WDW: Looking for a Thrill
Oct. 19th, 2003 10:05 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
dolphins_logHave we moved beyond the old Disney attractions? Don't get me wrong, the trip to Orlando was very relaxing, very fun, and a much needed distraction. This first week back from work was alive and full of energy.
The surprise that I had was that the Magic Kingdom, the copy of Disneyland, was a little passe. The Pirates of the Caribbean was a float trip. The Haunted Mansion was a tram through animatronics. Hey, they were fun, but... Well, we've done them. Since the Pirate Move was such a smash hit, maybe I was expecting more. It seems that I may not the only one. There were no lines at all for these attractions, while there was an hour wait for Splash Mountain. Come to think of it, Splash Mountain was just plain fun, Got a snappy tune throughout the ride and then it dumps you over a waterfall. You can't beat that. Perhaps they need to update those two venerable rides.
Mickey's Philharmagic is new. It's just a three D show that reprises some of the hit music from the movies of the 90's, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin and the like. Donald is racing throughout the various numbers scrambling to get Mickey's wizard hat back. It may be just a 3D movie, but it was well worth the thirty-five minute wait or at least a Fastpass.
We took in the Extra Terror-restial ride because they are shutting it down for an update. It's popularity has dropped off in recent years. Now they are going for comedy. It will be about the same set up as it is now. The change will be that it will feature Stitches Escape. So, maybe they will take a serious look at those other two older rides that have been there forever.
The BIG attraction in Walt Disneyworld is the new ride at EPCOT. Mission Space is a firecracker boot in the butt. The ride is a centrifuge. The fantasy is that you are training for a mission to Mars. What's fun about the fantasy is that they pretty much tell you you're entering a centrifuge. The G force is powerful, you feel your cheeks pulling back from your teeth. We got in for the soft opening, before they had their dedication. There weren't many people that morning so we just turned around and did it again. That was probably a mistake. I felt the G force in my sinuses and came away with a headache. Still, we took this one about four times while we were there.
Coming out of the actual ride you enter an auditorium with all sorts of fun things going on. There is a space race type video game that has 8 people in front, two teams of four, repairing their space crafts as they race from Mars to the International Space Station. Then there are about 30 people for each craft, ground control, sending them the needed information for the repairs. Juli and I got to be crewmembers. We volunteered to separate so that they could fill both crafts easily. We got a good laugh and cheer for our competitive spirit. I won. Neener Neener.
The Test Track is fun too. You end up racing about the outside of the exhibit at 67.8 mph which is pretty cool for a ride. It's unfortunate that when you come off the ride you enter what looks like a sales floor of an auto dealership. The other drawback is that the ride depends on each individual car functioning on it's own power. They tend to break down. Then again, it lends to the fantasy, as they have a technician come out and repair it right there.
If these two upgrades to EPCOT are any example then there is much hope for the Magic Kingdom.
Perhaps I will post more later.
The surprise that I had was that the Magic Kingdom, the copy of Disneyland, was a little passe. The Pirates of the Caribbean was a float trip. The Haunted Mansion was a tram through animatronics. Hey, they were fun, but... Well, we've done them. Since the Pirate Move was such a smash hit, maybe I was expecting more. It seems that I may not the only one. There were no lines at all for these attractions, while there was an hour wait for Splash Mountain. Come to think of it, Splash Mountain was just plain fun, Got a snappy tune throughout the ride and then it dumps you over a waterfall. You can't beat that. Perhaps they need to update those two venerable rides.
Mickey's Philharmagic is new. It's just a three D show that reprises some of the hit music from the movies of the 90's, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin and the like. Donald is racing throughout the various numbers scrambling to get Mickey's wizard hat back. It may be just a 3D movie, but it was well worth the thirty-five minute wait or at least a Fastpass.
We took in the Extra Terror-restial ride because they are shutting it down for an update. It's popularity has dropped off in recent years. Now they are going for comedy. It will be about the same set up as it is now. The change will be that it will feature Stitches Escape. So, maybe they will take a serious look at those other two older rides that have been there forever.
The BIG attraction in Walt Disneyworld is the new ride at EPCOT. Mission Space is a firecracker boot in the butt. The ride is a centrifuge. The fantasy is that you are training for a mission to Mars. What's fun about the fantasy is that they pretty much tell you you're entering a centrifuge. The G force is powerful, you feel your cheeks pulling back from your teeth. We got in for the soft opening, before they had their dedication. There weren't many people that morning so we just turned around and did it again. That was probably a mistake. I felt the G force in my sinuses and came away with a headache. Still, we took this one about four times while we were there.
Coming out of the actual ride you enter an auditorium with all sorts of fun things going on. There is a space race type video game that has 8 people in front, two teams of four, repairing their space crafts as they race from Mars to the International Space Station. Then there are about 30 people for each craft, ground control, sending them the needed information for the repairs. Juli and I got to be crewmembers. We volunteered to separate so that they could fill both crafts easily. We got a good laugh and cheer for our competitive spirit. I won. Neener Neener.
The Test Track is fun too. You end up racing about the outside of the exhibit at 67.8 mph which is pretty cool for a ride. It's unfortunate that when you come off the ride you enter what looks like a sales floor of an auto dealership. The other drawback is that the ride depends on each individual car functioning on it's own power. They tend to break down. Then again, it lends to the fantasy, as they have a technician come out and repair it right there.
If these two upgrades to EPCOT are any example then there is much hope for the Magic Kingdom.
Perhaps I will post more later.
