Once again, Disney takes all top three spots in the best amusement park ride category.
1. Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance
Disneyland
Rise of the Resistance returns to the top spot after relinquishing its reign in 2023’s Best of OC survey. The epic dark ride debuted in 2019 in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge at Disneyland.
The ambitious, first-of-its-kind attraction combines four separate ride systems with state-of-the-art audio-animatronics and visual effects.
Rise of the Resistance enlists recruits to join a battle between the villainous First Order and the heroic Resistance.
The backstory for the attraction finds riders entering a dense forest where the Resistance has set up a temporary and secret military base camp outside of the Black Spire Outpost village on the Star Wars planet of Batuu, the setting for the 14-acre Galaxy’s Edge themed land.
Along the way, the recruits will be captured aboard a Star Destroyer, break out of a First Order detention cell, elude the clutches of Kylo Ren and escape back to a secret base on Batuu.
— Brady MacDonald
2. Soarin’ Around the World
Disney California Adventure
The Soarin’ hang-gliding flight simulator ride in the Grizzly Peak section of Disney California Adventure combines a mechanical lift system with three rows of seats and an 80-foot-tall concave domed movie screen.
The five-minute IMAX “Soarin’ Around the World” film visits 13 places around the globe, flying so close you’ll wonder how the filmmakers got permission to capture the footage. The camera flies through towering buttes in Monument Valley and within feet of the Eiffel Tower.
The short film makes many subtle nods to Disney films and history, including “Cars” (Monument Valley), “Ratatouille” (Paris), “Finding Nemo” (Sydney Harbour), “Moana” (the South Pacific), Disneyland’s castle (based on Neuschwanstein) and the park’s Matterhorn bobsled coaster (Switzerland).
The film employs several clever transitions from scene to scene, including a scary seaplane barreling toward you, a playful kite that swoops across the screen and an eagle with wings spread.
The original Soarin’ Over California debuted at Disney California Adventure when the park opened in 2001 with scenes from throughout the state. The original version of the attraction occasionally returns to Disney California Adventure for limited runs.
3. Pirates of the Caribbean
Disneyland
It’s no surprise that this ride is one of the top attractions in O.C., because it remains a charming boat trip into a pirate’s lair that seems to be timeless — even after more than 50 years in Disneyland’s New Orleans Square.
Its popularity is only enhanced by the fact that visitors get 15 minutes of cool, watery pleasure off their feet that often provides a respite from brutal heat in the park. And the hit movies starring Johnny Depp based on the ride only add to the appeal.
Disney replaced the previous “buy-a-bride” scene that some found offensive with a newer scene starring a feisty red-haired female pirate named (what else?) Redd.
This is the last ride that Walt Disney himself had a hand in creating, although he died before it opened, so to the most ardent Disney fans, it’s sacred ground. To tired parents everywhere, it’s a chance to cool off and rest their feet.
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