Flying theater rides at EPCOT and SeaWorld Orlando get upgrades

Just because there are no brand-new E-tickets opening in Orlando this summer, don’t think the local theme parks are taking the season off, because sometimes an upgrade or overlay can be almost as exciting as an all-new attraction. Over the past few weeks, I was privileged to preview updated versions of the flying theater rides found at both Walt Disney World and SeaWorld Orlando, and you won’t guess which one soars above the other.

Soarin’ Across America at EPCOT

When Disney’s California Adventure opened in Anaheim a quarter-century ago, the park was instantly panned for having the least innovative attraction lineup in the company’s history — with one important exception. Soarin’ Over California, a simulated hang-glide above Golden State landmarks, instantly became an orange-scented icon, and the version exported to EPCOT in 2005 proved so popular that a third theater had to be added in order to accommodate overwhelming demand. 

However, when Disney updated the attraction around the 2016 opening of Shanghai Disney, the fan community’s reaction to Soarin’ Around the World was a dismissive shrug at best, and outright rejection at worst. While widely praised for its improved picture quality and variety of vistas, the globe-spanning edition has largely been given the cold shoulder over its excessive use of computer-generated creatures and massive monuments, at the expense of the original’s more human scale.

Given both that track record and the current political climate, I was understandably apprehensive upon entering passholder previews for Soarin’ Across America, which may be the only high-profile semi-sesquicentennial celebration that hasn’t been canceled yet. This time-limited update turns out to be an admirably apolitical ode to the USA from east to west, starting with a Cape Canaveral liftoff that’s the ride’s most awe-inspiring addition, and finishing with a Hollywood flyover before the tri-color fireworks finale. The Washington, D.C., sequence skillfully avoids the White House, with the only potentially polarizing inclusion being Mount Rushmore (which Native Americans consider a desecration).

Moreover, Mickey made this movie as middle-of-the-road as imaginable by splitting the difference between the California and World versions, replicating beat-for-beat several of the former’s most beloved moments — such as skimming overs river rafters, horseback riders and surfers — but inexplicably retaining some of the digital transitions and CGI animals that turned many off the latter, while toning down the already-gentle movement even further. Even actor Patrick Warburton (now promoted from flight attendant to captain) returns for a new intro to the same old preshow. 

The final result is certainly a step up from what we’ve had recently, and I’ll happily see Soarin’ Across America a couple more times before its run (or our republic) comes to an end. But it won’t replace my springtime trips to Disney California Adventure’s Food & Wine Festival, when the unequaled original makes its annual return.

Expedition Odyssey: Fire & Ice at SeaWorld

Contrast that comparatively conservative approach with the wildly unexpected update SeaWorld Orlando recently made to Expedition Odyssey, their own Soarin’-style flight simulator that replaced Wild Arctic only a year ago. I refused to experience that initial expedition more than a single time, thanks to its blurry, bland visuals and uncomfortably nauseating movement, but I was pleasantly shocked to learn that the park’s management felt the same. 

With the help of the folks behind FlyOver — creators of superb stand-alone simulators from Vancouver to Las Vegas — SeaWorld revamped the ride in only a matter of about three months, elevating it in record time from my least favorite Soarin’ knockoff to something I genuinely enjoyed more than the current incarnation of its inspiration.

Already blessed with Orlando’s best post-show in its Beluga whale walk-through (a holdover from the previous attraction), Expedition Odyssey now boasts a well-themed queue and preshow to match. And not only does the fresh Arctic imagery that SeaWorld’s team captured for this “Fire & Ice” reimagining look razor-sharp, thanks in part to the newly smoothed-out screen, but it’s also surprisingly colorful, ranging from amber lava flows to the azure ocean. 

Expedition Odyssey’s replacement ride film’s rippling scene transitions feel far less jarring than Soarin’s hard cuts and obtrusive wipes, and the ride’s programmers have used the Mack-manufactured Airific simulators’ four degrees of freedom to expert effect, thrillingly tracking the action without inducing motion sickness. Best of all, aside from one fake polar bear, all the gorgeous wildlife footage is genuine, making the experience more emotionally engaging than I’d anticipated.

Between the lawsuit that could shutter its Sesame Street area and the abysmally inefficient coaster operations I’ve witnessed during recent visits, SeaWorld had been on a downswing lately. But after being pleasantly shocked by Expedition Odyssey: Fire & Ice, I suddenly have much higher hopes for the park’s ambitious upcoming dark ride, SEAQuest: Legends of the Deep.

This article appears in June 10-16, 2026.

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