Rides For Your Disney Hating Friends

With seemingly infinite rides, attractions, festivals, and restaurants, Disney World has something for everyone — even people who kinda hate Disney! 

Let’s face it, the Disney magic isn’t for everyone.

But even for those who find it all a tad cloying, there are rides they can love. 

Tower of Terror

One of the most universally beloved rides in Disney World also happens to feel the least Disney. Really, the only people who don’t like Tower of Terror are those with a fear of heights (and maybe creepy dolls). 

Free of any Disney characters or gentle nostalgia, Tower of Terror is Disney’s quintessential thrill ride that feels more like a legit haunted house with a serious adrenaline rush that’ll satisfy the most diehard theme park enthusiast and their Disney-hating friends. 

Rock ’n’ Roller Coaster

Disney has a lot of iconic characters, but Steven Tyler isn’t one of them. That’s why the high-speed Rock ’n’ Roller Coaster in Disney’s Hollywood Studios is better for rock ’n’ roll fans than Disney fans. 

The Aerosmith-influenced ride is also one of Disney’s most intense — and fastest — roller coasters, zooming around through a dark indoor space completely devoid of any Disney decor, while “Walk This Way” (or another bop from the band) blasts in the background.  

Rise of the Resistance

Every once in a while, a ride comes along that’s so impressively immersive and filled with an epic storyline that it’s impossible not to be dazzled. That’s true of Rise of the Resistance, the epic multi-part Star Wars attraction in Galaxy’s Edge. 

Even people who haven’t seen a single Star Wars movie are sure to be blown away by this next-level attraction that’s filled with technology, roving vehicles, simulated space flight, and interactive characters.  

Kilimanjaro Safaris

Sort of like a real-life Jungle Cruise without any of the Disney kitsch, Animal Kingdom’s Kilimanjaro Safaris is as close as you’ll come to embarking on an actual safari in this hemisphere. 

Driving around through various sprawling environments, from the zebra- and giraffe-filled savanna to rivers lined with hippos and crocodiles, it’s an enthralling experience that replaces typical Disney animals (your Chips, your Dales, etc.) with actual animals. 

Expedition Everest

For a good old fashioned roller coaster experience, Expedition Everest is hard to beat. Soaring over Animal Kingdom like an actual mountain, this exciting attraction is particularly thrilling for park-goers who’d rather forget they’re in Disney World. 

The only “character” you see on the ride is a snarling Yeti, and the whole atmosphere of the attraction — from the detailed queue to the mountainside coaster — is far more Himalayan than Floridian. 

Flight of Passage

Speaking of immersive, tech-savvy attractions that’ll blow you away, Flight of Passage is the kind of ride that’ll bring even the most anti-Avatar fan to tears of joy. 

You don’t even need to have seen the movie to be astonished by the ride, which makes guests feel like they’re soaring through Pandora on the back of a banshee, resulting in a full-body, multi-sensory experience you won’t soon forget. 

Dinosaur

There’s nothing overtly Disney about a ride that’s so intense and scary that you might fear for your life. Dinosaur is an adrenaline-pumper that transports guests through a time machine to the late Cretaceous to rescue a cute Iguanodon. 

The cuteness stops there, however. Havoc runs amok from a terrifying Carnotaurus, an impending meteor strike, and a ride vehicle that jerks you around in utter darkness. Your Disney-hating friends will love it, as long as they’re not opposed to a bit of whiplash. 

Space Mountain

It’s slim pickings at Magic Kingdom for Disney-haters, but Space Mountain is one classic ride that should serve as a nice alternative to, say, the Mad Tea Party. 

Not only is the speedy indoor roller coaster a total thrill, but it’s hard to look and feel like Disney when you’re surrounded by pitch darkness.  

Test Track

Designed primarily for fans of speed rides, EPCOT’s Test Track is the least Disney-feeling ride in the park, which should make your friends happy if they prefer Chevrolet cars to Mickey Mouse. 

The fastest ride in Disney World, it’s a unique attraction that allows guests to customize their own cars before zooming to 65 mph on an indoor/outdoor track, with nary a Disney detail in sight. 

So the next time you’re visiting Disney World with someone who kinda hates it and resents you for taking them there, just take them on any of these attractions. They’ll thank you later. 

The Most Divisive Rides in Disney World

What is the best ride in Disney World for your Disney-LOVING friends? Let us know in the comments!

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