What are the very best rides for teenagers at Walt Disney World? Although the Disney parks are perhaps best known for their appeal to younger children and adults this does not mean that if you have teenagers in your group they are going to feel left out. A Disney World vacation truly is for everyone, including the teens.

Here is my list of Top 10 Disney World rides for teenagers.

Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster

What better than a mix of rock music and a high speed roller coaster? The teens are likely to want to ride this major Disney Hollywood Studios attraction more than once. This Aerosmith inspired roller coaster ride accelerates from 0-57 mph in just 2.8 seconds cataputing riders 200 feet! This is an intense roller coaster particularly by Disney World standards – riders experience G Force of up to 4.5.

Read more in this Disney Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster guide.

Disney Hollywood Tower of Terror

The Hollywood Tower of Terror is another attraction in Disney’s Hollywood Studios which is sure to keep the teenagers happy. Riders plunge 13 stories in this 199 feet tall very imposing attraction. The ride sequence is random so you never quite know which ride you will experience. The theming on this ride is excellent. The teenagers may not ever have seen the Twilight Zone television series but they will appreciate the general spookiness of the place, right down to the excellent bell hops who control the elevator.

If you want to know more go to Disney’s Tower of Terror Guide.

Star Tours The Adventure Continues

You don’t have to be a Star Wars fan to appreciate this amazing motion simulator ride (but it helps). Star Tours has just undergone a major redesign and it is now one of the very best rides in the Disney parks. This is another attraction in Disney Hollywood Studios which the teenagers will really enjoy. There are now 54 possible variations so you never know which sequence you are going to get. If you are familiar with the Star Wars movies you will recognize the classic pod race scenes on Naboo, enjoy the snowy lands of Hoth and of course love to battle it out on the Death Star.

Mission Space

This is the ultimate thrill ride for teens at Disney’s Epcot. Tell them that it was the first ride to supply vomit bags for guests and you are sure to get their attention. This is an extreme ride. Heed the warnings and if you are not ready for this ride then you can select the Green line which is the none spinning version.

Nasa astronauts say that Mission Space gives riders a good idea what it feels like to be launched into space. I guess you can’t beat that endorsement! As with all Disney rides this one has a story. Guests board a 4 person vehicle to be launched on a mission to Mars. You experience up to 2.5 G Force on the Orange ride so even the most reluctant teenager can’t fail to be impressed by this intense Disney ride.

Test Track

This one is a highly unique ride which really doesn’t have any comparison with any other theme park ride. The whole idea is that this is a test facility for new vehicles. Guest board a 6 person vehicle. Riders will experience a series of tests including handling, breaking, and a hot and cold test. The final test is the high speed test where you will reach speeds of 65 mph on an outside steeply banked circular track. This is one for the thrill seekers out there and the teenagers are going to love it.

If you want to know more here is a guide to Epcot Test Track

Soarin’

Another very original ride located in Disney’s Epcot theme park. This 4 minute 40 second simulated flight ride is a flight simulator of a very different kind. You board a huge structure in front of a very large screen. The structure goes up to 40 feet into the air and guests get a sensation of flying. It takes guests over the amazing sights of California including Yosemite, The Wine Country, Monterey, San Francisco, San Diego and of course Disneyland. This is a very unique ride with no other attraction in the world quite like it.

Expedition Everest

The newest and the most thrilling of the Disney World Mountains is located in Disney Animal Kingdom park. Guests board the Anandapur Rail Service train which is scheduled to take them to the foot of Mount Everest. The journey begins mildly enough but then the tests, turns and drops begin. This is a classic roller coaster with amazing Disney theming. The attention to detail is amazing – Imagineers spent 6 years researching this ride.

Kilimanjaro Safari

Disney’s Animal Kingdom is a very unique place to experience a very different animal park. The Kilimanjaro Safari ride is a favorite with all ages and teenagers are likely to enjoy this very unique opportunity to get as close to a safari experience as you can without traveling to Africa. Board a safari vehicle and your guide will take you through the plains of Africa to see lions, zebras, elephants, giraffe, hippo and many other animals at very close quarters. Don’t worry it is all in a very controlled environment so whilst you can see the lions this is Disney after all and they aren’t going to get near you!

Disney Pirates of the Caribbean Ride

This Magic Kingdom ride will be a big hit with the teenagers if they enjoyed the Pirates of the Caribbean movies. Plenty of chances to catch sight of hero Captain Jack Sparrow even if he is just an audio animatronic figure. This is one of the oldest of the Disney rides (it debuted in Disneyland in 1967) and is the last attraction which Walt Disney worked on personally. A dark boat ride with lots of dark images, fighting and explosions, this one should appeal to the teens.

Space Mountain

Space Mountain is a classic Disney roller coaster which teenagers should enjoy. Not because it is fast or particularly thrilling (it only ever reaches 28 mph which is a snails pace for modern roller coasters) but because it is a unique experience. The appeal of Disney’s Space Mountain appeal is that it uses light very effectively and creates the great Disney illusion of not being quite what it seems.

What are your favorite Disney World rides for teenagers? I would love to hear from you. Leave me a comment below!

You may also like

Disney World Roller Coasters

Space Mountain Disney World

Top 10 Disney World Snacks

All images by express monorail

Is your idea of fun dropping 13 stories in an elevator? Well you have found your perfect ride at Disney’s Hollywood Studios – the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror!

Disney is known for it’s brilliantly themed attractions and the Tower of Terror is certainly one of the very best.

Enter the Hollywood Hotel Tower of Terror and you will experience The Twilight Zone. Board the elevator and you will glide past ghostly images through scary hotel passageways. Then prepare to be plunged into darkness before being dropped 13 floors to the ground! The ride is not over yet as the elevator goes up and down in a random sequence – you never know when it is going to end! Sound like your idea of fun?

Every great Disney ride has a themed back story and the Tower of Terror is of course no exception. The Hollywood Tower Hotel opened in 1919 and quickly became one of the favorite ‘haunts’ of the movie star elite of the age. But then tragedy strikes on October 31st 1939. Five guests enter the elevator of the hotel just as lightning strikes the building. The child star, her nanny, two young starlets and the bell hop vaporise – never to be seen again  (well not until much later as you will find out on the ride). All the other hotel guests run from the building leaving their belongings behind.

The Hollywood Tower of Terror mysteriously re opens in 1994 at Disney MGM Studios. Dare guests enter the building and find out what lies behind the imposing building?

Based on the television series The Twilight Zone The Tower of Terror is as you would expect 13 stories high. Walt Disney Imagineers s watched all 156 episodes  of The Twilight Zone many times over so that they could recreate the mood and feeling of the series. The star of The Twilight Zone Rod Serling appears throughout the ride on audio and video screens. Original clips were taken from the series and additional voice overs were provided by an actor specially for the  Tower of Terror ride.

The attention to detail is amazing – right from the moment that you step into the line. The hotel looks as though it has remained untouched for over 50 years – cobwebs and dust cover authentic and reproduction furniture and belongings. You really do feel as though you are stepping into a time warp.

The suspense and, let’s not gloss over this, fear, are built up slowly. By the time you get to the elevator most guests are pretty scared! The Bell Hop Cast Members do a brilliant job of remaining in character and setting the scary mood of anticipation.

Enter the ride vehicle and travel along ghostly passage ways and you may just see some of those unfortunate elevator occupants from 1939. Then comes the moment everyone has been waiting for – you enter the elevator. Yep it’s scary. Yep you feel as though you are going to rise up out of your seat with your stomach following you just a little while later. And there is a lot of screaming.

Dare you ride The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror? Well you need to be over 40″ to enjoy the attraction. Don’t underestimate how scary it can be for the kids either ( and some adults as well). It is all in good Disney fun but you be the judge of whether your child is going to see the funny side or not! There is a Child Swap option where all your party has to stand in line only one time – each of you can look after the child while the other experiences the ride. Ask a Cast Member for more details.

The lines for Tower of Terror can be long. It is one of the most popular attractions at Walt Disney World. So how to avoid those lines? Use a Fast Pass. As soon as you get to the park head to the Tower of Terror. If the line is already past 20 minutes ( and it could be up to 120) then get a Fast Pass.  This will give you a set time window to come back to the ride and get into the Fast Pass Line.

Want to know more about the Tower of Terror? Find out the secrets and see some amazing pictures? Then head on over to Disney Twilight Zone Tower of Terror.