All the thrills, spills and chills of the rip-roaring rides, theme parks and attractions in Orlando, Florida
Next time I’ll listen to Chris Pratt, or stick to watching Jurassic Park movies at the cinema. Or wait outside in the Florida sunshine. But I hadn’t done any of that and now it was too late.
‘For the record, let me just say I think this is a terrible idea,’ Pratt repeated as Owen Grady, his velociraptor ‘whisperer’ character from the Jurassic World films. ‘I don’t care how long you’ve been waiting, turn around, go home. This isn’t going to end well.’
I should have heeded his every word, yet I’d been in line for the Jurassic World VelociCoaster at Universal Orlando Resort’s Island of Adventure for more than 40 minutes now and, to be honest, there was no turning back.
Not that I’m a fan of rollercoasters. I hate them. But I’d promised my teenage kids that I’d ride Universal’s newest ride: the apex predator of coasters while on holiday in Orlando, Florida.
With two 70mph launches in three minutes, a ‘top hat’ that hurtles 155ft in the air before an 80-degree plummet, a 360-degree horizontal barrel roll so you’re hurtling along upside down just inches above a lagoon, and an inverted stall, its Florida’s fastest, tallest and most intense launch coaster.
Designed in collaboration with the Jurassic World filmmakers, including Steven Spielberg, the coaster has an original story starring the Velociraptor pack, Blue, Charlie, Delta and Echo, where the ride vehicles dash through a raptor paddock at breakneck speed.
Terrified, I looked at the other people queuing and felt slightly reassured to see younger children and grandparents as well as teenagers and entire families. ‘It can’t be as bad as all that,’ I told myself, squeezing into the seat and tugging down on the lap bar.
I’d expected to be strapped in with shoulder bars to keep me in place. But there was just a normal lap bar, the kind you’d have on a kids’ ride. ‘Make sure it’s down as far as possible,’ a team member said. ‘Double check.’ And then we were off.
I’d like to tell you about the feeling of weightlessness, of how I thought I might fall out of the ride while plunging upside down, spiralling side to side, and soaring and swooping every which way but up. I’d love to describe what the velociraptors looked like racing alongside us, or what the view was as we were almost dunked in the lake or the terror rushing through my entire body making it impossible to breathe as we hurtled along the track at impossible speeds.
But I can’t. I kept my eyes shut the entire time. ‘Let’s go again,’ my kids begged. I let my husband join them. I’d had enough dinosaur ‘fun’ for one day. So, I did what Chris Pratt had told me to do in the beginning and sat the next one out.
We were on a three-week family holiday and had more than enough time to explore all of the parks.
After all Jurassic World VelociCoaster wasn’t the only thrilling ride or new experience to try out – and over the course of the holiday we did them all!
Here’s our guide to the best rides at the Disney and Universal theme parks to make the best of your time there.
Magic Kingdom, Walt Disney World
The first Disney theme park to open in Florida in 1971 is celebrating its 50th anniversary – a year late because of the pandemic. To celebrate, Cinderella Castle is lit up with pixie dust and projections at night while there’s a spectacular fireworks display that extends all the way down Main Street USA.
Divided into four lands – Adventureland, Frontierland, Fantasyland and Tomorrowland – this is where the magic happens for all the family. As well as spotting Mickey and Minnie, little ones will love the character rides including Peter Pan’s Flight, Dumbo The Flying Elephant and the giant teacups on Mad Tea Party.
Classic rides include Pirates of the Caribbean (look out for Johnny Depp’s Captain Jack Sparrow hiding in the most unlikely of places), Splash Mountain, a log flume ride where, you could get wet, and runaway train Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. Thrill-seekers should head to Space Mountain, a blast of a roller-coaster in the dark.
Must do/see: Tomorrowland Speedway where even young kids (if they’re tall enough) can get their license and ride alone.
Make time for: The parade – even adults get a thrill seeing Mickey and Minnie in the Florida sunshine.
Top tip: Download the My Disney Experience app and buy Genie + to book Lightning Lane entrances to the rides and see wait times in real time. You can only book one Lightning Lane every two hours so get to the park early.
Epcot
The new hot ticket in town is Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind, another rollercoaster starring Chris Pratt, (this time as Peter Quill/Star-Lord) and is a series of firsts. Opening in May this year, it is Epcot’s first rollercoaster, Disney’s first reverse launch coaster and Disney World’s first Marvel-themed attraction.
The high-speed ‘storycoaster’ hurtles riders backwards in the dark and rotates them 360-degrees through space and time to an intergalactic disco. It has a thumping soundtrack from the 70s and 80s that my teenage kids said was ‘out of this world.’
The only problem with this amazing ride is getting on it. Those with an Epcot theme park reservation can join a virtual queue on the My Disney Experience app at 7am or 1pm on the day where you wait to see if you’re lucky enough for your group to be called – we tried twice and failed. If you buy Disney Genie + ($60 for a family of four per day), you can then also pay $17 each to join the Lightning Lane.
Must do/see: Test Track – create your own virtual vehicle and then put it through its paces on a race track where you’ll reach speeds up to 70mph and hurtle around hair pin turns.
Make time for: Mission:Space where you’ll experience NASA-style training with a simulated space launch. There’s a choice of a mild green ride, or intense orange experience. Go for orange!
Disney’s Hollywood Studios
The home of Star Wars: Galaxy Edge, an entire area that looks like the set of a Star Wars film, as well as iconic attractions such as The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror and Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular, this park is like being in the movies.
Must do/see: Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run. If you’re lucky enough to be one of the pilots, you’ll actually fly the fastest ship in hyperspace in this realistic simulation.
Make time for: For the First Time in Forever: A Frozen Sing-Along Celebration. The ultimate-feel good ‘karaoke’ with Elsa, Ana and their friends from Arendelle that adults will love just as much as children.
Disney’s Animal Kingdom
While there are plenty of thrilling rides and attractions here, including Pandora – The World of Avatar where you get to ride on a banshee, it’s the wild animals that are the true stars.
Take a Kilimanjaro Safaris guided tour of a Savanna in an open-top jeep and spot wild animals roaming the 110-acre plains including lions, giraffes, monkeys, hippopotamus, cheetahs, crocodiles, hyenas and zebras.
Must do/see: Avatar Flight of Passage – soar above Pandora’s otherworldly landscape on a winged mountain banshee on this exhilarating 3D ride.
Make time for: Finding Nemo: The Big Blue and Beyond and Festival of the Lion King. They’re as good as any West End show but much shorter so even the smallest of kids won’t get restless.
DETAILS:
Enjoy a 14-night stay at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida from £1,032 per person, including accommodation at Disney’s All-Star Music Resort, Disney 14-Day Magic Ticket for the price of a 7-Day Magic Ticket for the whole party, $504 Disney Dining and Merchandise Credit and $100 Disney Spending Money when you book 'The Magic is Yours' Package by September 29th 2022. Visit www.disneyholidays.co.uk Price is based on a departure date of 5th July 2023.
Universal Islands of Adventure
Home to the Jurassic World VelociCoaster, this is also where you’ll find the Marvel superheroes and plenty of magical adventures in The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Hogsmeade.
Visit Ollivanders to choose your wand – or have it choose you! - fly deep into the Forbidden Forest on Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure, a spell-binding rollercoaster which reaches up to 50mph, or head to Platform 9 and three-quarters to jump aboard the Hogwarts Express.
Must do/see: Enter Hogwarts castle and fly with the young wizard and his friends on Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey; where you even fly backwards and get to glimpse a game of Quidditch.
Make time for: Skull Island: Reign of Kong where you’ll come face to face with King Kong.
Universal Studios
More Harry Potter fun awaits when you step into Diagon Alley, visit the Men in Black, get to meet The Simpsons, the Minions and the Transformers. In fact, there’s so much to do, be prepared for a very long day.
Must do/see: Battle the Decepticons in Transformers The Ride 3D then head next door to meet Optimum Prime and Bumblebee.
Make time for: Race Through New York Starring Jimmy Fallon. I felt like I’d actually been to the Big Apple with The Tonight Show host after being on this ride twice.
No family day is complete without watching Hollywood’s animal stars in action in Animal Actors on Location where the talented cats, dogs, birds, chicken and even a skunk perform live on stage.
DETAILS:
A Universal Orlando 3 Park Explorer Ticket costs from £305 per adult and £299 per child (aged 3-9) with AttractionTickets.com. The ticket includes unlimited park-to-park admission to Universal Studios Florida, Universal’s Islands of Adventure and Universal's Volcano Bay water theme park for up to 14 consecutive days. www.attractiontickets.com. Universal Express Passes cost £79.99 each and Unlimited Express passes – where you can go on each ride as many times as you like – costs £109.99 each.
