Tower of Terror Was DRASTICALLY Different When It First Opened

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tower of terror

Credit: Disney

The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror is one of the most popular thrill rides located at Walt Disney World Resort. Inside Disney’s Hollywood Studios, the Tower of Terror transports Guests to the Twilight Zone after boarding a maintenance service elevator.

tower of terror getting struck by lightning
Credit: Disney

Related: Next Stop: 5th Dimension? Disney Should Build a Real-Life Tower of Terror

In case you aren’t familiar, the official description of Tower of Terror at Disney’s Hollywood Studios reads:

Step uneasily inside the infamous Hollywood Tower Hotel and find a dusty lobby frozen in time. Even the subdued hotel staff seems strangely out of another era. 

Suddenly a television set springs to life and Rod Serling welcomes you on a journey into the Twilight Zone. He reveals that on a gloomy Halloween night in 1939, some hotel patrons were riding the elevator when a violent storm struck the building… and they were never seen again. The hotel closed down and has stood empty ever since. 

Enter the rickety, elevator-style lift, strap yourself in and prepare to discover what lies beyond the darkest corner of your imagination. 

Shriek in terror as you’re suddenly propelled up and down the abandoned shaft—unexpectedly dropping and rising—as you hear the sound of cables snapping and metal clanging overhead. 

Will you make it back to the real world… or will you become a permanent resident of the Twilight Zone?

twilight zone tower of terror lobby
Credit: Disney

Related: Are the Tower of Terror Screams Guests Hear Actually Real?

But when the ride first opened at Disney’s Hollywood Studios in 1994, it was much different than it is now. If you have ridden Tower of Terror recently, you know that the ride drops Guests multiple times; however, this was not the case back in 1994.

According to reports, as well as an Inside the Magic reader, when Disney’s Tower of Terror first opened, it only had one drop! Then, every few years, the attraction would add another drop to the attraction to bring the thrill to Guests time and time again. Now, when Guests ride Tower of Terror, they never know how many drops they will experience due to the randomized drop sequence the ride operates on.

I don’t know about you, but I personally, am glad to see Tower of Terror have multiple drops as it makes the thrill of the ride that much better!

Tower of Terror
Credit: Disney

Related: Disney Lied About Tower of Terror’s Real Drop Height

Did you know this about Disney’s Twilight Zone Tower of Terror? Let us know in the comments below.

Let the expert team at Academy Travel help you plan your next magical vacation to Walt Disney World Resort’s four theme parks — Magic Kingdom, EPCOT, Disney’s Animal Kingdom, and Disney’s Hollywood Studios — and the Disney Springs shopping and dining district!

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