Skip These Seven Walt Disney World Attractions if you Struggle with Motion Sickness

Walt Disney World has tons of awesome attractions, and while many are made for the whole family, there are some that you might want to skip if you get easily queasy.

Star Tours and other simulators might not be great for the queasy among us!

If you tend to get motion sickness, it might be best to skip certain rides during your time at the parks.

Here are seven of the riskiest rides when it comes to motion sickness.

Avatar — Flight of Passage (Animal Kingdom)

Admittedly, the 3D virtual reality simulation of Avatar’s diverse world of Pandora in Flight of Passage is truly a wonder to behold. That said, the very realistic sensations of flying on a banshee through the forests, waters, and caves of Pandora can be both exhilarating and overwhelming, as your mount can suddenly go into abrupt dives. In fact, the queue’s introduction to the ride warns that Flight of Passage is not the best for those who suffer from motion sickness or a fear of heights.

Flight of Passage is an incredible experience, but you’ll go into dives from the very beginning, so don’t be afraid to skip it if you’re worried about your vertigo.

Even so, Flight of Passage is not as extreme as other rides, as much of the ride is relatively smooth, and there aren’t any upside-down flips or anything similarly intense. If you’re okay with the sensation of flying with a large simulator screen and don’t mind the drops, you can still enjoy this amazing dive into another world of magnificent flora and creatures of all sorts.

Expedition Everest (Animal Kingdom)

In some ways, Expedition Everest is a tamer rollercoaster, as it never throws any loop-de-loops or corkscrews at you. In fact, the track is smooth overall. Yet keep in mind that this is still a massive roller coaster, such that the Guinness World Records 2011 book listed it as the most expensive roller coaster in the world. Therefore, you can expect powerful turns at up to 3G.

Expedition Everest

Most of all, unlike most roller coasters, Expedition Everest switches between the standard forward direction and sending your train hurtling backward. The drops into pitch-black caves at times can be further disorienting. These unexpected twists are different from standard roller coasters, and the extra confusion can affect your motion sickness by throwing you off.

Mission: Space (EPCOT)

Meant to simulate a real space flight, Mission: Space is not for the weak-stomached, especially if you choose the harder option. There are two different missions to choose from: Green and Orange. The Orange mission, taking you all the way to Mars, is certainly intense, complete with crazy spins and tilts that simulate the high-speed sensation of centrifugal force. Therefore, Disney advises guests with back or neck problems, high blood pressure, or motion sickness to avoid the ride, same for expectant mothers.

Mission: SPACE

The Green mission, on the other hand, might still be suitable even if you sometimes get motion sickness. Rather than a full-fledged trip to Mars, this option instead just takes you into orbit around the Earth – with no spins and only light movements. While some people like expectant mothers are advised to still avoid the ride, you’ll likely find the Green option much more enjoyable, letting you enjoy the thrill of space travel without getting sick along the way.

Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind (EPCOT)

Though you may be excited about trying EPCOT’s newest attraction, you may want to think carefully before getting on board. Disney World’s first omnicoaster has a reverse launch, and a lot of turning back and forth throughout the ride.

Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind

Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic RewindThe ride’s track itself is very smooth, but several guests have gotten motion sick from this attraction. So much so, that Disney has added more trash cans near the exit of the ride.

Space Mountain (Magic Kingdom)

While this ride is not intense as other roller coasters, it has plenty of sharp turns and drops, and more than that, a disorientating atmosphere. You are essentially speeding around through the dark, with only faint, brief flashes of light intermittently. The lack of visuals can throw off your orientation and increase the chances of you becoming nauseous during the ride.

Space Mountain

Even so, if you’re okay with the darkness, then the ride could still be okay for you. Aside from jerky turns and drops, there aren’t other features like inversions to upset your stomach. So as long as you can tolerate moderate thrill rides and won’t get dizzy from the lack of light, you should still check this ride out.

Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster (Hollywood Studios)

This roller coaster holds nothing back with intense thrills that will send your heart racing. With two rollover loops that turn you upside-down, as well as a corkscrew, you’re in for a wild ride. What’s more, it can jump from a standstill to 57 mph in three seconds flat. The high speeds and twisting turns combine to make this terrible for people with motion sickness.

With corkscrews, loops, and high-speed dashes, this rollercoaster embodies the energetic wildness of rock and roll.

Not only that, but the loud music blaring from your car and the largely dark surroundings can be further disorienting, making for a rather unpleasant experience. Plus, there are also big drops, further upsetting your stomach. This is an awesome ride if you like thrill rides – and have a love for rock music – but people who don’t like motion sickness should stay away.

Twilight Zone Tower of Terror (Hollywood Studios)

Sudden and sharp drops are definitely a recipe to make your stomach churn, so you should stay away from the Tower of Terror. There are going to be multiple drops in the elevator as it creakily goes up and down. The biggest drop traverses the full height of the elevator (130 ft) at up to 39 mph – that’s sure to make you queasy!

Hollywood Studios

To make things worse, the Tower of Terror is unpredictable, selecting different levels of drops at random each time. The selection even includes some false drops that will startle you and give you a false sense of security. This means that you’ll never know when the freefalls will happen, or at what intensity. Not knowing when you’re going to have trouble can make you uneasy and more likely to be thrown off by the sudden drops. So stick to a spooky but safe attraction like the Haunted Mansion if you want chills and thrills.

Tower of Terror

If you’re worried about motion sickness at Walt Disney World, know that you’ll likely be fine; the parks have lots of attractions that will be perfectly all right for you. As long as you avoid the more troublesome offenders like the seven rides listed above, you and your tummy can have a wonderful time at Disney World.

Do you get nauseated on certain Disney World attractions? Share them in the comments below! 

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7 Replies to “Skip These Seven Walt Disney World Attractions if you Struggle with Motion Sickness”

  1. Flight of Passage made me a bit dizzy but I was suffering from severe sunburn and lack of water on a very hot AK day.
    Misson Space didn’t bother me but we went on the mild one.
    Rock N’ Roller I only looked at it and it made me nauseous (Threw up on a loop coaster in 7th grade and haven’t been on since.)
    Haven’t been on Primeval Whirl since it was closed in Aug of 2019 when I went but I would have stayed behind (Threw up on one that was ironically in the shape of a dino at the state fair in like 8th or 9th grade.) And teacups too.
    Alien Saucers in Toy Story Land is a big no for me (Threw up on that kind of ride at the state fair the same day as the dino spin)
    I warned my friends back then but they forced me to get on even when I told them I have a weak stomach but they refused and paid the priced.
    Tower of Terror again is okay for me. Been on copycat ones in diff amusement parks and loved it can’t wait to go on the OG when I can go to Disney again.
    Anyone whose motion sickness has gotten better also have a thing where when they are tired and low energy they feel dizzier and sicker and then go on the ride when they’re rested and feel a lot better on it or is it just me?

  2. Smugglers Run is bad too, and surprisingly, Aladdin’s Magic Carpets were so rough and bouncy, I was nauseous the whole rest of our evening.

  3. I suffer greatly from motion sickness, but from this list I am only bothered by Flights of Passage, Mission Space, and Primeval Twirl.

  4. Several years ago I “tried” the Tower of Terror and I got so sick, it ruined the rest of my day. The nausea and uncomfortable feelings last for hours for me. So If a ride even hints at being a problem for me, I skip it. I did try the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and The Seven Dwarfs Mine Train. While I tolerated these, I did not enjoy them a great deal. All that being said, I enjoy Disney World a great deal. I just wish that with all the upgrades, renovations, and additions, Disney would add a few things that I could tolerate. Whenever I go, I always try to ride Soarin as many times as I can (and close my eyes for the fly over the Great Wall of China)…Unfortunately fast passes , especially Tier one rides, have far too may options I can not take advantage of. It would be nice if they had a ‘Fast Pass for Those Prone to Motion Sickness’ option that would allow people like me to get two fast passes for Soarin and skipping the big thrill rides.

  5. Yup, got motion sickness on every one of these rides except Tower of Terror. I can ride each once, but not multiple times in a day.

  6. I get sick on spinning rides & motion simulators but I’m fine on roller coasters. Body Wars made me sick enough so I’ve never ridden the Star Wars one. I did ride Mission Space once & puked after I got off. Surprisingly I was fine on Primeval Whirl.

  7. Star Tours and Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run set off my vertigo. I’m more sensitive to lateral movements vs up and down. I’ve found that the engineer position in Smuggler’s Run is best for me, because I can focus on my “job” rather than the images when I start to feel nauseous.