Is This Disney World Ride Worth Waiting 6 Years For?

Was this Magic Kingdom attraction worth the wait?

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Disney’s theme parks are notorious for their theming, attention to detail, and overall fun factor. While there are thrills to be had inside places like Magic Kingdom and EPCOT, Walt Disney World generally excels the most when it comes to dark rides.

From Pirates of the Caribbean and Haunted Mansion to Peter Pan’s Flight and The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, Disney World is known for its collection of classic attractions.

Disney also has a few thrill rides up its sleeves too. Roller coasters like Expedition Everest and Rock ’n’ Roller Coaster have become just as popular as thee classic dark rides over the decades, with other attractions like The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror are often considered some of the best Disney has to offer.

However, roller coasters are few and far between in Walt Disney World, though it’s more about quality over quantity. One of the resort’s newest coasters is TRON Lightcycle / Run, a futuristic and exhilarating experience located inside Magic Kingdom’s Tomorrowland.

Filled with neon blue and orange lights, head-banging music, and intense turns and drops, TRON Lightcycle / Run is the complete package, though it certainly wasn’t an easy road to get here.

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The first iteration of TRON Lightcycle/ Run opened at Shanghai Disneyland in 2016 and quickly became one of the resort’s most popular and impressive attractions. In turn, fans wondered if Disney would bring the thrilling roller coaster across the seas to its California and/or Florida theme parks.

Just a year later, fans would have their answer, as Disney announced a new version of the ride would be coming to Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom. This news was unveiled during Disney’s 2017 D23 conference, marking an exciting point for the company and its theme parks.

However, it would end up taking a long, long time for TRON to actually debut at Magic Kingdom.

Intended to have a relatively short planning, design, and build phase, TRON’s construction hit a major snag: COVID-19.

The global Coronavirus outbreak affected not just Disney’s TRON plans but essentially everything the company had in the pipeline. Major projects were either shelved indefinitely or canceled permanently.

TRON was still moving forward, but at a snail’s pace. The ride was seemingly delayed at one point, though Disney remained relatively quiet about the status of Magic Kingdom’s new ride. At one point, TRON’s construction became an inside joke with the Walt Disney World community, with some fans left wondering if the roller coaster would ever actually open.

TRON Lightcycle / Run finally opened on April 4, 2023. It was a long road to get here, but in the end, it was worth it. TRON Lightcycle / Run is one of the most popular rides at Walt Disney World and receives rave reviews from riders, who are brave enough to take on “The Grid.”

Do you like TRON Lightcycle / Run?