One of Orlando’s largest and most popular theme parks, SeaWorld is an aquatic-themed park filled with marine animal shows, rollercoasters and up-close sea life encounters. However, the park’s biggest draw is now its most controversial: live shows featuring trained dolphins, sea lions and killer whales. Since the release of the 2013 documentary Blackfish, SeaWorld’s treatment of its captive orcas has come under intense scrutiny and the company has been hit by falling visitor numbers and a catalogue of negative PR.
The film is a damning portrayal of the effects of keeping killer whales in captivity and charts the life of Tilikum, an orca at SeaWorld Orlando which was involved in the deaths of three people, including one of its trainers during a live show. Since its release many animal welfare groups have come out in support of the film arguing that it is harmful and stressful to keep such sensitive, complex creatures inside an enclosed tank. SeaWorld have issued a statement accusing the film makers of giving false and misleading information and has since made plans to double the size of its orca tanks. Whether this effort stems the tide of public criticism seems unlikely.
SeaWorld Orlando also features two of Florida’s most adrenalin-pumping roller coasters: Kraken, which is a whiplash zip of twists and turns in carriages with no floor so your feet dangle free; and Manta, where you lie horizontally, face down, several to a row, so that the coaster vaguely resembles a manta ray, and dive and fly through the air in this position, reaching speeds of almost 60mph. There are also many attractions for the under-10s.
