Gather your friends and family and go experience some of the newest theme park rides and attractions opening this summer. From the fastest and steepest roller coasters to sci-fi stimulations and dueling water pipelines, here are some of the extreme adventures you don’t want to miss!
DARKOASTER™ AT BUSCH GARDENS®—WILLIAMSBURG, VA
You don’t need to wait until Halloween to visit this spooky abandoned fortress in Virginia. Opening in spring 2023, DarKoaster at Busch Gardens Williamsburg is North America's first all-indoor straddle coaster. Riders on this family-friendly experience will race through total darkness on snowmobiles across 2,454 feet of track, all while changing course and accelerating to avoid the fierce elements.
SERENGETI FLYER AT BUSCH GARDENS®—TAMPA BAY, FL
The recently opened Serengeti Flyer swing ride is the world’s tallest and fastest ride of its kind. Expect to fly high above Busch Gardens Tampa Bay's 65-acre Serengeti Plain as you experience multiple negative-G-force moments before soaring back to the ground. This ride is not for the fainthearted, with speeds of 68 mph and a height of 135 feet at the ride’s peak.
CATAPULT FALLS AT SEAWORLD®—SAN ANTONIO, TX
Hold on to your seats and get ready for a splash landing! Catapult Falls at SeaWorld San Antonio is North America’s only vertical-lift flume coaster opening this summer. It offers thrill seekers a chance to ascend the world's steepest flume and then drop over the falls into the rapids. Angled at an astonishing 53°, the chute plummets thrill seekers into an intense splashdown at over 37 mph.
TRON LIGHTCYCLE / RUN AT WALT DISNEY WORLD® MAGIC KINGDOM® THEME PARK—ORLANDO, FL
This computerized simulation is based on "TRON: Legacy," the famed Disney sci-fi film. As a daring rider, you'll race a Lightcycle against your fierce opponents and attempt to cross through eight Energy Gates. TRON Lightcycle / Run, which is one of the fastest simulation rides at all of Disney's theme parks, opens in Tomorrowland at Magic Kingdom Park in 2023.
RIPTIDE RACE™ AT WATER COUNTRY USA®—WILLIAMSBURG, VA
Grab your bathing suit and head to Riptide Race, Virginia's first-ever dueling pipeline water ride. Beginning in summer 2023, you'll splash and dash in a side-by-side race through high-speed tunnels and twists on a two-person raft. The adrenaline-pumping waterslide starts at 54' off the ground and swooshes you through 520 feet of slippery fun.
PIPELINE: THE SURF COASTER AT SEAWORLD®—ORLANDO, FL
Feel the adrenaline rush as you ride powerful ocean waves on Pipeline: The Surf Coaster at SeaWorld in Florida. As you ride the world's first-ever surf coaster, expect to soar up to 110 feet in the air and go upside down on a wave curl. You'll "get air" five different times along 2,950 feet of track for nearly two minutes—but the memories will last a lifetime.
