disney

Rivers of America at Disney’s Magic Kingdom Closes Forever to Make Room for Piston Peak National Park

/ printingddd / 1 Comment
Steamboat riverboat on Rivers of America at Walt Disney World Magic Kingdom
Rivers of America (Photo by Matt Brinkley)

On on July 6 2025 Rivers of America and Tom Sawyer Island at Magic Kingdom closed Forever to make room for “Cars Land” and specifically what is being called Piston Peak National Park. Rivers of America have been part of Frontierland and Liberty Square since 1971 when the park opened, but the Liberty Belle steamboat and Tom Sawyer Island were actually added in 1973. This has long been known as a scenic and relaxing area of the park. This area is now being reimagined into a Cars themed land with a ride similar to the Radiator Springs Racers, a high-speed ride at Disney’s California Adventure. However, this is not a carbon copy of the California attraction located in the desert town of the first movie, but instead it will be an off-road adventure in a mountain and water-filled National Park.

Continue reading →

No More Virtual Queues at Disney World!

/ printingddd / Leave a comment
Standby at Haunted Mansion at Disney Magic Kingdom
Lightning Lane at Haunted Mansion at Disney Magic Kingdom

It was announced earlier this year that Disney World’s Tiana’s Bayou Adventure and Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind would cease using the virtual queue system on February 25, 2025. This followed a similar previous announcement in September 2024 for Tron Lightcycle Run. This means there are currently no rides at Disney World using virtual queue for the first time in years and every attraction will have standby lines available. It also ends the stress for many of waking up at before 7am on the morning of a Disney vacation and feverishly hitting the refresh button to try to get a boarding group to ride the lastest Walt Disney World rides sometime that day without paying extra. Virtual Queue was the only “free” way to ride without paying for a Lightning Lane Single Pass, which could cost $100 or more for a family on top of a regular Lightning Lane Multi Pass (formerly Genie+).

Continue reading →

Was This Mountain at Tokyo DisneySea Originally Destined for California? How Disney “Blue Sky” Concepts are Never Truly Dead.

/ printingddd / Leave a comment
Tokyo DisneySea volcano

Disney loves its mountains, see Space Mountain, Big Thunder Mountain and the former Splash Mountain as examples. One of the lesser known “mountains” is the volcano known as Mount Prometheus at Tokyo DisneySea in Japan. For those not familiar, according to the DisneySea website it is, “The only Disney park themed to the myths and legends of the sea. Each of the eight themed ports features attractions, restaurants, shops, and more, inviting guests to a world “Where Adventure and Imagination Set Sail!” This is the 7th most attended theme park in the world and many consider it the best and most beautiful of all the Disney parks. However, did you know many of the concepts of Tokyo DisneySea came from a park called DisneySea California that was cancelled in 1991?

Continue reading →

Get Your Engineering Cub Scout Adventure Loop at Fun Spot America Kissimmee with Mine Blower!

/ printingddd / Leave a comment
Fun Spot America Logo
Scout leader and scout in front of the Mine Blower roller coaster at Fun Spot Kissimmee

Earning the Arrow of Light “Engineering” adventure loop has the potential to be one of the most fun and exciting activities in scouting, especially with the increased interest in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math). What’s even more exciting is that one of the recommended adventure activities in the cub scout handbook is to have scouts build their own roller coaster! A theme park is a great place for the scouts to explore and learn about engineering and Fun Spot America Kissimmee is perfectly suited for this adventure. Earning the “Engineering” Adventure Loop at Fun Spot Kissimmee can be as simple as watching a few YouTube videos, having a discussion, riding a roller coaster and participating in the park’s “build your own roller coaster” activity or doing your own at your next den or pack meeting.

Continue reading →

Roller Coaster Patents: Epic Universe’s Donkey Kong Mine-Cart Madness Has a Patent on it!

/ printingddd / Leave a comment
Patent sign from Tellus Museum
Donkey Kong Mine-Kart Madness layout

I was walking through Tellus Science Museum in Cartersville, Georgia and they had a great display about patents that actually highlighted the patent on the Donkey Kong Mine-Cart Madness ride. This roller coaster has a unique design with hidden lower vertical track and a “boom” arm to create the illusion of jumps, movement over rough terrain and fast track switches. However, Universal is far from the only company to protect their work with parents as with a quick search you will find patents from companies like RMC, Disney and many more.

Continue reading →

Vertical Lift on Monsters, Inc. “Door” Coaster Revealed!

/ printingddd / 1 Comment

Disney has been releasing a bunch of new information, images and video about upcoming attractions the last couple weeks. Could it have something to do with all the Epic Universe buzz? Perhaps. However, it has been neat to see some of the technology they have planned, some of it at the earliest level of R&D I remember seeing it. One of the coolest releases was this video showing the vertical lift on the Monsters Inc. suspended “door” coaster!

Continue reading →

Could Regular Visits to a Theme Park Save Your Life? Study Shows 150 Minutes of Exercise a Week Reduces Mortality by 31%!

/ printingddd / Leave a comment
Covenant health sign at Dollywood
People power walking at theme park

If you spend time at a theme park you know it can be a lot of walking. In some cases it’s 5-10 miles in a day complete with stairs and hills at some parks. That can be a serious workout and a new article in the Canadian Medical Association Journal found that it could actually be incredibly good for your health. The study showed that older adults who got 150 minutes of aerobic activity every week lessened their mortality risk by 31% compared to those who do not exercise. This means that the weekend trip to your local park with your season pass is “healthcare” if it gets you off the couch and away from screens.

Continue reading →

Charge Your Electric Car at Six Flags Over Georgia

/ printingddd / Leave a comment
Car charging station at a theme park

Six Flags Over Georgia has electric car charging available in its parking lot and at least last year it was totally free! The chargers are on the edge of the main parking area in near ideal parking spots right next to Batman The Ride. This location has to be the prettiest view I’ve had from a charging station. The chargers have the standard SAE J1772 plug, so if you have a Tesla you may need an adapter. The chargers also have huge beautiful LED screens that double to show advertisements.

Continue reading →