Introducing Orlando’s Daring Dozen - 12 thrill rides you don’t want to miss.

With 7 major theme parks, Orlando offers plenty in the way of thrills and adventure.  And with SeaWorld Orlando and Universal Studios Florida recently announcing the development of new signature thrill rides, even more exciting adventure is on the horizon. Everyone has their own opinion on which rides provide the biggest thrills but here are a dozen attractions that are sure to make any thrill enthusiast’s “can’t miss” list!

Incredible Hulk Coaster (Islands of Adventure)  Feel the rage! After being launched from zero to 40 mph in two seconds, the Hulk takes riders upward 150 ft. and reaches top speeds of 67 mph.  You’ll experience a total of seven inversions and two subterranean trenches during the 2-minute, 15-second ride.

Kraken (SeaWorld)  Born from tales that struck terror in sailors for centuries, SeaWorld’s mighty Kraken is a monster coaster like no other. Consistently ranked one of the world’s top 10 coasters by ride enthusiasts, Orlando’s tallest, fastest, and only floorless steel coaster rises high above the horizon, daring you to take it on.

Dueling Dragons (Islands of Adventure)  The world’s first inverted, dueling roller-coasters. Soar 125 feet in the air at speeds of 55 mph. Ride with the Fire Dragon or Ice Dragon as they narrowly pass within 18 inches of each other on 3 separate occasions.  The flight offers several inversions, including a zero-g roll, a Cobra roll, two corkscrews, and two vertical loops.

Doctor Doom’s Fearfall (Islands of Adventure)  Doctor Doom has designed a diabolical device created to extract every ounce of fear from your body by rocketing you 150 feet into the air, then hurling you back down faster than gravity itself!  The initial launch uses more thrust than a 747 jet engine and accelerates faster than the space shuttle.  

Expedition Everest (Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park)  Take on the treacherous terrain of the towering Forbidden Mountain in this high-altitude, high-speed train adventure. Nail-biting hairpin turns hurl you forward toward the peak and then, just when you think it couldn’t get more thrilling - backward! The mountain’s full of surprises: Beware the snarling beast…the Yeti!

Twilight Zone Tower of Terror (Disney’s Hollywood Studios)  Board a creepy, phantom elevator, shoot up 13 stories and brace yourself for a thrilling plummet… but beware! The experience just got scarier. You rocket back up, only to plummet down yet again. You dare to ride once more, but wait! That’s not what happened before. The Tower is in control, so it’s never the same fear twice!

Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster starring Aerosmith (Disney’s Hollywood Studios)  Aerosmith’s having a backstage party across town and you’re invited. Ready to brave the LA freeways? Zoom from 0-60 mph with the force of a supersonic F-14, take in high-speed loops and turns synchronized to a specially recorded Aerosmith soundtrack and zip through Tinseltown in the biggest, loudest limo ever seen.

Revenge of the Mummy (Universal Studios Florida)  Plunge into total darkness as you face fireballs, scarab beetles and an army of warrior mummies on a psychological thrill ride totally unlike anything that’s come along in the past 3,000 years!  The ride catapults you at speeds up to 45 mph.

The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man (Islands of Adventure)  Put on your 3-D glasses for an eye-popping, pulse-pounding, first-of-its-kind 3-D thrill ride. Careening through the streets and swinging high above the city, you’ll see, hear, and FEEL the action.  This simulator ride encompasses 1.5 acres and includes a virtual 400-foot freefall experience.

Mission Space (Epcot)  This ultimate interactive thrill-packed adventure is as close as you can get to blasting off into space. Each member of your astronaut team has a challenging role in a dynamic and daring cosmic mission dodging meteors and navigating nebulae. Select the exhilarating and intense training or opt for a less intense galactic adventure.

Space Mountain (Magic Kingdom Park)  Dare to be a rocket jockey and blast into the outer-galaxy past shooting stars and other-worldly celestial satellites. Twist and turn in a tumult of fun as you launch into the inky blackness of the nether reaches of space. It’s one giant leap for fun!

Test Track (Epcot)  Enter the hair-raising world of auto testing on one of the longest, fastest rides in Disney history! Strap yourself in to race up bumpy terrain, roar through hair-pin turns, speed into freezing cold chambers, and rush on to 50-degree banked curves at 60 miles an hour.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, April 9th, 2008 at 9:25 am and is filed under Orlando. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.