| Aquatica | |
|---|---|
| Location | Orlando, Florida |
| Website | Aquatica Home Page |
| Owner | SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment |
| Opened | March 1, 2008 |
| Operating season | All Year |
| Area | 59 acres (240,000 m2) |
| Attractions |
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| Slogan | Fun as endless as the sea itself. |
| Amusement Parks Portal | |
Aquatica is a water park operated by SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment and located near Orlando, Florida. The park, which opened to guests on March 1, 2008, is a companion to SeaWorld Orlando and is located across International Drive from the main theme park. The park is themed to the southern Pacific and features Australian and New Zealand based mascots.
In its debut year, the park hosted approximately 950,000 guests, making it the fourth-most visited water park in the United States and eighth-most visited in the world.[1] The park was an immediate success, reaching its opening-year attendance goal in just six months.[1]
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SeaWorld originally announced plans to build a water park on July 15, 2005. The announcement stated that it would be a "natural" park and revealed the park's iconic Dolphin Plunge water slides.[2]
On March 5, 2007, SeaWorld held a press conference officially announcing Aquatica. Construction continued in earnest throughout 2007 and into early 2008. Previews for employees and holders of park annual passes were held in February. On March 1, 2008 the park opened to guests for the first time, with the official grand opening held on April 4, 2008.
The park features a wide array of attractions for all ages and swimming abilities, some of which pass by or through animal habitats.[3]
Both wave pools share an extensive, 80,000-square-foot (7,400 m2) man made white-sand beach area equipped deck chairs, Sun beds and umbrellas.[4]
Instead of importing established characters from SeaWorld, such as Shamu, Aquatica has developed its own set of characters, known as "park ambassadors." Visible on merchandise and on signage and statuary throughout the park, these characters include:
Aquatica's Commerson's dolphins are all captive-born males who came from SeaWorld's park in California.
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