Is Space Mountain open yet? How is after the refurb?

[sarehm]

Just wondering. I haven't heard anything about it!

 

[Robo]

Just wondering. I haven't heard anything about it!

Yes, it opened on time, plus about a week early with "soft openings."

There is little that is different about the ride, itself.

Same vehicles (more "padding.")
Same track layouts ( new "welds" to counteract the age of the attraction.)

There are some interactive video games in the queue, and a new loading
area with automatic gates (similar to Big Thunder's gates.)

 

[dalstitch45]

I went from 11/28 - 12/3. When I went through the FP line it was great. When you get up to the control tower where the line separates, the right side line works about the same. When I went through the standby line that was another story. I must say the video games they installed are pretty neat for when you are waiting in line. When you get up to the control tower and go to the left, the ride queue goes all the way back behind a wall where no one used to be able to go. There is nothing back there except a black wall. Once you get on the ride, it is still pretty cool. The cars are still the same. There seems to be a couple more drops, but that is about it. Same ride. At the end when you get off, they took out the moving walk sequence where you could see your face on camera walking through. When I was there the moving walk was not moving. You had to walk all the way through. It was good exercise. They take your picture at the beginning of the ride when you shoot through the time warp at takeoff. Just like EE and RnR. All in all, I was disappointed in the rehab. Only because I thought they were going to make more changes to the actual ride itself.

 

[JenLynn]

Yep, rode it last week several times. Changes to entrance and exit lines, but the ride itself seemed the same to me. (One of my fave WDW rides! A classic)

 

[Disneylover79]

I agree with the PP but I have to add that there was one part where you think you are going to hit the track above you ( or maybe that is me ) but they have added some glow in the dark stars where it looks as though you really are traveling through space...I don't think it feels as "jerky" at least it feel that way to me...I do like the fact that there is a interactive game in the queue and the fact that when the line starts to move then the game stops ( so people can't just stand there and play that game)...

 

[Nadjalu]

I too think it is less jerky, at least for me anyway.

 

[Shmily1]

I just got off of SM and it is great! There was only a 20 min wait but I don't think it was that long. The game wasn't on with no real line. The ride is smoother and the new lights are awesome!!

 

[MommaSue]

I rode it several times last week and found it much more comfortable than before the rehab....the ride wasn`t as `jerky` (as someone else said), and the seats were more comfortable and easier to get in and out of. I can`t speak about the games as it was a walk on all three times that I rode.

 

[palavra]

I really liked it, and so did my 7 year old daughter! Maybe it's just me, but it seemed to be less dark inside than I remember it. Still, a great ride though
Oh, and we got to ride it on the official opening day!

 

[Yoshi]

All in all, I was disappointed in the rehab. Only because I thought they were going to make more changes to the actual ride itself.

I'm not sure how true it is but I read on an amusement park news/rumor site that the original plan was for the rehab to be a lot more that was actually done and 2 reasons prevented it from happening. Cost and that Disney didn't want the ride to be closed during the holiday season and doing the original rehab plan would have required the ride to be closed until 2010.

I'll be happy if the ride is smoother, it used to be one of my favorite coasters but on my last trip it was so rough that it almost gave me a headache. Only 1 other coaster has done that to me and it was so rough they tore it down! (Hercules at Dorney Park)

 

[wmharley]

well my DW took our DD5 for her annual checkup. seems she's at 44" now!!! of course i know the doctor measurement and Disney's are 2 different things, but that was without shoes, so we shall see. I'm going to attempt to take her tomorrow and see if she gets in to SM... Hopefully... She's been looking forward to the day that she is tall enough.. She's my Roller Coaster Partner

 

[ras1121]

I remember there being a space mountain rehab in Cali a couple of years back...did the Disneyland Space Mountain get more of a rehab? My understand was that was a HUGE rehab... i was hoping for something like that.

 

[Pecobill]

I remember there being a space mountain rehab in Cali a couple of years back...did the Disneyland Space Mountain get more of a rehab? My understand was that was a HUGE rehab... i was hoping for something like that.

Yea their rehab was huge and they got a new ride from it.Ours all we got was a new line area which is a bad idea(the games are too long it holds up the line) and some cushions.Other then that the ride is the same.

 

[sarehm]

I'm not sure how true it is but I read on an amusement park news/rumor site that the original plan was for the rehab to be a lot more that was actually done and 2 reasons prevented it from happening. Cost and that Disney didn't want the ride to be closed during the holiday season and doing the original rehab plan would have required the ride to be closed until 2010.

I'll be happy if the ride is smoother, it used to be one of my favorite coasters but on my last trip it was so rough that it almost gave me a headache. Only 1 other coaster has done that to me and it was so rough they tore it down! (Hercules at Dorney Park)

I had heard that it was supposed to be a total refurb and considering it's been down for just about 10 months I was hoping for more.
Hercules was one of my favs as well! My first job was at Dorney Park

 

[Robo]

I'm not sure how true it is but I read on an amusement park news/rumor site that the original plan was for the rehab to be a lot more that was actually done

I had heard that it was supposed to be a total refurb and considering it's been down for just about 10 months I was hoping for more.

Here's a link to what was announced to the press for the Space Mtn. Refurb.
This article was filed months before the work began-

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/travel/attractions/orl-disney0809jan08,0,5715705.story

Disney's Space Mountain will close for a makeover
Jason Garcia | Sentinel Staff Writer
January 8, 2009

One of Walt Disney World's iconic attractions is getting a makeover.

Disney said Wednesday that it will shut down Space Mountain this spring for what the company described as a months-long "refreshment" of the 34-year-old Magic Kingdom roller coaster.

The ride will close April 19, just after the Easter holiday. It is expected to reopen late in the year, Disney spokeswoman Andrea Finger said, though a specific reopening date has not been set.

The timetable means Space Mountain will be closed throughout the busy summer-travel season.

The construction work will include installing new track inside the enclosed coaster, which carries guests in the dark through a series of sudden drops and sharp turns. The layout of the track will remain the same, however.

Other upgrades will include a new enclosure for the ride's queuing area and a new ceiling inside its signature white dome, Finger said.

Finger said the renovations are the first substantial work on the ride sinceSeptember 1999. The project follows a series of other makeovers Disney has made in recent years to some of its oldest attractions, including the Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Caribbean in the Magic Kingdom and Spaceship Earth in Epcot.

Disney fans have been swapping rumors for more than a year that the company was planning a sweeping overhaul of Space Mountain. In 2005, the Walt Disney Co. completed an extensive, two-year makeover of the Space Mountain at Disneyland in Anaheim, Calif.

But the changes to Orlando's version of the ride -- it's the original Space Mountain, having opened Jan. 15, 1975 -- are likely to be more modest.

"We're retaining many of the classic elements that made Space Mountain a rite of passage at the Magic Kingdom that's been enjoyed by generations," Finger said.

 

[Shmily1]

I have to clarify my take on SM. When we rode it the first time on 12/15, we were on the Alpha side. That side is super smooth!! We went back later on in the evening and there was no one in line--Not one person on either side!! The CM asked if we wanted to go Alpha or Omega so we picked Omega. It was totally different than Alpha! Omega is much rougher and jerkier, if that's a word!

The que area looks like a lot of fun but I can see where it would be a hold up if those in front of you weren't paying attention. The roof on the loading area is neat, but I do miss seeing the "cars" going overhead. I love the light effects while on the actual ride part. We also learned that those with longer legs should sit in seats 2 or 3 and not seat 1. DS19 is 6'2" and he was so happy for the leg room!!

The exit area doesn't look finished and is boring in places right now, as in the other thread talking about the green screen effect in that area. I do love the white table and bench there though and would love to have one like that at home!!

 

[kimmar067]

....does anyone have any pic of the newly-opened and refurbbed SM??? I'm eager to see some pix.... THANKS!

 

[medicjch]

The games in the queue are neat and they do stop at certain times so the line still moves forward (otherwise guests would be absorbed in the games and forget to move forward). The ride does seem to be darker and smoother. I think the exit is unfinished and I have heard that they are planning some "green screen" technology in that area.

 

[pwmitch237]

Here's a Point-of-View (POV) video of the New Space Mountain:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U4NIePOhN3c

 

[disneyfans3]

VERY DARK!!!!!!!!!!! And still a rough ride! My family and I were not impressed at all...it is not any smoother! Probably will not ride it again!