The Worst: Beyond the Magic
The Worst: Beyond the Magic is a travel podcast breaking down the best and worst of Disney, destinations, and vacations people actually book.
Hosted by travel professionals Pete Morrison and Jamie McMahon, the show goes beyond the highlight reels and hype to talk about real expectations, real costs, and real experiences. From Disney planning mistakes and dining myths to destination travel insights, each episode delivers honest conversations and practical advice you can actually use.
If you’re planning a Disney trip, researching travel destinations, or tired of advice that ignores reality, this podcast helps you make smarter decisions, avoid common mistakes, and get more out of your vacation.
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The Worst: Beyond the Magic
Worst To Best At Disney’s Hollywood Studios
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Hollywood Studios Today’s Mission
SPEAKER_00Welcome back, Jamie. Hey Pete, how are you? I'm fantastic. Let's get into it, man. What are we going to talk about this week? I think today on the docket we're going to talk all things Hollywood Studios. Uh, this is my favorite park. My absolute favorite park. I don't know if you can see on the video real fast. I got the Hollywood Studios mug going on there. I promise you this is full of coffee and not whiskey.
SPEAKER_01All right, we're gonna talk about the rock and roller coaster reopening, re-themed under the Muppets. Uh, we're excited about that. All right, I'm excited to upset some Hollywood studio fans. Let's get to it.
SPEAKER_00Don't you do that to me.
SPEAKER_01This is the worst beyond the magic. All right, let's start
Picking The Worst Rides First
SPEAKER_01it off. We'll start it off with the worst rides. We're gonna we're really gonna get into this here and uh hopefully not offend too many people. Um let let me let me start off with which one for you is the objectively worst ride at Disney?
SPEAKER_00At Disney or at Hollywood Studios? Hollywood Studios, of course, thank you, sir. Hollywood Studios, the objectively were the worst ride at Hollywood Studios, I think, is gonna be uh Star Tours. I'm sorry. I'm sorry, I offended all the Star Wars fans. I am a Star Wars fan. I know let me explain myself. It's outdated, it is, it's 90s technology, it was cool when I was 10 years old, and now that I'm 41, I get a little emotion sickness. I'm not gonna lie. It's not it's not my favorite. I don't like it. All right.
SPEAKER_01Let's talk about the good stuff. They do they do randomize the uh the screens now. There's new scenes and new playability, but I I think I agree with you. It's not gonna be my worst.
SPEAKER_00It's I think it's uh it's a walk-on. It's usually a skip from me and my family, to be honest. Oh, really nice. All right, yeah, it is. That's objectively the worst ride at Hollywood Studios. But again, I'm partial because Hollywood Studios is my absolute favorite park.
SPEAKER_01I like it. I've got a little bit of nostalgia for it. My daughter's been um the the uh rebel. I've been the rebel. So, you know, we that they think they know they see us coming and they they they uh they play to our strengths there. We we love it. We love the beating in the center of attention. But you're that guy. Yeah, I am that guy. You're the rebel spot. Uh uh for me, and you know, we just really haven't done it. It's it's too young, but the I don't understand the alien swirling saucers. I think it's meh for me. The lines are always too long, brutal weight lines. Um, and I think uh it's just meh. What about you? You've got the kids that around that age, do they enjoy that?
SPEAKER_00Uh no. Uh well, I should say I think my I think my four-year-old does. I don't enjoy going on that one with her at all. Um, that with that one's a skip for me as well. If there's nothing else to do and we have some downtime, I I I will stand in that line if I don't have a Lenny lane for it because it's it's never over. I'm never gonna stand that line if it's over 30 minutes. It's not worth it. Um, I think that's our second worst ride at Hollywood Studios is Alien Aliens Frillion Saucers. Uh the queue is kind of screwy, it's all outdoors. There's really not a whole lot of shade there. Um, and Toy Story Land in general, there's no shade whatsoever. Um, but I I mean it's it's this kind of a it's kind of a meh ride, like you said. Um, it's more like a glorified carnival spinner with brutal wait times. It's it's just I don't know. It's it's it's not one of the not one of the best. You agree?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I agree. I totally agree. And I do think uh you bring up a very good point. What they're trying to fix, but one of the worst parts of the park um is just not having that shade. If it's a really hot day, there that especially Toy Storyland has been brutal with the heat. Um, but I know they've just recently put in Woody's lunchbox. They've got some more uh places that give you some more shade, it's a little bit better. And some of the cues, they've put up some of the overhangs. So it's getting a little bit better. All right, let's move on.
Smugglers Run Sparks A Fight
SPEAKER_01So those are the bottom two. I'm gonna give you my next one because I know we're gonna disagree on this one. Um, the next one for me is is smugglers run. I am just uh unless you're the pilot, I think it's just mashing buttons and uh you know what's just mashing buttons, okay.
SPEAKER_00Pete, listen. Do you even do you we're gonna disagree? This is this is what this is about. Do you even understand the positions of what you're supposed to don't laugh at me? Do you understand the positions of that ride? Do you understand what you're supposed to do? I mean, maybe I didn't study enough, but it's it's a park.
SPEAKER_01I'm not supposed to study.
SPEAKER_00Okay, all right. So let me explain to you the different positions of that. Okay, okay, so that is a six-person ride. So if you have a family of five like I do, you're gonna get this Rando coming in this in the uh in the in the single rider line, which is totally allowable, by the way. But they want to load that ride with six people. You have two pilots, you have two gunners, and then you have two engineers. If your pilot sucks, uh, like my son did when we went out of that for the very first time. Let's see, God, how old was he? He's what 13 now. I want to say he was maybe six or seven at the first time we went on that ride. Pete, when I say we hit everything, we we hit we hit everything.
SPEAKER_01You're such a Star Wars nerd, you just threw your six-year-old under the bus.
SPEAKER_00I did, I did. So I was the right pilot and he was the left pilot. So, for those who don't know, the pilots uh one pilot on the right, um, I forget at the moment, but uh one either goes up or down and the other pilot goes left and right. I can't remember which one he was, um, but we were not working together, it didn't work well. So um we we hit everything. You can actually fail that ride. Hondo andaka will come on the screen and be like, dude, bro, you screwed up. He says it in a really nice way. Uh, he says it like you failed the mission or some sort of something like that. Um, but he was not your Han to your Chewy. Oh my god, no, no. Anyway, um, when you have a pilot who isn't any good or is a six-year-old, um your engineers, why you keep laughing at me? Your engineers are the probably the most important position on that ride. Why? Because when you have a pilot who hits everything like that, your engineers just mash buttons, uh, in your words, right? To try and fix the ship that's damaged because of your pilots. Okay, so the engineer position is probably one of the the most important positions in that ride, and then uh probably the second most uh important position would would be the the gunners, right? To to hit everything else that's in your way and hit uh you know TIE fighters and whatnot, everything else that you encounter in that ride. Uh, but you have to have a squared away pilot, one that goes up and down, once it goes left and right, and then you have to have someone paying attention uh who knows what they're doing to mash buttons in your words to try and fix the ship for those of you that hit everything in that ride. So I love this ride. Um, I remember again, I'm an old man now. I remember when the first time I took this ride, I was a pilot. Um, and I think it actually was the first the time my my son, who was sixth at the time, was the other pilot. And when this the uh the joystick in front of me lit up green and Hondo Onaka came on the screen and said, put it in the hyperdrive, I was immediately I I was Han Solo, okay? It like it just it happened in front of me, and I pulled the lever and we blasted off it in like uh to light speed, and I flew back on my seat and I was just immersed. Like I couldn't believe it. Like I was it's still I'm getting goosebumps right now talking about it, okay? That's what it's all about. It's it's so much fun to me. I love this ride. Love this ride, and it doesn't make me for those of you that suffer with motion sickness. Um, Star Tours gets me sick. This one does not get me sick at all because I'm paying attention, I'm looking all over all over the screen and looking where I'm going. I have a mission in my mind, right? So I like this one a lot.
SPEAKER_01It's one of my what's what it are you uh you're excited about the big news about the 22nd of this month?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, so for those that don't know that May 22nd of this month, here we're recording on Saturday, May 9th. Um, they are releasing a new episode of where they're gonna update the ride to include Mando um from The Mandalorian. And of course, Krogu is gonna be in it as well. So I'm excited to see what that looks like. And you're gonna get to experience that come up here in May.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I am very super excited. Um, the Mandalorian is one of my favorites. I love the show. I loved uh Boba Fett and the whole Mandalorian lore from when I was a kid. Um, so I think that might bring that ride back up a little bit for me. So I'm excited to see it. All right, I think we've covered it. Um I picked the last one. How about you? What's your what's your number six?
SPEAKER_00I'm I'm still listening. I'm still ready to fight you on that one. I'm still ready to fight you on that ride. Okay. All right. I've how dare you put that at number seven in one of the worst rides how I was doing this. How dare you, sir. Anyway, moving on. Moving on. I'm offended. I'm sure there's many out you, many of you out there, maybe one of our 27 listeners. Uh we we just hang on for a second. So we can see um how many people have downloaded each episode now. I've figured that out finally. It's not great. Uh, but I do appreciate the 27 of you that have listened to our episodes, and we hope to develop this more. We're getting better each episode. We are. Um, yeah, I I've got the mic in front of me now, so you can probably hear me the best now. Uh, Pete's looking awfully handsome today.
SPEAKER_01You're looking pretty nice yourself there, Dapper Down.
SPEAKER_00I like it. Well, they thank you, sir. Thank you. Uh, let's move on to the number sixth, arguably the worst riot in Hollywood Studios. Go for it, Pete, right now.
SPEAKER_01Oh, it's your turn. I'm not throwing myself on out there anymore.
SPEAKER_00You got to do it. Oh, oh, okay.
Toy Story Mania Score Secrets
SPEAKER_00Okay. So uh Toy Story Mania is coming in at number six. Um, this one climbs the rankings fast after opening. Families love it. Disney fans love the trackless uh the technology in it, which is super cool. Like it was the very first trackless ride that they offered at Walt Disney World. Um, I like it uh because it's some injects into some competition. And when you and I go together, right? Naturally we're bros and we have to compete against each other, right? And we have to get a high score in this one, right? Um I love Toy Story. Toy Story came out in what? What was the first one? What are we on? Five now? I think the first one was in 1996. That was a long time ago. I think I was 11 years old then, a long time ago. Back in our youth. I still love that, Ryan. I still love that. I still love that movie, uh, that theme. Uh that brings it back a lot of nostalgia for me. Uh, but I I love the competition that's in this one. Uh, beating your wife and kids and in the high score, and of course, beating you when we go together. That's that's one of my favorite things to do in that one.
SPEAKER_01Well, we got some good news for those 25 listeners. We're gonna give you some of the tips in order to uh beat your opponent. Um, so I'm gonna start you off. Uh, hopefully you're paying attention here. Um, we got the when you start off with the ham and eggs, the farm scene. So here's what you need to do: you need to hit the fox, go for targets first, hit those, boom, boom, boom, and then clear the barred yard animals as quickly as you can. And if you get it all done, the barn's gonna flip open and reveal a giant bonus target with mice, which worth huge points. You can really rack up the points on that one. Don't waste time on the 100-point pigs unless you need them to clear to activate the next stage. But you know, that's your that's your first tip. How about how about anything else? You got any more?
SPEAKER_00Okay, yep, let's keep going. So, number two on that list, and Pete and I are just for all those who for watching and listening, we're reading off a list here because I couldn't remember them all. But we want to make sure the next time that you write it, you get the highest score, which is why we're gonna spend time on this. But just remember one of them. Right, just exactly. Uh Rex and Trixie's dyno darts. This one is the biggest score multipliers. Ignore the foreground balloons at first. I know it's hard easy to shoot the things on the screen in front of you, but ignore those. Aim for the long thin lava balloon near the volcano, pop all of them quickly, and the volcano erupts. Then meteor slash comet balloons appear with worse worth massive points. A lot of high scorers make it or break it here in the game.
SPEAKER_01I like that one. That is a good one. It seems like you could remember that one's easy. And it's the Green Army Man shoot camp. So you're gonna watch the far upper corners, two high value plates launch simultaneously, break both plates quickly, and a tank appears with bonus plates. This one's much easier if you can uh team up with the people in your cart.
SPEAKER_00I like that one. I like that one. Um, first of all, uh, there is no iron team, uh, and it's every man, every man for himself in this ride. So there's no teaming up in this. I'm familiar with it. Yeah, I know. I I gotta agree with you there. I'm not telling anyone these streams. You're go you're going down, uh, and I'm gonna win. That's this is this that's just how it is. Um, all right. So number four on the list there is Buzz Lightyear flying tossers or alien rings, okay? This is probably the most famous and hidden bonus. All the ring all the aliens rapidly before they reset. The spaceship opens up into a robot, throw rings into the robot's mouth repeatedly. Each hit increases his value from 100 to 500 to 1000 to 2000s. This single trick and adds tens of thousands of points to your score. Ooh.
SPEAKER_01All right. All right, it takes a little skill to ring all those aliens pretty fast, but if you can do it, that's that's definitely worth it. All right, now we're on to Woody's root, and this is the last one, so we gotta pay attention here. Woody's root and tootin', shootin' gallery. Clear the entire group of targets instead of randomly shooting. Hidden bonus waves appear after full clears. Hit the bats during the minecarts section to increase cart values. This is usually the highest scoring final round. Um, and then, you know, I always leave that uh game ride with the the cramped hand feeling sore. But you gotta you gotta really work that uh I'm not gonna demonstrate, but you gotta really work that uh motion, just use two fingers and just fire.
SPEAKER_00For those of you watching at home on YouTube, but Pete's not gonna demonstrate the the hand motions uh how to get that done.
SPEAKER_01We're gonna keep it PG 13.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, yeah, yeah. That's that's fine. That's fair. That's fair. Um, anyway, so rapid fire technique, like what Pete's talking about, and you're definitely gonna have a hand cramp after the fact, but that's okay, it's worth it. You beat the you have the high score. Um, and accuracy barely matters. Misses don't reduce your score, high scores prioritize, speed, bonus triggers, and high value targets, not precision. Now, I know as a part of this ride, um, they mentioned your accuracy. It's okay. It's okay if you're not 100% accurate on it. It's fine. We want you to hit all those things we just talked about, those five different tricks and tips in this ride to get the high score, okay? Because I'm definitely gonna do that next time Pete and I go in January. Yeah, no, I gotta remember them all because I'm not gonna let you win. You you heard it here verse, Pete Pete Morrison's going down. All right. Well, um, Pete, I'm gonna let you take the next one. Uh, and uh and you go right ahead about the the next uh objectively worst ride at number five in Hollywood studios.
Runaway Railway And Hidden Details
SPEAKER_01I got, I mean, this is a tough one for me because Toy Story Mania being as good as it is. I mean, we just spent a lot of time talking about it, how fun it is, how interactive it is. Um, so between that one and the next one, Mickey's Mickey and Minnie's Runaway Railroad, those to me are often in in competition with each other. The ride is great. Um, I really love it. It the track, it's another trackless technology. Um, they replaced an older ride, the movie ride, which was fantastic, but um, you know, this one really beats it as far as nostalgia, getting those old Mickey cartoons, the nothing can stop us now. That's gonna be in your brain.
SPEAKER_00Do you hear that jingle for the rest of today?
SPEAKER_01Oh, yeah, uh, we'll sing it and it and it stays in your you're walking around the park. Nothing can stop us now. It's fantastic. Um, I do I I I'll give props to the great movie ride, which preceded it. Um, it was always fun to see the guy get shot, but you know, in true Disney fashion, we gotta keep it uh family friendly.
SPEAKER_00Uh there's an army man speaking to you right there. There's a right there. That that's what that was. Pete's army is showing. Oh, but the chaos.
SPEAKER_01I don't like chaos in my life when because of the army, but the chaos of Mickey and Minnie's Runaway Railway is is exactly where I what what I needed.
SPEAKER_00Now if I'm not mistaken, they do throw some they have some throwbacks. Uh you probably hear my dogs barking in the background. Uh, they do have some throwbacks uh to the great movie ride in Mickey's Runaway Railway, is that right? Which parts of that that ride do they have a throwback to? Do you know? Oh, you got me unprepared again. Oh, I got you. So um I can think of one right away. It's a tornado scene. So, what part of the great movie ride was a tornado in? Do you remember?
SPEAKER_01Oh, yeah, the Wizard of Oz.
SPEAKER_00The Wizard of Oz, exactly. Exactly. So that's a that's a throwback to that ride. It's a call back to that ride. Look at you making this podcast worth something.
SPEAKER_01I like it. Nice job.
SPEAKER_00Well, you know, this is my second cup of coffee this morning. We're we're going, we're going strong, right? Fantastic, fantastic.
SPEAKER_01All right. Now, I don't know if I agree with this one, but I think it's a little high on the list.
SPEAKER_00Well, you I'm gonna give it to you. So we're going from worst to best, just so everybody knows, right? We're going from the worst, worst to the best. So Mickey's Runaway, Mickey M Mini's Runaway Railway is number uh five. All right, so I think we've hit everything there is to hit about Mickey's Runaway Railway. It's a great ride. Um, one extra tip. I think if you sit in row eight or row nine, you can see the trumpet squid. Uh shout out to our friends at Rope Drop Radio. Uh, they made that a thing. If you ever listen to that Disney podcast, uh, I know they have more than 27 listeners. Um but they they if you sit far back enough in the train, you can see the trumpet squid uh when you're going through the under the sea area in that ride. It's kind of a it's kind of a fun thing. And nowhere else. Um, if you're too far forward in the train, you're not gonna see him. He's on your left, I think it's on the left-hand side. Um, but you'll see it. If I just look for it next time and sit farther back in the train, you'll be able to see the trumpet squid. Trumpet squid. It's all about the trumpet squid. Yeah. All right, man. What's next? All right.
Slinky Dog Strategy And Night Rides
SPEAKER_00Uh number coming in at number four, uh going from worst to best. We have Slinky Dog Dash. Number one Lightning Lane ride. Uh, when you enter into Hollywood Studios, then at seven days out if you're on park property. Pete or I will do this for you if we're your travel advisor at 7 a.m. and lock that ride in for you, seven days out. Uh that is the objectively one of the hardest rides to get on Lightning Lane. It's the number one ride. Is it the greatest roller coaster you've ever been on?
SPEAKER_01No, it definitely is not.
SPEAKER_00No, definitely not. But it's a great roller coaster for starters for little kids, right? So my four uh almost five-year-old here coming up, uh, my uh 10-year-old and definitely my 13-year-old can most likely go on this ride because of the height uh restriction on this one. They qualify for that one. And it is a great beginner starter roller coaster, right? It's not too scary, it's not too fast. Um, it's you know what it's really good is at nighttime. Oh yeah. Because Twister Land is beautiful at nighttime. And I highly recommend if you can start your uh if you can save that Lenning Lane for later in the day and hit it at sundown um or at twilight or actually after the sun goes down at nighttime, that's that's probably the preferred uh one to do. But most people, that is their very first ride because it's the most difficult, uh, one of the most difficult lanes to get at uh at Hollywood Studios.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, absolutely agree with you on the theming. And it brings up another point um that twilight late evening, right before things start to slow down. Um if you have the wherewithal and the the way to do it, like those are the best times to go. You can actually start. Um, there's times right at that, those hours where you can get right on and off rides. Um, and then you get the really great experience that you don't often get in the dark. Tiana's coming up at the top, and Tiana's, like you said, the um Slinky Dog Dash, like there's just so many rides that you get a much better or different experience at night. You don't want to miss it. All right, let's move on.
Rock ’n’ Roller Coaster Goes Muppets
SPEAKER_01Um, Slinky Dog's great. I agree with you. Um, but since we're talking about roller coasters, we gotta go to our number three, and that is formerly known as the rock and roller coaster starring Aerosmith. But, you know, soon to be starring Muppets. Yeah.
SPEAKER_00Who's Aerosmith again?
SPEAKER_01Who's Aeros? I mean, for nostalgia purposes and for uh classic stuff, I mean, uh you gotta love it, but you know, what's the theme? Evolve or die. But this, this, this roller coaster is one of the best ones. It's a thrill, it's the most thrill roller coaster, I think, that Disney has to offer. You get the upside down feel. I mean, I think Guardians is coming close to it, but for for me, this one is a true classic. Gets into those other theme park style roller coasters. Uh I love it. Uh, I'm really looking forward to the Muppets. The Muppets uh open up on the 26th and uh of May. Of May. DVC and pass holders are testing it out now, getting me making me awfully jealous about whether or not it's gonna be good. Um, but we're planning to see if we can lightning lane or do we do you know if they're gonna have the virtual queue for that when they start, or are they just gonna put it right on the lightning lane?
SPEAKER_00That's a great question. I I wonder that myself. Typically, what happens historically what happens is they do have a um a virtual queue for a newer release like that, but I'm I'm I'm curious as to what they're gonna do for that as well. That just like you said, right now DVC and and pass holders are getting the um the pre-ride preview uh for that. But uh we'll have to wait and find out and see what happens. Um, I would personally like it if they do the virtual queue. I like the virtual queue. Um I liked it when they had it for Rise of Resistance, um, because it saves you a lightning lane purchase, to be honest, right? So you don't have to. Buy that ride essentially. You could get it for if you're quick enough on your fingers, you can get it uh for a virtual cue. So I I personally like the virtual cube option. I hope that they do that with this. Um, but I like you am excited for the to see what the Muppets. I was sad as as a 90 90s millennial kid uh when they got rid of Muppet Courtyard and Muppets 3D, because that's that's just like that's my childhood growing up with the Muppets and watching Muppet babies on TV. Like that was that was for me, that was my my childhood. But um I I miss it. Uh I miss when Sweet M's runs out into the crowd and uh and you see him running through the theater. Like that was like it was hilarious to me every single time, right? Um, but I like you. I I'm excited to see what they have uh with this. I'm not sad to see Arosmith go, like they're a legendary band for sure. Um but uh I I think it was time. I think it was time, and I'm glad that they they pivoted to bringing the Muppets back into Hollywood Studios after they you know demolished uh Muppet Courtyard um and made it made it so that they have their own roller coaster, and I'm excited to see what that looks like. And um second of all, you're entitled. This is America, and you're entitled to your wrong opinion. Um okay. Uh this does not beat uh Guardians of the Galaxy by any means. Uh Guardians of the Galaxy is the best roller coaster at Walt Disney World. Uh, this is a close second. I'll agree with you there because they got a couple corkscrews in there, and you do go upside down. You don't go upside down in Guardians. Um, but uh I I think for my money, Guardians is the best one at Walt Disney World. But that's either here or there right now. We're gonna argue about that. But uh coming at number three is Rock Roller Coaster starring the Muppets, no longer Arosmith, but uh we're excited to see where this goes.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I gotta give you the kudos to the the Muppets. That's a good point. And for uh, you know, great job bringing up Muppet Babies. Muppet babies.
SPEAKER_00Oh, yeah, this is ladies and gentlemen. This is twice now that Mr. Pete Morrison has blessed us with his singing voice.
SPEAKER_01Stick around. You're welcome.
SPEAKER_00That's the next song from Iwana.
SPEAKER_01All right. Well, you got two more to go, two rides left here, and I think this is where a little controversy comes in. I think you and I might have a different well, my daughter would definitely have a difference of opinion, but I'm gonna I'm gonna tell you. Uh, let's see. What I know what your number two is gonna be, so we'll go ahead and let you answer that one.
SPEAKER_00All right, so number two coming in uh from worst to best rides of Hollywood Studios.
Tower Of Terror Love Letter
SPEAKER_00This is my favorite ride at Hollywood Studios. This is the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror. Welcome to the Twilight Zone. It's I do do there it is, there it is. I love it, I love it so much. Um I love the walking into the Hollywood hotel and seeing just as you stepped into a different time period and all the decor and all the decorating and all just the um they get they put you in the mood right as you walk in. Just when the when the bell house meets you in the queue and talk to you like the staring character, like it's just amazing. It's and there's no better, no better feeling when your stomach uh leaves the bottom of your abdomen and ends up in your throat when you're dropping, going how however fast. And it's the best part about it is it's random. So the elevator car next to you uh has different drops than what you have. And if you ride it back to back, you're gonna experience a different ride than you did the very first time because it's it's randomized on how many drops that they do. I love it. This is one of my my favorite rides. And you know what? At nighttime, this is what this one's even better because you can see the entire park when that when that uh window opens up at the very top, you can see straight out and you can see the entire park, and it's beautiful at nighttime. You have a split second before you almost fall to your death. Um, but I I absolutely love the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror. I love the pre-show. Um, and for those of you that go to West Coast Disneyland, it's no longer the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror. Now it's Guardians of the Galaxy Mission Breakout, which still has the same ride track, but it's a completely different ride experience. And if you haven't gone, I highly recommend that you do. Pete, you've been on that ride on Disneyland? I have, it's really good.
SPEAKER_01It's uh, you know, it's it's very different from uh the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, but it's it's worth it. I mean, it's like apples and oranges now, so I don't even want to compare the two. Um, it's a great experience with the Guardians, but it's also the you can't beat the imagine if you will, um thrill of Tower of Terror. Um so I'm gonna grab you there. It is my daughter's favorite. Um, we're gonna check the one out in Paris this uh September, too. So uh all right, my friends, we are at the final, and I think we all probably know what this last one is because we uh it's the only ride left at uh Hollywood
Rise Of The Resistance Game Plan
SPEAKER_01Studios. But uh before we get into it, I want to talk about Star Wars itself. Um, you know, the number one ride, um, you know, could be anything, could be something in the park, but we want to talk about uh the land, the land itself. I love the land, the immersion of it, the the scenery, what the imagineers have done there, the characters that they have roaming around, the character interactions, the stormtroopers uh, you know, being rude but funny, being uh ever-present. Uh I just am blown away as a part-time Star Wars fan. I think Return of the Jeto is my favorite, and I uh live off of that one. Um, but I'm not you know your level of fanatic when it comes to Star Wars. But you know, you go in there and you in right back to what you were talking about with um feeling like Han Solo. Like I am definitely feeling like I've got a lightsaber on my side and I'm I'm exploring new worlds, and it brings me right back to my childhood. So I think I love that for Disney. So that'll lead us right in. And and you know, what do you think as it leads into our final ride, which is you know, obviously Star Wars Rise of the Resistance. Why don't why don't you tell me what you think as your Star Wars fan?
SPEAKER_00I I absolutely love it. This for those of you who have not been on this ride yet, it is a total experience from the time you step into the queue. You are immersed in that atmosphere of of Star Wars. Um, they treat you uh as uh rebel spies. I'm not trying to ruin the pre-show for anybody here, uh, but there are a couple different pre-shows that you you enter in before you actually enter the ride vehicle itself, and it is a trackless ride as well, just like uh uh um the mania in Toy Story. Um they completely outdid themselves here. Uh the best part about this ride is taking people that have never been on it before, even if you don't even have to be a Star Wars fan to appreciate um the amount of detail uh that goes into this ride. Uh this ride is massive. It's it's a long time. It's like a 20-minute ride. It's it takes a long time to get through, but it's worth every minute of it. Um, they do a fantastic job. Uh, I again I I don't want to bring any spoilers to those any anybody who's never been on it before. Uh, but it's it's probably one of my favorites. Let's talk real quick about how uh this ride is uh difficult to get on for one. Um if you don't have a lightning for individual lightning lane for so it means you have if you haven't bought the ride itself. Uh they do not offer in the regular lightning lane, so you can't get it seven days out if you're on property or three days out if you're on property. You have to buy it individually and or stay in the queue or stand in the queue, which I'll never do, by the way. I might be poor, but I'm not 180 minutes poor, okay? Um uh but it's best to ride this one early on in the morning. Why? Because there are so many moving parts to this ride, it does break down quite often. Um, and let's say that you did go ahead and buy that ride, and by the time you get to the park in the morning, um, don't rope drop this one because a lot of times it it doesn't open up right away, right when the park does, because there are so many moving parts in this. They have to get this car, this this ride warmed up and and moving, uh making sure all the different uh scenes are working, working in it. Um if you do buy it and it does go down, don't worry, that'll change it to a multi-experience pass for you. Most of the time, if it does go down in the morning, it does open up in the afternoon. So don't get rid of that multi-experience pass. You'll be able to use it later on in the afternoon for the for rise of resistance. But if it's up and running in the morning, um, and you uh I highly suggest using your your individual lightning lane uh in the morning, um, not at rope drop, but sometime in the morning before noon, before uh this ride has a chance to go down. Because there are so many moving parts, um, it does often break down, which is the the sad thing to talk about, but it is an unbelievably uh incredible uh immersive experience into this ride. Um, I I can't talk enough good things about it. I I love it. It's probably one of my one of my favorites. It's not my most favorite. We just talked about that at Hollywood Tower of Terror. Um, but it is it's right up there. Um I love taking people that have never been before um on this ride and having having an experience. And every time you ride it, even as a fan, you pick out things that you've never seen before. You agree with that? I do, I do. I think it's fantastic.
SPEAKER_01And in I think of the the size of it, the amount of stormtroopers they have, whether real or fake, the the imagery, the imagination, the imagineers did a really fantastic job with it. So that's our
Shows And Phantasmic Timing Hacks
SPEAKER_01rides. Um, I think that's a great list. I think one of the parks, uh, one of the parks that get underrated a lot uh outside of the Star Wars brand, people are kind of thinking Hollywood Studios could be a half day or or a skip day, but it is absolutely not. I wanted to ask you and round this out, uh, I I think there's a couple things that really make uh Hollywood Studios extra special too outside of the rides. Um, and that is I I do enjoy the streets, the old Hollywood style of it. Um, you know, when it was MGM Studios a long time ago, uh it brought your age.
SPEAKER_00Showing your age feed.
SPEAKER_01It brought that classic movie vibe to it, which they still kind of hang on to, which I appreciate. Um, but I want so with that, with the shows, I think they do a fantastic job with the shows. The two big ones that I'm thinking of um are um Indiana Jones. They do a really great Indiana Jones show. We we we try to get that one every time that we're there. And then this other sleeper one that we like. Um it's cool, it's funny. Um, you get some real great special effects, and that is the um frozen ever after uh show. Oh, yeah, that's a black show.
SPEAKER_00I love that one.
SPEAKER_01And you know, I don't care what age you are, like it's just fun. The there are jokes that the the hosts do that you know are meant for you, and then there's lots of jokes from for the kids too. So that's a not miss for us. Um, so how about you? What what other perks do you think uh Hollywood Studio has before we wrap that up?
SPEAKER_00No, I I I 100% agree with you that uh the Frozen Ever After is a is a blast. Uh the narrators that bring you along in the story to that, I swear um it's unscripted. Like every time you go into that, you the they they keep up with pop culture, they keep up with current events, and they they tell jokes based on what's happening in the news today, and it is absolutely hilarious. Obviously, they tell the story of Anna and Elsa and how it how they end up, and you see Christoph is there and Sven and Olaf, they're all there, right? But the the way the narrators and storytellers bring that story to life and the way they do it, it's it's it's unbelievably Disney. There's no one other place that could tell the story like they like they do there, and they just um it's so much fun. Um, and again, if you have little girls like I do, it's on an Elsa. I mean, they're in love the moment they step into it because they get to see them in the show. Um, it again, spoilers, it snows at the end uh in the theater. It's it's it's a lot of fun. Um, and it is like Pete mentioned, it's definitely for adults, and it is for it's certainly for for children as well. One big one I think that we're forgetting about here is Phantasmic Pete. Oh, yeah. You've been to Phantasmic. That is one I have not yet made it to.
SPEAKER_01Oh my goodness. Oh my goodness. I'm I feel kind of like I'm I've lost some credibility here, but I haven't done that.
SPEAKER_00You lost 100% of credibility. Remember, you have yeah, uh, you're entitled to your wrong opinion. Again, this is America. Uh it is 100%. If you haven't seen that, it's definitely something you need to go and see with your family. Hot tip on this one. If you have uh the dining plan, uh, even if you don't have the dining plan, but if you do have the dining plan, you can do what's called a dining experience there for this show. So you can go and specifically uh eat at one of the restaurants that they highlight uh prior to this show, uh at one of at one of the restaurants in Hollywood Studios, and then you have your own marked off area when you go uh into Phantasmic for it for uh the dining experience after you're done after you're done eating. So they have a uh entirely roped off area for those people that that chose that option. And so you get a nice up-close um view of the entire Phantasmic show. Uh and again, this one is this one uh starts usually about um I had a guy that would catch me lying on this. I think it's 8:30 or 9 o'clock in the evening, right at park close. If you're not into the shows, this is the perfect time to go get in line for Rise of the Resistance or one of those harder uh lightning lanes that you didn't get earlier on in the day. Um that goes for any park. If you don't, uh if you're not not about fireworks, not about shows, not about parades, if you're more of a ride person like I am, um, and you want to skip all those other things, go get in line uh when the big shows are going on, like Phantasmic. It's a great time to ride Tower of Terror, uh Rise of Resistance, um, back or when uh Rock and Roller Coaster comes back up. Go get in line when those rides are going on. Don't wait until Phantasmic gets out because everyone that comes out of Phantasmic floods right into uh Tower of Terror and Rock and Roller Coaster. So don't wait till that. Ride it during the showtime. So look at your app, look at the time uh Phantasmic is showing and ride those extra rides, uh, those rides we weren't able to do during that time period. That's a great tip.
SPEAKER_01All right, I think that's it for uh Hollywood Studios. We're gonna do these, uh we'll try to do one park for the next couple weeks. Um, so stay tuned for that. All right, Jamie, let's get on to it. What else does Disney have to offer?
SPEAKER_00Well, uh my favorite thing to book for clients, and I've been certainly pretty busy with it here lately, is Disney Cruise Line. But you can't go uh without they introduced uh Disney Cruise Line um uh quite a few years ago. But what the favorite ships that I like to put my friends on and clients of mine are is the four-day Disney Wish leaving out of Port Canaveral. Uh that's a really popular one for first timers that have never cruised before, and especially if you don't know if you have motion sickness at all. Uh that's a great uh tip your toes in the water, so to speak, uh, to experience Disney Cruise Line, the Disney Wish. Uh that was updated in 2022. Yeah. All right, Pete. This is our last segment
Overrated And Underrated Final Takes
SPEAKER_00here. I know I said that was our last segment, but it's not I'm gonna hit you real fast uh with our most overrated ride at Hub Studios. I'm gonna bring you back to the very beginning of our podcast. Go. What's the most overrated ride?
SPEAKER_01Uh, I'm gonna go with you. Overrated for me. Well, no, I'm gonna disagree with you. Overrated for me at this point is Millennium Falcon until I see what they do with the uh Mandalorian. So you can fight me.
SPEAKER_00Oh my god. Smuggles, I'm gonna fight you. I'm gonna fight you on that. If we had a lightsaber, I would fight you. Um, yeah, no, I uh I don't agree with you. Uh again, you're entitled to your wrong opinion. That is a fantastic ride. It puts you in the seat of the Millennium Falcon, the fastest hunk and junk in a galaxy. So you get to fly that. You are Han Solo, you get to be the pilot. Don't hit everything. Uh, you can actually score really well and you could do that um and and do exceptionally well on a ride if you don't hit everything. Uh, but if you do hit everything, uh, like my six-year-old at the time, or eight-year-old high role of only was, um, you do have to count on your engineers in the back to help you out and repair that ship as best it can. All right, most underrated ride at Hollywood Studios. What do you got?
SPEAKER_01Most underrated, uh, they're all rated pretty high. I'm gonna go with I think Slinky Dog. I mean, well, yeah, Slinky Dog. I think uh, you know, like you said, the theming, and I think people forget about it because they think it's a kiddie roller coaster, but uh I I think the theming and the funness of it and the joy of the the the Toy Story um lore. I love it. I'm using the word lore a lot in the show, and I really like it. I'll try and one more T before we're done.
SPEAKER_00Pete's singing what Pete's singing voice and his uh extravagant vocabulary. Lore. Um best cue and atmosphere at uh Disney's Highway Studios. What do you got?
SPEAKER_01Uh we don't even have to ask. We everybody knows this. It's Tower Terror, like the oh yes, yes.
SPEAKER_00All right, so we agree on something. I agree.
SPEAKER_01Cast members, the the cobwebs that I feel like they have they're supposed to clean up, but they haven't. Like, uh yeah, I love it.
SPEAKER_00No, I agree. I 100% agree. It is the best uh ride atmosphere, it is the best cue. Uh the bell hops are fantastic when they talk to you. I absolutely love that one. The biggest disappointment versus hype at Hollywood Studios, and I think you already mentioned it yourself. It's uh my favorite, not your favorite, is Millennium Falcon's Millennium Falcon Smuggler's Run. That's uh that one has certainly has all the hype. And for those of you that don't like video rides, it makes you sick. Um, it doesn't for me. I uh I do have motion sickness here and there, but I absolutely love this ride. I don't get sick on it at all. I I it's not Pete's favorite. It's my it's one of my favorites. I love it. Um I think people have different expectations on what they do, or they don't understand what they're supposed to do, which is why they which is why they don't like it. I think that's where the category Pete falls into because he doesn't know what to do. Um that was your Wookiee noise, all right. Singing voice and Wookiee noise and vocabulary today, folks. Uh, best pure thrill ride at Disney's Hollywood Studios.
SPEAKER_01Uh thrill ride is uh until until I see the new Muppets, it's gotta it's still rock and roller coaster. But uh being upside down, like you know, I was surprised Disney allowed it. I'm happy for it.
SPEAKER_00I love it. No, I I I agree that it that is the best ride at Hollywood Studios. Guardian still beats it as far as roller coasters go across the entire Walt Disney World Park for sure.
SPEAKER_01But in Hollywood Studios, for sure, but I mean, like you said, you're entitled to your real opinion.
SPEAKER_00Again, I'm uh I'm uh listen, we're gonna be gentlemen about this and we're gonna have our differences. And the next time that we go for a travelation retreat in January, I'm gonna whoop you at at uh Toy Story Mania, and uh and that'll that'll settle it.
SPEAKER_01If we had any fans, we could ask them what they thought.
SPEAKER_00So now 27 people out there listen to us. So all right, 27 people.
SPEAKER_01What's your worst and favorite rides at Hollywood Studio?
Email Us And Support The Show
SPEAKER_00Uh go ahead and hit us up at that email at the worst beyond the magic at gmail.com. If you'd like Peter I to be one of your travel advisors or you have a question or you want to hear something to talk about on the podcast, we are happy. We both have access to that email address. We were happy to answer anything you have to shoot at us. Uh, we're happy to help you out with any questions you have about anything Disney related or not Disney related. Uh, we do other than Disney, we do uh all inclusives, we do cruising, we do just about everything you could think of. Uh, but Pete and I obviously our favorite thing to talk about and to plan is Disney for you. Uh Pete, I think we hit everything today. Uh, you got anything for the for the good 27 people listening to us at home? No, I think that's it.
SPEAKER_01I think this is uh the best show yet, my man. And uh we're getting better. We're getting better. If you want to follow us or interact with us uh in real time, I am at P tremax, P-E-T-R-I-E-M-A-X, and I know five on the fly here will tell you what his is.
SPEAKER_00Yep. Uh the number five underscore on the underscore fly on Instagram and TikTok. Again, my TikTok is leck, and you need to get better at it, but definitely Instagram had on over there. Um, we have been doing a lot of social media push on our podcast. So please share it with your friends. Please like and subscribe it. Uh, please uh subscribe. Please leave us a five-star review. Um, if if you think we're the best Uber drivers you ever had, please uh please leave us that five-star review. Don't leave a less than five-star review because it actually hurts us. Uh some more. So the more five-star reviews, the more people uh can uh access our podcast and dis and Apple Podcast specifically pushes it out uh further and suggests it to more more an audience out there if the more five-star reviews we have. All right, ladies and gentlemen, that's everything we hit for today. Uh Pete, my co-host, you are the absolute worst, sir. Jamie, no, you are the worst. This has been the worst beyond the magic. Thanks for joining us. See you next week.