My Favorite things to do at Disney Hollywood Studios
There have been many changes over the last 4 years to Disney Hollywood Studios that have really changed the park and increased attendance in this park. We have always enjoyed this park because it had a lot of attractions that the whole family could enjoy and talk about. There are some changes that some fans were not happy about but we believe it is helped the park and there are more visitors now than ever before
1) Toy Story Mania
I first want to say that I love this ride and that is why I put it at the top of the list. As soon as you enter Andy’s room, you become one of the toys and you walk through the que and see giant crayons, tinker toys & playing cards to name a few. You really feel like you have been shrunken down and are playing pretend with Woody & Buzz.
When you get to the front of the line with your 3d glasses, you will be asked to sit in a 4 person car (2 in the front and 2 in the back). These cars will be facing 2 different screens as you roll through the game and ride. In front of you is a canon that will be shooting pies, balls and rockets at the video screen targets in front of you. All of the Toy Story gang will be helping you through your journey to get the highest score.
This ride is a great ride for anyone who loves Toy Story and/or shooting games that are silly and fun.
2) Slinky Dog Dash
Slinky Dog Dash is a roller coaster ride that is set in Toy Story Land and is a fun roller coaster. You will load you and your family in the Slinky Dog Roller Coaster that is literally a giant Slinky Dog that will be riding the steel tracks of the coaster. It is really cool to see the giant toy dog going up and down on the track as it hurls by you when you are either walking past the ride or waiting in line.
Make sure that you take your hat and glasses off during this ride or you will lose them if they are not tight against your face or head. Enjoy this fast ride, I surely did. Also keep your eyes open for green army men, they roam this area of the park to entertain the guest with some fun antitick and music they play on drum sets
3) Star Tours
I love Star Wars and I remember when this ride first came out and how excited I was to ride it. I have ridden this ride at least 10 times now and I never lose interest. I heard there are many different story lines that are played on these rides and they are all great. When you enter the spaceship, you need to buckle up and make sure that your belongings are secured in the pouch under your seat. Your pilot is R2-D2 and C3-P0 and you are a rebel spy trying to get away from the Imperial army.
There a few surprise dips and turns when you are in the space pod, but have no fear you will arrive to your destination safe and sound with the help of the force.
4) Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway
This ride used to be “The Great Movie Ride” that was a must ride every time we went to Disney Hollywood Studios. It has been transformed into the Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway where you find all of Mickey and Minnie’s friends having a fun adventure.
If you love the cartoons, you will love the ride!!!
5) Muppet Vision 3D
I remember growing up and watching the Muppets and chance I got when I was a kid. I remember watching The Muppet Show and the Muppet Babies cartoon on Saturday mornings. So you can tell I am a big fan of The Muppets and really enjoyed the Muppet Vision 3D.
You first go into a room where you will wait for your tur to be escorted in to the theatre where you will be seeing the Muppet Vision 3D. During your wait time in the room, you will be entertained by Gonzo and a few other Muppets on a few televisions in the room. Before the show starts look around the room and you will see some silly things from the Muppets that will make you smile.
You will be asked to move into the theatre with your 3D glasses, try to get the center of the theatre if you can. Every seat is a good one, enjoy the show.
6) Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith
I will say that this indoor roller coaster is a really fun ride and has a great build up at the beginning of the ride.
You meet Aerosmith and you get to go to one of their concerts via the roller coaster. You sit in the car shaped coaster cars and wait for the fast ride to begin. You start with a very fast acceleration and keep going the same speed throughout the whole ride while you listen to famous Aerosmith songs.
7) Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run
As you will probably tell by the favorites list, I really like Star Wars and any chance I get to fully immerse myself into the Star Wars world I will. When I first found out about this ride, I planned our vacation around the opening and made sure I was one of the first to ride it.
You are brought onto the Millennium Falcon so you can help deliver some cargo to the rebels. You can be a gunner, a driver or a repair staff when you are on the ride. During the ride you are thrown side to side while being fired on during the entire mission.
Not only was the ride really fun, the environment of Batuu was an experience I will ever forget. The droids that were outside in the repair area, the First Order Patrols and the great buildings that transport you into the Star Wars world.
8) Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance
This has been one of the most anticipated rides that Disney has ever created. When you enter the door you are fully immersed into the ride and attraction. I really do not want to spoil anything on this ride but you are detained by the First Order and you are trying to get away during the ride.
You will meet a very powerful guest and escape his grasp with help from some of your friends.
9) Droid Depot
Everyone loves R2-D2 and now you have the chance to make your own Astromech droid in the droid depot. It is not cheap to make your own droid, however you can go in and look around and see all the different droids you can make if you choose so. There are so many colors to choose from but there is only to two different droid styles you can build, 1) R2 unit and 2) BB-8 unit.
This is a fun away to spend about 20 minutes and it is really nice to walk around and see some of the different Star War items in the ceiling and the high shelfs.
Great Places to eat at Disney Hollywood Studios
1) Sci-Fi Dine-In Restaurant
This maybe one the most unique restaurants at Disney Hollywood Studios because of the seating arrangements. You walk in to the dining area and you see over 50 cars that have been converted to dining tables for you to eat on. While you eat you will be watching commercial, cartoons and movie trailers from the 50’s. My favorite movie trailer is “The Attack of the 50ft Woman”, go to youtube to see this trailer
The food portions at the Sci-Fi Dine-In Restaurant are a fair size and we always leave full. The lighting is very dim but is good for the environment of a drive-in theatre.
2) Oga’s Cantina
Oga’s Cantina is a Star Wars based restaurant that serves mainly drinks and appetizer. We went with our kids and we had a couple of non-alcoholic drinks and hung out at the bar for a while and got some really nice family pictures while were there. This is a must for any Star Wars Fan.
We had to have a reservation to get in the even see inside when we went, we just stood at the bar because there were no open seats at the time we visited.
2) Milk Stand
Star Wars had a blue milky drink in one of the movies and they do offer it in one of the stands that is in Batuu.
We bought the Blue and Green milk and we found both of them to be very tasty and we wanted to buy more but, they are very expensive.
We also bought the very cool Sprite and Coke bottles that are shaped like Star Wars detonators, great souvenirs!
Conclusion
These are some of my favorite things to do at Disney Hollywood Studios when we visit Disney World. There is a lot more to this park that I have not written about and that I know many people enjoy (including myself). My recommendation for anyone who is going for the first time to Disney Hollywood Studios is to watch some videos on youtube of the rides and attractions so you can have a better understanding of which areas you would like to visit when you are in the park.