Disney Hollywood Studios - Orlando

We went to Disney Hollywood Studios over the weekend and had a blast.  This year we went on the annual pass which gives you all four theme parks unlimited visits for the year.  The cost of the pass is $362/person for over 10 years old for Florida residents and a little higher for out of state visitors.  To offset the cost is the 12 month payment plan where you put down the cost of one pass and make 12 installments of the balance which helps for families.  There is the Premium Pass which is the Annual Pass plus the water parks.  There are also less expensive passes that are all inclusive but have blackout dates.  You may have access to some clubs that offer discounts such as AAA, military MWR, Kennedy Space Center employees, credit unions,car clubs, etc.  Check with your employer as well.  Many major corporations and companies get theme park group rates for their employees.

Hollywood Studios is similar to Universal Studios in that it is a real working movie studio.  They tape Disney shows there and there's a great concert stage where they put on some awesome shows at various dates throughout the year.  When you enter the park the streets are like Hollywood set in the golden age of films.  The store fronts are real and there are a wide variety of eateries.  Most of them are fast food, on-the-go style.  There is a Brown Derby like the one in Beverly Hills which is identical to the real one which has  more high-end fare.  The prices are comparable to any of the other theme parks but the food is all very good.

One of the main attractions is the Rock 'N' Roller Coaster, an indoors rock blast of Aerosmith music that accelerates from 0-60 mph in 2.8 seconds!  You're not ready for this as it catapults you into the dark at high speed and continues to pound you with loops and rolls while you rock out to the band.  It's a unique ride much like a cross between Space Mountain and The Rip Rocket at Universal Studios.

I think the whole ride lasts about 60 seconds but when you get off you feel like you hit a new experience in roller coasters.  It's one of Disney's newer rides, built about 7 or 8 years ago so the technology is among the newer stuff.  I think you will really enjoy it. It's a real ride but not as rough as some coasters I've been on so don't worry if you don't like the real monster rides. It's fun but not too violent.


The other big ride is the Tower of Terror (pictured at the top) .  It towers menacingly over the entire park and is gloomy even on a sunny day.  You enter the tower at the base and wind your way through the old hotel when you get on the car and take a tour of the hotel to the top.  Once there, the doors open out into the park and you can see how high you really are.  I won't ruin it for you but when you take off you won't be able to hold back the screams.

The Toy Story Midway Mania is a great fun ride where you sit in cars and tour through a gallery of familiar characters from Toy Story.  It's a shooting gallery interactive game where you shoot at objects similar to old-fashioned state fair shooting galleries (plates, bowls, etc.)  The shooter keeps score and at the end everyone gets to see how they stack up against everyone else.  My kids love to see themselves beat me at these games!

The stage shows are superb.  They have really talented dancers and performers who put on as good a show as you see anywhere.  We saw the Beauty and Beast Show and loved it.  The professional choreography and costuming is very impressive.  Even though the kids get impatient they will enjoy the show. 

We were only there for the afternoon so we didn't get to see everything because we went at the spur of the moment but there are other things to see and do at Hollywood Studios.  We'll be going back over the Christmas Holidays so when I learn more I'll put out another post.  Hopefully there will be useful  information.  Email me with any questions and I will get the information while I'm there.