As you can see from my signature, Mrs. Cups and I have an Orlando-based instagram account. We’re in the process of creating a blog about Orlando things as well and we’re obviously going to have a big Disney section.
(Fun Fact: Our Disney posts get the most amount of traction. The second most? Believe it or not. it’s pro wrestling. Wrestling and Disney are practically equal…who knew? But I digress…)
Part of our Disney section is going to be "Everything you need to know about (insert ride/attraction here). We’ll eventually cover all of them, but I just need to know where to start. So I’m asking all of you in the most unscientific way possible. What is your favorite ride or experience in Disney World? It can be any park (Magic Kingdom, Epcot. Hollywood Studios or Animal Kingdom) and it doesn’t necessarily have to be a ride (You might really, really love a certain character dining). I’ll see what everyone says and I’ll start making posts based on the most popular responses.
It’s kitschy, it’s old-fashioned, it’s in desperate need of an update in its final section. And yet it remains our one absolute cannot miss attraction on every trip.
When we were there, the Cub’s favourite was Splash Mountain. He even got Mrs P on it, even though she doesn’t like roller coaster type rides.
And I felt very old identifying the characters to him, and explaining that they’re from an old movie that you can’t get any more, no, not even on Netflix, and yes, Dad saw it once in the movie theatre, but no, some movies just don’t get shown after a while …
Back when I lived in Kissimmee (early '90s), I could get a Florida Resident Annual Pass for less than $100. It granted access to all parks and transportation systems on the property any day of the year except 2 weeks around Xmas & New Years, 2 weeks in the spring, 4th of July and Thanksgiving Day.
I worked 3rd shift at Universal Studios, Sunday-Thursday. So I could get off work at 8:30am, race home, shower and change, drop some acid and head off to DisneyWorld. By 9am, as the park opened, I would be getting out of my car and entering MGM Studios theme park. By 9:05 I could be at and on the TZToT! The ride would end and I could get right back in line and often right back on the ride. Once I rode it 14 times before I had to stand in a line at all, and I got in with the next group anyway!
By 10am people would be showing up in droves tho, so I’d head over to Space Mountain, which by then would be seeing it’s initial rush of visitors abating so I could ride that a few times in quick succession.
I used to go to DW so much that I could guarantee friends and family that if they stuck with me, they’d go on every ride worth riding with minimal wait times. The park has (had?) an ebb-and-flow that was palpable back in the '80s and '90s, and I was well-schooled in riding that flow.
I think I had the most fun on Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride in Orlando. I loved that you ended up in hell at the end. Looks like it’s gone now.
The Haunted Mansion is perhaps my second favorite.
I liked the Carousel of Progress in the New York World’s fair, where the audience was on the carousel instead of the stage. I was disappointed that they changed it.
I can’t decide if I’m resentful that Orlando got to keep their Tower of Terror and we had to get rid of ours, or if I’m happy that it still exists even if it’s across the country.
Another vote for the Tower Of Terror, I love those giant drop rides. I’d probably put Expedition Everest up there as well. Those broken tracks got me every time.
I’ve only done it once with a FastPass (no ride is worth 3 hours of standby), but Flight of Passage is hands down the best ride I’ve ever been on.
For the other parks,
Haunted Mansion in the MK. May be worth mentioning the Spirit Photography available in Memento Mori, since it doesn’t seem to be massively advertised.
Rock 'n Roller Coaster is HS (I like Tower of Terror but have a hard time doing it more than once per trip)
Living with the Land in Epcot (honorable mention goes to France for letting me sit down while watching their country montage)