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March 27, 2017 By Matt Roseboom 12 Comments

Evil mermaids removed from Journey to Atlantis ride at SeaWorld Orlando

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journey to atlantis at seaworld orlando
The Journey to Atlantis ride at SeaWorld Orlando has been toned down to be less scary. Photo by Matt Roseboom/AttractionsMagazine

The Journey to Atlantis ride ride at SeaWorld Orlando recently reopened after refurbishment as a more family-friendly ride.

The ride still takes you through the lost city of Atlantis, but the story of the mermaids pretending to be nice then turning evil and the effects that go with it have ended. Now instead of the mermaids welcoming you and telling you not to be afraid before their evil metamorphosis, riders just hear some new pleasant music (from the old Allure show). Some of the mermaids are still there, but with their effects turn off, they no longer look evil. The large Madusa head is also still above you before you go up the first lift hill, but her eyes no longer glow a “scary” green and there’s no lightning effect.

The next change you may notice is that the “Beetlejuice” music has been removed as well. (It was always a mystery why one of the theme songs from “Beetlejuice” was in the ride.) After the big drop, as you round the bend, the mermaids no longer say “Leaving so soon? I think not!” The evil mermaid voices just before the roller coaster portion of the ride have also been removed.

No changes were made to the ride track itself, so although it’s still a somewhat scary ride with a big drop and roller coaster thrills, it’s not the kind of scary that may give your kids (or you) nightmares.

We reached out to SeaWorld for a comment but hadn’t heard back. We will update the story if/when we hear from them.

Here’s a full video of the newly updated ride:

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Filed Under: SeaWorld Orlando, Theme Parks Tagged With: journey to atlantis, mermaids, SeaWorld Orlando, updated

Comments

  1. Terence W says

    March 27, 2017 at 5:30 pm

    So there was no refurbishment? Just taking away ride elements? I don’t know anybody, adult or kid, that said this ride was nightmare inducing before…wow, great journalism…. SMH

    Reply
  2. Nuriya says

    March 27, 2017 at 8:38 pm

    So sad that they removed the mermaids. That element was my favorite part about it. They at least gave you story and interest instead of just sitting in a boat listening to the opera music :/ Well, that was disappointing….

    Reply
  3. Lenny says

    March 28, 2017 at 2:04 pm

    That’s Good News ! I’ve worked at that Attraction, actually, and I agree with the report about it – who needs evil, deceiving creatures ?

    Reply
    • Francisco says

      May 15, 2017 at 7:28 am

      That ride was the best ride there beside Mako! It was like a Disney ride. It actually had a story to it. Now they ruined it.

      Reply
  4. Melissa says

    March 29, 2017 at 1:51 pm

    This can’t be the real story. It can’t be. We’d go to Sea World for months and every time we went on this ride, it was broken. The “mermaid” did not work. The audio before this drop was not working. For months it was like this. There must have been a deep technical issue they could not for the life of them fix and that’s why they’re doing away with it.

    The beetle juice music? The best part! Really disappointment in these changes. That’s history they’re taking away. And tradition.

    Reply
    • Francisco says

      May 15, 2017 at 7:30 am

      I had went there 3 weeks ago and it was how it normally went I loved it!! But I go to ride it yesterday and the story is gone they totally ruined the ride that was one of the best rides there

      Reply
  5. steve says

    March 30, 2017 at 6:48 am

    it’s a sad day when we bow to the few who find it fun to take away from the many who enjoyed the ride as it was meant to be

    Reply
  6. mason says

    April 1, 2017 at 1:40 am

    Seaworld can’t afford those special effects anymore! LOL

    Reply
  7. Andrew says

    April 4, 2017 at 8:12 am

    I would venture to guess, with Kraken VR opening this summer, the rumors floating around are that Kraken VR could tie in to Atlantis, and the new effects/media are waiting for Kraken’s VR experience to go live

    Reply
  8. Dolly Starkloff says

    July 15, 2017 at 6:55 pm

    Just went on the ride and I have to say… Sadness… Me and my sister loved the story of the “mermaids” (come on people we all know they were sirens), and we felt the magic. But this… It was the equivalent of riding E.T. without sound. To be honest it was like the ride was broken. Don’t ride it, if you remember the good old days when the ride was something to look forward to.

    Reply
  9. Noah jarquin says

    July 27, 2019 at 1:53 pm

    I was so sad when I went back on the ride on 5+ years ago I was expecting every part of the audio to be there but I was so disappointed when I just heard opera music and not the sirens voice, the glowing eyes, but I never remembered the turn whole you start the rollercoaster part of the ride.

    Reply
  10. Danielle says

    August 6, 2019 at 7:48 pm

    Say what you will. I prefer the ride this way. I rode it when I was a child and had nightmares for years. If people liked it the way it was that’s great but I’m not one of them. Ps before you judge, don’t bother because I don’t care what a bunch of strangers think. Also I wasn’t even 10 yet.

    Reply

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