Thursday, March 22, 2012

Top 10 Disney Attractions




10. Peter Pan's Flight
What can I say about a classic?  I love the black light and neon colors, plus the fact that you get to fly in a pirate ship.  This is one of my favorites in Fantasyland (ever since they got rid of Mr. Toad's Wild Ride)

9. Prince Charming Regal Carousel

This is one that I would have told you to skip.  I used to hate carousels.  The music is out of tune and loud, the ride makes me dizzy, and kids lose their mind on them.  Then I had kids.  Now I see how a simple ride (even if the music is out of tune) can be such a joy.  Even if you don't have kids you really should go on this ride. This is an authentic 1917 carousel with 90 unique and handcrafted horses.  It is worth it just to look at the artwork on this ride!
8. Maharajah Jungle Trek
Fake poop with bits of "stuff" in it.

Technically this *is* an attraction, even though there is nothing you ride.  This is the zoo section of Animal Kingdom. I love this section because of the educational value (bird spotting, animal plaques, cast members with vast knowledge, etc.) and for the authentic fake poop Disney put in the walkways.
7. Enchanted Tiki Room
 I actually prefer the original Enchanted Tiki Room versus the "under new management" version, so I am glad they went back to the original.  To be honest, the attraction isn't my favorite part.  The pineapple sorbets you can get by the queue (in line in Disneyland!!) is my favorite part.  Mmmm.... I could go for one of those right now actually...
6. Kilimanjaro Safari
 I love the safari!  It is a different ride every time you do it. One of the trips we got stuck in the bus because a rhino was blocking the path and we couldn't go forward.  There is no moving a rhino when he doesn't want to move...  My pictures are usually horrible on this ride.  Before we go back I will need to work on my safari picture taking skills.
5. Splash Mountain
 When we went to the Magic Kingdom when I was in high school my younger sister was 6.  My dad took her on Splash Mountain and I was petrified of going on the log flume and I wouldn't do it.  I still can't believe I let a 6 year old out-courage me.  When we went on our honeymoon I made myself confront my fear. It wasn't nearly as scary as I thought.  It was a ton of fun and I am so excited to go on it with my son next time we go.
4. Maelstrom
I don't think the ride is as amazing as my memory attached to it. I am always such a worry wart. The first time I went to Disney World my mom was pregnant with my younger sister.  We went on Maelstrom and I was so upset and worried that something bad was going to happen to my mom when she rode it. There is a little LITTLE tiny bump in this ride and I screamed and immediately asked/cried to my mom to see if she was ok.  My mom just laughed at me. I think I would have too if my child was so worked up on this ride!  Ah, memories.
3. The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe
This one isn't even there anymore, but I thought it was so cool.  I love the Chronicles of Narnia.  The books are amazing and the movies did a marvelous job.  On our honeymoon we walked through the scene and I thought it was so cool to pretend to be part of a book I had so desperately wanted to be real when I was a kid.  I can't count the amount of times I would close my eyes when going into a closet and try to not find the back of it. Alas, I always ran into the wall, and never got to meet Aslan. At least I was able to pretend for a few minutes at Disney.
2. Expedition Everest

This was brand-spanking new  when we went to Disney on our honeymoon.  I know we rode it at least three times to see if the front, middle, or back was the best experience.  Unfortunately, I had gotten VERY sick on our honeymoon and I missed out on a lot of days in the parks because I was stuck being miserable in the hotel.  We did make sure to get back to Animal Kingdom to ride it one more time before we left.  It is such a fun ride and I have sweet memories attached to it.

1. Space Mountain
Before we even met, my husband and I went on our first Disney World vacations when we were each just a couple months away from turning 11.  Each of our first roller coaster rides happened to be Space Mountain.  In my husband's case, his mom didn't realize it was a roller coaster, went on it with him, and was scared half to death.  She sat behind Matthew, my husband, and kept her head down just looking up to make sure he as ok.  Matthew LOVED it. His mom HATED it.  Oh, what parents will do for their kids. When we went to Disneyland (before we were married) it was getting renovated so we missed out.  When we went to Disney World on our honeymoon it needed a renovation.  The lights were up, you could see the track and a bunch of markers. It was very uncool and we were upset.  Fast forward to our 2009 vacation with our son.  Sebastian was too small to go on it so we took turns.  It was POURING rain, but we took the fast passes and took turns going on the ride.  Matthew went first, and I had an inkling that I may have been pregnant (barely) and I talked to my "possible" baby and apologized for the ride. Sitting on the ride I even thought to myself "I'm not going on this ride alone..." Well, I was pregnant with Kaelyn and she has been a dare devil ever since!

9 comments:

Heidi said...

What a great top 10 list! I really enjoyed reading the stories behind your choices! Thanks for playing along this week.

jrbeers717 said...

No more Mister Toad's Wild Ride?! I really liked that one. :-/

Disney Living said...

I almost included Maelstrom on my list! I love going backwards!

Jennifer said...

Love your list and memories!!! New follower from Destination Disney. :)

Unknown said...

Great list! I love the Maharajah Jungle Trek too, so many great details.

Karen said...

I loved The Lion, The Witch and The Wordrobe when it was there also.

That Odd Mom said...

I miss The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe too!

izza said...

Perfect! Thanks much for the list! Will include these on my Disney adventure too. Anyway, if you have kids with you, renting baby strollers is the most convenient thing to do.

izza said...

Perfect! Thanks much for the list! Will include these on my Disney adventure too. Anyway, if you have kids with you, renting baby strollers is the most convenient thing to do.