Shanghai Disneyland Rides Ranking 2026

Shanghai Disneyland (SHDR), located in the Pudong district of Shanghai, is a bit of an anomaly. When it was announced in 2010, the Walt Disney Company promised a park that was “Authentically Disney and Distinctly Chinese”. Bob Iger implied in interviews back then that it would be unlike any other castle park built up to that point. And if you look at the Shanghai Disneyland rides, attractions, lands, and layout, he was right.

Shanghai Disneyland not only breaks the mold of what a castle park should be, it takes it, squishes it, and stomps on it. Gone is Main Street USA, replaced with a land that can only be described as a mesh between Toontown and Main Street called Mickey Avenue. The location of Tomorrowland and Adventureland are switched as well, and there is no land celebrating the American Frontier, replaced instead by a Pirates-themed land. But perhaps the most significant departure from the castle park formula is the expansion of the hub area into the Gardens of Imagination, a whole new land with two rides.

Shanghai Disneyland tried to stay as rooted in the local culture as possible. All over the park you can see the influence of Chinese culture and customs. From the murals of the various Disney characters representing the 12 zodiac signs, to the incorporation of Feng Shui into the park’s design, everything was geared to a Chinese audience.

This can even be seen in the attractions themselves. Their Pirates of the Caribbean ride does not resemble the Pirates of the Caribbean rides found in other parks as it is based directly on the movies. The Alice in Wonderland maze is based on the Tim Burton movie rather than the classic Alice in Wonderland movie. And of course, the only Zootopia-themed land in the world can be found here as Zootopia is the most popular Disney franchise in China.

Now let me introduce myself first before I continue with this ranking. My name is Stephen and I’ve been a Disney fan since 2006 after I visited Hong Kong Disneyland for the first time. I have since been to every Disney Park in the entire world, a journey that took over 13 years to complete.

I have been lucky enough to have gone on two different trips to Shanghai Disneyland, once in 2019 and another time in 2026. Both times the park left quite the impression on me. It also holds a special place in my heart as it is the last park I needed to visit to complete visiting every single Disney theme park in the world. I remember how emotional I was entering the gates knowing I had now been to every single Disney theme park in the world. It’s a feeling and moment I won’t ever forget.

Just like in 2019, when I visited in 2026 the park blew me away as well. I forgot how good the Shanghai Disneyland rides and attractions are. I don’t think there’s a single experience in this park that left me disappointed or underwhelmed. I only felt that way towards some rides because they were essentially clones that could already be found in other parks, like Slinky Dog Spin and Rex’s Racer.

If Shanghai Disneyland excels at one thing, its spectacle. The rides, attractions, shows, and parades all feel larger than life. The scale of the attractions, and the park in general, is so ginormous and impressive that it left me feeling overwhelmed on my first day at the park. I felt so stunned by how beautiful and grand everything was. It truly left me speechless.

That being said, however, Shanghai Disneyland isn’t a perfect park. No park is perfect, after all. There are still some flaws in its design. The castle, for starters, is very grand but also feels very boxy and doesn’t look as pretty as the other castles. The park is also just so ginormous that it takes 15-20 minutes of continuous walking to get from one side to the other. During Early Entry one day I decided to walk from Soaring to Tron and I ended up wasting 20 minutes walking from point to point.

The amount of dead space also makes me think that they could have added 3-5 more rides within all the empty space they have in each land. Before you reach Tomorrowland, there’s a huge plot of land between it and the Gardens of Imagination and DisneyTown that I swear could fit another dark ride or a theater. But I guess this park was designed to actually feel like a park, hence the open spaces.

On the whole, however, I’d say this park was a good and, for the most part, successful experiment on how to adapt a park for the local audience. And this experiment brought with it some of the most technologically impressive rides in the Disney pantheon. I’m really excited to be writing this article because I want to talk about just how amazing the Shanghai Disneyland rides are. Like I said, there’s no bad or disappointing ride in the lineup, and its ride lineup is a big reason why I rank this park as number 4 on my Disney Parks ranking.

Now if you’ve read my other ranking posts, you’ll know that I’m basing my ranking of these Shanghai Disneyland rides on the following criteria: how much they add to the identity of Shanghai Disneyland, how they are viewed by the public, how much they contribute to the story and theme of the land they’re in, how well they execute their story and theme, how groundbreaking (or not) they are, how they act operationally, and my own personal preference with regards to their quality.

Just a note about this ranking. I will try my best to rank these objectively, but just like everything, it’ll be affected by my subjectivity. Everything is a matter of taste. I can’t promise you’ll agree with my ranking once you’ve experienced these rides for yourself, but hopefully this article will give you a good idea on which rides you should prioritize and which ones you shouldn’t. At the end of the day, if this helps even one of you have a great trip to Shanghai Disneyland, then it’ll be worth the effort of writing this.

Now without further ado, let’s begin this Shanghai Disneyland Rides Ranking!

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18. Slinky Dog Spin

At the bottom of the list is our first Toy Story Land ride. Slinky Dog Spin is a Caterpillar-style ride where riders ride on the rings of Slinky’s body. Slinky then chases his tail, going around and around through peaks and valleys along the ride’s track. It’s a fairly simple ride, and doesn’t leave a lasting impression after you ride it. It’s also vastly inferior to the Slinky Dog Dash ride found at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, which is a proper rollercoaster.

One positive of the ride is its queue. It’s well-themed and adds to the storytelling of the land as a whole. You first enter a hut made out of Lincoln logs. You then enter the box that Slinky came in which shows that he came with a doggy bowl and treats, which can be found in the center of the ride.

But aside from the queue, this ride really is nothing special. It is a lot faster than it looks, and the force from the spinning is strong enough to push you to the left side of the ride, squeezing whoever is on the outer part of the ride vehicle. I would only ride it if the line was 15 minutes or less, and if you’ve already ridden other rides in the park first. It’s a clone found in two other parks around the world, so it isn’t that much of a highlight.

It also exemplifies the problem with Toy Story Land as a whole: the rides just aren’t exciting and don’t do justice to the creative world of Toy Story. These off-the-shelf carnival rides might provide low levels of fun, but Toy Story deserves to have big budget, immersive experiences. Slinky Dog Dash does that. Toy Story Mania does that. But this just misses the mark.

It’s the worst among all the Shanghai Disneyland rides by far, but Imagineering did what they could with the Caterpillar ride system and actually made it interesting and thematically consistent with the rest of the land. So it scores points for that. The only problem is that’s not enough and other experiences on this list just surpass this ride.

17. Dumbo the Flying Elephant

Coming in at number 17 is the first of two attractions at the Gardens of Imagination. Dumbo the Flying Elephant now has the distinction of being the only ride found in all 6 Disney resorts around the world. This version is the same as every other version around the world, sans Magic Kingdom. It doesn’t reach the level of Magic Kingdom, but to me it’s easily the second best Dumbo in the world.

This is mostly due to a fact that might seem inconsequential to others but makes a big difference in this case: the color scheme. Dumbo rides around the world usually have a pastel color scheme with pinks, purples, and blues being the dominant colors. This Dumbo takes inspiration more from the Storybook Circus version at Magic Kingdom and has shades of red, orange, and yellow. Most people may not notice this difference unless you’ve been to Disneyland or Hong Kong Disneyland, but it’s a color scheme not normally associated with the ride.

I think this was done mostly to match the theming of the surrounding Gardens of Imagination. It makes it feel less Storybook-y and more Circus-y, which in my opinion is what Dumbo should feel like. Another positive of this Dumbo is that the views you get of the castle and the surrounding Gardens of Imagination are stellar. It’s probably second only to Hong Kong Disneyland in terms of views, and HKDL only takes the crown because of the mountains surrounding the park. If we’re talking purely views of the park itself, this version wins.

The queue, however, is nothing to write home about. Just standard switchbacks in an area that at least is shaded. I also like how this small area is almost a Dumbo mini-land with Timothy’s Treats also being themed to a circus. It reminds me of the Alice in Wonderland mini-land in Disneyland and the Pooh mini-land in Shanghai’s Fantasyland.

You might be wondering, if the ride is only different in color scheme and the queue isn’t as good as Slinky Dog Spin, why is this ride ranked above Slinky Dog Spin? Well for starters, I will always give more points to rides that offer great views of the park they’re in. Slinky doesn’t do that, being a ride that stays on the ground. Dumbo’s ability to give you great views, along with you being able to control the ascent and descent of your Dumbo which adds another layer of interactivity to the ride, are two points in the “Dumbo is better” column.

Ultimately, it doesn’t rank higher than the other Shanghai Disneyland rides on this list because it’s the same ride experience you can get in other parks and it’s not even the best flying spinner in this park (we’ll get to that later on) but for what it is it’s cute. I wouldn’t wait more than 15 minutes for it though, and I’d definitely prioritize other rides before it, but this ride is a sort of rite of passage for many young guests. If you’re with a child who’s never been to a Disney Park before, be sure to bring them on this ride.

16. Explorer Canoes

The only un-tracked ride in this entire Shanghai Disneyland rides ranking, as well as the only ride in the park powered by the guest’s own willpower, the Explorer Canoes are a fun and unique way to see both Treasure Cove and Adventure Isle.

In the ride, you’ll be given a paddle and then will be taken to a canoe where you will begin paddling with your fellow guests through the areas of Adventure Isle and Treasure Cove. The views from the waterways are very scenic, and you’re guided by two capable cast members the entire time. I will warn everyone before riding that if an arm workout is not in your definition of theme park fun, maybe skip this one.

This ride scores points for uniqueness. It’s the only one among all the Shanghai Disneyland rides that takes you on a journey through the waters of Treasure Cove and Adventure Isle. While other places have the Mark Twain or the Sailing Ship Columbia, Shanghai Disneyland only has this, so for that reason alone it scores higher than the other two on this list.

My only real complaint about this ride is that there isn’t much to see in the second half of the ride. Once you turn a corner and leave Treasure Cove, the part that passes by Adventure Isle doesn’t have anything eye-catching. This is unlike Disneyland’s Rivers of America that has some animatronics and set pieces to look at. Here, you’re just staring at foliage, which can get repetitive and boring.

The ride is also shorter than the Explorer Canoes found in Disneyland. So while it is a very unique ride system and you do get a good perspective of Treasure Cove, some areas of the ride leave a lot to be desired. I wouldn’t consider this a highlight by any means, unless paddling under the heat of the sun is your idea of fun. But for what it is, it can be a fun way to experience a different perspective of the park.

15. Hunny Pot Spin

I think this ride may be the first time that a teacup-style ride at a Disney Park is not themed to Alice in Wonderland. Instead, Shanghai Disneyland themed their teacup ride to Winnie the Pooh. And honestly, aside from the Disneyland version of the teacups, this may be my favorite version out there (or tied with Disneyland Paris’s Raiponce Tangled Spin).

The ride starts with you being let into the ride area to board a Hunny Pot. The Hunny Pots are all different colors and dotting the ceiling are beehives with bees flying around the biggest one in the center of the ride. Once everyone boards their Hunny Pot, the Winnie the Pooh music starts to play and the pots begin to move. You can spin the pot as fast or as slow as you want. The ride then ends after about 45 seconds then you’re told to exit.

Design wise, this ride is so pretty to look at. Like I said, the interior of the ride is gorgeous. Also, it broke the mold of teacup rides being themed to Alice in Wonderland, a change I very much appreciated. There are so many other themes you could put on this ride system that aren’t Alice in Wonderland, and this and the spinner in Disney Adventure World themed to Tangled prove this.

This gets major props for being themed to Winnie the Pooh and for being gorgeous to look at, but gets deducted a few points for its lackluster ride time. It felt like the ride was over before it began. I get that this is done to allow for more ride cycles, which results in higher hourly capacity, but it just feels a tad too short. Lengthening it by 10-20 seconds would go a long way in elevating the quality of this ride.

This ride is the start of what I like to call the “retheme trio”. What I mean by this is that these three rides, starting with Hunny Pot Spin, are new takes on old, tried and true ride systems that have stood the test of time. They are mostly different in theming, and for that alone they deserve to be above the other Shanghai Disneyland rides on this list so far. In my opinion, Hunny Pot Spin is the weakest of the three, but only because one of them uses a Disney property that has never been used in a ride before. But for what it is, it’s a fun ride. Just don’t wait more than 20 minutes for it.

14. Fantasia Carousel

Speaking of a Disney movie that’s never been used in a ride before, that movie I’m talking about is Fantasia, and that ride is the Fantasia Carousel. Themed to the 1940s movie Fantasia, the carousel allows you to ride one of the horses featured in the movie. You can even ride on one of the baby horses seen in the movie.

The ride is as simple as other Carousels are. The horse designs are pretty unique in that they come in a variety of different colors and resemble the ones from the movie. The art on the base of the carousel also features different scenes from Fantasia. The ride is even prettier at night when all the lights around it are all lit up. To my knowledge, they also play Fantasia music during the ride and the ride lasts about 45 seconds as well.

Just like Hunny Pot Spin, I was surprised that the ride didn’t last that long. That definitely took away from the ride and, while it’s still beautiful and very unique, I felt like I was being rushed through the whole ride experience, which is something you don’t want your guests to feel when they’re on a ride. But that aside, it’s still a very pretty ride, which cancels out its short ride time.

This gets major plus points for being the first Disney ride to revolve solely around Fantasia. I say solely because other rides have incorporated Fantasia over the years, such as Voyage to the Crystal Grotto and Le Pays de Contes De Fees at Disneyland Paris. But there hasn’t been a ride dedicated solely to Fantasia, until this carousel was made.

It doesn’t do anything crazy different, aside from getting you to ride on horses from the film, and I wish we could ride on other critters too like the Hippos and Alligators from the film, but it is a stunning ride to look at. I could spend an hour just noticing all the little details in the design of the ride. That’s what takes it above Hunny Pot Spin in my opinion. Hunny Pot Spin is gorgeous as well, but the design constrained itself to bees and beehives because of the ride concept, which l find to be less compelling a design direction than what the Fantasia Carousel has.

All in all, it’s a fun little ride that you should totally save for riding at night time when all the lights are on. Couple the ride design with the music and Fantasia theme and you have one of the best carousels Disney has ever made.

13. Woody’s Roundup

The last of the retheme trio, Woody’s Roundup is Shanghai Disneyland’s version of Alien Swirling Saucers, Mater’s Junkyard Jamboree, and The Happy Ride with Baymax. Upon entering the queue you’re greeted by a lot of props focused on the Woody’s Roundup television show. Things like horseshoes and even a nod to Grizzly Gulch in Hong Kong Disneyland in the form of a large gold nugget.

Then you enter the stables where the Woody’s Roundup horses are situated around the area. You get on the cart that they’re attached to and, when the ride starts, you start whipping around the entire area. Some of the movements can be very forceful, with the ride pushing you to the sides of the vehicle. After about 1 minute, the ride ends and you’re directed to the exit.

I’m not 100% sure about this, but this ride felt longer than the other rides that have already been named on this list. I’m not sure if it’s because there are so many ride vehicles and each can fit 1-3 people so they can afford to have a longer ride cycle, but having a longer ride time greatly increased my enjoyment of the ride.

I really like this style of ride. I’ve only ever been on the one in Disney California Adventure and I ranked it just outside the top ten of that ride ranking. This is a ride system that I personally find really enjoyable, so of course this was going to be higher on this list. It takes the teacup concept and flips it on its head in a way that is both fun and engaging.

Add to that the impeccable theming in the queue and ride itself and you have a winner of a flat ride. Seriously, the details in the queue are so well done, and each horse actually has its own unique name. This isn’t necessarily a highlight of the park, but I feel like of all the rides in Toy Story Land, this is the one that adds the most detail and story into the land.

12. Rex’s Racer

I’m going to be completely honest: this is ranked here purely for the thrill-factor and for being unique relative to other Disney Parks attractions. I know pirate ship-style rides exist outside Disney, but this, along with its two clones in Paris and Hong Kong, are the only pirate ship-style rides (at least to my knowledge) in the Disney Parks lineup of rides. It’s also legitimately thrilling and, in my opinion, is the second most thrilling ride in the park only after Tron Lightcycle Power Run.

I love the first part of the queue where it feels like you’re walking down a hot wheels track. And then you get inside the main building, which is full of racing memorabilia but themed to the Toy Story aesthetic. Then you get to the ride itself, which is this half-pipe coaster that takes you up almost 90 degrees vertically. After a few back-and-forths, you’re brought safely back to the station.

Honestly, I know it’s ranked as the second most thrilling ride in the park, but to me it’s actually the number 1 most thrilling of the Shanghai Disneyland rides. I’d rather feel Tron’s launch than feel the sensation of being suspended up in the air for a second before plummeting back down. The feeling I get in my gut when that happens eclipses any feeling I have on Tron.

I will admit that my criticisms of the other attractions on this list apply to this ride too. It’s way too short. You only go back and forth maybe 8 times before you head back to the station. I remember at HKDL you go back and forth way more times than that. So it’s intentionally shortened at SHDL probably to up its hourly capacity, which honestly it needs.

But at least what the ride lacks in capacity and loading efficiency it makes up for in pure thrills and fun. And that’s a big part of the reason why this ride is ranked so high: it’s just plain fun. It might be a simple flat ride, but the theming is great and the thrills are high, which is enough for me to rank it as number 12 in this Shanghai Disneyland Rides Ranking.

11. Jet Packs

This ride to me reinvents the flying spinner ride, which is why its the highest ranking flat ride on this Shanghai Disneyland rides ranking. It’s a fairly simple concept: what if we made a flying spinner ride where you feel like you’re flying in a jet pack. It expresses this concept in a very unique way: by having guest’s legs dangling from the ride vehicle and by upping the speed of the ride.

The result makes you feel, quite literally, like you’re flying. The ride also has buttons that allow you to control the movement of the jet pack. But it does so in a very unique way as well. You have to keep pressing the buttons to keep the jet pack in the air as if you’re injecting fuel into the jet pack. If you stop pressing the button, the jet pack will start to fall.

It’s those little details that make the ride so fun and compelling for a spinner. I might go so far as to say this might be my favorite spinner ride anywhere in the world (or at least until I ride the Tangled Spin ride in Disney Adventure World). It really is all because of the little things they thought of to bring a jet pack experience to life for guests.

It’s also high up on this ranking for one reason: kinetic energy. Theme parks need movement to feel alive and to generate feelings of excitement and wonder in guests. A surefire way of doing this is by making sure that a lot of the things in the land move or have a lot of kinetic energy. You can see this in the aforementioned Rivers of America at Disneyland or in the Jungle River Cruise boats in HKDL.

For Shanghai Disneyland’s Tomorrowland, most of the kinetic energy comes from the land’s two main rides: Jet Packs and Tron Lightcycle Power Run. But because Tron is partially obstructed by its canopy, Jet Packs has to do the heavy lifting of providing kinetic energy to the land, attracting people into the land, and acting as a strong visual anchor for the land. It succeeds at doing all three.

It’s for these reasons that Jet Packs is at the top of the lower half of this list. It doesn’t beat any of the succeeding Shanghai Disneyland rides, mostly because it’s not that narratively rich, as most spinners are, but instead is thematically rich. It doesn’t have to beat the other rides on this list. Theme parks need smaller, more contained experiences as well. Not every ride can be an E-ticket, nor should every ride be an E-ticket. Theme parks need to have a good mix of attractions, and this ride exemplifies Shanghai’s great strength of having just that.

10. Buzz Lightyear Planet Rescue

This ride marks the beginning of the storytelling or immersive rides. From here on out, every ride has a distinct narrative that it follows, and that’s the main reason why they’re placed higher than the other rides on this list. The previous rides are more atmospheric. These Shanghai Disneyland rides are the storytelling rides that form the core reason why I think people go to Disney Parks: to be immersed in a world and a story.

Buzz Lightyear Planet Rescue is a shooting arcade dark ride that follows the plot of the video game featuring Buzz Lightyear as seen in the opening sequence of the movie Toy Story 2. In the ride, you’re recruited by Buzz to defeat Zurg and find his secret lair on Zurg’s home planet of Xrgthung. You’re tasked with shooting at the targets in the ride to neutralize his minions known as the Zurgbots and defeat Zurg. After successfully completing the mission, you’re then brought back to the station.

The queue of the ride is very futuristic and modern, a clear departure from the more cartoony and silly theming found in the other Buzz Lightyear rides around the world. This helps set the right tone for the ride, which is more serious than the other Buzz Lightyear shooting dark rides found in other parks.

This ride was the first ride to incorporate the new, next generation blasters and targets into the ride. The targets are now screens instead of regular targets like the ones found in other parks around the world. The blasters and ride vehicle have also been updated, with the scores counting up way past 1 million.

As for the ride itself, I thought it was good, but it’s definitely the weakest of the four remaining Buzz rides worldwide, especially considering Magic Kingdom’s got an upgrade. Even if the targets, blasters, and ride vehicles were modern, the actual content of the ride itself is more static than the other Buzz Lightyear rides. It’s not as static as Ant-Man and the Wasp Nano Battle in Hong Kong Disneyland, but it’s a lot more static than the other Buzz rides.

Dark rides that are shooters should have most of their targets move, not just to make the gameplay harder, but also to give the ride more dynamism and to make it more immersive. Having a ride where most of the targets are static and there’s not a lot of movement going on just feels like a missed opportunity.

The location of the ride is also awkward, tucked on the bottom level of Tomorrowland behind a food cart. The location isn’t ideal, mostly because people tend to not go to that part of the land, resulting in the ride never having a wait longer than 15 minutes. This could also be attributed to the quality of the ride, but I think its placement has something to do with it as well.

Overall, this is the weakest currently existing Buzz Lightyear ride in the world, and for that reason it’s ranked at the bottom of the storytelling rides portion of this ride ranking.

9. The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh

I think a lot of people will be shocked to see this above Buzz Lightyear, mostly because this version of Pooh already exists in 2 other resorts (Walt Disney World and Hong Kong Disneyland). But this is a case of “If It Ain’t Broke, Don’t Fix It”. This version of Pooh is a good ride, with a clear storyline that follows the events of the first movie, engrossing scenes, and some stellar special effects.

The ride starts outside, with the outdoor queue reminding me a lot of the Pooh’s Hunny Hunt ride in Tokyo Disneyland. Then it moves indoors and the queue begins to resemble the Hong Kong Disneyland version’s queue. You then board a Hunny Pot and set off on an adventure into the Hundred Acre Wood.

You first pass a blustery day scene featuring Gopher, Piglet, Eeyore, Pooh, Rabbit, Kanga, and Roo all dealing with the effects of the very strong wind. You then see Owl’s house has crashed to the ground, and you subsequently get a tour of his now destroyed house as he sits on a rocking chair recounting stories from his past.

You then get to the Tigger bouncing part of this ride. Tigger begins bouncing, and as he does the car that you’re in also starts bouncing. You glide through the scene as your ride vehicle goes up and down to the music of the ride. You then end up in Pooh’s house as he tries to defend his house from the Heffalumps and Woozles. It’s here that the best effect of the ride happens. You see a holographic Pooh rise up from his body and enter a dream-like-state.

The next room is the Heffalumps and Woozles room, which is wacky, zany, chaotic, and colorful. Following this, Pooh wakes up in the middle of a rainstorm that floods the Hundred Acre wood. You can see things floating all around you and the ride vehicle moves like a boat. The characters try to save Piglet from a waterfall as Pooh searches for Hunny. The ride ends with the characters celebrating the rain leaving with a party.

It’s amazing how they were able to connect three different short films of Winnie the Pooh into one cohesive narrative. I also like how the vehicle responds to what’s happening around you, bouncing during the Tigger scene and turning into a boat during the flood scene. Speaking of the flood scene, that scene is one of the most well-designed scenes in any dark ride. It’s so immersive, and how they made the things around the vehicle look like they’re floating is amazing. The holographic Pooh effect is also very well done and adds a distinct “How did they do that?” effect to the ride.

The reason why this doesn’t rank higher than the other Shanghai Disneyland rides on this list is mainly because it doesn’t add anything new to the ride formula. It’s literally a carbon copy version of the ride from Hong Kong and Orlando. It’s unlike this park’s version of Peter Pan’s Flight, which expanded on the concept of the Peter Pan ride. This does not do that, and so because of that I can’t rank it higher on this list. Still, it’s a pretty good ride that I hope more people get to experience.

8. Voyage to the Crystal Grotto

Voyage to the Crystal Grotto is a boat ride that runs right through the heart of Fantasyland. Based on how the ride vehicle looks, it seems to take inspiration from the Jungle Cruise. It’s the third ride on this list to be unique to Shanghai Disneyland (after Jet Packs and Woody’s Roundup) and if I were ranking this subjectively this would be a couple of places higher. I adore this ride, but I have to be objective and I know it’s not as good as some of the other Shanghai Disneyland rides on this list.

After entering the mostly unthemed queue (except for a couple of murals that explain how people have been making a pilgrimage to this crystal) you then board a boat and set off on a journey through the waterways of Fantasyland. This ride is the reason why Fantasyland feels more like a path rather than a land, because the entire middle section of the land is this boat ride, somewhat akin to what the areas around the Rivers of America at Disneyland feel like.

After leaving the dock, you pass by water features themed to classic Disney stories. These include Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, Tangled, Mulan, and The Little Mermaid. After passing by all of them, you’re then taken to a secret chamber underneath the castle, making this the only ride to go inside a castle. You then come face to face with the famed crystal as projections of the Disney stories you saw on the way light up the walls around you. You then make your way back to the station.

I know some people were disappointed by the lack of movement in the water features. They mostly use water to give the features life, with very little actual moving parts. I think people were expecting it to have animatronics, which would never work under the elements. I personally think the water features are all pretty. They all share a certain aesthetic that gives the ride a nice cohesion.

But I have to admit, the lack of movement could be disappointing if you were expecting something grander. This was especially true for pre-grand opening because they hyped this ride up so much that it was going to be this immersive experience and it’s just not. It’s probably why it never commands that long of a line too (although it is also a high loading attraction).

Because of its simplicity and its (admittedly) lack of story, I can’t put it above the other rides I’ve ranked higher than it. But it has a certain charm to it that for me justifies placing it above Pooh and Buzz on this Shanghai Disneyland Rides Ranking. I am smitten with its charm so if it were up to me it would be a couple places higher, but objectively it’s at number 8.

7. Soaring Over the Horizon

Shanghai Disneyland opened the third version of Soarin along with the rest of the park in 2016. But instead of theming it to the history of flight or like an airplane / flying vehicle, the ride is themed to an ancient tribal group called the Arbori people, a theme that reverberates throughout the Adventure Isle section of the park.

Soaring begins with you stepping into the queue. You see artifacts made by some of the Arbori people, before entering the main room of the queue which, to me, is the most stunning queue space in the entire park. You enter a room and suddenly the milky way galaxy is above you, looking celestial and grand. This all ties into the story that you’re in an observatory and temple for the god Q’otar, the Condor god of the Arbori tribe.

You’re then ushered into the pre-show where a shapeshifting shaman tells you that with the power of Q’otar, soon you will be able to fly too. You’re then brought into the main ride room where it looks exactly like Soarin except the vehicles are brown and the screen shows a galaxy. After strapping in, you then take off and experience the same Soarin Around the World film found in other parks, except the ending is in Downtown Shanghai. You are then lowered and exit the ride.

The queue is the most impressive part of this ride. That constellation room is so gorgeous. I could literally just see that and say that the ride was worth lining up for. And then of course you have the ride itself, which is great as Soarin always is. I like the inclusion of the Condor god and the Arbori people, as it gives the ride another layer of story that is admittedly lacking from the American versions of this ride.

That extra layer of context breathes new life into the ride in my opinion. By providing a reason for why you’re flying instead of just, you know, flying, it adds more dimension to the ride experience. In that sense, the ride is able to plus up the experience and the story of the Soarin film. I do wish the film ended in Shanghai Disneyland though, as even the DisneySea version ends in DisneySea.

I wish they would also get the new Eiffel Tower scene from Disney California Adventure and Epcot as this version is still very curvy. I was lucky that I got to ride in the middle so it looked fine to me, but if I was riding Soarin for the first time and got anything but the first middle row, I would be a little taken out of the experience.

I unfortunately can’t rank this higher because it’s the same Soarin film found in other places. There’s nothing special about this particular film, except for the ending, which is probably the worst ending too among all the versions. It’s for this reason that it’s ranked number 7 on this Shanghai Disneyland Rides Ranking.

6. Seven Dwarfs Mine Train

If you’ve been to Magic Kingdom, you already know that the ride most people race towards at the beginning of the day is Seven Dwarfs Mine Train. To an extent, it’s the same at Shanghai Disneyland. Other than Zootopia: Hot Pursuit, this is the other ride that always gets some kind of queue early in the day. While it’s a good ride (it wouldn’t be in the top 6 if it wasn’t) I think with the line it gets it’s very much overhyped.

The ride starts with you entering the long and winding queue. Once in the mountain you’ll see the lockers of each dwarf and a map of the mines before making your way to the loading area. It’s probably the most disappointing queue in the park. They could’ve filled it with so much more detail but instead most of the queue ends up being outside the mine.

You then enter the loading area and are loaded onto the ride. After going up a lift hill, you’re sent plummeting down and twisting and turning through the land around the mine. This goes on for longer than expected, with the mine cars tilting left and right as you glide through the mountain.

You then enter the mine and the dark ride portion of the ride begins. You see each dwarf digging up jewels of different kinds, all in rather funny positions. You turn a corner and Doc is seen on a chair inspecting some gems before the clock before him starts to go off. He then leads the dwarves in singing Hi-Ho. As they sing, you see their silhouettes as your car climbs up another lift hill.

You then come careening down the mountain. This second coaster section is very short, about half of the first one, and when you stop back near the station, the ending scene isn’t the same as the one in Florida. There’s no party with Snow White, or Evil Queen waiting to give her the poisoned apple. Instead, the house is far away and you just see some critters. You then exit the ride.

I would say that, as a whole, the ride is a downgrade from Florida. The lack of a good queue and the absence of the cliffhanger finale scene results in a lesser ride experience for me. It’s still an innovative ride, with the swinging cars and the dark ride portion in the middle, but for me it misses the mark.

I still rank it high because I like that it tries to be bold and be a coaster and a dark ride at once. This is what I was honestly expecting Wandering Oaken’s Sliding Sleighs at Hong Kong Disneyland to be, and when it wasn’t I was massively disappointed. Seven Dwarfs Mine Train paved the way for rollercoasters to have elaborate dark ride portions and animatronics, and for that alone it deserves to be where it’s placed. It’s a testament to how good these next five Shanghai Disneyland rides are that they all surpass Seven Dwarfs Mine Train.

5. Peter Pan’s Flight

Peter Pan’s Flight is the other pure dark ride found in Fantasyland. It’s surprising to me that Fantasyland at Shanghai Disneyland only has two dark rides: Pooh and Peter Pan. But let me tell you, this Peter Pan’s Flight is, bar none, the best Peter Pan ride in the world, and the only Peter Pan ride that justifies a 50 minute wait. It’s longer, more detailed, has extra scenes, and brings the Peter Pan ride into the 21st century.

The queue is fairly simple, with some statues of Peter and the Darling children dotting the queue. You then enter the covered portion of the queue and are transported into a British neighborhood in the early 1900s. After boarding your pirate ship, the gates open and you’re off on your adventure.

You begin by seeing Peter fly into the Darling children’s nursery. He then sprinkles them with Pixie dust and they start flying. You exit the nursery and see Nana, yes Nana, flying and saying goodbye to you. As you turn a corner, the shadows of Peter and the three kids are seen on the street below as you enter the London section. This section looks the same as the ones in other parks, but that’s where the similarities end.

You turn a corner and see Peter and the Darlings flying beside your ship. You then end up in Neverland and it’s the most gorgeous, detailed, and magical Neverland of them all. After exiting your overtop view of the island, you enter Skull Rock. There’s a little detail here that I love. As you “splash down”, projected animated water gushes on the sides of the rocks. It’s a small detail but adds so much to the immersion. You then see Hook menacingly approach Peter, who is sitting on a rock.

After that you hit the famous Peter Pan’s Flight scene where Hook and Peter are fighting on his ship. Wendy is being walked off the plank, and you turn and Peter pushes Hook of his ship. You then see Hook on the jaws of Tick-Tock as Smee tries to save him. Then comes my favorite part. This is normally where the ride ends, but in the Shanghai version, Peter and the Darlings send you on your way. A ship suddenly turns into a cloud, then a big clock appears and you go through it and end up back at the station.

This honestly feels like such an upgrade to all the Peter Pan rides around the world. I’m surprised they didn’t update Pooh considering they invested so much into making their Peter Pan the best in the world. Because that’s what this is: the best Peter Pan’s Flight in the entire world. The added scenes, the crisper animatronics, the little details in the ride, all add up to such an immersive experience.

If you know me, you know I’m the biggest Peter Pan’s Flight hater in the world. I don’t think anything in the other 4 versions justifies the long waits it gets. But in Shanghai, where long waits are most certainly justified, the longest wait I saw for it was 30 minutes. A next level Peter Pan’s Flight only commanded a 30-minute wait. Absolutely unbelievable.

This is the only Peter Pan’s Flight I will wait 50 minutes for. It is that good. It blows every other version out of the water in the best way. This is why the Shanghai Disneyland rides lineup is so strong. They have the best versions of some rides in this park (there’s one more coming up on this list, although that one is more objectively best than subjectively best). If you go to Shanghai Disneyland, please don’t miss out on this ride. It’s stunning, and on my last visit I rode it 4 times because it’s just that good.

4. Roaring Rapids

I know some people will be shocked to see this attraction so high on this list. I was shocked myself when I ranked the Shanghai Disneyland rides and this was so high. But this ride has everything: a compelling story, thrills, and one of the greatest animatronics ever made by Disney. Couple that with the fact that the story of the ride and land are connected in a way only seen before in Disneyland Paris’ Frontierland and you have the recipe for a great ride.

Roaring Rapids starts in the queue where you see articles and other thematic details telling you about the League of Adventurers and the Arbori people. The Arbori people believe that deep in Apu Taku, the mountain otherwise known as Roaring Mountain, lies a creature who acts as the guardian of the mountain named Q’araq. The League of Adventurers is interested in learning more about the creature, and sends you to investigate.

After going up a lift hill, you notice that a tree has blocked your path, sending you deep into the Roaring Mountain where you can hear a creature roaring in the distance. After going down a drop, you come face to face with an animatronic Q’araq. It snaps its jaws at you and roars loudly. You narrowly escape and then come face to face with a whirlpool, which sends you down a waterfall and you end up back at the station.

This ride is infinitely better than Grizzly River Run and Kali River Rapids. It might not have the conservation theme of Kali River Rapids, but the exploration mission culminating in the appearance of Q’araq is just so jaw dropping. Seriously, that animatronic is what the Yeti wishes it was. It moves so smoothly and its huge.

I also like how the story of Q’araq ties into the land surrounding the ride. There are stone statues of Q’araq, for example, near the entrance to the land. The backstory extends to Camp Discovery, where you can see articles and newspaper clipping related to the Roaring Mountain and to Q’araq.

This is also ranked highly because it’s the last original concept attraction Walt Disney Imagineering created. There were only really 4 rides in the 2010s that were original concepts, and two of them are in Shanghai Disneyland: Jet Packs and Roaring Rapids. This ride still proves that, if given the budget and opportunity, Imagineering can create amazing, immersive, and fascinating stories to immerse guests in.

This is probably in the top 3 Shanghai Disneyland rides for me personally, but there’s one ride on here that I think surpasses Roaring Rapids. But make no mistake, this ride is a headliner and a very good one at that. Also, while wearing a poncho is recommended, we didn’t get extremely wet. There was water involved that’s for sure, so I would recommend wearing one. Don’t forget to leave your bag in the lockers nearby if you don’t want them to get wet.

3. Tron Lightcycle Power Run

When Tron Lightcycle Power Run debuted in Walt Disney World, it received complaints from guests for being too short. Many guests were saying that the long waits for it were not justified since the coaster only lasts a minute. My retort to that is it’s not the length that matters but what the ride does with that length. And for a 1-minute ride, Tron knocks it out of the park.

The whole experience with Tron starts before you even get on the ride. You see it from afar, its cloud-like building glinting in the sun. You walk closer and eventually you see the lightcycles racing down the track. Then you get to the queue, which I will admit isn’t the best queue in the world. It’s mostly blue lines on walls and futuristic sounding music. Although the bit where you can see the lightcycles launch is pretty cool.

You then arrive at the loading area. You leave your bag on a cart (yes you leave them on carts) and get on your lightcycle. You then make your way to the launch area. And I swear, that launch is one of the most intense yet fun feelings in the entire world. It gets faster with each second until you crest upwards on the outside portion of the ride.

You then twist and turn outside the show building before entering it through a huge entrance on the upper part of the building. You then begin to race with other lightcycle drivers. Some of them crash into each other, your lightcycle turns orange for a bit, and you’re passing through these large square-ish targets (targets is the best way I can describe them) before making your way to the unloading station.

This ride is pure, unadulterated fun. It’s one of my favorite Disney coasters, definitely in my top 5. The rush you get from the initial launch, followed by all the cool graphics that follow after is just immersion at the highest level. It also works as a source of kinetic energy, with the whole land coming alive whenever a lightcycle launches into the outdoor portion of the ride.

The ride’s show building is also one of the most gorgeous buildings imagineering has ever designed. It basically forms half of Tomorrowland, and everything from the walkways to the steel beams supporting the structure lends itself to this futuristic aesthetic that I personally think is very sleek and sophisticated.

The fact that, to my knowledge, this is Disney’s first coaster not to feature traditional coaster seats is amazing and I think it works really well for the ride. The feeling of straddling that lightcycle and feeling the wind in your face cannot be beat. All in all, it’s a great ride that should be on everyone’s Shanghai Disneyland rides list. I promise it looks scarier than it actually is, except for the launch, which is as thrilling as it looks.

2. Zootopia: Hot Pursuit

When I saw videos of this ride, I honestly didn’t think I would enjoy it when I rode it for myself. There seemed to be an over-reliance on screens, and the animatronics in this ride were few and far between. It felt more like Web Slingers, shuttling you from screen to screen with minimal physical sets. However, after riding it, I realized that not only is it one of the best Shanghai Disneyland rides, but it might have just set the new standard for the 2020s trackless dark ride.

The experience starts in the queue, which is my favorite queue in the park. Soaring still has the best single queue room in any ride, but Zootopia: Hot Pursuit has the best overall queue of any of the Shanghai Disneyland rides. Seriously, do not use premier access for your first ride because the details in the queue, just like of the land as a whole, will blow you away.

You are first greeted by a huge animatronic of Officer Clawhauser in the first building of the queue. You then enter the offices, where there are big doors for big animals, and little doors for little animals. You pass by Nick and Judy’s cubicles, both full of so much detail. Then you enter the jail, which is the most detailed part of the queue. You see cells for big animals and small animals. You then pass by former assistant mayor Bellwether’s jail cell, and see that she has escaped.

You’re then taken to the pre-show room, where an animatronic Chief Bogo reveals that Gazelle has been kidnapped by Bellwether. Nick and Judy follow a clue they spotted in Bellwether’s video, leading them to investigate a warehouse in Tundra Town. You’re tasked with meeting Nick and Judy in Tundra Town to follow up on the clue. You’re then ushered into your vehicles and are taken to Tundra Town.

You arrive in Tundra Town with Nick and Judy and spot Bellwether with Gazelle. She tries to freeze you but you’re able to dodge her attack and subsequently get on a train to follow her and her minions. The train careens out of Tundra Town and into Sahara Square. In Sahara Square you pass a camel dressed in Gazelle drag and follow Bellwether into the Naturalists Club. After some run-ins with some unclothed mammals, you follow Bellwether and company to the Rainforest District.

You enter a gondola which Bellwether sends tumbling down. You’re saved by the vines and are then greeted by Flash, who is tasked by Nick and Judy with helping the police. You then follow Flash as he chases Bellwether through a tunnel where you actually go upside down. Nick and Judy are able to save Gazelle, but Bellwether chases after them. A series of events has her stuck in a large donut as Clawhauser picks her up and brings her to the Gazelle concert. It’s here that we see the amazing Gazelle animatronic singing, then see Nick and Judy congratulating us one last time on a good mission before heading to the unloading station.

This ride is up there with Rise of the Resistance and Mystic Manor for best trackless dark ride. It’s well-designed, well-paced, insanely detailed, and packed full of memorable moments. From the get-go the action just doesn’t stop. The ride goes from one set piece to another in such a seamless way, allowing us time to explore each of Zootopia’s areas on our journey.

The ride’s layout is also incredibly well thought-out, especially the sequence in Sahara Square. The cars actually leave one room to go to the Naturalist Club, and then go BACK to the previous room and then onto the rainforest district. This non-linear path is unique to this ride and something Imagineering has never tried before. I’m glad that they’re experimenting with ride design and movement in this way.

The set pieces on this ride are so insanely detailed and gorgeous. It is also packed with little details that add to the immersion of the ride. For instance, in the train scene, the fish up above move in sync with the action on the screen to help sell that you’re actually moving. In the Rainforest District scene, Judy’s flashlight actually hits nearby leaves and actually illuminates them. It’s subtle details like that which make Disney so different from any other theme park operator.

And then there’s the animatronics. The most impressive of which is the Gazelle animatronic at the end. She gyrates her hips to the beat of the song Try Everything. It’s one of the most impressive animatronics Disney has ever made. And when she seems to be turning her whole body to face you, you will suspend all disbelief and believe she’s actually there in front of you. Other animatronic highlights include Nick and Judy at the end and the animatronic camel in the Tundra Town portion.

Michael Giacchino came back to score this attraction after previously doing the score for the movie. The music is exciting and perfectly accentuates each scene. The narrative of the ride is also very well-plotted. It has high stakes and seamlessly extrapolates on the “something goes wrong” trope in theme park stories.

Overall, this is just a brilliantly executed ride altogether. Every element works together so well to deliver a top-notch experience. Shanghai Disneyland has a winner on their hands, and the crazy long lines for it suggest that it is resonating with guests. It’s the perfect ride made to expand the story and world of Zootopia, and I can’t wait to ride it again.

1. Pirates of the Caribbean: Battle for the Sunken Treasure

As good as Zootopia is, there can only be one top ride in Shanghai Disneyland, and I have to give it to Pirates of the Caribbean: Battle for the Sunken Treasure. If you’re expecting this to be like the other Pirates of the Caribbean’s around the world, I would recommend you adjust your expectations. This is the grandest, boldest, most innovative boat ride I have ever been on. Jaw dropping isn’t even adequate to describe how amazing this ride is.

The queue of this ride is incredibly detailed, featuring nods to other Disney movies. You then enter a fortress and get on a boat. The boats are huge, carrying 5 people per row and 6 rows per boat, for a total of 30 people per boat. The boats then sail off the dock and first pass the Barbossa’s Bounty restaurant. You then enter a cavern with pirate skeletons, passing by one scene that looks eerily similar to a famous dog and key scene found in other Pirates rides around the world.

You then turn a corner and see a skeleton turn into Captain Jack Sparrow. Lightning strikes it and, before your eyes, the skeleton just becomes Captain Jack. You then transition to this scene where your boat drops underwater. You’re in this giant screen dome and sink to the bottom of the ocean as the kraken swims past you and Davy Jones’ minions mill about a graveyard of sunken ships.

Your boat enters an abandoned ship where you pass some mermaids and some people Davy Jones has imprisoned. You then get to the sunken treasure. It’s gold and jewels as far as the eye can see. One of Davy Jones’ henchmen, however, surprises you and sends you to confront Davy Jones. You then see Davy Jones playing the organ, and he’s one of the most stunning animatronics I have ever seen.

After encountering him, you then enter the best portion of the ride. All the sunken ships from earlier on, and including your own ship, start to rise to the surface. Then, the boat turns around and you’re caught in the middle of a fight between Davy Jones’ Flying Dutchman and Captain Jack Sparrow’s Black Pearl. They have full life-size ships just trading cannon blasts with each other. It is incredible.

You enter the Black Pearl and then see Davy Jones and Captain Jack fighting. Captain Jack is able to escape with the treasure, and then your boat drops backwards. It dips down, dips back up, and then you end up next to Captain Jack and his boat full of treasure. There are two possible endings here: either he keeps the treasure and wins, or Davy Jones curses the treasure and he loses. You then disembark the ride.

I don’t know if I can contain every single thing I want to say about this ride in a few paragraphs. Everything from the queue to the ride to the music was made with such gravitas. You can see why it cost $450 million dollars to make this ride. Disney literally gave Imagineering a blank check and told them to go wild and it absolutely paid off.

Let’s talk about the ride system first. This ride system is the first of its kind in the world. It allows the boat to move forwards, backwards, and sideways. It can also speed the boat up or slow it down. It’s incredibly innovative and I still don’t fully understand how it works. But what I do know is that it is used so incredibly well on the ride. It almost felt like a trackless boat ride at times if that makes any sense.

The theming is also just top notch. The first bit with the pirate skeletons is so well-decorated and feels like a lived-in place. The underwater ship scenes are also so well done. The way the sunken ships and all the theming around you sell the illusion that you’re underwater is spectacular.

Then of course you have the ship battle, which is one of the greatest scenes in any ride in Disney history. It’s grand, it’s humongous, and it’s spellbinding. You see canons move when they fire, giant screens provide the background for the action, and the music is classic Pirates music. All of it blends together to create such a memorable scene.

We also have to talk about the animatronics, especially that Davy Jones one. I literally forgot that I was on a ride and that he was just an animatronic. He looked and moved like the Davy Jones from the movie. He was literally so incredible to look at, and the tentacles on his chin seemed to move independently from him. You also have the Captain Jack animatronics as well that are very fluid and lifelike.

The drop is also very fun because it goes backwards and then goes in a U-shape and heads back up. The narrative is also very well thought out. There’s tension, stakes, a sense of danger, and strays from the “something goes horrible wrong” trope. It’s perfect for a theme park and I’m glad the Imagineers decided to go with telling a new story with these characters rather than rehashing an old story from one of the movies.

The Hans Zimmer music on this ride is also amazing. It’s exciting, heart-pumping, and just plain fun. Music adds so much to the ride. My favorite piece of music on this ride has to be the scene where you’re going underwater. These violins start to play and it’s at once calming and enchanting, safe yet cautious, and brings the right vibe to the overall ride.

I could go on and on about this ride but I’m going to stop myself here. This ride is worth going to Shanghai Disneyland for. It’s absolutely astonishing, and a feat of modern Imagineering, proving that if you give them the freedom to create whatever they want, they can draw up some of the best experiences in the entire themed entertainment industry. It’s the top dog among the Shanghai Disneyland rides, and I’m already eagerly awaiting the next time I can ride it.

Shanghai Disneyland Rides Ranking Conclusion

Shanghai Disneyland is truly such a special park with one of the best ride lineups in the entire Disney catalog. From Slinky Dog Spin to Pirates of the Caribbean, there’s some level of fun and enjoyment anyone can take away from these experiences. This is undeniably a world class theme park with world class rides, and I’m excited for the future of this park and this resort.

If you have any questions, feel free to message me on my socials.