Legoland California Building Indoor Space Mountain-Style Coaster
Legoland in Southern California is in the process of building an indoor rollercoaster similar in concept to the iconic Space Mountain at Disneyland. Space Mountain is a space-themed indoor rollercoaster that originally opened in 1977 at Disneyland. This is intriguing news for Space Mountain fans and it is interesting to see how this might compare to the original space themed rollercoaster.
Keep reading for all the new information about the new Legoland galaxy themed land and how it might compare to Space Mountain.
LEGOLAND's New Galaxy Themed Land
Legoland is building a Galaxy themed land to house its new rollercoaster. The land will have a space theme with an area where guests can train for space exploration, meet other “intergalactic travelers” and go on missions into the Lego Galaxy.
This Galaxy themed land is still in the original concept phase of development and is making its way through the proper approval channels. Legoland has not broken ground yet on this new land so an opening date is far in the future.
The new land will replace the popular Driving School attractions in the Lego City area of the theme park. However, they will simply be relocated and replace the Fun Town Police and Fire Academy attraction. As of now, it appears that the Fun Town Police and Fire Academy attraction will close for good with these new changes. The Driving School attractions are far more popular so it makes sense to keep that attraction intact.
Legoland's New Space Coaster
The Legoland space themed coaster is an indoor launch roller coaster that will be built inside a 44-foot-tall, 32,000-square-foot building.
This new “spaceport” follows the theme of the coaster which will send guests on galactic missions into the Lego galaxy in a Lego spacecraft. In addition to the coaster, there will be a Lego brick building attraction and a store inside the building.
The Galaxy themed land will also feature a 24-passenger spinner-type ride with three cantilevered arms (a ride concept similar to the one used by Astro Orbitor at Disneyland) and an alien spaceship themed children's playground.
How Does Legoland's New Space Coaster Compare to Space Mountain?
While no one believes that Legoland will try to completely replicate Space Mountain, it is interesting to see the similarities. There are not many indoor rollercoasters themed to space and Disney is known for this iconic attraction.
The first indication of differences is in the size. This new Legoland galaxy coaster is going to be housed within a 44-foot-tall, 32,000-square-foot building. In comparison, the Space Mountain building at Disneyland is 83 feet tall and 300 feet in diameter which roughly translates to about 71,000 square feet. So Space Mountain is far larger especially in height.
But what about thrill level? The height of the building also gives us an indication that the Legoland space coaster will not be as tall which means it likely won't have significant drops. This makes sense as I would be surprised to see Legoland build a true thrill coaster. Since the new attraction is referred to as a “family friendly” coaster I imagine it will be pretty tame in comparison to Space Mountain.
Legoland is known for its attractions that align with a younger age group. In the same way that Knott's Berry Farm is a hit with teens for their intense thrill rides, Legoland is a hit with the younger ages primarily those under 10. It would change the atmosphere of the park greatly to bring in a major thrill ride. While most thrill seekers wouldn't call Space Mountain intense, it's still far more thrilling than any other rides offered in Legoland. Families with young kids love Legoland especially their over the top themed Lego hotels.
It's far more likely this new galaxy themed coaster will compare to the drops and thrill level of existing coasters in the park like LEGO TECHNIC which has as a height requirement of 42 inches. In comparison to the other attractions, this ride has the tallest height requirement and would be considered the most thrilling due to its drop at the end. Space Mountain has a height requirement of 44 inches which is only a small difference. But as most Disneyland fans know, the darkness of the ride and multiple drops give the illusion you are going much faster than you are. And LEGO TECHNIC has fewer drops and is shorter in length.
Ultimately, the new galaxy themed coaster may outpace the thrill of the existing LEGO TECHNIC coaster but I don't foresee it being on the same scale as Space Mountain. I think Legoland will remain consistent with its audience of families with smaller children. This will likely be a coaster that will appeal to kids who are too young yet for Space Mountain but still want to experience a rollercoaster.
Other New Legoland Projects Coming Soon
Legoland already has plans in the works for its new Dino Valley land which will open sometime in 2024 with a dinosaur themed safari ride and river expedition journey. This area will be merged with the existing Coastersaurus kiddie coaster. The new Lego World parade will also debut in 2024 which will be the first parade that Legoland has ever had.
OC Register first reported the news.
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The next areas that need to be built need to be Western, Mythica, Lego Chima, Candyland, Steampunk, Aviation, LEGO Friends, Farming, Surf/Boardwalk and LEGO Island behind the LEGOLAND Water Park.
P.S. everything from the Legoland Water Park will have to be relocated behind Cannon Rd, in order for the Western Area to be built.
The tower structure that’s part of the concept art looks very similar to what the main tower looks like in the Lego Island computer game.
I hope they don’t take away fire academy and junior driving school, they’re such classic rides.
I would like to see Knights Tournament return as Power Builder in the Imagination Zone area.