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Seaworld Orlando
vs
Six Flags Darien Lake

On a typical day Seaworld Orlando queues less: about 20 minutes a ride against 22 at Six Flags Darien Lake, a difference of roughly 2 minutes on every queue you join.

01 · On a typical day

What you would normally queue.

Averages across recent weeks, so one broken ride or one wet Tuesday cannot decide it. This is the comparison to plan a trip on; the live figures below are the one to act on today.

Seaworld Orlando and Six Flags Darien Lake compared on their typical recorded queue times
TypicallySeaworld OrlandoUnited StatesSix Flags Darien LakeUnited States
Average wait per ride 20 min (best of the two)22 min
Rides with recorded waits 17 (best of the two)13
Longest typical queue ALL NEW! - Expedition Odyssey Fire & Ice47 minBrain Drain51 min
Shortest typical queue Super Grover's Box Car Derby7 minBoomerang8 min
Average ride uptime Share of opening hours a ride is running54%67% (best of the two)

Averaged across every ride at each park with recorded waits. A ride that never opened is left out, so a park is not flattered by counting a shut ride as a queue of zero.

02 · Right now

Both parks, this minute.

Live queue times at both parks. These fill in as soon as the page loads, and keep updating while you are here.

Seaworld Orlando and Six Flags Darien Lake compared on live queue times
Right nowSeaworld OrlandoUnited StatesSix Flags Darien LakeUnited States
Average wait right now --
Rides open --
Opening hours today --
Longest queue --
Shortest queue --

These keep refreshing while this page is open. A closed park posts no waits, so its rows read as dashes rather than zeroes.

Verdict, on a typical day On a typical day Seaworld Orlando queues less: about 20 minutes a ride against 22 at Six Flags Darien Lake, a difference of roughly 2 minutes on every queue you join.

03 · Choosing

Which one is your day out.

Every line here is earned by one of the figures above - nothing is a generic sentence with a park name dropped into it.

Pick Seaworld Orlando if…

  • You want shorter queues: Seaworld Orlando averages 20 minutes a ride against 22 at Six Flags Darien Lake
  • You want more to do: 17 rides here have recorded wait data against 13 at Six Flags Darien Lake
  • ALL NEW! - Expedition Odyssey Fire & Ice is on your list - it is Seaworld Orlando's longest typical queue at about 47 minutes, so it is the one to do first
  • You want Seaworld Orlando's own character - the rides, theming and atmosphere described below

Pick Six Flags Darien Lake if…

  • You will accept a longer queue - 22 minutes a ride here against 20 at Seaworld Orlando - for what Six Flags Darien Lake has that Seaworld Orlando does not
  • You would rather not find rides shut: Six Flags Darien Lake's rides run 67% of opening hours against 54% at Seaworld Orlando
  • Brain Drain is on your list - it is Six Flags Darien Lake's longest typical queue at about 51 minutes, so it is the one to do first
  • You want Six Flags Darien Lake's own character - the rides, theming and atmosphere described below

04 · The parks

What each one is.

Seaworld Orlando

SeaWorld Orlando is the Florida flagship of the SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment group. Beyond the marine animal exhibits, the park has a strong coaster line-up: Mako (one of Florida's tallest coasters at 200 feet), Manta (a flying coaster), Ice Breaker, Kraken (a floorless coaster), Pipeline (a surfing-style stand-up coaster), and the newer Penguin Trek.

SeaWorld Orlando is usually less crowded than Disney and Universal, but Florida school holidays, Halloween Spooktacular and Christmas Celebration push peak attendance higher. Weekdays in September, October and January are dramatically quieter. Check live queue times for Mako and Pipeline on arrival, and use our crowd calendar to pick a midweek date for shorter waits across the coaster line-up.

Seaworld Orlando live queue times

Six Flags Darien Lake

Six Flags Darien Lake sits in Darien Center, New York, between Buffalo and Rochester. The coaster line-up includes Ride of Steel (a 208-foot hyper coaster from Intamin), Tantrum (a 98-foot Eurofighter), Motocoaster launched coaster, Predator wooden coaster, and the classic Viper stand-up. A Hurricane Harbor water park and a camping resort operate on the same property.

Western New York school holidays, US summer weekends and the Fright Fest event drive Darien Lake's peak crowds. Weekdays in May, September and early October stay dramatically quieter. Check live wait times for Ride of Steel and Tantrum on arrival, and use our crowd calendar to pick a midweek visit - many rides run near walk-on levels on quieter mornings.

Six Flags Darien Lake live queue times

05 · Questions

Seaworld Orlando or Six Flags Darien Lake?

Which is better, Seaworld Orlando or Six Flags Darien Lake?

If you are judging on queues, Seaworld Orlando: it averages about 20 minutes a ride on a typical day against 22 at Six Flags Darien Lake, roughly 2 minutes back on every queue you join. Seaworld Orlando has 17 rides with recorded waits against 13 at Six Flags Darien Lake. Six Flags Darien Lake also runs its rides more reliably - 67% of opening hours against 54%.

Which has shorter queues, Seaworld Orlando or Six Flags Darien Lake?

Seaworld Orlando, by about 2 minutes a ride. On a typical day Seaworld Orlando averages 20 minutes against 22 at Six Flags Darien Lake. Queues still move hour by hour, and a midweek day outside school holidays beats the gap at either park. See Seaworld Orlando best time to visit and Six Flags Darien Lake best time to visit to pick a quiet day.

Can I visit Seaworld Orlando and Six Flags Darien Lake in the same trip?

Yes - both parks are in United States, so a two-park trip is realistic over a long weekend. Split the days so you start at whichever opens earliest and drive to the other in the evening.

How many rides does each park have?

See the tables above for ride counts - or jump to Seaworld Orlando and Six Flags Darien Lake for the full ride lists.

Is Seaworld Orlando bigger than Six Flags Darien Lake?

By rides we track waits for, Seaworld Orlando is the bigger day out: 17 rides against 13. Acreage matters less than how many you can actually get on, which comes down to queues and opening hours - and on those Seaworld Orlando is the quicker park.

Then pick
the quiet day.

Both parks have a crowd calendar with six weeks of forecast and the best day left to go.

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