The Tower of Terror…and some other odds and ends (WDW ‘10)

I had a mention in the comments regarding riding the Tower and the whole “free fall” thing. So I’ll tell you my experience.

The queue looks like an old, abandoned hotel. Very elegant in an antique sort of way…with lots of spider webs and dust.

The line winds its way through this hotel and then Disney does what it does best. Eats up some time in the queue so you’re not just standing there bored stiff. There is a smaller room that looks a bit like a library (or something..it was very dark) with an old TV in there. When everyone finds a place in the room, the doors close and the TV comes on and it’s the guy from Twilight Zone talking about the hotel and the elevator etc. Nothing long or drawn out…just enough “story” to get you out and get you on the elevator for the ride.

After the TV part, some doors open and it’s another queue….another line, and it’s very dark in there. (This is a common theme with Disney rides I’ve noticed…waiting in a very dimly lit area. Weird.) Anyway, when you get closer to the ride, of course you get called on to stand on a number or in a line etc. And then when the ride is empty, it’s time to get on. The first time I rode, I was on the front row of seats. And there was a vacant seat next to me (more of this later). There are handles next to you, to hold on and a simple (but very sturdy) lap belt to buckle. When the ride starts, there is video to watch as the elevator part moves to the shaft where it goes up and down. There is a little bit more ‘story’, but again, just enough to have the ride. Nothing deep, just creepy.

And then the car locks in place. And the doors open. And you’re very high off the ground and you can see out the windows of the hotel at the park below. Still inside the building but in open air also.

And then it drops. Fast. It rises and falls and rises and falls a few more times. This part of the ride is random and no two rides are identical. So there really isn’t a way to count it up to figure out if it’s almost over. I held on for dear life and put my foot against the wall in front of me. And screamed my head off. Over and over.

I will insert here that my eyes were closed for the dropping parts. I opened them a couple of times and it freaked me out so I closed them again. I’ve watched some videos of this ride on you tube and there may be some videos etc shown during part of this sequence when the doors close, but I personally wouldn’t have a clue as to that.

Then there is a little bit more video at the end, and then it’s over. And then the exit dumps you out into a gift shop with all sorts of Tower trinkets and tee shirts. How convenient.

Remember I mentioned the part about having a seat next to me empty? Well..the second time I rode, there was a rather muscular young man sitting next to me and his upper thighs were pressed tightly against the handles. Um, ‘scuse me, but do you mind if I put my hand right there next to your beefy thigh to hold on for dear life? Um no, not gonna happen. So I only had one handle to hold that second time. MUCH scarier. It felt even more out of control.

In other news…

I love Belle. She’s my favorite.

Hubs and I had a chance to test ride a Segway. I rode the Tower but was too chicken to ride a Segway. Hubs said it was fun and all his Wii experience with the balance board helped a lot.

This is the name of our building at the Polynesian. Instead of thinking hard enough to figure out how to pronounce it, we just called it “the aorta”. Worked for us.

Last time we visited, we left on Thanksgiving day, so the park was already dressed for Christmas. This year, we got a blend of Halloween and fall. So cute.

Aaaaand, tomorrow is my last post about the parks. I promise…cuz it’s already written.