The story of theme parks in the 21st century is about to be a weird one… We may only be 20% of the way through the first century of the 2000s, but we’ve already lived through some of the wildest swings of the pendulum in themed entertainment design ever. Theme parks began in a lowly position as the tail end of Eisner’s budget-conscious ’90s and early 2000s lead to an era of underbuilt, abandoned, and low-budget plans, made all the worse by the 2001 obliteration of tourism in the wake of September 11th and, further, the financial crisis of 2008. Budgets were slashed. Theme parks cancelled. Projects downsized.
Arguably, that trend was reversed only by the opening of the Wizarding World in 2009, propelling Universal (and by extension, Disney) into the modern age of “living lands,” big-budget investment, per-capita spending records, and theme parks as corporate revenue-generators… Who would’ve foreseen an era where E-Tickets weren’t enough? Where competitors battled over blockbuster IPs? Where guests would queue for hours not for rides, but for food and shops? Where Disney and Universal would drop a billion dollars on a single land? Of course, this golden age of investment is itself coming to an unceremonious end thanks to the catastrophic fallout of the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, the results of which will no doubt be felt in the parks for decades.
So now, today, we find ourselves in an unusual position: half celebrational, half mournful, 2020 seems like a good time to look back at what may have represented the height of Imagineering; the pinnacle of theme park spending; the biggest $200 million E-Tickets we’ll see for a while. Last month, we took a half-hearted look at what we think are the “Worst” Disney Attractions of the Century (So Far). Today, we’ll flip the script and look at the best to come out of Disney (and Universal) Parks so far in the 21st century – that is, opening in the year 2000 or later. (So no, Indiana Jones Adventure, The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man, and the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror won’t be on this list… though you can read up on each in our Modern Marvels collection!) Agree? Disagree? Does our countdown need a shift? Share your thoughts in the comments below or when you share this feature with friends!
10. Soarin’ Over California
Opened: 2001
Debut: Disney California Adventure and Epcot
For Disney fans, it’s practically impossible to discuss any opening day attraction at Disney California Adventure without placing an asterisk at the end. After all, when the park opened in 2001, it had practically nothing for families, zero Disney characters, and almost no standout attractions… almost. While we traced the almost-unbelievable story of the park’s original form in its own Disney’s California Misadventure mini-series, the park did have one single, incontrovertilble hit.
Having practically invented the theme park simulator with 1987’s Lost Legend: STAR TOURS, Imagineers had spent decades making them more thrilling, wilder, and rougher. 2001’s Soarin’ Over California was a breath of fresh air… It reinvented the capabilities of simulators by instead emphasizing the beauty, grace, and wonder the technology was capable of. Fusing an incredible new ride system, film, music, scent, and a particularly beloved pre-show, the ride wasn’t just California Adventure’s single, soaring success… it spread Around the World. First, the technology has made its way to Orlando, Shanghai, and Tokyo in the two decades since. Plus, a dozen manufacturers now offer “knock-off” hang-gliding simulators to populate amusement parks, malls, and museums. But none of the follow-ups – including the Disney-produced Soarin’ Around the World “upgrade” – come anywhere close to matching the ease and simplicity of the Lost Legend: Soarin’ Over California.
Honestly, it’s not every decade that Disney Imagineers legitimately invent a whole new ride system. Soarin’ did that. Though the original ride film may be retired (for now), it remains one of the best Disney attractions to have ever existed, and certainly among the best rides of this millennium (so far).
9. Expedition Everest
Opened: 2006
Location: Disney’s Animal Kingdom (exclusive)
It’s not every year – or even every decade – that Disney Imagineers introduce a new “mountain” to their range. So when Disney’s Animal Kingdom christened its own, one-of-a-kind mountain, a whole lot was riding on it. After all, standing among Disney’s Peaks of Imagineering and blending into the deeply-layered, story-focused, and culturally-reverent Animal Kingdom would require a world-class attraction. Luckily, Expedition Everest is that. The ride was a game-changer for Disney World; a 21st century return to form after a few too many years of cheap character overlays, unfortunately-underdeveloped parks, and cheap-and-cheerful attractions galore.
As with most of the other Disney “Mountains,” Everest is really just a steel roller coaster made so much more by the physical world Imagineers built around it. Boarding reclaimed trains for a shortcut pass through the Himalayas’ “Forbidden Mountain,” the ride races foward and backward through Tibetan plateaus, icy chasms, and the darkness of the mountain’s tunnels. The ride is so spectacular, in fact, that we dedicated an entire Modern Marvels: Expedition Everest feature to the legends and lore of the peak, the ride itself, and the mysterious mountain guardian said to reside within…
Speaking of which, while the ride’s iconic Yeti is infamously frozen himself, the spectacular ride still remains among Disney’s best. Designed with all the care and love you’d expect of a product of Joe Rohde, the ride feels like a piece so integral to the park, it’s hard to imagine a time before it. It is, without a doubt, the perfect mountain for Animal Kingdom, and an amazing way to incorporate long-promised “imagined” creatures into its lineup of myths and stories.
8. Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure
Opened: 2019
Location: Universal’s Islands of Adventure (exclusive)
There’s no doubt that for many, the inclusion of Hagrid’s Motorbike Adventure on this list could be a sticking point. For one thing, it’s true that for all the pomp and circumstance riders have shared after their experience, the ride is “just” a steel roller coaster – only barely diguised and moderately decorated. Another strike against it? Frankly, it doesn’t work well. Eighteen months in, the ultra-complex ride and its many moving parts (courtesy of cutting-edge, but admittedly unreliable ride manufacturer Intamin) still seems closed more than open. If fifteen hour waits on day one weren’t enough, the de facto headliner of the Universal Orlando Resort is known to go entire days without opening at all and infamously strands guests into multi-hour waits during breakdowns.
Yet for all the mess behind the scenes, the tooth-gritting frustration, and the nervous energy surrounding the ride, exiting guests tend to have one reaction: sheer, unbridled joy. Seated in motorbikes or sidecars, riders effortlessly zip through forests, plunge into darkness, and dive through an abandoned abbey deep in the Forbidden Forest outside Hogwarts. This terrain-hugging, twisting family coaster packs enough surprises (spoiler alert: including a world record seven launches, a hidden weightless stall and backwards drop, animatronics, and a concealed freefall drop track) to leave folks flabbergasted. And frankly, it’s just an absolute joy from start to finish.
The ride has recieved (no pun intended) universal acclaim from all who’ve made their way aboard. Some even call it the best ride in Orlando… That’s a whole lot to place on the shoulders of an outdoor, bare steel coaster, but more power to you if you agree. Reasonably, we think it’s fair to place this ride on our best of the century because it feels so right in the Wizarding World, and accomplishes so much in such a balanced way. Equal parts fun and thrilling, Universal managed to pull off a truly spectacular attraction (without a screen in sight, mind you!) and we suspect that once its reliability is up, Hagrid’s will settle nicely into being one of the resort’s most incredible attractions ever.
7. Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway
Opened: 2019
Location: Disney’s Hollywood Studios
When the Lost Legend: The Great Movie Ride had its curtain call in 2017, it served as the end of an era at Disney’s Hollywood Studios… and, more to the point, the start of a new one. Without its one-time “thesis attraction” as its centerpiece, the park began a radical transformation. Instead of taking guests behind the scenes of their favorite films, the reimagined Hollywood Studios would invite guests into them. Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway was the third in a trifecta of IP-influenced projects to come to the park in the span of just two years, and while Toy Story Land and Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge each recieved a bulk of the press, the first-ever Mickey themed ride-through is pure animated fun.
Based off of the new, Paul Rudish-created Mickey Mouse shorts aired on Disney Channel, the ride continues Disney’s decade-long attempt to return a little character to Mickey Mouse, who’d long been relegated mostly to a personality-free corporate symbol. The resulting attraction is a wonder, seamlessly carrying guests from the regal Chinese Theater and into a new Mickey Mouse short. Cleverly presented in “2½-D,” the ride is essentially completely centered on screens and projection effects, but in a seamless, all-encompassing, kinetic cartoon world. It’s vivid, bright, electric, and aglow with the mayhem and chaos you’d hope for. And by using Disney’s now-signature trackless ride system, it’s an appropriately frenzied spectacle as the train breaks apart and reforms between scenes, culminating in one of the most astounding projection effects on Earth.
There will no doubt be naysayers who suggest that Runaway Railway doesn’t deserve a spot in our best rides of the century, and it’s easy to imagine that it might end up being the most controversial pick on the list. And while the ride may not be a “thesis attraction” quite like the Great Movie Ride was back in 1989, it’s a terrific addition to the park and resort, and – in accordance with the predictions we made back in 2017 – quickly became a family favorite with discussion boards alight with pleas to bring it to resorts around the world.
6. AVATAR Flight of Passage
Opened: 2017
Location: Disney’s Animal Kingdom (exclusive)
Fans may have been infamously against the idea of a land based on Avatar when Disney first announced the project a full decade ago, but once Pandora made its debut in 2017, most people found themselves in love with Disney’s clever foray into the alien moon. Part of their quick acceptance was the scale of the land, including its mountains, its mythology, and Mo’ara – the “original world” Imagineers crafted such that remembering the movie wasn’t needed. But the real kicker was Flight of Passage, the land’s unequivocal E-Ticket.
A technological upgrade on the concept that powered Soarin’, Flight of Passage allows guests to link with a Pandoran Na’vi avatar in the midst of a coming-of-age rite of passage: taking the skies on the back of a flying dragon called an Ikran, or Banshee. The pulse-pounding journey certainly ups the thrills versus Soarin’ and, if possible, the emotion, too. Beautifully crafted with an incredible (and thoughtful) musical score, the ride was enough to convince most guests that Avatar did indeed deserve a permanent ride in Disney’s Animal Kingdom. The harrowing journey highlights the beauty and wonder of Pandora, fitting Animal Kingdom’s themes of the inherent value of nature perfectly.
Even if Flight of Passage borrows from its Soarin’ ancestor, it’s very much its own “thing,” marked by guests straddling link chairs that become breathing Banshees in a flash. It also happens to feature one of the most (unintentionally?) iconic lines of dialogue in any Disney Parks attraction.
5. Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey
Opened: 2010
Location: Universal’s Islands of Adventure, Universal Studios Hollywood, and Universal Studios Japan
In 2010, the era of innovation seemed to have been long over at Disney and Universal Parks. Not since 1995’s EMV, 1999’s SCOOP, or 2001’s Soarin’ had a legitimately cutting-edge technology been the basis for a theme park ride system. Then came Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey. To this day, part of the ride’s mystique (or maybe, “magic”) is that exiting guests have a terribly tough time explaining to friends and family what, exactly, the ride is. That’s because there’s almost nothing else like it on Earth. Even theme park fans struggle to explain the KUKA Robo Arm ride system, which essentially holds four guests in the “fist” of an arm with its own wrist and elbow, but dislocated from a shoulder and placed on a moving track, which occasionally syncs up with rotating carousels of domed projection screens. Yeah, it’s… complicated.
In any case, Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey didn’t just debut an unspeakably cool ride system; it also marked the official start of the “living lands” craze (and set the standards of an immersive land anchored by a mega-E-Ticket). We’d rank Forbidden Journey high on our list of the century’s best for the simple fact that it’s entirely innovative, wildly sought-after, and features some beautiful practical effects, sets, and animatronic figures. (Where the ride falls apart is in its story, which regrettably had to admit in our look at Park Plotholes: Nonsensical Stories on Theme Park Rides).
Is Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey a flawless masterpiece? No. But it was a revolutionary ride in so many ways. That’s also why we listed it as the best ride of the 2010s. And if it’s the most representative product of the whole decade, doesn’t it deserve a place in the century’s best?
4. Journey to the Center of the Earth
Opened: 2001
Location: Tokyo DisneySea (exclusive)
We don’t need to tell you that Tokyo DisneySea is a park unlike any other on Earth. Often cited as the best theme park on Earth, DisneySea is – in a word – sensational. The aquatic park set on Tokyo Bay is absolutely incredible; a leading example of “the park as the E-Ticket.” Even still, in a park packed with more detail than any other and a staggering collection of E-Tickets, there is perhaps no more sought after ride than Journey to the Center of the Earth. If you’d asked us a decade ago, there would be no question that Journey would’ve been the best ride of the century, Disney’s best modern dark ride, and perhaps among the greatest Disney Parks attractions on Earth. And while arguably it’s been outplayed by a few recent projects, it still remains a must-see, bucket-list attraction for a generation of Imagineering fans.
Why? Frankly, it’s representative of everything that DisneySea does right – and that most U.S. parks wouldn’t dare try. Located in the park’s absolutely staggering Mysterious Island land (set entirely in the collapsed caldera of the iconic Mount Prometheus), the ride is based on Jules Verne’s Victorian adventure novel, interwoven into the lore of his 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. As guests descend into Captain Nemo’s secret lair on “Terravators,” they board tunneling machines and set off into fantastic worlds hidden beneath Earth’s crust. From crystal caverns to rocky chasms; subterranean seas to bioluminscent forests, it all culminates in an encounter with one of The Most Legendary Audio-Animatronics on Earth and an explosive finale literally erupting out of the 180-foot tall volcano back on the surface.
Journey to the Center of the Earth has all the makings of a world-class attraction… it’s adventurous, it’s romantic, it’s thrilling, and – even better – it’s far, far away, making it an experience that feels exclusive. Checking this one off your to-do list feels like a major victory. The next best thing is probably digging into the making of the attraction in our own Modern Marvels: Journey to the Center of the Earth feature. You may be surprised just how it all came together…
3. Pirates of the Caribbean: Battle for Sunken Treasure
Opened: 2016
Location: Shanghai Disneyland (exclusive)
If you think you know the “Disneyland” formula like the back of your hand, give Shanghai Disneyland a visit. Famously dispensing with the tried-and-true standards most of us expect from a Disneyland-style park, Shanghai was a total reinvention. First, the park shuffled the tried-and-true layout that’s been passed through every “castle park” for sixty years. The lands that remains were entirely redesigned aesthetically and functionally. And then, the park intentionally omitted any E-Ticket attractions seen at other Disney Parks and instead opened with a one-of-a-kind ride lineup. Among those groundbreaking new stars was Pirates of the Caribbean: Battle for Sunken Treasure.
Overtly themed to the Pirates of the Caribbean film series (with mere homages to the original Pirates rides in Anaheim, Orlando, Tokyo, and Paris), Battle for Sunken Treasure begins familiar enough, with boats sailing past lantern-lit restaurants and through treasure-filled caverns. But in an instant, it transforms. Using massive sets and enormous screens, guests appear to sink deep into the ocean where a concealed feature of the ride system allows the boats to drift sideways and backwards through shipwrecks and grottos. The integration of screens here is so perfect, it’s the rare ride that’s heralded for its projection rather than denigrated.
The scale of Pirates of the Caribbean in Shanghai is absolutely unprecedented… except, of course, by Disneyland’s original. Still, the idea of a true 21st century reinvention of the Pirates ride concept came full-force in China, and the resulting attraction is absolutely, positively stunning. Regardless of your thoughts on the film series, it’s impossible to leave this E-Ticket without feeling that it’s redefined the capabilities of Imagineering… and set a new gold standard that should be the high watermark for all projects going forward.
2. STAR WARS: Rise of the Resistance
Opened: 2019
Location: Disneyland and Disney’s Hollywood Studios
Hold your pitchforks… at least for a moment! It’s true that on this list, we’ve made the controversial choice to call Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance only the second best ride of the century so far. To be clear, part of that has to be the ride’s abysmal operations, which we just can’t factor out. Nearly a year out from its opening, the ride is still hemmed in by catastrophic downtime which prevents anything resembling normal operations. The Boarding Group system the ride requires is, as we’ve argued, a totally-necessary evil and by far the best way to deal with the ride’s… temperament. It’s not uncommon for guests to be led down backstage hallways, bypassing pre-shows just to keep the ride from flatlining for the day, and there’s yet to be a day when Boarding Groups don’t “sell out” within a minute of park opening, leaving thousands of guests heartbroken. Put simply, the current state of the ride is simply unacceptable, and the crushing, frustrating, and vacation-ruining race to get on board shows no signs of changing anytime soon.
That said, there’s absolutely no arguing that if you make it on board, Rise of the Resistance is – at least for fans of Star Wars or Disney Imagineering – life-changing. Nothing Disney has ever created before has gotten anywhere close to matching its scale. Not Shanghai’s Pirates. Not Journey to the Center of the Earth. Not even Indiana Jones Adventure. Rise of the Resistance is more than an E-Ticket. (We’ve suggested it’s an “ultra-E-Ticket” – a U-Ticket.) Truly an experience, it’s hard to know when the “ride” itself begins. During the course of the attraction, guests technically engage with no less than three separate ride systems, witnessing some of the most sophisticated effects – both practical and projected – ever designed.
In fact, Rise of the Resistance plays like a “best of,” accumulating every stellar effect and mind-blowing moment of every Disney Parks E-Ticket from the last thirty years and mashing them all together in one massive, complex experience. In fact, all of Galaxy’s Edge revolves around the lore of Rise, with the ride literally allowing guests to take part in a distinct moment that shapes not only the land’s “original world,” but the mythology of Episode IX. That’s not to say Rise isn’t without its detractors, and it’s fair to criticize elements of the experience itself. But from opening to closing, there’s literally nothing else in the world quite like Rise of the Resistance.
So what ride do we think beats it, at least until Rise’s operations are running smoothly?
1. Mystic Manor
Opened: 2013
Location: Hong Kong Disneyland (exclusive)
If you’re keeping track (and trust us – many fans are), Disney World hasn’t recieved an IP-free original E-Ticket since 2006’s Expedition Everest; Disneyland since 2001’s California Adventure originals. It would be understandable if you believed that the Pixarification and Marvelization of Disney Parks are simply the law of the land from here on out, and that we may never again see a truly original, in-house IP purposefully designed for a Disney Parks E-Ticket. At least, not in America….
In 2013, the underbuilt Hong Kong Disneyland marked the end of a multi-year expansion with the opening of a third of three mini-lands: Mystic Point. Set deep in the rainforests of Papau New Gineau, the land is truly the estate of the eclectic explorer Lord Henry Mystic and his monkey sidekick Albert who’ve spent decades adventuring across the world and collecting ephemera and artifacts. The whimsically odd manor serves as their personal archive, with Lord Mystic all too happy to invite travelers in to tour his collections… including the newest arrival: an ancient music box whose enchanted tunes are said to grant life to the lifeless. What happens? Our suggestion is to make your way to our Modern Marvels: Mystic Manor feature to find out on a tour through the home’s enchanted collection… and the designers who created it.
So why does Mystic Manor rank as our personal choice for the best ride of the century so far? Simple. It’s the most Disney thing Disney’s done this century. It’s an extended homage to the Haunted Mansion, wrapped in 21st century technology that’s skillfully hidden in plain sight. It’s a fusion of original characters, storytelling, and scenic design unmatched since the Lost Legend: Journey into Imagination; it’s a perfect combination of music, magic, monkeys, and mayhem; a jaw-droppingly perfect dark ride in every respect. Its connection to the astounding mythology of S.E.A. – Disney’s secret Society of Explorers and Adventurers – is merely the cherry on top.
Mystic Manor is entrancing. It’s beautiful. It’s fun. It’s smart. It’s intimate. It’s magical. It has literally all the ingredients of the best Disney Parks classics; the timeless, original, transformative, and generaiton-defining dark rides of yesteryear, fused with the highlights of today. And while we’d love to see this E-Ticket experience make its way to California Adventure’s Grizzly Peak or Magic Kingdom’s Adventureland, the fact is that it’s almost too perfect to be cloned. It represents the pinnacle of modern Imagineering; the height of Disney storytelling; the breath of fresh air fans needed to know that when Imagineers are given free reign, they can create the kind of ride that inspires guests of all ages. By our account, Mystic Manor is the single best product of Walt Disney Imagineering this century… And if you disagree, you’ve at least got to give it credit.
Runners-up
Naturally, it’s impossible to compile a “Best Of” list that’ll please everyone, so we did our best in this countdown to blend our personal favorites with the unspoken consensus of the Disney Parks community and your own input here on Theme Park Tourist. That said, we’d be remiss if we didn’t mention the runners-up that certainly deserve consideration, and may very well be included in your personal list… or even top it!
Off the top of our heads, totally legitimate contenders for the top ten best rides of the century so far could include:
- Radiator Springs Racers: Omitting the Modern Marvel: Radiator Springs Racers from our list wasn’t an easy choice. The now-anchor attraction at Disney California Adventure, the high-speed dark ride served as the pivot point in the park’s story, the anchor of Disney’s first “living land,” and a ceremonious return to massive E-Tickets after a period of relative inactivity at Imagineering. Would it make your list?
- Star Tours: The Adventures Continue (2011): A robust reinvention of the ’80s original that breathed new life into Star Wars‘ presence in Disney Parks, Star Tours “2.0” brought with it re-rideable, randomized destinations throughout the Star Wars universe, high-definition 3D, and some great one-liners. While it may be an “update,” it’s radical enough to be its own ride in our books. It would be entirely understandable if Star Tours made your list of the best rides of the century; it almost made ours!
- TEST TRACK “2.0” (2012): In our look back at the Lost Legend: TEST TRACK, we laid out our official stance that the 2012 reimagining of the original counts as a new ride entirely thanks to its focus on the engineering design process, its reinvented, TRON-esque aesthetic, and its future-ready style and substance. In fact, we’d probably argue that the “new” Test Track is the stand-out E-Ticket at Epcot, best encapsulating its current mission and vision.
- TRON Lightcycle Power Run (2016): The subject of its own in-depth Modern Marvels: TRON Lightcycle Power Run feature, Shanghai Disneyland’s launched coaster uploads guests into the Grid for a neon race through a virtual world. Its duplication at Magic Kingdom is set to make this thrill ride a household name, but whether you consider it one of the best rides of the century is up to you.
- TOMB RAIDER: The Ride (2002): While you may not have personally experienced the Lost Legend: TOMB RAIDER – The Ride, this mysterious, multi-sensory dark ride was truly unlike anything on Earth, period. While long gone, those who took a ride still beg for it to be reborn, and given the IP wars we find ourselves in, there’s never been a better time. We’re looking at you, Islands of Adventure!
- Revenge of the Mummy (2004): Perfectly placed between Universal’s “creature feature” era and its modern (over)reliance on screens, the Modern Marvel: Revenge of the Mummy is one of Universal’s best attractions ever. That probably means that it’s worth considering among the century’s best!
There are plenty more rides to consider… So give us your top 10 in the comments below!
