Disney California Adventure may be the Disney Park in North America that gets talked about the least. It is, to be sure, a somewhat weird park but California Adventure has one of the most wonderfully bizarre histories of any theme park in the world. Coming so many years after Disneyland, the granddaddy of them all, it's maybe not that surprising.
Disney California Adventure has gone through so many changes it's barely recognizable as the park it once was. So many of the original attractions have been lost to time, for better or worse. But which are the best rides of those that you'll find today?
As with our other list, every ride is ranked on a ten-point scale, averaged between three categories, the queue, the theme of the attraction, and the overall fun of the experience. While some tie scores are listed, preference is given to the higher experience score over the other two. With all of that in mind, here we go…
27. Pixar Pal-A-Round - Swinging
Queue: 1
Theme: 4
Experience: 1
Average: 2
It's totally understandable that Disney would try to find a way to improve the traditional Ferris Wheel concept. Unfortunately, the solution found for the Pixar Pal-A-Round (formerly Mickey's Fun Wheel) is NOT an improvement. The cars swing back and forth along tracks rather than remaining in one place as the wheel spins. However, since the wheel keeps stopping to let people on and off, the swinging is never smooth, you get jerked around in fits and starts and often find yourself sitting in really uncomfortable positions. There's also nothing to hold on to so it's easy to fall all over the car. The swinging cars on the Pixar Pal-A-Round are just a nightmare.
26. Golden Zephyr
Queue: 2
Theme: 3
Experience: 3
Average: 2.66
The Golden Zephyr is another simple ride that spins you around in a circle while up in the air. While it doesn't give you control over your ride vehicle, it starts up much higher in the air, and by virtue of its location over the lagoon in front of Pixar Pier, it gives you a pretty good view, though by no means perfect, making it a worthy attraction to check out, even if it doesn't do anything too stunning. Be careful on a hot day, however, because the queue isn't well covered so the wait is right in the sun.
25. Jumpin' Jellyfish
Queue: 2
Theme: 3
Experience: 4
Average: 3
Jumpin' Jellyfish is a pretty simple experience, and it's not particularly long. It goes up, and it goes down. Like the other rides in the Paradise Gardens Park area, it gives you a pretty nice view of Pixar Pier and the lagoon, and it doesn't drop as fast as Guardians of the Galaxy- Mission: Breakout, so it may have more general appeal, but it's a brief experience, so it's hard to rank it high.
24. Pixar Pal-A Round - Non-Swinging
Queue: 1|
Theme: 4
Experience: 6
Average: 3.66
There's little that can go wrong with a good old-fashioned Ferris Wheel when you just let the classic ride be itself. And considering the size of the Pixar Pal-A-Round, the view from the top is impressive. While the swinging version of the wheel is a nightmare, the classic version is everything you want from the simple and elegant experience. However, if the non-swinging cars were more open, the view would be even better from the top.
23. Sorcerer’s Workshop
Queue: 3
Theme: 5
Experience: 4
Average: 4
The Sorcerer’s Workshop is a simple walk-through attraction that allows guests to get a little behind-the-scenes look at how animated films are made, through a variety of different interactive exhibits. It’s fun to check out once, though with the Beast's Library portion having closed, it's not as interesting as it once was.
22. Silly Symphony Swings
Queue: 4
Theme: 5
Experience: 4
Average: 4.33
Named for one of Walt Disney's classic cartoon series, the Silly Symphony Swings are another ride that lets you fly high above the water near Pixar Pier, but due to the way the ride works, swinging you out on a small seat on wires, you feel like you have less control, making it a bit more thrilling than the other rides in the area. Like them, however, the ride isn't very long, but the time you do have is totally worth it.
21. Goofy's Sky School
Queue: 4
Theme: 5
Experience: 5
Average: 4.66
Roller coasters are one thing that Disney's California Adventure doesn't have a lot of, but it does have one small coaster which is given over to one one of Disney's classic characters, Goofy. Goofy's Sky School is a fairly compact coaster, which means it has a lot of tight turns in order to fit a decent track length in a small space, that might be a bit jarring for some. The wild mouse style of roller coaster isn’t beloved by all, and the fact that this one is off the shelf, and not a unique design, means I can’t rank it that high.
20. Turtle Talk with Crush
Queue: 3
Theme: 5
Experience: 6
Average: 4.66
This is an experience geared toward little kids, but it's one everybody should check out. Turtle Talk lets kids sit in front of a massive screen and interact with the laid-back turtle from Finding Nemo. What's special about it is that kids can actually ask Crush questions and he responds directly to them. It's not canned voice cues but somebody who is really able to interact with the kids through the animated character. It's not something you'll likely care to do a lot, but it's worth doing once just to see it.
19. Red Car Trolley
Queue: 2
Theme: 7
Experience: 6
Average: 5
The Red Car Trolley honestly barely counts as an attraction, but you can ride it and so we count it. It doesn't really work as a mode of transportation, as it only covers a small piece of DCA's large footprint. It would be faster to walk, and nothing really happens when you're on it. However, it does add a lot to the aesthetic of Buena Vista Street and Hollywoodland, giving you a real feeling like you're walking through a version of Southern California that hasn't existed for decades. That gives the trolly some value, even if riding it isn't where that value can be found.
18. Jessie's Critter Carousel
Queue: 5
Theme: 5
Experience: 5
Average: 5
Jessie’s Critter Carousel can be found on Pixar Pier and like its counterpart at Disneyland. It is ultimately just a carousel. Any self-respecting theme park needs one, but there isn’t a lot going on here that’s any different from what you’ve seen before. It's a bit more creative in its design because it's not limited to horses, as the one at Disneyland is, but that's about all that sets it apart.
17. Redwood Creed Challenge Trail
Queue: 4
Theme: 6
Experience: 6
Average: 5.33
Sometimes kids just need a place to run around and release some energy from all the standing in line, and few places in any theme park are better than the Redwood Creek Challenge Trail for that. Themed to the Wilderness Explorers from Up, there are ropes to climb, slides to go down an interactive Spirit Cave, and tire swings that work like zip lines. Sometimes it’s a shame some of the most fun stuff is limited to little kids
16. Inside Out Emotional Whirlwind
Queue: 5
Theme: 6
Experience: 5
Average: 5.33
When DCA closed A Bug’s Land to make way for Avengers Campus, a lot of the rides specifically for younger kids were lost. Luckily, Flik’s Flyers, an aerial carousel akin to Dumbo’s Flying Elephants at Disneyland, was saved and moved to Pixar Pier, where it was transformed into an Inside Out-themed ride. If anything it’s even better now, thanks to the excellent Inside Out score and a redesigned queue.
15. Disney Junior Dance Party
Queue: 6
Theme: 5
Experience: 6
Average: 5.66
It’s something of a running joke that when a Disney Park has a space they don’t know what to do with, they stick a dance party there. But honestly, kids love dance parties. And the Disney Junior Dance Party is just for them, using a combination of costumed characters and screens kids get to dance around with their favorite Disney Junior characters.
14. Mickey’s Philharmagic
Queue: 5
Theme: 5
Experience: 7
Average: 5.66
In 2019 Disney California Adventure finally found a permanent resident for the old MuppetVision 3D theater when it brought the Magic Kingdom show Mickey’s Philharmagic west. It’s a fun 3D show that sends Donald through a variety of Disney worlds after he gets his hands on the Fantasia sorcerer’s hat. In 2021 the show even saw an update that brought Donald together with Coco, combining Disney and Pixar characters for the first time.
13. Ancient Sanctum
Queue: 5
Theme: 7
Experience: 6
Average: 6
Avengers Campus is a lot of fun because you never know just which characters you might meet. But there’s one who is always around, and that’s Doctor Strange. His Ancient Sanctum can be found on campus and Strange regularly performs magical feats. The shows aren’t very complicated, and the magic is mostly stuff you’ve likely seen from stage magic, but it’s always entertaining and the Sanctum is an impressive set.
12. Monsters, Inc. Mike & Sully to the Rescue
Queue: 6
Theme: 7
Experience: 6
Average: 6.33
One of the few simple dark rides that you can find at Disney's California Adventure, Mike and Sully to the Rescue takes you through the events of Monsters Inc. This ride gains several points, mostly for not being the terrible Superstar Limo ride that it replaced, though it loses some love for reusing several of the characters from that ride as members of the Child Detection Agency, causing terrible flashbacks for anybody who experienced the original ride in this location. The Roz character at the end that actually interacts with you as you exit is a bonus, though.
11. The Little Mermaid - Ariel's Undersea Adventure
Queue: 5
Theme: 7
Experience: 7
Average: 6.33
Disney's California Adventure doesn't have many dark rides, so the couple that do exist are nice breaks from the rest of the attractions. The Little Mermaid dark ride is also one of the best in all of the Disneyland Resort. It's newer than most so the animatronics are more impressive, and the Under the Sea segment is especially fun to see so many active animatronics moving together in a way you just don't see anywhere else.
10. Luigi's Rollickin' Roadsters
Queue: 7
Theme: 7
Experience: 6
Average: 6.66
This is actually one of the newer attractions to be found at Disney's California Adventure, as it replaced Luigi's Flying Tires, an attraction that proved to be unpopular with guests. This one is a fairly simple ride that sees the ride cars dancing around a large open space to one of a handful of different songs. However, since the dance changes with the song that plays, there's some value in riding this one more than once in order to experience all the attraction has to offer. It’s simple, but fun for all ages.
9. Grizzly River Run
Queue: 7
Theme: 6
Experience: 8
Average: 7
If you like to get soaked on your theme park rides, and a lot of people do, then Grizzly River Run is for you. While it was occasionally possible to survive Splash Mountain without getting much more than your shoes wet if you're lucky, that's basically never going to happen here. You ride a massive tube down multiple rapids, occasionally spinning around in order to be sure that you're going to be in the major splash zone at some point. The only real downside to this one is that when you want it the most when it's hot, the line is the longest. And with Splash Mountain closed, that line may be even worse for a while.
8. WEB-SLINGERS: A Spider-Man Adventure
Queue: 7
Theme: 8
Experience: 7
Average: 7.33
We’re still waiting for the big E-ticket attraction at Avengers Campus, but until it arrives we have WEB-Slingers. The attraction puts guests in ride vehicles with 3D glasses and gives you the powers of Spider-Man by letting you shoot webs onto the screen in an attempt to hit rogue Spider-bots. The level of one’s ability to interact in the space is impressive, and even if you’re not keeping score, shooting webs like Spider-Man never gets old.
7. Mater's Junkyard Jamboree
Queue: 7
Theme: 8
Experience: 8
Average: 7.66
While Mater's Junkyard Jamboree is a fairly simple ride that whips you around in circles behind one of the tractors from the Cars movies, it's the sort of simple fun that anybody can enjoy. As your tractor moves between turntables, it spins left and then right, causing the trailer behind it, which you're sitting in, to spin in the opposite direction. There's a surprising amount of force behind the little ride, making it, if not quite a "thrill ride" in the traditional sense, certainly thrilling enough.
6. Incredicoaster
The roller coaster formerly known as California Screamin' received a re-skin a few years back to turn it into the Incredibles-themed Incredicoaster. Regardless of what you call it, this is the most serious coaster at Disneyland Resort, it's the only one in either park with a loop and it's one of the longest coasters in North America. It owns the skyline of Pixar Pier and it's as much fun as it looks. If you're serious about thrill rides, then this one is hard to beat.
5. World of Color - One
Queue: 7
Theme: 9
Experience: 10
Average: 8.66
Disney Parks' nighttime shows are always special but World of Color is one of the best. The show uses water to showcase Disney's animation and music in a way that's simply unparalleled. Fountains dance in time to the music and film clips are actually shown by projecting them on sheets of water vapor. While the crowds always make this one tough to get a good spot in which to see everything, it's never a disappointment. The current show, World of Color - One, also includes some beautiful new music, and is the first nighttime spectacular to include Star Wars and the Avengers alongside your Disney and Pixar favorites.
4. Toy Story Midway Mania
Queue: 7
Theme: 10
Experience: 9
Average: 8.66
Pixar Pier is designed to look like an old-school amusement park or carnival like you might find at Santa Monica or Santa Cruz. Midway Mania takes the classic carnival games you might find there and reimagines them as a ride where you view a 3D screen and use an actual physical pop gun to do things like pop balloons with darts or throw rings around objects. It's amazing fun and with the scoring system, it's always worth going back to take on your friends or improve your score.
3. Radiator Springs Racers
Queue: 8
Theme: 10
Experience: 9
Average: 9
This ride has had a long line since it opened and the size of it has never really shrunk. The reason is pretty clear. It's a lot of fun. While largely a simple dark ride that takes you through elements of the first Cars movie, it's on a massive scale compared to other storybook rides, and it ends with a high-speed race through Radiator Springs that's always fun, but that you don't always win, giving you a reason to go back and try again.
2. Soarin Around the World
Queue: 8
Theme: 9
Experience: 10
Average: 9
The second iteration of this ride, following Soarin Over California, Soarin' Around the World is a combination of large format movie and theme park ride that gives you the impression you're flying through the air over major global landmarks. It is simply beautiful. The wind blowing in your face and the scents that get piped into the room to make you feel like you're really there, wherever there happens to be, take Soarin to the next level making it hands down one of the most fun experiences at Disney's California Adventure.
1. Guardians of the Galaxy - Mission: Breakout
Queue: 10
Theme: 10
Experience: 9
Average: 9.66
A lot of people were upset to learn that the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror was being replaced by a new ride focused on the MCU's Guardians of the Galaxy. However, few rides get better than this. If you like the Guardians of the Galaxy movies, then this ride brings it all to life, not only because it includes the actors from the film, including an animatronic Rocket, but also the music that makes the movies so memorable. It may be a simple drop ride from a mechanical standpoint, but everything else that goes into it makes it so much more than that.
With Disneyland Resort still in the planning stage of the DisneylandForward project, the future of Disney California Adventure is looking bright. A lot of new attractions are likely on the way in the coming years, and it will be exciting to see how they stack up.
