40 Disney Attractions: 20

"And don't worry about that asteroid. You'll be in and out of there before it breaks the atmosphere. Trust me, what could go wrong?"




20. Dinosaur

Once a small highway town, Dinoland USA blew up after an amateur fossil hunter accidentally stumbled upon some dinosaur bones in 1947. Since then, scientists have bought most of the area and learned to live with the locals while searching the land for more evidence of prehistoric life.

Two residents, Chester and Hester, also saw the appeal of the new visitors flocking across the country and, determined to make a quick buck, converted their gas station into a chintzy souvenir stand and eventually opened a miniature midway adjacent to the gift shop.

At the center of the town, however, is the main attraction: The Dino Institute, a once secret research facility now open to the public. Here, scientists have perfected time travel technology and are now allowing guests to take trips back in time on scenic tours of prehistory. Following a brief explanation via video chat from Dr. Marsh (Clair Huxtable), she is interrupted by Dr. Seeker (Andy French) who asks guests to participate in a very secret mission: go back in time and find a tagged Iguanodon and bring it back to the present before the dinosaur-killing meteor hits the planet.

What begins as a peaceful search(even under killer time restraints) turns into a race to avoid a hungry Carnotaurus as your Time Rover speeds away, trying to catch the Iguanodon while trying to not get caught itself. The Rover skids left and right, taking steep drops and sharp turns, as the countdown to extinction draws closer.

The strange thing about Dinosaur is that it's virtually similar in track layout to a Disneyland ride that premiered 3 years earlier, Indiana Jones and the Temple of the Forbidden Eye. For some reason, Disney World still doesn't have a legit Indiana Jones ride (we still have that dumb stunt show though). Instead we get dinosaurs.

It's still an incredibly fast paced and exciting ride! But I'm not sure which is better: Indy or dinos.

40 Disney Attractions: 21

"Attention all aliens from galaxy M-31, please keep forward facing tentacle clear of oncoming blue liner vehicles."



21. The Tomorrowland Transit Authority

Listen up. I'm gonna school you to why the TTA is the best ride in all of Tomorrowland.

First and foremost, atmosphere. No other ride at Tomorrowland represents Tomorrowland like the PeopleMover. Sitting in Rockettower Plaza, the exact center of the area, the TTA is a ride as much as it is a line. It's a queue for Tomorrowland itself. The ride is themed as an urban transit system, traveling across all of Tomorrowland, passing through many of the attractions and gives you a good idea of what the entire area is like. Add in an announcement PA system, making dumb space related puns, and it's just awesome.

Second: Convenience. Most people ignore this ride. It's not Buzz Lightyear, it's not Space Mountain. It's a slow(ish) ride around Tomorrowland. As such, there are no wait times. Literally zero. You can walk right up the moving walkway and into a Metroliner seat. Since it's high up, it's a lot cooler than most rides which is a blessing in Florida heat. You also get a good view of the park itself, nabbing pictures like this:



Lastly: Behind the scenes stuff. Traveling through attractions is a great way to view some workings, in and around the ride. Passing by Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin, you can see hidden hit points and the blacklights scattered throughout. Going into the Carousel of Progress, you get a peek of a model of Walt Disney's planned city of the future. Most importantly though, you get a chance to see this monstrosity:



The TTA passes right by Space Mountain's loading area and when it needs to undergo refurbishment or it breaks down, they need to turn the lights on.

And there is nothing scarier in Walt Disney World than Space Mountain with the lights on.

40 Disney Attractions: 22

"And it rained...and it rained...and it rained...the deluge."



22. The Living Seas

Okay so just to be clear, I have nothing against the replacement attraction, The Seas with Nemo and Friends. It's cute, it's fun, it's got great atmosphere and it even tells a story. But, man, it cannot hold a candle to Sea Base Alpha.

Following a short pre-show on the creation of the oceans, guests board Hydrolators that purportedly take them down miles beneath the sea(actually just two inches) to just outside the base. From there, they board Omnimover Seacabs which take them through a tunnel and into Sea Base Alpha itself, all the while viewing the marine life in Disney World's 5,700,000 gallon aquarium.

The idea that The Living Seas was an underwater exploration base is crucial to its entire being to me. It's beautiful and simple in the open, scientific base, viewing and learning of the fascinating creatures that reside in the ocean(including my friend, the Cuttlefish). It made me want to be a marine biologist, thinking I could spend my time in a real Sea Base Alpha. The Living Seas remains close to my heart as an example of what Disney can do as an immersive educational tool. Sure, it's just a massive aquarium(the largest saltwater tank in the world until the Georgia Aquarium opened in 2005), but it's because of that feeling that you're seeing science happen that makes it all the more special to observe fish.

There's also a seafood restaurant next door with one of the walls being part of the aquarium, which is kinda messed up.

40 Disney Attractions: 23

oh hi there

"Make it a stretch...In fact, make it a super stretch"

23. Rock 'n' Roller Coaster


Okay, so I mean, it's Rock n Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith. But I literally cannot imagine there is a person on this planet that gives two cares about these grody old dudes who haven't been popular since Armageddon.

The gist of the ride is you're taking a tour of a record company and, just as Aerosmith is gonna treat you to a sneak peek recording, their manager tells them "Yo, Aerosmith, you're about to be late to your concert." To make up for missing out on their stupid garbage performance no one cares about, they give you free backstage passes AND a limo ride. You exit the studio into an alley with a 24 seater rolly coaster limo.

It's at that point the actual cool thing begins. You shoot out from 0 to 57 mpg in 3 seconds with Aerosmith songs specifically rewritten to be about roller coasters and sung by the band hitting corkscrews and stuff. You literally hit more gs than when an astronaut does at a space shuttle launch. It's insane.

Rock 'n' Roller Coaster is interesting in that it's definitely a more hardcore roller coaster with crazy speed and loops, but unlike most hardcore coasters, it's not as clunky of a ride. It's a smoother ride.