely be last, potentially second to last at a push, and Ice Breaker would probably be 2nd or 3rd. I wouldn’t like to guess too heavily, however.

But how do you rank SeaWorld Orlando’s coaster selection?
Click to expand...
I think I could update this thread, as I’ve since returned to SeaWorld Orlando!
(New entries in italics, up-to-date thoughts underlined, up-to-date ratings and rankings in bold)
  1. Mako: It just had to be top, didn’t it? My 3 rides on Mako, back in August 2016, are still my favourite and most memorable coaster rides of all time, and I can say that with almost total certainty, despite how indecisive I am! I won’t go into too much detail, as you’ve all heard me gush about Mako enough by now, but in summary; loose lap bar + 13 year old who’s never ridden a B&M hyper before = WOW! The airtime is phenomenal, the ride is smooth and comfortable, it packs decent forces without being too intense; what’s not to love? I know B&M hypers are not necessarily a highly received ride type these days on the whole, but Mako is without a doubt the most fun I’ve ever had on a coaster, even nearly 4 years after my first ride! Update: It still holds up in 2023, folks! I was nervous to reride Mako, but it was every bit as good as I’d remembered if not better! 10/10, #1/111
  2. Ice Breaker: What a huge surprise! I had pretty low expectations for Ice Breaker, but I thought that it was an absolutely phenomenal little coaster! The swing launch gets things off to a fantastically fun start, with punchy launches, a gorgeously floaty Junior Scorpion Tail, and some really awesome pops of airtime! The rest of the ride is fantastic too, with some absolutely sublime pops of surprisingly strong ejector air, fun twists and turns and an overall really fun layout! Overall, then, I absolutely adored Ice Breaker; it’s just such a fun ride, with its fun swing launch, surprisingly amazing airtime and overall fun layout making for a wonderfully fun and rerideable coaster! 10/10, #9/111
  3. Kraken: Considering I’d mostly read negative reviews of it leading up to my visits to SeaWorld, I did not have overly high expectations of Kraken. But I rode it in the back row, and I was really pleasantly surprised! The ride had very good g-forces without necessarily being too intense to enjoy, I thought it kept its pace really well, I thought it was a lot smoother than reviews implied, and on the whole, I thought it was a very fun coaster; such a pleasant surprise! Update: My thoughts were very similar in 2023 to what they were in 2016. I do rate the B&M looper ride style as a whole somewhat lower than I did in 2016, so it doesn’t do quite as well in my overall rankings as it once did, but Kraken remains a thoroughly decent ride in 2023, in my view! 8/10, #24/111
  4. Pipeline: The Surf Coaster: I had high hopes for Pipeline, and I was excited to see what B&M’s new take on the standup coaster was like after hearing some of the initial superlative reviews. However, I have to say that I was pretty underwhelmed. The ride has everything going for it, with a decent launch, a decent layout, and some pretty strong airtime, but in my view, it’s fundamentally ruined by the fact that it’s rather uncomfortable. I feel that B&M did not manage to solve any of the key flaws of the standup coaster in that regard, and I’m not necessarily sure that the freedom of movement in the seats helped. Landing back on the floor after the jumps hurt my feet quite a bit, and the vest restraints also dug into my collar bones horribly during the airtime; I’d argue that Pipeline possibly has the least comfortable B&M vests I’ve experienced. Overall then, Pipeline, while an admirable concept with some good ideas, falls down due to the fact that it is fundamentally quite uncomfortable, in my view. 5/10, #60/111
  5. Manta: Now, Manta was unfortunately the polar opposite of Kraken in that I had high expectations for it and was somewhat underwhelmed, although I don’t necessarily think that that was the ride’s fault. Going in, I only really had Galactica at Alton Towers to go off of in terms of what I should have expected it to ride like, but I had read many rave reviews, saying things like “best coaster in Florida, easily” and I was told that it “annihilated Galactica in every conceivable category” (well, not necessarily told, but that was certainly the impression I got from reading reviews and comparisons between the different B&M flyers). Combine that with the fact that I do enjoy Galactica quite a lot, and I was naturally very excited. However, after my back row ride, I had a very controversial opinion of Manta; I honestly came off preferring Galactica, and by some distance. Now don’t get me wrong, I thought Manta was a good coaster, and it certainly lived up to the “Galactica on steroids” billing in intensity terms, but my praise didn’t extend much further than that. I can quite easily pinpoint the reason for this, and this is why I said that my disappointment wasn’t the ride’s fault; I found the pretzel loop way too intense to enjoy, and I didn’t think the rest of the layout was remarkable enough to make me love it. The swoopy bits were nice, and I enjoyed them, but I honestly think Galactica’s layout did more for me on the whole, and I actually found it quite rattly in comparison to Galactica. However, I should stress that my disappointment in Manta was probably more down to my intensity tolerance; if you like really intense coasters, you’ll love Manta. Update: My thoughts on Manta remain similar in 2023, although I perhaps like it somewhat less than I did in 2016. The pretzel loop admittedly didn’t seem quite as bad as it did back in 2016, but it was still a bit unpleasant. The ride was also rather uncomfortable, and I’ve overall gone off the flying coaster ride type a bit since 2016. 4/10, #79/111
  6. Journey to Atlantis: Now, I think that Journey to Atlantis is not a bad family attraction by any stretch, but I wasn’t overly enamoured with it in comparison to other family coasters I’ve done. The theming is very nice and really sets a nice scene for the attraction (I should point out that I rode before the refurbishment and edited storyline), with lots to look at and a very clear storyline. However, I wasn’t a huge lover of the ride system itself, as I was pretty much dry getting off and the coaster section wasn’t overly extensive (and I also thought it was a tad rough around the edges). Although having said that, I still liked it as far as family coasters go, and I’m being overly harsh on it with it being the prototype water coaster; it paved the way for many fantastic-looking attractions! Update: I didn’t get to reride Journey to Atlantis in 2023, so it has now been over 7 years since my last ride… 4/10, #80/111
  7. Super Grover’s Box Car Derby: This certainly wasn’t a terrible kiddie coaster by any means, with the odd moment of mild speed. It was also a fairly big kiddie coaster compared to some. However, these are what they are, and a kiddie coaster will never be anything overly spectacular. 3/10, #93/111
SeaWorld has a really decent coaster selection overall, although I do think that the quality declines quite a bit once you get past the top 3 of Mako, Ice Breaker and Kraken. The selection is varied, however, and while I’m not a massive fan of Pipeline or Manta, they are undeniably unique thrill coaster experiences that add to that variety.
 
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