6. Slinky Dog Dash

Image: DisneyThe newest Walt Disney World roller coaster isn’t the best by any measurable standard. It was never intended to be. Instead, Imagineers wanted to create a family-friendly coaster that would satisfy guests with its silliness.

The premise of Slinky Dog Dash is that you’re a toy placed onboard one of Andy’s construction playsets. He’s building the Dash & Dodge Mega Coaster Kit, but he hasn’t quite finished yet. He did have one grand idea, though. He used his slinky dog as the coaster cart. You’re a toy riding a toy inside of a toy playset!

The genius of the attraction lies in its design. Imagineers somehow designed a ride that mimics the premise of a slinky. At times, you’ll feel like you’re extended to the end of your metal. Soon afterward, your ride cart will seem to contract. It’s a masterful ride experience heightened by a surprising element. In the middle of the ride, you’ll stop and then, after a brief countdown, start again. It’s a Disney first that differentiates this family roller coaster from something more simplistic like The Barnstormer.

5. Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith

Image: DisneyOne of Disney’s strongest attributes is their ability to connect a concept to a coaster. With Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster, their goal is to create that hard rock sensation immediately. To achieve this feeling, Disney went balls to the wall in a rare example of a true adrenaline rush.

The coaster cart, a “limousine”, explodes into action right at the start. Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster famously goes from zero to 57 miles per hour in 2.8 seconds. Sure, a Tesla can do that now, but it stood apart as a drag race concept back when the ride debuted at Disney’s Hollywood Studios in 1999.

To this day, guests must heed that prophetic wording of keeping their heads placed squarely against the headrest. Otherwise, they’ll get the wrong kind of head rush. It’s almost a concussion-inducing ride if you’re not careful, and that unbridled rock and roll devil may care attitude is what has sustained it as one of the five best Disney coasters ever.

4. Seven Dwarfs Mine Train

Image: DisneyI originally ranked the crown jewel of New Fantasyland in the top three. Then, I vacillated because it felt like sacrilege to place this one ahead of the next roller coaster. Don’t get me wrong. Seven Dwarfs Mine Train is a masterpiece. In fact, I view everything from this point forward as a near-perfect attraction.

I’ve loved this roller coaster since I first wrote about it, the week after it opened in 2014. To my mind, it embodies what a Disney ride experience should be. It’s atmospheric, even by Disney’s lofty standards. You’ll relish in the sense of escapism as you enter the cave where the Seven Dwarfs chip away at the earth. Their job is to pick gems out from the walls, although the shiny baubles are seemingly everywhere in the dark ride portions of the attractions.

The coaster portion is short but sweet. That’s why I couldn’t in good conscience rank it higher. It’s awesome, though. Imagineers constructed a rocking coaster cart, but I don’t mean like Aerosmith. The carts are all tethered together in a way that the individual vehicles can twist and turn. These pivots cause a kind of swaying sensation that seems appropriate for gem mining. You’re supposed to be in a barrel after all. Yes, the theming is divine, but the coaster movements barely last a minute. It wouldn’t be fair to rank it higher in a coaster list, exceptional though it may be.