Posted by
Mike and Chris Pettey
on June 15, 2021
Category:
Disney vs. Disney
Tags:
Disney vs. Disney
Disneyland
Disneyland Paris
Hong Kong Disneyland
Magic Kingdom
Space Mountain
Tokyo Disneyland
Tomorrowland
Space Mountain is an indoor roller coaster themed to a rocket ship that travels through dark themed areas representing space stations and outer space. The attraction can be found at five of the six Disney Resorts across the globe. We’ve ridden every Space Mountain in person.
Major Similarities & Differences
You can watch fantastic videos of all versions of the attraction online, so we won’t spend time re-hashing the details of each experience. Instead, we will just point out the major similarities and differences we feel are worth calling out:
- Each version is located in its respective park’s Tomorrowland or equivalent area (“Discoveryland” in Paris).
- The Florida version has two separate intertwined tracks that travel two unique, separate routes. The seating is single file, making this ride similar in ways to California’s Matterhorn Bobsled attraction.
- The California, Hong Kong, and Tokyo versions all travel the same track layout. Tokyo’s does not have on-ride audio, but California and Hong Kong’s do. All three versions contain similar trains with side-by-side seating.
- The Paris version contains both a launch, as well as three upside-down maneuvers, or “inversions”. The trains have side-by-side seating with 12 rows of seats.
- All versions load indoors with the exception of Paris, which features an outdoor loading station.
- The California, Hong Kong, and Paris versions all have on-ride audio.
- The California, Hong Kong, and Paris versions have been given a Star Wars themed overlay in recent years, and during that time, the name of the attraction has been changed to Hyperspace Mountain. While the California version has periodically switched back and forth between the original version and this overlay, the Hong Kong and Paris versions have remained Hyperspace Mountain since the change. For purposes of this review and ranking, we will consider the current versions of the attractions as of the date of this article.
The Rankings (from least favorite to favorite)
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Yes, you read that right. The Tokyo park, which leads the charge on so many of our lists, finds itself with the worst version of Space Mountain in the world. That may seem strange on the surface of things, as this is essentially a carbon copy of the 1977 version that was installed at Disneyland in California. But that’s the problem. While California’s version has since been plussed with enhanced special effects, a completely replaced (and smoother) track, and on-board ride audio, Tokyo’s has remained virtually unchanged. That means that today it not only looks dated, but it also rides dated – with a rougher ride that feels like a letdown after the super smooth experiences in California and Hong Kong. And the lack of on-board audio is a major drawback – it’s a giant void that really detracts from the immersive qualities of the experience. It’s not a surprise that the Tokyo version of Space Mountain has more or less been frozen in time – Tokyo isn’t known for enhancing or plussing their rides. That makes this version of Space Mountain the O.G. of the bunch – and a fun experience for those wanting to relive the original 1977 version – but it also means it is the weakest in the entire cosmos.
Copyright Disney. All Rights Reserved.
There are only a few examples where Disney has made changes to a beloved attraction, and the end result was actually worse than the original. This is one of them. Space Mountain: De La Terre a La Lune was not only a fantastic concept, but also a gorgeous attraction, and often regarded as the savior of the Paris park, as it brought in the crowds and helped turn the corner for the struggling resort. From the exterior, with its Columbiad Cannon, to the load station, to the vehicles themselves, the steampunky Jules Verne inspired attraction was a fantastic piece of Imagineering. It was the full package: the launch, the on-board audio, even three inversions. So when the ride was “updated” to Space Mountain: Mission 2 – the reception was rather lukewarm. Instead of a return to greatness, the next step was to give the attraction the trendy Star Wars overlay, which has worked so well in other parks. The problem here is that nothing about the Paris attraction fits even remotely within the world of Star Wars. It’s a complete clash of themes, designs, ideas…everything. And it results in a headliner attraction being dumbed down to an unnecessary level in order to slap on a trendy Intellectual Property. It would be far less painful if the original wasn’t such a great attraction. There’s no way to say it nicely: the Paris version of Space Mountain has fallen deep into a black hole, and that’s why it sits in fourth place on our list.
It’s an interesting twist that every version of Space Mountain built since the original in Magic Kingdom park has been so far removed from this first incarnation of the ride. Magic Kingdom’s Space Mountain is a massive structure – necessary to house the two separate tracks of the attraction that wind within. The vehicles here are completely unique to this location – single file rockets with three seats per passenger. And riders sit in a much more “open” seat than other versions…which lends itself to a bit wilder ride. The rockets on their course have a few nice surprises, including several views of the Peoplemover that runs through the mountain itself. The two different sides run completely different courses, which makes this a fun experience on both tracks, and there are several tight turns, nice drops, and areas where just enough of the support structure can be seen to provide some truly terrifying head-chopper effects. Drawbacks are a slightly rougher ride than most Space Mountain coasters, and some dated special effects that are straight from 1970’s sci-fi, begging for an update. Also, there is no on-ride audio, and that’s a real shame, because it works so well in other Space Mountain locations. Still, it’s not a bad version of the attraction at all, and its jumbo-size is well equipped to handle the massive Magic Kingdom crowds that descend on it daily. It’s just so vastly different from every other Space Mountain that at the end of the day it is something truly special: the very first version of the ride, and the third best in the universe.
The newest Space Mountain coaster in the world is located at Hong Kong Disneyland. This version of Space Mountain was the first ever to receive the Halloween-themed Ghost Galaxy overlay back in 2007, and that fit in well with this park, that does Halloween bigger and better than any other Disney park in the world. Ghost Galaxy was featured each year until 2013. Then in 2016, Hong Kong’s Space Mountain received the Star Wars overlay, and Hyperspace Mountain has had a permanent presence at this park ever since. And it works well. This ride is essentially a carbon-copy of the California version, but with a different queue and less-impressive load station. The on-ride audio shines here, as do the Star Wars visuals throughout the ride. Our biggest complaint is that the interior of the ride seems brighter than other versions around the world – it is fairly easy to see the track – and while that may seem like a novelty at first, it wears off quickly. Space Mountain just isn’t the same when you can see every turn, twist, and drop coming. It could and should dial back the lighting just a bit more. Beyond that though, there’s little else to complain about. It’s a fantastic version of the ride, extremely smooth, with great special effects, and so many of the other features that have made this same version so popular in California and Tokyo. And the Star Wars theme, while trendy, works well here, and has rightfully been in place for quite some time. It will probably eventually revert back to its classic form, but that won’t change all that is great about Hong Kong’s Space Mountain – the second-best version on our planet.
Truly great attractions breed clones. It speaks volumes that this version, opened in 1977 after the roaring success of the Florida original, has basically been cut and pasted into two other parks. This is the definitive version of Space Mountain – the best ride layout, the best ride vehicles, the best queue, the best on-board audio – and the original outer-space theme to go along with all of it. After a wonderful build up via the three separate lift hills, it zips along through the stars with a fantastic layout that is thrilling for guests of all ages, creating one of the best “roller coaster in the dark” experiences in in the world. But where Disneyland’s version really excels is in all that has been enhanced and plussed over the years. In 2005, as part of the park’s 50th anniversary, the entire track was replaced, and the result has been a smooth-as-glass experience ever since. That renovation also saw the enhancement of not only the on-board ride audio, but also the design of the load station, several of the special effects and projections used throughout the ride, and the queue. It was, for all intents and purposes, an “all-new” Space Mountain. Since that time, the ride has utilized its renovation to present several overlays: Rockin’ Space Mountain, Ghost Galaxy, and Hyperspace Mountain. And Disneyland has kept the ride fresh by rotating through the different overlays and regularly returning to the original (and best) theme. It’s hard to find any faults here, and the fact that it still commands some of the longest lines in a park that has over a dozen legitimate headliners proves just why this is the greatest version of Space Mountain in the galaxy.
Written by
Mike and Chris Pettey
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YOUR THOUGHTS?
Agree or disagree with our rankings? Have you experienced any of these attractions – either in person, or virtually via the internet? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!
8 Comments
What lists do you have coming up? I’d like to suggest more ideas too as you stated. Ranking the best rides in Animal Kingdom?
Thanks for the suggestion! We definitely have several more “similar ride” rankings left to do, and we will probably do a few more land rankings within specific parks. There are so many possibilities for different rankings; we’ll definitely do a few “best of” ride rankings at some point.
What would your list of top 5 rides at AK look like?
Sounds good! What lists do you have for “similar rides,” I would like to hear them!
I think once Space Mountain is reimagined at Tokyo Disneyland in 2027, it will go from last to first on this list 🙂 maybe first on the Tomorrowland ranking list as well 🙂
Indeed, that could very well be true. We are very excited for the new Space Mountain in Tokyo – just the facade itself looks incredible!
Agree! And suggestion: ranking the Toy Story Mania attractions next? Thanks.
Great suggestion – it’s definitely on our list!
Star Wars Hyperspace mountain is way better than than 4th place it is the only one that has REAL theming in it and goes upside down is smooth and it was my first coaster where I experienced an inversion it also has a good launch you can see from outside and looks cooler. I went to Florida and did space mountain thinking for the same experience but I felt disappointment by the actual ride