Next up is the Shark Encounter! One of the park’s largest exhibits. The experience starts above the water where several different pools with different sharks can be found. 
One of the smaller pools is a little shark nursery and it’s adorable! 
The exhibit includes other fish of course. A question we get sometimes is, why don’t sharks eat the fish in the aquarium. That’s because the sharks are well-fed and aren’t hungry, thus not eating the fish in the aquarium. Oh look it’s another stingray!
The second part of the exhibit takes place below water! The iconic moving sidewalk tunnel through the aquarium is where I am showing off my modeling skills. 
But more important than a picture of me is a picture of sharks, because you won’t see me (very unlikely at least) in this aquarium when you are visiting SeaWorld San Diego. 
I find these kind of aquarium exhibits very neat. There’s nothing as cool as being surrounded by fish and shark.
Once out of the tunnel, you still have the opportunity to take a longer look at these sharks, or take pictures with them of course!
Right next to the exit of both Shark Encounter and Turtle Reef we find Riptide Rescue, the fun little troika we talk about in all of our reports. 
It is such a neat little flat ride in a perfect location on the bay. During our visit the ride was quite popular boosting a line that was said to be 45 minutes long. Though it was long, I doubt it was anywhere near 45 minutes. So do not let the little sign turn you away, check out this perfect little flat ride! 
Next up was Turtle Reef! Yet another detailed exhibit, with you guessed it… Turtles! 
This educational sea turtle exhibits features a large amount of fish along with three types of sea turtles that swim around. 
This exhibit does a particularly good job of showcasing the park’s rescue efforts! The exhibit has a big interactive display tracking some of the rescued turtles in the wild, it also features games to play with your friends and family that promote rescue efforts. 
One part of the exhibit is a large curved aquarium wall that allows you to see the turtles from below the water as they can swim up to you and even above your head. 
I will leave you with this image of this beautiful real turtle before moving on to fake turtles. 
Here are the fake turtles and other sea life in the Sea of Life display, which is part of Electric Ocean! Electric Ocean is one of the best nighttime events the theme park industry has ever seen, so make sure to check out our complete report of it!
Electric Eel just looks so nice from everywhere in the park. The colors near-perfectly match the sky and sometimes you forget its even there. Read our full Electric Eel report here! 
Our next exhibit was the Penguin Encounter! The most classic feeling experience at the park. Which makes sense as SeaWorld San Diego was the first park to display penguins from all regions of the world in one environment.
After checking out the new Penguin Encounter at SeaWorld Orlando, which is part of their Empire of the Penguin attraction, ours does feel a little more outdated, but precious nonetheless. Particularly seeing so many penguins in one place!
Also spotted in the exhibit is a fish that looks like a penguin, but is not a penguin. For some reason we got a kick out of that, we wonder if SeaWorld put it there for that reason. 
The second half of the exhibit is home to puffins!
SeaWorld’s merchandise game was on point with this penguin mermaid!
Next up is my favorite exhibit, right next door! Wild Arctic! Amazing theming, lots of animals, and a big exhibit overall. Here’s one of the park’s Belugas!
Recently the park has moved a collection of seals into the space that formerly was occupied by polar bears. The seals are the absolute cutest with a lot of energy and action going on in the exhibit. Some others were chilling in the sun.
Reason enough to stick around the exhibit for a while!
Okay, let’s get back to coaster talk! Journey to Atlantis, the park’s original coaster, was running with just one station. That was by far the most annoying thing in this near-perfect day. The ride has the ability to run 3 stations, but instead it ran one. The line was nearly an hour long and the stacking was quite heavy. Let’s hope that was just unexpected, because this ride should be dispatching many more trains/vehicles/boats than that. 
Having said that, we still tremendously enjoyed our rides on it. It’s a stunning ride off-ride, and just a strong ride in general. The concept of half flume and half coaster is such a great one. I always really enjoy my rides on Journey to Atlantis. 
WETTER IS BETTER. Just kidding, front row gets you really wet, back row is more my taste 😛
Right next door to Journey to Atlantis is Electric Eel, which we have touched on here and there. This ride’s operations were much better with a dedicated crew of efficient team members that were pushing out the train of 18 passengers in no time. The line remained between 15 minutes and 30 minutes all day, not bad at all for the crowds we saw and the ride’s popularity. 
This family was just as thrilled and excited to experience Electric Eel as they stared in awe at the ride. Check out our complete ride review here!
We wanted to go for a ride on the Sky Tower and noticed that the park has brought back the upcharge price for the ride, it is now $5 to ride. The money goes to a conservation and rescue effort, so though $5 is a little bit steep, you are supporting a good cause. 
It’s one of the biggest observation towers in the world with a double deck, so if you have yet to experience this attraction, I would certainly advise you give it a ride next time!
Next coaster! MANTA! It is by far the coaster we ride the most in the park. It is very rerideable and the capacity is much superior to the other two coasters in the park. 
After Manta it was time for our ride on the Bayside Skyride. One of the most stunning skyrides out there. It takes you over Mission Bay, and unlike other skyrides, it includes the full round trip! Just a heads up, this ride too is an upcharge of $5. Totally worth it though!
The weather was perfect during out visit to the park, and the breeze from gliding through the sky over the water is very relaxing. Due to the fact that it leaves park grounds, it is a very serene ride. 
The ride is quite tall and gives you a nice opportunity for great views of the park, including Electric Eel, which again almost seamlessly blends in with the sky. 
Back to the park! 
This ride is best experienced during sunset, with views of the ocean it really is a can’t miss at night. 
As the night started, we had yet to experience the best event I have ever seen the park put up, Electric Ocean! With more than 9 shows and displays, music, lights, lasers, and ride experiences, Electric Ocean is the ultimate night time event. 
Because there was so much to see and do for Electric Ocean, we created a separate article just for that! Make sure to check it out here! As for the rest of the day, we had a fantastic time. There is a lot to see, a lot to ride, and a lot to do. If you’re looking for the perfect family getaway for a day, SeaWorld San Diego has got you covered. 
Thank you for checking out this SeaWorld San Diego Trip Report! Check out our special reports on Electric Ocean and Electric Eel!
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Amazing review!! And yes, the one station ops on JTA were so annoying on my last visit to the park.