Toy Story Land in Disney’s Hollywood Studios is the newest addition to the Walt Disney World resort and finally puts a spotlight on one of the most beloved franchises in Disney/Pixar history. We visited the new land to experience the atmosphere, the rides and, most importantly, the food. Here are our thoughts on Toy Story Land.

The Rides

Toy Story Land boasts three rides, two of which are new. The oldest of the rides is Midway Mania, a 4D “shooter” which pits the two riders against each other in carnival themed games. This ride wasn’t specifically built for Toy Story Land (it’s actually been in Disney’s Hollywood Studios since 2008) but it is the kickoff ride for this story.

The first of the new rides is the Alien Swirling Saucers ride. The attraction is in the same family as the Mad Tea Party teacup ride in the Magic Kingdom, you slide in a vehicle as it twirls around a track. But even though it’s a lot like the teacups, it isn’t exactly the same thing. The alien saucers don’t exactly spin the same way the cups do. Instead, they whip you around like Slinky Dog wagging his tail.

It’s a different take on the spinner ride, but the feeling is still the same. Even though the ride doesn’t have nearly the amount of spinning torque as some other spinners, if you’re the kind of person who can’t take those kinds of rides, it might be best to skip it.

The second of the newer attractions, and Toy Story Land’s marquee ride is the Slinky Dog Dash roller coaster. Slinky Dog is an outdoor family-style coaster that compares favorably to Disney’s other family coasters Big Thunder Mountain and Seven Dwarfs Mine Train. The ride feels faster and more intense than the other two coasters while still being easy enough for the whole family to ride.

Toy Story Land’s three rides are a good example of doing a lot with a little. For only having space for three rides, Disney has done a great job making them all different, yet still fun.

The Food

We haven’t eaten the entire menu at Woody’s Lunch Box (yet…) but what we have had was surprisingly good and filling.

Jessica had the BBQ Brisket Melt which is basically a grilled cheese sandwich with brisket in it. The cheese was melty and the brisket was rich and flavorful, but the real MVP was the buttery sourdough bread. It was almost as if you were eating the meal on garlic bread or Texas Toast.

The bread is also where the biggest difference in taste will be.

We went with a friend who also ordered the brisket and her bread was toasted less than Jessica’s. The sandwich still tasted fine, but there was much less of a crunch when you bit into it.

Tyler had an order of the Totchos and put his order’s taste above both brisket sandwiches. The Totchos consist of tater tots loaded with chili, cheese, sour cream, onion and the coup de gras: Fritos! The consistency of the meal was the best part because the Fritos and the tots were crunchy, while everything else was smooth. The two taste profiles blended perfectly.

For our dessert, we split a Raspberry Lunch Box Tart. Just as the name suggests, this is basically a giant Pop Tart. There isn’t much to say about the treat other than it was very good. The raspberry filling was tart and flavorful and tastes less like the jelly inside of a store-bought Pop Tart and more like the jelly from a jar of preserves.

Last but not least, we tried the Mystic Portal Punch as our drink. This is a non-alcoholic drink consisting of Blue Powerade with some tangerine and lemon-lime flavors added in. We all very much enjoyed the drink, but be warned that it is sweet. It’s not pucker-your-mouth/pure sugar sweet, but it definitely tastes like a liquid Sweet Tart, and with the base drink being Powerade it’s refreshing and energizing.

The Atmosphere

Disney did their best to cram as much as they could in a limited space. They did a good job, but that doesn’t take away from the fact that Toy Story Land isn’t the biggest space Disney’s Hollywood Studios has to offer.

Other than the alleyways which lead to the rides and Woody’s Lunch Box, there is only one main path which cuts through the land. This makes an already crowded land feel that much more crowded because there just isn’t anywhere else to go. Toy Story Land doesn’t even have it’s own merchandise store to suck people into, just some kiosks.

Some of the reason for the crowd is because a lot of people are going to be standing around and looking at Toy Story Land’s best feature: The structures.

The structures and statues placed around the park are true-to-life recreations of the best parts of your childhood. Giant UNO cards, pencils, erector sets, Baybel cheeses, Cooties and more blasts from the past are littered throughout the area. Half the fun of the land is noticing all the details.

And boy are there details.

Virtually nothing in Toy Story Land is wasted. If a lighting structure is needed, it looks like something fun, if a bench needs to be placed, it’s going to look like Popsicle sticks, if additional light is needed, it’s going to be giant Christmas light bulbs. The details are simply exquisite and nothing is wasted.

The Verdict?

Toy Story Land in Disney’s Hollywood Studios is a perfect example of Disney doing a lot with a little. The attention to detail and the amount of fun they’ve crammed into a little space is remarkable and noteworthy. The Slinky Dog Dash coaster is the most fun family coaster at the Walt Disney World Resort and the food is tasty and unique. Unfortunately, the space is still small and because of the lack of outlets and people-suckers, you tend to feel the crowds a little bit more than we’d like.

Give yourself some extra time and patience when in Toy Story Land. Know beforehand that it might be crowded, but you should still take your time and soak up the details.

(And make sure you ride Slinky Dog Dash. Always ride Slinky Dog Dash)