I was lucky enough to take my first trip to Walt Disney World in 1972, for my 5th birthday. I had no idea what to expect, and neither did my mom. There was only one park, Magic Kingdom. Each ride and attraction required a separate ticket, and there were ticket booths scattered all around in case one ran out and needed to buy more. My mom and I discovered many awesome things that trip, but without question, our favorite ride of all time is Peter Pan’s Flight.
After walking through the queue, we boarded our pirate galleon. As we were flying out through the bedroom window, my mom leaned over and said, “Look, Lisa – we’re flying!” I smiled back at her and said, “We ARE!!” I totally bought it. I could feel it. I believed.
That was it. I fell in love. And I’ve never fallen out. The entire ride was, well, wait for it – magical. I wanted to ride it again and again. I believe we used all of our tickets that day, and I pleaded with my mom to get more. Fortunately for me, she did, and each time we rode it I felt the same sense of wonder.
When my son was young, we were not able to take him to Walt Disney World until he was, coincidentally, five. My husband knew the story of my first ride on Peter Pan’s Flight, and the three of us eagerly boarded our ship together. As we flew out the window, I said to my son what my mom had said to me, and to our amazement he responded exactly the same way I had many years before. I cried happy tears that I was able to share the same feelings of magic and wonder with my son that I had experienced on my first ride.
To this day, we cannot go to the Magic Kingdom without experiencing Peter Pan’s Flight. And whether I’m riding with my mom or my son, we always say the same words. It’s my most treasured of our many Disney-related traditions.
I have not been back since they opened the new queue area, and I’m so anxious to see it that I made Peter Pan’s Flight our first FastPass+ reservation of the trip.
DIStracted tip: Peter Pan’s Flight loads very slowly and lines can get quite long during busy times. If you want to guarantee that you get to experience it, be sure to schedule it as one of your FastPass+ choices.
What is your favorite ride and why? Let me know in the comments!
Mrs. P says
I absolutely love that ride! I was also there in 1972 when I was five, but was lucky enough to be there the first week of October in 1971. I remember riding it for the first time and feeling the same way. My favorite thing about the Magic Kingdom isn’t necessarily a ride, it’s the feeling I get when I go through the gates and walk down Main Street and see the castle. Even after 35 visits (my 36th visit will be after my son goes off to college in 2016) I still get goosebumps.
Great article! It brought back a lot of fun memories, but I’m glad we don’t have to buy ‘E’ tickets anymore.
Lisa Sealey says
Yes! That feeling. . .it’s amazing, and it’s the same every time. And I’m glad about the tickets too! We always wound up with a bunch of “A” and “B” tickets that we didn’t use.