Aquatica San Diego Sets Opening Date + New Concept Art

SeaWorld's latest water park, Aquatica San Diego is getting ready to make waves, literally, and has announced their grand opening date:  June 1, 2013.  The South Seas themed water park will be located near SeaWorld San Diego and will feature "a variety of exotic animals, water play as endless as the sea itself, and have an educational component that is both unexpected and enriching."

The park will feature two separate animal exhibits.  Near the park's lazy river (now named Loggerhead Lane) and depicted above, more than a dozen Caribbean flamingos will make their home.  Twice a day the flamingos will parade in the park for guests to enjoy.  There will also be a habitat created with dozens of freshwater turtles, with viewing from both under and above water.

Along with the opening date, the park has released some new details on what can be expected at Aquatica San Diego, along with new concept art.

Aquatica's entrance area will be totally reimagined from when it was Soak City; the new area will feature lush landscaping that sets the mood of the entire property.  Amenities such as locker rentals, changing facilities, gift shops and merchandise carts will allow guests to obtain any needed necessities for a day of fun.

A wave pool is always one of the focal points of any water park.  Aquatica San Diego will be home to Bug Surf Shores, one of the "largest wave pools in Southern California."  It will contain more than 500,000 gallons of water with waves created up to five feet tall.

Big Surf Shores will also have a newly created 43,000 square foot white sand beach constructed for lounging.  Plenty of relaxation space will be included in Aquatica, with much of it shaded for guest comfort.  The art above also shows how the backdrop of the pool will change from its current beach theme to something much more tropical.

Mentioned earlier, Loggerhead Lane is Aquatica's 1,250 foot long lazy river.  The attraction will have all new lush landscaping and playful fountains added along the course.  Guests can choose to "swim or float along in an inner tube down the winding path."

As for slides - the park will have plenty of those too.  All repainted and brand new looking, the attractions include a little of something for everyone.  Whanau Way is a 60 foot tower that has six separate slides stemming from it, four of which are enclosed and two open air.  HooRoo Run is another tower with four slides - starting from an 80 foot tower and meant for speed, these look to be a bit on the thrilling side.

Two slide towers in the center of the park will be named Whoohoo Falls and Kiwi Curl, and both feature three slides each with some enclosed and some open air.  The park's family raft ride will be named Walhalla Wave and the tornado style attraction will be rechristened as Tassie's Twister.

Rounding out the attractions at Aquatica will be an assortment of family friendly areas.  Walkabout Waters is a four-story interactive and colorful outdoor attraction featuring loads of hands-on fun with slides, hoses, jets, geysers and a huge tipping bucket.  For smaller children Kata's Kookaburra Cove features a pool with activity ropes, and Slippity Dippity is where toddlers can splash and play on slides made just for them.

Aquatica San Diego park hours and ticket information will soon be available on the official website.  For now you can also catch video updates on the property as part of the Inside SeaWorld blog.