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DisneyQuest
Lake Buena Vista, Florida, USA
Status
Opened
June 19, 1998
Closed
July 2, 2017
Owner
The Walt Disney Company

DisneyQuest was a five-floor indoor theme park and arcade in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, USA housed within Disney Springs (formerly Downtown Disney) at Walt Disney World. Similar to Sega's Joypolis amusement park chain in Japan, DisneyQuest featured "virtual" simulator attractions and video games, among other facilities based within technology. The park was hosted by Genie from Aladdin.

History

DisneyQuest was one of the projects created by Disney Regional Entertainment, a Disney subsidiary that created midway attractions aside from theme parks, like Club Disney and ESPN Zone. The park opened within the then-named Downtown Disney on June 19, 1998.[1] The Walt Disney World installment was opened as a testing ground for the DisneyQuest concept, with the second park (and eventual only standalone venue) DisneyQuest Chicago opening in 1999. After the Chicago park's closure, the WDW park remained in operation as an extra facility within Downtown Disney and transitioned to Walt Disney World's management.

Disney announced the park's closure on January 30, 2017, and closed on July 2 to make way for the construction of the "NBA Experience"[2][3] The building was soon demolished and the NBA attraction opened in August 2019, but only lasted eight months before being closed with the rest of the Walt Disney World Resort in March 2020 following the COVID-19 Pandemic. After the resort reopened in July, the NBA Experience never reopened and a year later on August 16, Disney announced that the venue would not operate again.[4]

Former Attractions

Name Manufacturer Type Opened Closed Fate
Buzz Lightyear's AstroBlaster Unknown Bumper Cars June 19, 1998 July 2, 2017 Scrapped
CyberSpace Mountain Unknown Simulator June 19, 1998 July 2, 2017 Scrapped
Invasion! An ExtraTERRORestrial Alien Encounter Unknown Shooting Simulator June 19, 1998 July 2, 2017 Scrapped
Mighty Ducks Pinball Slam Unknown Simulator June 19, 1998 July 2, 2017 Scrapped
Pirates of the Caribbean: Battle for Buccaneer Gold Unknown Shooting Simulator June 19, 1998 July 2, 2017 Scrapped
Ride the Comix Unknown VR Simulator June 19, 1998 September 7, 2014 Removed, replaced with FoodQuest seating on both floors
Virtual Jungle Cruise Unknown Simulator June 19, 1998 July 2, 2017 Scrapped
Virtual Pirates of the Caribbean Unknown Simulator June 19, 1998 2000 Scrapped

Other Attractions and Non-Ride Attractions

  • Animation Academy (1998-2017), a commonplace attraction at most Disney parks where a cast member teaches guests how to draw Disney characters step by step. The DisneyQuest incarnation had guests draw their creations on screens using lightpens, and could purchase their artwork later.
  • Cave of Wonders Slide (1998-1999), Spiral slide that took guests down from the third floor to the first. It was removed following the first year of operations.
  • Living Easels (1998-2017), Guests can create their own artwork on large screens and then purchase it later on.
  • Magic Mirrors (1998-2005), Editing software that turned images of people's faces into cartoon-like illustrations. It was replaced with seating following closure.
  • Treasure of the Incas (1998-2007), Guests controlled RC cars around a maze. Closed after a fire and replaced with a jungle-themed arcade area.
  • Radio Disney Song Maker (1998-2017), A program where guests created their own song and could purchase it as a CD later.
  • Sid's Create-a-Toy (1998-2017), A program where guests made a toy out of various parts and purchased it later.

References

  1. Tribune, Chicago (1998-05-31). "VIRTUAL REALITY RULES AT DISNEY'S NEWEST THEME PARK". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  2. https://www.local10.com/theme-parks/walt-disney-worlds-disneyquest-to-close-in-july
  3. "DisneyQuest to close Sunday". WFTV. 2017-07-02. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  4. https://www.mynews13.com/fl/orlando/attractions/2021/08/16/nba-experience-at-disney-springs-will-not-reopen