Traveling the Globe for the Best Coasters and Theme Parks
Diverting to Hong Kong and taking a nine-week-old to Disneyland? You bet, bébé. How’s this stepchild of Disney parks holding up? Join us on yet another asian theme park adventure with can’t-miss rides like Big Grizzly Mountain Runaway Mine Cars, Mystic Manor, Wandering Oaken’s Sliding Sleighs, Frozen Ever After, Iron Man Experience, Ant-Man and The Wasp: Nano Battle!, Hyperspace Mountain, and more!
Continue reading “Hong Kong Disneyland Bébé”Join Sean and Alex on their journey from Old Shanghai and Yu Garden on to the world’s fastest train and tallest observation deck. Of course, no trip to Shanghai is complete without a day at one of its most spectacular parks: Shanghai Disneyland. How is the brand-new Zootopia ride and land? How is the park holding up?
Continue reading “Shanghai + Shanghai Disneyland!”
Beginning with resort-saving Space Mountain de la Terre a la Lune in 1995, Disney was the unlikely champion of the modern launch coaster. Before Premier Rides, Intamin, and other industry juggernauts had their hand at next-generation launchers, Disney partnered with Vekoma to create the first new catapult-propelled coaster in over a decade (one that, unlike its predecessors, would run multiple trains on a full circuit).
Continue reading “The 5 Best Disney Launch Coasters”
It’s only been a couple months since Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind opened at Walt Disney World’s EPCOT, but Disney Imagineering has already unveiled their next Marvel-themed attraction: Avengers Assemble: Flight Force. Though expectations were (probably) modest, the “new” coaster didn’t perform as desired for some folks – what went wrong?
Continue reading “In Defense of Avengers Assemble: Flight Force”
UPDATED – August 2022
We didn’t plan on riding Rex’s Racer on our 2019 visit to Shanghai Disneyland . The new credit was tempting, but we assumed the line would be too long to be a good use of time – after all, we already had the Paris and Hong Kong ones.
On Shanghai Disneyland day the crowds were light, and when we checked out the new Toy Story Land, we noticed Rex’s Racer going out with empty seats. “Eh, why not” we said. After riding, it occurred to us that we’d now ridden every coaster Disney has ever built – but not for long. Wandering Oaken’s Sliding Sleds will open at Hong Kong Disneyland before we know it, and with no plans for a Hong Kong Disney visit in our near future, we know our every-Disney-coaster-ridden claim had an expiration date.
Naturally we decided to write an article ranking all operating Disney coasters – it may have taken years for us to get around to it, but we’ve finally put it together. We’re also pleased to include both Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind and Avengers Assemble: Flight Force in our latest revision!
Continue reading “All Disney Coasters – Ranked”
About this time in 2017, we dropped a Disney Rides Top 20 to celebrate the opening of Shanghai Disneyland. Five years and two revisions later, we’re back with the 3rd Edition of our Global Disney Top 20. We’re proud to bring an increasingly comprehensive countdown of Disney’s top rides from around the world – each one pushing the limits of storytelling entertainment and illustrating for the visionary artwork of Walt Disney Imagineering.
Continue reading “20 Best Disney Rides in the World – 2022 Edition”
There’s no better thing than a brand-new Disney park themed land opening up. This is particularly true for Disneyland Paris’ neighboring park Walt Disney Studios that has always struggled with a smaller-than-usual attraction lineup. As part of a large expansion to the theme park, Avenger Campus will be home to several rides, restaurants, shopping and entertainment attractions. Let’s take a look at all that Avenger Campus will have to offer!
Continue reading “What to Expect at Marvel Avenger Campus at Walt Disney Studios in Paris”
Paris’ Indiana Jones gets a bad rap. For pretty much its entire existence, the ride has been overlooked because of bigger coasters and better Indy-themed rides – but we think this odd little ride deserves more credit.
Continue reading “In Defense of Indiana Jones et le Temple du Péril”
The year is 1860. Thunder Mesa has been virtually wiped off the map by an earthquake, with its infrastructure largely destroyed. Big Thunder Mining Co. is now shuttered, but indigenous spirits still possess the mine trains to this day.
Continue reading “The Best Big Thunder Mountain”
While we’ve ranked all of Disney’s Space Mountains before, such an article can only spend so much time showcasing the pure brilliance of Disneyland Paris’ Space Mountain. After another recent trip to our french Disney home park across the pond, we decided to highlight this dazzling masterpiece of a roller coaster in a dedicated article.
Continue reading “The Best Space Mountain”
Shortly before most borders (and theme parks) closed, Alex and I traveled to Disneyland Paris for a few days at one of our favorite parks. At the time we did not realize we’d cancel our next several international trips. This summer we finally were able to leave the US again, and the first park we visited was Disneyland Paris of course. Let’s take a look at the French Disney destination, without the usual crowd!
Continue reading “Disneyland Paris: Our Last International Park Before – and Our First International Park Since – the Pandemic Started.”
Today we’ll continue our series about the Spanish Theme Park History with the third article. Every two weeks we’re publishing one of eight articles about the history of thirteen Spanish amusement and theme parks. Some of them no longer exist, but some others are still operating and receiving guests nowadays. In this series, we travel in time through 168 years in theme park history, starting in 1853, to our days in 2021. In this article we’ll focus on two very special parks, the first one is Monte Igueldo, which still operates in the Spanish region of the Basque Country and, the second one, Parc d’Atraccions de Montjuïc, which was located in Barcelona.
Continue reading “Spanish Theme Park History – Part 3: Monte Igueldo & Parc d’Atraccions de Montjuïc”
Today we’ll continue our series about the Spanish Theme Park History with the second article. Every two weeks we’re publishing one of eight articles about the history of thirteen Spanish amusement and theme parks. Some of them no longer exist, but some others are still operating and receiving guests nowadays. In this series, we’ll travel in time through 168 years in theme park history, starting in 1853, to our days in 2021. Today we’ll focus on Tibidabo amusement park, one of the oldest European amusement parks that are still operating, it’s an icon of the city of Barcelona and probably the only Spanish park that Walt Disney visited.
Continue reading “Spanish Theme Park History – Part 2: Tibidabo”
Since their creation amusement and theme parks have utilized landscaping and theming as an important part of the experience. The massive popularity of Disneyland standardized the idea of themed lands within a park. Most parks which opened in the resulting regional park boom incorporated this idea. Theme parks have the ability to transport guests to different times and worlds. A well-themed area can be an attraction in and of itself. But these areas often fall flat. The following are five of the weakest theme park areas. Also included are some ideas on how they might be refreshed. This is by no means an exhaustive list so please make your own suggestions, they may find their way to a part two!
Continue reading “Weakest Theme Park Areas”
We’re proud to present the 4th set of designs for the Coasters and Landmarks line. This week’s theme is “Starstuff” with 5 brand new intergalactic designs of retro, and not-so-retro, cosmic attractions. See what’s new this week on Shop Coaster Kings: Continue reading “SHOP – Starstuff – 5 Intergalactic Designs”
With most of the parks closed in Europe and all Halloween events cancelled, we might have one of the saddest Theme Park Halloween season ever. But that didn’t stop us from digging into our archives and see what we experienced in the past. This year, we’re looking back at a rare Halloween event that took place at the Walt Disney Studios in Disneyland Paris: Terrorific Nights. Continue reading “Halloween Throwback: Terrorific Night at Disneyland Paris”
After launching our Coaster Line last week, we’re now adding five new pieces to form the Coasters and Landmarks Line. These new pieces take us across the globe to some of the most iconic landmarks in the themed entertainment industry. Carefully chosen and designed based on our love for these remarkable icons, this week’s wonderous landmark designs can’t be missed: Continue reading “SHOP – 5 New Landmark Designs”
After months on top of months of waiting, California theme parks finally received reopening guidelines yesterday during the state’s weekly COVID-19 briefing. Governor Gavin Newsom along with other high-level representatives from the Golden State have decided to split up theme parks into “larger theme parks” and “smaller theme parks”. The placement of a theme park is based on its capacity. The state says it will allow smaller theme parks to reopen at 25% capacity (or 500 people, whichever is fewer) once the county the park resides in is placed into the orange tier. Reservations will be required, all park guests must live in the same county the park is in, and only outdoor attractions will be allowed to operate. For larger theme parks, the restrictions are even more suffocating, with the guidelines stating that the county the park resides in must be in the yellow tier in order to reopen. Like the smaller parks, reservations will also be required and the park capacity will have to be 25%. Continue reading “California Theme Parks – Where Do We Go From Here?”
UPDATED: October 2020
We’ve had the amazing opportunity to travel to all Disney parks in the world, twice! Along with that, we’ve also been passholders for 8 out of the 12 parks! We’re critics – and thus can’t help but compare every experience at each Disney park. We’ve reasoned back and forth and have taken the changes over the past couple of years in account to create this list ranking all Disney parks in the World. (Please note that this article has been completely rewritten from our January 2019 edition). Continue reading “All Disney Parks in the World – Ranked”
The United States remains one of the most important countries for roller coaster and theme park enthusiasts around the world. A country the size of the United Sates can be overwhelming for visitors trying to decide which parks to go to. This list seeks to focus in on 10 American parks I think are essential for international visitors to experience. Note that this isn’t intended as a ranking of the best parks in the U.S., rather it is a list of parks that encapsulate the landscape of the American amusement industry.
Continue reading “Top 10 US Parks International Tourists Need To Visit”