Why You Might Want To Add a Ticket to SeaWorld During Your Disney World Vacation

Disney World’s Soarin’ in EPCOT is a popular ride, and for a reason. It allows you to soar OVER the world without ever having to leave World Showcase. Well, that ride is set to change soon to celebrate the U.S. Bicentennial and become Soarin’ Across America.

©SeaWorld

Not to be outdone, though, SeaWorld Orlando opened a ride about a year ago that’s a lot like Soarin’. It’s called Expedition Odyssey, and it takes you soarin’ above the Arctic where you can get a bird’s eye view of what wildlife is like in one of the coldest parts of Earth. Well, that SeaWorld Orlando’s ride is ALSO getting an update!

Expedition Odyssey features “unparalleled ride technology, breathtaking real-world footage, and up-close encounters with Arctic wildlife.” However, the ride will soon be updated to Expedition Odyssey Fire & Ice. The new version of the ride is expected to open this spring with a new “story-driven experience giving guests a powerful new reason to take a journey to the Arctic.” So that means if you want to ride the original Expedition Odyssey, you probably want to do so ASAP.

©SeaWorld Orlando

According to The Orlando Sentinel, the new ride will still feature Arctic animals and scenery, but it will be given new life via storytelling and narration. “We are telling a whole new immersive adventure from beginning to end,” said Kevin Boutte, vice president of attraction design.

The new story will have riders assuming the roles of Arctic researchers. Their journey will showcase the contrast between geothermal fire and ice.

©SeaWorld Orlando

The ride system will remain the same, and it’s very similar to Soarin’, where riders sit side by side in long rows with their legs dangling as they face a large domed screen. The ride includes movement of the vehicle, as well as special effects with mists and smells. So if you love Soarin’, this one’s for you.

Soarin’ vehicle

“Guests will see new environments that they’ve never seen before, new animals that weren’t in the previous experience, such as sperm whales,” Boutte said. “And then new environments, like volcanoes. … I won’t give too much away, but really unique environments that only exist because these forces that are at play. People will be amazed that the world has these types of places.”

Expedition Odyssey, in its current version, will remain in place during the transition to the new version of the ride, which should take about 40 days.

Shark Tunnel at SeaWorld

It’s kind of interesting that just a year after the ride initially opened, SeaWorld Orlando is already changing it, but the hope is that the new version will take better advantage of the advanced ride system.

We’ll keep an eye out for more Orlando theme park news, so stay tuned to DFB for more.

I Went to 3 Different Theme Parks in a Week. Disney and Universal Were Hard…But SeaWorld Nearly Killed Me.

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