Disneyland Best Rides

Everyone has an opinion of what they consider Disneyland's best rides. A roller coaster fanatic may think the Mad Hatter Tea Party is boring, even though a 7-year-old may beg to differ. And longtime Disneyland visitors may argue the park's original rides are top-notch. Nonetheless, there are a few rides at the Southern California theme park that really do rank as the best rides there regardless of the rider's age or thrill preference.

Matterhorn Bobsleds, one of Disneyland's Best Rides

Disneyland has a lot of rides -- 34 to be exact. There are roller coasters, boat and submarine excursions, rocket flights and even fairy tale fantasies. Some have been a part of the park since it opened in 1955 while others have been added throughout the years. And while many of them are considered great attractions, there are a handful or so that are considered among the best rides there for some of the following reasons:

• They continue to thrill riders over and over again
• The ride is extremely unique and not commonplace at most amusement parks
• Special effects including music, sounds and scenery are outstanding
• Waiting lines are long -- but worth it
• Newer rides are faster, longer and include phenomenal technological advances
• Older rides give an excellent feeling of nostalgia

A simple Internet search will return various websites listing some of the best Disneyland rides as voted on by park visitors. They all share the common themes of excitement, thrill and over-the-top fun.

Take a ride indoors through outer space on the ever-exciting Space Mountain. This roller coaster, which opened in 1977, has everything a thrill ride needs: Fear, special effects and the element of surprise with its hills, twists and turns -- and the fact that you are riding in a rocket in the dark! The ride is almost three minutes long and goes 32 mph. Definitely not one to miss -- FASTPASS is available too.

Even though the real Jack Sparrow (aka Johnny Depp) isn't on board to greet you (you can find an impersonator nearby though), the Pirates of the Caribbean by many is dubbed one of Disneyland's best rides. What starts out as a quaint boat ride quickly turns into a fantastic ride filled with water plunges, spooky effects and a pirate battle. The ride opened in 1967, long before the movie series by the same name was conceptualized. About 122 Audio-Animatronics were used and roughly 3,400 passengers go through the ride each hour. FASTPASS is available.

Since 1959, the Matterhorn Bobsleds have taken riders throughout a darkened Swiss alps via two intertwining steel coasters. The two-minute, 2,100-foot-long ride goes roughly 27 mph and goes as high up at 147 feet. However, because it's completely dark, riders don't know what to expect -- especially if they have never been on the Matterhorn Bobsleds before. The caverns and passageways hold many surprises for riders and there's even a splash-down pool at the end. On busy days, riders can wait up to an hour to get on this roller coaster, but because there are two tracks running at the same time, the wait most of the time is much shorter. FASTPASS is not available.

Other crowd-pleasers at Disneyland include:

• Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
• Haunted Mansion
• Splash Mountain
• Star Tours
• Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters
• It's a Small World

This is by far not an inclusive list of Disneyland's best rides. There are also the best children's rides, roller coasters and original rides, not to mention the most outstanding retired rides. Do you have a favorite ride that is not listed? Take a few moments and leave a comment about it below.

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