Manta roller coaster at Sea World San Diego
Back row rightthe magic seat for the 2nd drop Comfortable trainsriders rate smoothness 8.9 of 10

SeaWorld San Diego, San Diego, California

Manta

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“It moves quickly but feels too flat.”

POV
Ride it: back row POV
Back row
Two extremely punchy launches
What riders love
  • It has some awesome floater airtime, great launches, crazy whip, and comfortable trains.
  • Several strong pops of airtime.
  • Unexpected big airtime moments.
  • I loved doing this ride over and over again when I was younger with my brother, the fun I felt on this fueled my roller coaster passion for years to come
  • this is also my grandma's favorite coaster lol
  • This ride may not look like much but it’s super fun!
  • It has amazing theming with the projection and music along with the manta ray themed trains.
  • The layout is well-integrated with the park and gets close to the water, which enhances the experience.
  • The theming around the launch area is nice, and expected for SeaWorld Standards.
Manta Watch Performance Should I ride it? Specifications Reviews Planning History

Watch POVs and more

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Performance

Vs. other coasters at SeaWorld San Diego

There are several ejector moments, notably the first drop after the 1st launch and the two last twists in the second half.

Elan Godoy

It’s a zippy little ride with some airtime!

Coaster Critic

The ride has good comfort and airtime, plus this is the most unique coaster I’ve ever ridden.(The projection system) The mid course brakes also ruins the launch.

Genesis

The only real advantage to the front row is having the wind in your face on the launches, and there was one airtime hill early on that got some fun floater air in the front.

Patrick H.

Very smooth and reliable, but it lacks good airtime.

H Coasters --

It has some awesome floater airtime, great launches, crazy whip, and comfortable trains.

Zach Payne

The trains were very comfortable, and it rode super smooth.

Coaster Critic

Manta is one of our favorite coasters because of the comfortable experience, the perfect length (2,800 feet is considerably large for a family launch coaster), the unique multi-media tunnel and double...

The Coaster Kings

The train and restraints are very comfortable, and the ride tracks extremely smoothly.

Gabe S

I did notice a bit of a rattle in the back on some of my rides, but it didn’t really affect the ride elements at all; it was just noisy in kind of an annoying way.

Patrick H.

It is intensely exciting and fun enough to appeal to coaster enthusiasts, but also tame enough for older kids and families to enjoy.

Theme Park James

After that there’s a really long, tight turn (might be a helix?) that pulls some pretty strong positives.

Patrick H.

...a family launch coaster), the unique multi-media tunnel and double launch, as well as the perfect mix of forces (even reaching 4 G’s) and elements for a ride that lacks in height (maximum height of...

The Coaster Kings

This is a great starting coaster for anyone getting into them and it was the first coaster I rode that really got me to love coasters.

Shmee

This feels like something between a family ride and a thrill ride and works really well with the park and theme.

David

You get an enhanced sense of speed with low to the ground turns and quick pops of airtime.

joe m

...no reason - with the turn after the second launch also being very whippy - and the launches are surprisingly punchy, but other than that, the coaster maintains its pace nicely for a family coaster.

Matheus Castello

It moves quickly but feels too flat.

David

My only issue during the layout was that there were some weird trims right before the second launch that just felt out of place and strange.

Eli Lassiter Michael

Also, there is some spots on this ride that feel pointless and boring

H Coasters --

...3 trains and unload & load stations, I went the day after Christmas and the most the wait ever got up to was 60 minutes; which is insane for the park’s most popular (and arguably best coaster).

Zach

Similar to what I said about Arctic Rescue in its review, the park was not busy when I was there, so Manta was a complete walk-on.

XscreamThrills

The queue is also very long.

Elan Godoy

Should I ride it?

Organize by

Specifications

30 ftHeight
153 Emperor 150 ElectricEel 95 Journey toAtlantis 30 Manta
54 ftFirst drop
143 Emperor 135 ElectricEel 60 Journey toAtlantis 54 Manta
43 mphTop speed
Electric Eel62 Emperor60 Manta43 Journey toAtlantis42 Arctic Rescue40 062 mph
0Inversions

What riders say

Praised for

FunRider favouriteStrong airtimeGreat themingGreat launchComfortable

One of the best coasters in the worst park I’ve ever been to.

Zach, Captain Coaster review

I don’t recommend this as a first coaster but manta is fun, the mid course though it sucks.

Genesis, Captain Coaster review

This is such a good ride, My favorite family coaster, although it has 2 minute ride time, if it was longer...

Coaster Rank, Captain Coaster review

This Mack ride is a wonderful family coaster, that uses state of the art technology, launches riders twice, and is surrounded by sea-life and birds.

The Coaster Kings, published review

Super fun coaster, the first launch is great and the layout is pretty good.

RThirtyEight Coasters, Captain Coaster review

It’s a great ride, and we advise everyone that has a chance to make a trip down south, to SeaWorld San Diego.

The Coaster Kings, published review

Photos

Manta's viewing area
cultivar413, CC BY 2.0
Manta's loading station
Jeremy Thompson, CC BY 2.0
Manta's final brake run
Jeremy Thompson, CC BY 2.0
Manta's LSM launch system
Jeremy Thompson, CC BY 2.0
Manta's lakeside view
Jeremy Thompson, CC BY 2.0
The entrance of the Manta rollercoaster in SeaWorld San Diego
Coldbolt, CC BY-SA 4.0
Manta at SeaWorld San Diego
Martin Lewison from The Hague, Zuid-Holland, The Netherlands, CC BY-SA 2.0
Manta coaster, Sea World San Diego, California / 2012
Greg Goebel from Loveland CO, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0
Manta coaster, Sea World San Diego, California / 2012
Greg Goebel from Loveland CO, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0
Manta coaster, Sea World San Diego, California / 2012
Greg Goebel from Loveland CO, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0

10 photographs. Swipe or drag sideways.

Planning your ride

History

May 26, 2012Opened

Built by Mack, designed by PGAV Destinations.

4 gStrongest force on riders

Sources

Restraint types: Captain Coaster. History, incidents and awards: Wikipedia. Specifications and status: Coasterpedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. From the park and maker: SeaWorld San Diego guide. Also read: Captain Coaster (converted to feet and mph). Rider sentiment and performance scores: rider reviews on Captain Coaster, coastercritic.com, thecoasterkings.com, themeparkjames.co.uk, youtube.com, read and scored by AirtimeFever.

Photographs via Wikimedia Commons: Rockclaw1030 (CC0), cultivar413 (CC BY 2.0), Jeremy Thompson (CC BY 2.0), Coldbolt (CC BY-SA 4.0), Martin Lewison from The Hague, Zuid-Holland, The Netherlands (CC BY-SA 2.0), Greg Goebel from Loveland CO, USA (CC BY-SA 2.0). Video thumbnails remain the property of their channels and link back to them.

Live wait times: Powered by Queue-Times.com.

Quote at the top of the page: David, Captain Coaster review.

What riders love, by theme (themes in the order riders pick them most on Captain Coaster): Patrick H., rider review on Captain Coaster: “The 2nd drop in particular tries to fling you…”; Zach Payne, rider review on Captain Coaster: “It has some awesome floater airtime, great launches, crazy…”; Nathan F, rider review on Captain Coaster: “Several strong pops of airtime.”; Eric Esty, rider review on Captain Coaster: “Unexpected big airtime moments.”; Ben Hietanen, rider review on Captain Coaster: “This was the coaster that got my kid into…”; Jake Katz, rider review on Captain Coaster: “I loved doing this ride over and over again…”; Jamie Óchi, rider review on Captain Coaster: “this is also my grandma's favorite coaster lol”; cres sidalia, rider review on Captain Coaster: “This ride may not look like much but it’s…”; Elan Godoy, rider review on Captain Coaster: “The theming is great with a beautiful entrance sign,…”; Jeff Doors, rider review on Captain Coaster: “It has amazing theming with the projection and music…”; Gabe S, rider review on Captain Coaster: “The layout is well-integrated with the park and gets…”; Erik C., rider review on Captain Coaster: “The theming around the launch area is nice, and…”; AZCOASTERS, rider review on Captain Coaster: “Two extremely punchy launches for a family coaster.”.

The photo slider at the top and the fading stills: JohnYChen's back row POV, Manta Roller Coaster On Ride Back Seat 4K POV SeaWorld San Diego 2024 02 03 (YouTube), and the page's Wikimedia Commons photographs.