The top 10 roller coasters in Orlando: Expedition Everest (#4)

Aboard Expedition Everest, a runaway train adventure at
Disney's Animal Kingdom, Walt Disney World Resort guests
are treated to coaster thrills coupled with an unforgettable
encounter with the fearsome Yeti, guardian of the mountain.
© Disney

#4: Expedition Everest

Where: Disney's Animal Kingdom, Walt Disney World Resort
Launched: April 7, 2006
Design: Lift Hill
Top speed: 50 mph
Inversions: 0
Duration: 2:50
Height restriction: 44 inches

Source: Roller Coaster DataBase

Though Florida's terrain lacks mountains, Walt Disney World Resort is home to many artificial peaks. The tallest of these can be found at Disney's Animal Kingdom.

At 200 feet high, Expedition Everest is the highest of Disney World's man-made mountains, located in the Asia area of the park. Disney bills this attraction as "a high-altitude, high-speed, roller coaster train ride" and is moderately influenced by the Matterhorn Bobsleds attraction at Disneyland.

The ride starts off slow, but builds up towards the end. As the coaster creeps up to the pinnacle, passengers are faced with a panoramic view of the Animal Kingdom skyline, almost as if riders are on a real mountain hike. The coaster speeds through a tunnel only for passengers to find that the train has run into a dead end. Fortunately, the vehicle doesn't plummet from the cliff; instead, it pauses for a few seconds and goes backwards from zero to 40 back through the tunnel, a reverse of course similar to that of Revenge of the Mummy at Universal. Passengers are soon confronted by the Yeti, who appears prepared to attack. The only way for the coaster to escape is take a steep drop down the track and dart through the caverns and canyons at top speed.

Like Big Thunder Mountain and Space Mountain at the Magic Kingdom, Expedition Everest lacks inversions, making it less intense than Universal and SeaWorld's coasters, but it's a big step forward from the Magic Kingdom's coasters. Expedition Everest's top speed is 50 miles per hour and has an 80-foot drop.

With a length of 4,424 feet and production costs of $100 million, Expedition Everest stands as the largest and most expensive attraction at Disney World.

As one of the few rides located at Disney's Animal Kingdom, it tends to get very crowded, so FASTPASS is highly recommended. To read more about FASTPASS, check out my article about how to enjoy a visit Orlando during the peak tourist season.

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