A penguin-themed family roller coaster is coming to SeaWorld Orlando in spring 2024.
Dubbed Penguin Trek, the coaster has been under construction for months, taking over parts of the defunct Antarctica: Empire of the Penguin dark ride. Concept art shows an indoor station with snowmobile-styled cars, themed around an Antarctic penguin research mission.
SeaWorld said in its ride reveal press release that the new coaster will feature two launches and hit a top speed of 43 mph along 3,020 feet of track (for reference, SeaWorld’s new-for-2023 coaster, Pipeline, is about 70 feet shorter in length.) The attraction will have a height requirement of 42 inches, SeaWorld said.
Concept art of the Penguin Trek coaster queue (SeaWorld)
Like its dark ride predecessor, the coaster’s finale will bring guests to the park’s actual penguin exhibit.
“With adrenaline pumping, riders navigate this treacherous coaster, emerging from the looming danger of falling ice to finally reach the safety of a penguin colony, a journey that perfectly encapsulates the spirit of adventure and discovery,” SeaWorld said in its press release. “Yet, what sets this experience apart as truly extraordinary is its unparalleled finale: as the coaster comes to a halt, guests find themselves not in a simulated penguin colony, but in the very heart of SeaWorld Orlando’s own penguin habitat.”
For the coaster’s manufacturer, SeaWorld is once again working with Bolliger & Mabillard, the famed Swiss coaster firm behind SeaWorld’s own Mako, Manta, Kraken and Pipeline, and the many Batman: The Ride clones at Six Flags parks. SeaWorld Orlando will now share the distinction with Six Flags Great Adventure for having the most B&M-designed coasters in a single park.
For B&M, it’s another new model debuting in a SeaWorld park. The company has never before built a family launch coaster. Penguin Trek will be the SeaWorld Orlando’s eight coaster overall and its third to open in as many years, following Ice Breaker in 2022 and Pipeline in 2023.