Float Like a Butterfly, Sting Like a Manta

Before leaving California, we returned to Sea World, San Diego for one last day of sea life and adventures. Manta, Sea World’s new mega-attraction, soars, dives, and twists like a ray while seamlessly transitioning you from the awe of watching rays in underwater flight to the sensation of actually being one.

Featuring a unique “launch station,” we started our Manta experience enclosed in a launch tunnel with larger-than-life images of rays projected on a 270-degree enveloping screen. This state-of-the-art projection system is the first of its kind in the United States.

Flying over the half-mile course in our giant manta ray-shape ride car, we felt the exhilaration of pulling 3 to 4 G’s through more than a dozen twists and high-bank turns, and a thrilling 54-foot drop.

Manta combines the thrill and excitement of a coaster, with the educational and entertaining value of an incredible marine-life exhibit.

Check out our Manta video where you can “Ride the Ray and Feel the Rush!”

254 thoughts on “Float Like a Butterfly, Sting Like a Manta

  1. Sounds like Fun !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I have not been to Sea World …But all the cool stuff i have heard about it …..A big yes to going one day …….
    I love DisneyWorld …….. It’s like being a kid forever ….:)
    Glad You had fun Lesley ….
    Love to you- baby – and all Your family
    Cat 🙂

    Like

    • I’ve never really been to Texas. I drove through a few times, but never spent any real time there. What do you like most about it? What are the best things to do there? Do you live there now?

      Like

      • I was born and raised in Dallas. Don’t live there anymore but I know quite a lot about it. The food is a must try. Texans know their steak and barbeque. They also have the country’s first Six Flags there. You must also go to the rodeo plus there’s always the space center in Houston. The south is a very happening place :)…

        Like

      • I was and born and raised in Dallas too and absolutely LOVE it! Sea World San Antonio in August, though is a mistake. Waaaay too hot and humid. Like Reema said, the food is the best! Check out the State Fair in Dallas in October, Austin is always great, floating the Comal or Guadalupe River is a blast, and the spring thunderstorms are fabulous!

        Like

      • Quote Re: Texas: “What are the best things to do there?”

        To a native Texan, that’s like asking what’s there to do in the New England states. Texas is BIG and very diverse. It’s got everything from huge metropolitan areas to some of the smallest hick towns you’d ever want to experience. It’s got coastal living, plains, hill country, forests, deserts and beautiful canyons. Comments about food are right on, but don’t leave out Tex-Mex. YUM! Austin is a foodie mecca and there’s quite a large music scene there as well.

        Enjoyed hearing about your Sea World experience, but that Manta video about made me dizzy. No roller coasters for me.

        Like

        • In South Texas, San Antonio and Austin and all around that area there is a chain of BBQ restaurants called Rudy’s that puts out some good stuff. They smoke turkey, sausage, pork, beef and all is tender. Also they have a creamed corn that is to die for. Fun places, long picnic benches and always a festive atmosphere.

          Like

      • Love Texas! I do live here and have for 39 of my 40 years. I believe our best parts are the state parks. We have many rivers and beautiful landscapes. Dinosaur Valley is our favorite, located in Glen Rose Texas. If you drove through our state you spent a lot of time here! LOL That drive out of Texas is usually the longest part of our vacations.

        Like

  2. Don’t look yet, I haven’t written the post yet, but I am nominating you for an award. I love your site, and what your are doing for others, as well as what you do for yourself. Congratulations! Thanks for encouraging me along the way.

    Like

  3. My husband is from San Diego and actually worked at Sea World (he’s a marine biologist whose specialty is sharks), so I’m connected. I also love mantas. Wouldn’t that ride have been even better if the cars were enclosed, and you could actually plummet underwater during parts of it. Come on, Sea World. Let’s do it.

    Like

  4. I was just watching this manta video yesterday with my son! He was watching a short on the top ten coasters in America, and funny, I was thinking that it would be cool to ride that thing! Then I see you’re blogging about it!

    Like

  5. I could have found a restaurant for you to try greenlip mussels but you can always add them to your bucket list! Hope you won’t that long to try MOXXOR, though. Thank you for liking my new blog. http://celestialmusingsblog.com/2012/07/27/i-love-greenlip-mussels-and-heres-more-reasons-why/ I was just in San Diego for Comic Con where I spent the week-end signing autographs but my husband Nazim and I took a day off and went to Balboa Park to the art museum (he’s an artist)…it’s beautiful there!

    Like

  6. Looks like an adventure! No amusement parks on Kauai and the carnivals that come don’t look so safe!!!! We go to San DIego somewhat frequently, I’ll give it a visit next ime! Mahalo for the tip. Kim

    Like

  7. Oh yeahhhh! I used to love rollercoasters, back in the good ol’ days of my youth. Then a strange thing happened – I had children and my body immediately changed. Perhaps it was an inate sense of survival for the kids’ sake, but the thrill of the ride turned into abject nausea, which I cannot abide. Watching them go by is okay, though. 🙂

    Like

  8. Hi Lesley,
    Fist if all, thanks so much for checking out my new blog, Body & Skin by Rochelle! And, wow! I love, love, love your publication! The writing is fantastic and I’m psyched to try out some of the adventures being written about!
    Cheers!
    Rochelle

    Like

  9. I like roller coasters that go upside down IF my legs aren’t dangling loose below me. That freaks me out for some reason! I don’t like spinning anymore though… So no dangling body parts, and no spinning… Otherwise, it’s all good.

    Like

  10. Wow, this takes me back to the days of Great Adventure in my youth. I remember the heart-thumping spins and whips and thinking that it was my last day on earth. Haven’t been on one of those rides in years!

    Like

  11. Thanks for visiting my blog today. Come back soon. I love this video! Loved roller coasters of all kinds. Notice that love is in the past tense! Read redo on life from March on my blog to see why. That was quite a ride–so coasters hold no sway on me now!!!

    Like

  12. David Z Reynolds - Investor focused business plans, risk analysis & business development on said:

    Hi, Lesley!

    Thanks for visiting our blog again – we all need the encouragement from time-to-time!
    With this piece on the Manta and ly’s comment above, perhaps Forrest Gump should have referenced life to a ‘roller coaster’ rather than a box of chocolates?

    With other comments above about exciting things to see and do in the US, you might stimulate my desire to come to visit sometime?

    Regards,
    David Reynolds

    Like

  13. What an exciting ride at Sea World in San Diego. I have visited there and also their fantastic zoo. I am from Ohio and we USED to have a Sea World here and the kids are very disappointed that it is no longer open. Thanks for taking a Gypsy Road Trip!

    Like

  14. I loved Sea World in San Diego when I lived there back in the early 90s. What a ride. There was nothing like it when we went, but it was a great experience. Thanks for your visit to questionsnow and you liking it!

    Like

  15. It really made my day to find that you liked a post on my blog. Upon checking yours out- I found myself intrigued by all of the interesting things you have done! What a wonderful way to document your adventures. I look forward to reading more! Thanks again!

    Like

  16. Pingback: My SIster, Lesley? | Imnotafraidofspidersanymore!

  17. Thanks for liking my post Indonesian on a Stick! But this roller coaster looks terrifying! Holy coconuts…a 54 foot free fall???? Space Mountain in Florida’s Disney World was my last roller coaster. After the first planet came hurtling toward my head I closed my eyes for the rest of the ride.

    Like

  18. You are a brave soul!
    We were in San Diego last fall, beautiful!
    Thanks of stopping by my blog, much appreciated!
    LIke the gal above, Space Mountain in Florida was my LAST coaster ride and never again! 🙂

    Like

Leave a Reply

Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in:

WordPress.com Logo

You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. Log Out /  Change )

Facebook photo

You are commenting using your Facebook account. Log Out /  Change )

Connecting to %s