Is SeaWorld Orlando building another roller coaster for 2024?

There may soon be yet another new roller coaster to fill out the SeaWorld Orlando skyline.

SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment has been on a roll, opening up at least one new ride at each of its theme parks around the country. SeaWorld Orlando alone opened Ice Breaker in 2022 and Pipeline: The Surf Coaster in May.

But coaster fans continue to speculate about what else is coming — in particular, the possibility of a partially indoor coaster that could pop up in the Antarctica area of the park.

The closest to an official confirmation of a new ride came last week from SeaWorld itself. In a tweet (xeet?), SeaWorld Orlando shared a photo of black roller coaster track being delivered from Switzerland with the caption “Prime Day shopping got a little out of hand.”

The same day, a theme park blog called Florida Thrills snapped a photo of the same coaster track in a field near Discovery Cove, which is next door to SeaWorld.
Other park outlets and fans have also noted construction work in the Antarctica area of the park, especially as the indoor, trackless Empire of the Penguin ride has been closed since March 2020.

The rumor mill for this possible coaster — and pretty much any new theme park ride — has been churning for some time. Coaster blogs have used the code name “Toboggan” to reference developments and shared details from building permits that SeaWorld has filed for modifications to the Antarctica area.

While we await official confirmation from SeaWorld, there’s plenty of room for speculation about what the park could build based on the layout and theming of the area.

Attractions Magazine, a digital theme park outlet this reporter also contributes to,  guesses a new coaster will be family-friendly. With Mako, Manta, Pipeline, Kraken and Ice Breaker, thrill-lovers have plenty of options. But the closed Empire of the Penguin ride was definitely kid-friendly, and it would make sense to replace it with an attraction equally as accessible.

Coaster blogs have predicted the clear possibility of a partially indoor ride with show scenes and heavy theming. The Empire of the Penguin ride utilized its colony of live penguins as a chilly grand finale of the attraction, so a new coaster could — and should — lean heavily into a penguin theme.

Attractions and others have also pointed out possible clues left by SeaWorld hinting at what type of ride is coming next. Over the last few years, SeaWorld parks have opened several “straddle coasters,” where a rider straddles a vehicle instead of sitting in a ride car seat with their legs dangling or resting in front of them.

SeaWorld San Diego recently opened Arctic Rescue in June. The straddle coaster has riders sit on snowmobile vehicles and features an indoor launch. Arctic Rescue is also family-friendly, with top speeds hitting 40 mph.
Busch Gardens Williamsburg also got a family-friendly straddle coaster when DarKoaster opened in the spring. And though not opened as recently, SeaWorld San Antonio has had its Wave Breaker straddle coaster since 2017.

That leaves SeaWorld’s Florida parks the only ones without a straddle coaster. So, it’s only a matter of time.

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