Infinity Falls

Infinity Falls
Infinity Falls drop
SeaWorld Orlando
AreaSea of Fun
Coordinates28°24′28″N 81°27′44″W / 28.4078788°N 81.462298°W / 28.4078788; -81.462298
StatusOperating
Soft opening dateSeptember 28, 2018
Opening dateOctober 4, 2018
ReplacedSea Gardens
General statistics
ManufacturerIntamin
ModelRiver raft ride
Height30 ft (9.1 m)
Drop40 ft (12 m)
Length1,520 ft (460 m)
Boats14 boats. Riders are arranged 4 across in 2 rows for a total of 8 riders per boat.
Height restriction42–77 in (107–196 cm)
WebsiteOfficial website
Quick Queue available

Infinity Falls is a river rapids ride located at SeaWorld Orlando in Orlando, Florida. Manufactured by Intamin, the ride opened on October 4, 2018, and holds the record for tallest drop on a river rapids ride.

History

On April 13, 2017, SeaWorld Orlando announced Infinity Falls to open in 2018, with park officials comparing the ride to class IV river rapids experiences. On August 10, 2017, SeaWorld Orlando filed a notice of commencement and groundbreaking work began. Permits filed in Orange County, Florida on October 12, 2017 showed further details of construction, with PCL Construction overseeing the work site. The rider rafts were unveiled at the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA) Expo in October 2017.

The ride was completely installed by June 20, 2018, but testing and finishing touches were yet to be completed. In July 2018, a promotion was offered by the park to passholders for first access to the attraction. On July 18, 2018, the ride's tower was topped off, and in the same month the park allowed guests to submit names for the rider rafts. By August 2018, it was reported that the ride's delay in opening was attributed to slow testing and poor weather, among several other conditions. On September 19, 2018, the construction walls surrounding the area were removed. Though the ride was still testing, a media day was announced a few days later. Employee testing began on September 27, 2018, and the ride soft opened on September 28, 2018, with an official opening set for October 2018. Infinity Falls officially opened on October 4, 2018.

Upon opening, Infinity Falls took the record for the tallest drop on a river rapids ride at 40 feet, which was previously held by River Quest at Phantasialand with a drop of 36 feet.

Ride experience

The area is themed to the conservation of water. As guests traverse the ride's queue, they are introduced to a story. The story pushes the idea that guests are explorers and scientists, part of the organization "S.E.A. Collective", settled in a wetland camp along a river in a rainforest. A bridge connects the pathway to the area, with totems on either side depicting several animals. Moreover, the connected area has upcharge water cannons that individuals can use to soak people on the ride.

The course takes about 5 minutes to traverse.

Characteristics

A raft for the ride shown at the Intamin booth at IAAPA Expo in 2017

Infinity Falls is contained within a 2.5 acres (1.0 ha) space located within the Sea of Fun section of the park. It takes five minutes to traverse through the layout trough of 2,100 feet (640 m). Four pumps of 300 horsepower (220,000 W) altogether pump 900,000 U.S. gallons (3,400,000 L) of water.

Raft names

In addition to being numbered, each raft on Infinity Falls has its own name, most being plays on words related to the ride experience.

  1. Winter Blue
  2. River Race
  3. Flying Colors
  4. Blue Paradise
  5. Aqua Falls
  6. Discovery
  7. River Falls
  8. Amazon Drop
  9. H2O
  10. Everfalls
  11. Marine Falls
  12. Expedition
  13. Rafty McRaftFace
  14. Sea Señora
  15. A Little Nauti

References

  1. ↑ Ober, Amanda (June 20, 2018). "SeaWorld unveils new ride". WESH. Retrieved October 28, 2018.
  2. ↑ Wolf, Colin (April 13, 2017). "SeaWorld Orlando is building the 'world's tallest river rapid drop'". Orlando Weekly. Euclid Media Group. Archived from the original on October 29, 2018. Retrieved October 28, 2018.
  3. ↑ Sangalang, Jennifer (April 13, 2017). "SeaWorld Orlando's Infinity Falls to open summer 2018". Florida Today. USA Today. Retrieved October 28, 2018.
  4. ↑ Lambert, Marjie (April 13, 2017). "Would you take a raft ride that drops you 40 feet into whitewater rapids?". Miami Herald. The McClatchy Company. Retrieved October 28, 2018.
  5. ↑ Bilbao, Richard (August 11, 2017). "Here's the latest on SeaWorld's newest ride opening next year". Orlando Business Journal. American City Business Journals. Retrieved October 28, 2018.
  6. ↑ Bilbao, Richard (October 25, 2017). "Here's what SeaWorld permits hint at for future raft ride". Orlando Business Journal. American City Business Journals. Retrieved October 28, 2018.
  7. ↑ Bevil, Dewayne (November 14, 2017). "SeaWorld shows off Infinity Falls rafts, set for 2018 debut". Orlando Sentinel. Tronc. Retrieved October 28, 2018.
  8. ↑ Russon, Gabrielle (June 20, 2018). "SeaWorld: Summer clock ticking but still no Infinity Falls open date". Orlando Sentinel. Tronc. Retrieved October 28, 2018.
  9. ↑ Russon, Gabrielle (July 5, 2018). "SeaWorld Orlando offers promotion for first Infinity Falls access". Orlando Sentinel. Tronc. Retrieved October 28, 2018.
  10. ↑ Scavo, Megan (July 18, 2018). "Construction on SeaWorld's Infinity Falls is finally wrapping up, could open any day". Orlando Weekly. Euclid Media Group. Archived from the original on September 28, 2018. Retrieved September 28, 2018.
  11. ↑ Russon, Gabrielle (July 18, 2018). "SeaWorld Orlando teases new photo of Infinity Falls". Orlando Sentinel. Tronc. Retrieved September 28, 2018.
  12. ↑ "SeaWorld Orlando's All-New Infinity Falls Opening Summer 2018". Space Coast Daily. July 22, 2018. Retrieved September 28, 2018.
  13. ↑ "SeaWorld Orlando's Infinity Falls River Team Requesting Help in Naming Rafts". Positively Osceola. July 23, 2018. Retrieved December 20, 2018.
  14. ↑ Russon, Gabrielle (August 17, 2018). "Rapids churn in SeaWorld Orlando's Infinity Falls ride but still no open date set". Orlando Sentinel. Tronc. Retrieved September 28, 2018.
  15. ↑ Yates, Erik (September 19, 2018). "Walls come down as Infinity Falls prepares to open at SeaWorld Orlando!". Behind The Thrills. Retrieved September 28, 2018.
  16. ↑ Carter, Ashley (September 21, 2018). "Infinity Falls nears debut at SeaWorld Orlando?". Spectrum News 13. Retrieved September 28, 2018.
  17. ↑ Russon, Gabrielle (September 24, 2018). "SeaWorld Orlando: Infinity Falls poised to open, preview set for Oct. 4". Orlando Sentinel. Tronc. Retrieved September 28, 2018.
  18. ↑ Bevil, Dewayne (September 28, 2018). "SeaWorld employees take plunge on Infinity Falls, which opens Oct. 4". Orlando Sentinel. Tronc. Retrieved September 29, 2018.
  19. ↑ Tuttle, Brittani (September 28, 2018). "Infinity Falls now soft opening at SeaWorld Orlando, grand opening on Oct. 4". Attractions Magazine. Retrieved September 29, 2018.
  20. ↑ Marr, Madeleine (September 28, 2018). "SeaWorld's newest thrill ride Infinity Falls gets an opening date —finally". Miami Herald. The McClatchy Company. Retrieved September 28, 2018.
  21. ↑ "SeaWorld Orlando's newest attraction, Infinity Falls, opens". WOFL. October 4, 2018. Retrieved October 4, 2018.
  22. ↑ Russon, Gabrielle (October 4, 2018). "First riders at Infinity Falls give good reviews". Orlando Sentinel. Tronc. Retrieved October 4, 2018.
  23. ↑ Read, Rachel (October 22, 2018). "Infinity Falls at SeaWorld Orlando: tallest drop on a river raft ride". Blooloop. Retrieved October 28, 2018.
  24. ↑ "River Quest record". Phantasialand. August 19, 2018. Retrieved September 21, 2018 – via YouTube.
  25. 1 2 Sylt, Christian (October 13, 2018). "How SeaWorld Put A New Spin On A Theme Park Classic". Forbes. Retrieved November 11, 2018.
  26. 1 2 Storey, Ken (June 25, 2018). "SeaWorld goes all in with new high-tech raft ride but will it ever open?". Orlando Weekly. Euclid Media Group. Archived from the original on December 2, 2018. Retrieved November 11, 2018.
  27. ↑ Russon, Gabrielle (August 29, 2018). "SeaWorld's Infinity Falls comes with special features — at a cost". Orlando Sentinel. Tronc. Retrieved November 11, 2018.
  28. ↑ Bevil, Dewayne (May 29, 2018). "SeaWorld Orlando: Rapids, 'appropriate' drenching await on Infinity Falls ride". Orlando Sentinel. Tronc. Retrieved November 11, 2018.
  29. ↑ "Infinity Falls on-ride 4K POV SeaWorld Orlando". Coaster Force. October 12, 2018. Retrieved November 11, 2018 – via YouTube.
  30. ↑ Bevil, Dewayne (October 5, 2018). "SeaWorld: Going over Infinity Falls, by the numbers". Orlando Sentinel. Tronc. Retrieved October 28, 2018.