Animal Kingdom Lands

Description And Comments

The first true roller coaster in Disney's Animal Kingdom, Expedition Everest earned the park's longest waits in line from the moment it opened - and for good reason. Your journey begins with an elaborate waiting area modeled after a Nepalese village; then you board an old train headed for the top of Mount Everest. Throughout the waiting area you'll find posted notes from previous expeditions, some with cryptic observations regarding a mysterious creature that supposedly guards the mountain. These ominous signs are ignored (as if you have a choice!), resulting in a high-speed encounter with the Abominable Snowman himself.

The ride consists of tight turns (some while traveling backwards), hills and dips, but no loops or inversions. From your departure at the loading station through your first high-speed descent, you'll see some of the most spectacular panoramas available in Walt Disney World. On a clear day you'll be able to view the arrangement of the buildings at Coronado Springs, Epcot's Spaceship Earth, and possibly downtown Orlando. But look quickly, because you'll immediately be propelled, projectile-like, through the inner and outer reaches of the mountain. The final drop and last few turns are among the best-designed coaster effects Disney has ever made. A few minor criticisms: At a couple of points, your vehicle is stopped while the ride's track is reconfigured, affecting the attraction's continuity. And while the Yeti audioanimatronic is undoubtedly impressive, he's as elusive as his real-life counterpart. But don't let these small shortcomings stop you from riding.

The coaster reaches a top speed of around 50 miles per hour, just about twice that of Space Mountain, so expect to see the usual warnings for health and safety. The first few seats of these vehicles offer the best front seat experience of any Disney coaster, indoor or out. If at all possible, ask to sit up front. Also, look for the animal poop on display in the FASTPASS return line. A deliberate attempt at verisimilitude, or did Disney run out of money for ride props and use whatever they could find? You decide.

As you might expect for a super-headliner attraction, Expedition Everest was the subject of much reader mail. A Seattle family rated Expedition Everest four thumbs up:

The Expedition Everest ride is tremendous. It has enough surprises and run-away speed to make it one of the more enjoyable in the whole Orlando area. The little details leading up to the ride are unbelievable.

For a Somerset, Kentucky, woman:

This ride is full of surprises! Every time you think you know what's going to happen next, you don't!

For a Kettering, Ohio, mom, the ride was a multigenerational happening:

Expedition Everest alone is worth the cost of park admission - we had three generations on the ride, and everybody loved it!

A Macon, Georgia, teen did some recruiting for the yeti:

Expedition Everest was so smooooth! I went right out and brought my granny back to ride it. She didn't throw up or anything!

Beating the morning crowds to Expedition Everest is also a hot topic. From a Yonkers, New York, man:

At Animal Kingdom the first ride we rode was Expedition Everest. When the park opened the Disney people walked the crowd through Asia to the ride. We went right toward DinoLand and followed the path around the lake to Everest. We arrived about 90 seconds ahead of the crowd being walked in and were the first to ride. Upon exiting the ride we noticed the line was already enormous and to our delight the wait at the other major rides was negligible.