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Exciting SeaWorld San Antonio Roller Coasters!Enjoy 2 wild coasters and 3 water-thrill rides!In the slide show above, you're viewing pictures of SeaWorld San Antonio's roller coasters and thrill rides! You'll scream, you'll gasp...and you'll even get very, VERY wet as you enjoy Sea World San Antonio's great lineup of wild, adrenaline-pumping fun! SeaWorld San Antonio has two rip-roarin' roller coasters that tweens, teens and adults can enjoy. On this page, we'll talk about those 2 terrific coasters---the Steel Eel and The Great White (named after the shark...) There are also 3 water-based thrill rides you'll want to experience at San Antonio's Sea World...the Journey to Atlantis water plunge, the Texas Splashdown flume ride, and the Rio Loco wild-water rafting ride. On this page, you can see pictures and get info about all 5 of these exciting Sea World San Antonio rides! The Steel Eel Roller CoasterSeaWorld San Antonio's tallest, fastest ride!
If you love roller coaster thrills, then don't miss riding SeaWorld San Antonio's "Steel Eel!" This tall ride dominates the skyline in half of the park, twining in and out of Sea World's other attractions. (In the picture to your left, you see a view of the Steel Eel rollercoaster from across Sea World's lagoon. In the photo to your right, you see the Steel Eel coaster as it passes the Penguin Experience pavilion.)Added to Sea World San Antonio in 1999, the custom-designed Steel Eel became the park's tallest, fastest and longest roller coaster. This 15-story tall attraction gives riders a 150 foot first drop...while running at a speed of 65 MPH! If you're a would-be rider, you should make this one of the attractions around which you plan your day. Needless to say, with a coaster this outstanding, there can be quite a line up! The Steel Eel can move 1200 riders per hour...when all's going smoothly; but, even so, try to hit this attraction early before the lines build up, if possible. There's a minimum height of 48" to ride the Steel Eel. Guests in wheelchairs should enter through the ride's exit. There will be a transfer into the ride car to make and, in addition, your health should be hearty enough to withstand the rigors that this mean contraption will put you through. One escort is allowed per wheelchair visitor. Great White Roller CoasterSharp turns + wild inversions = screaming fun!
"The Great White" roller coaster is named after a species of shark. "The Great White" is one heck of a roller coaster! This suspension-style flyer was added to SeaWorld San Antonio in 1996, and became an instant hit with visitors. During the Great White's 2,500+ foot long course, you'll face 5 inversions...IF you dare to ride, that is! 
Within the 2-minute ride time, you'll turn upside-down in 2 loops, 2 corkscrews and one Zero-G roll...the action never stops! In the picture to your left, you can see that the riders' feet flying free in the breeze---which makes this coaster seem even scarier. There's no comforting floor below you! And in the photo to your right, you see Great White riders making a wild turn, with feet flying in the air as they go! There's a minimum height of 54" tall required to ride "The Great White" roller coaster. Wheelchairs should enter through the exit; 3 guests are allowed to accompany each visitor using a wheelchair. Journey to Atlantis rideSan Diego version vs San Antonio Version
Seaworld San Antonio got its long-awaited Journey to Atlantis thrill ride in 2007. But, SeaWorld fans who had already been on the Atlantis ride at the park in San Diego did not get the ride they were expecting!The "Journey to Atlantis" ride at SeaWorld San Diego is a roller coaster and a boat ride COMBINED. It's unique in the fact that it's BOTH a water ride AND a "dry-land" roller coaster! As you can see in the picture of San Diego's Atlantis ride to your left, there's plenty of coaster track, and tall, beautifully painted towers to support them. Lines are long for the Atlantis ride at SeaWorld San Diego! On the other hand, once you board, you'll get nearly 5 whole minutes of ride time. After waiting in a long line, getting a nice long turn is a gratifying thing! First, you'll board the "boat" portion of the ride, which takes you on a watery journey to a splashdown that'll get you drenched. THEN, your ride vehicle transitions onto a dry track...via a "roller coaster ELEVATOR"...to give you a whirl in the coaster-segment of the ride! For more information about San Diego's "Journey to Atlantis" and other rides, you may use the following link to jump to the "SeaWorld San Diego Rides" page of this website. 
San Antonio's "Journey to Atlantis," on the other hand, is a boat ride.You'll begin the ride seated on a boat...and the ride will continue to remain strictly a water ride for its entire length. San Antonio's version is also shorter in length than its San Diego cousin. You'll get about 3 1/2 minutes of ride time on your Journey...most of it spent leading up to its final, furious splashdown. Just because it's a different "Journey to Atlantis," however, doesn't mean that it's not fun---because it is! It'll leave you soaked, too! (Which is a wonderful thing on one of San Antonio's many hot & humid days!) To see still more pics of the Journey to Atlantis ride in San Antonio, please see the slide show at the top of the page, or the photo gallery below. The Texas Splashdown Log FlumeAnother fun way to get drenched at SeaWorld San Antonio!
It's really hot in San Antonio, Texas. I took some of these photos the Saturday before Easter, which---in 2006---fell in the middle of April. The temperature was well into the 90's, and the humidity...well, I don't know what level it was, but I sweated all day. (Despite having fewer rides at SeaWorld San Diego, one of its great benefits is NOT having to sweat most days of the year!)The SeaWorld folks knew by the success of their 1993 addition to the park---the Lost Lagoon Water Park---that their guests LIKE to get wet. It keeps them cooler! So, it was obvious to the management that giving the guests watery-rides ought to make a "big splash" (that was a pun!). When the Texas Splashdown log flume opened in 1996, the SeaWorld folks got to see that they guessed correctly! Lines formed for the Texas Splashdown...and they haven't quit forming ever since! What's a better way to cool down on a hot day than to go for a plunge...and get yourself sprayed! Actually, on the Texas Splashdown log flume, you'll get to drop down not one, but TWO plunges...one of which is as tall as a 5 story building! The "log" ride cars can hold up to 4 passengers...and the more weight you get into the log, the lower in the water it sits (and the bigger splashes you'll make!) Guests must meet the minimum height requirement of 46" tall to ride alone OR be accompanied by a responsible adult. Wheelchair guests should enter via the exit. A transfer into the wobbly log will be required; wheelchair guests may bring up to 3 friends along to assist and enjoy the ride. Rio Loco rafting rideExciting, relaxing...and another fun way to get soaked!
The Rio Loco opened at Sea World San Antonio in 1997, the year after the Texas Splashdown made such a success. Just like it's splashy predecessor, the Rio Loco made an instant hit with the hot & sweaty SeaWorld guests! You'll find good-sized lines for the Rio Loco still...on any day that's warm enough for guests to want a soaking!The Rio Loco's course winds through tall, shady---and very attractive---trees. It's like taking a beautiful nature walk! Needless to say, you'll get wet if you ride the Rio Loco---but, then, that's the point! Water will splash into the car and spray from overhead. Watch out---don't forget to keep your camera in a dry place! The minimum height requirement for the Rio Loco is 42" tall. Wheelchair guests should enter through the special entryway that they'll find to the left of the main entrance to the ride. Up to 5 guests may assist and accompany. So, in 1999 when the Rio Loco's sister, the "Shipwreck Rapids" ride debuted in SeaWorld San Diego, it started out with the large-capacity 9 passenger rafts. That was really great for moving through the opening-year crowds. One difference between the Texas and California SeaWorld parks, though, is that if you get drenched in SeaWorld San Diego, you just might shiver for the rest of the day! For much of the year, it's simply not hot enough for you to "dry out" quickly. Thus, in the picture of Shipwreck Rapids (to your right), you'll see that sometimes the rafts run nearly empty. Actually, watching empty rafts float by in San Diego is not an unusual occurrence at all! Watch out for the water cannons to the side of the ride, though. For a small fee, passersby can drench you---and they do! Like its "sister" the Rio Loco, the Shipwreck Rapids ride requires a minimum height of 42" tall to ride. Pictures of Journey to Atlantis, San Antonio
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Discover the SeaWorld Roller Coasters and Rides of San Antonio! Updated January 15, 2009. Related I-10 Road Trip info--- 
The Steel Eel doesn't depend on inversions for generating its thrill factor. Instead, this golden monster gives riders "air time," those periods of weightlessness which will make you feel that you're soaring like a bird. You'll drop time and time again along the 3,700 foot course, giving you a satisfying, nearly 3-minute ride.
This $10 million-dollar thrill ride will keep you moving at nearly 50 MPH. You'll hang downwards from the ride, sitting in a ski lift-style chair. Since your feet really WILL be dangling above the crowds of visitors, no shoes that could possibly fall off and hurl into the other guests are allowed; you'll have to ride bare-footed, instead, if you wore flip flops to the park instead of a more secure type of shoe.
When the SeaWorld folks decided to open a white-water rafting ride at their San Diego park, they thought, "Hmmm...we only have 6-passenger rafts in San Antonio, which makes the line more more slowly. We'll get 9-passenger rafts for San Diego, and the line will move along more quickly."
The Shipwreck Rapids ride will give you a relaxing 5 minutes of floating fun. You'll wind through a more "urban" atmosphere on the San Diego version...full of decorations themed to, well, a ship wreck...just like the name of the ride says! You'll float through the Shipwreck Rapids Cafe dining area as part of your journey. At lunch time, the smell of Bar-B-Que will make your mouth water! 
