Big Thunder Mountain Railroad

Frontierland, Magic Kingdom

Main Details
Park Magic Kingdom
Land Frontierland
Ride Type Rollercoaster
Restraint Lap Bar
Thrill Level Medium
Ride Duration 3mins 25secs
Pre-Show
Post-Show
Gift Shop

Extra Magic Hours
Morning EMH
Evening EMH

Queue Details
Disney Genie+
Lightning Lane Purchase
FastPass+
FastPass+ Demand High
Standby Line
Standby Wait High
Single Rider Line
Interactive
Rider Switch
Indoor Queue
Outdoor Queue
Comfort Level Low

Photography
On Ride Photo

Ride System
Type Steel Rollercoaster
Manufacturer Arrow Dynamics
Track Length 2780ft
Max Speed 30mph
Seating Layout 5 cars each seating 6 guests, 3 rows per car, 2 guests per row.
On-Board Audio

Restrictions
Height Req. 40"
Age Under age 7 must be accompanied by person age 14+
Frightening Kids
Accessibility Must Transfer from Wheelchair/ECV

Important Dates
Grand Opening Sep 23 1980

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Big Thunder Mountain Railroad October 2024

11 days ago5 photos

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad refurbishment January 2024

10 months ago4 photos

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad refurbishment June 2021

3 years ago6 photos

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad overview

3 years ago5 photos

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad refurbishment

8 years ago3 photos

Enhanced Big Thunder Mountain backstory art

+ See all 12 Galleries

Disney Begins Refurbishment Preparations at Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Large Scrim Installed
11 days ago

Disney World's Big Thunder Mountain Railroad Refurbishment Timeline Updated with New Permit
15 days ago

Disney World's Big Thunder Mountain Railroad Major Refurbishment Confirmed: Closure Begins January 2025
26 days ago

Disney Files Permit for Major Big Thunder Mountain Railroad Refurbishment
5 months ago

Write a Review

"Build it & they will come !" 11 years ago by Elvejaco

Love Big Thunder Mountain Railroad it's always fun to ride this coaster. I wish Disney World would build another Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. The New expansion would help Disney maintain the original ride help reduce waiting times also. While enhancing Frontierland's Experience even further. Disney should also do the same with Splash Mountain,& Adventureland. Walt Disney always wanted His Parks to continue to Expand & Grow with Endless Imagination. As the old saying goes Build it & they will come.

"LOVE LOVE LOVE" 11 years ago by Iheartdisney

I love this ride so much! We have been going for years and this is always a must! It is a very rare thing for us to not ride this more then three times! I love how the coaster is more tame which makes it a different type of thrill from things like Space Mountain. I love riding and seeing the mountain and the other stuff. The other reason I love this ride is because of the detail that was put into this ride. I swear Universal does not have a coaster detailed like this! The only thing I hate is that they have taken away the special effects from the ride. I mean I understand the safety concerns, but to me there are better ways to protect guest without removing the effects! But we still love it, and we will always love it!

"Endless Fun!" 11 years ago by AimYourBrent

My girlfriend loves roller coasters. She had never been to WDW and wasn't sure how much she would like it compared to coaster parks, although she was intrigued. Well, despite my best attempts to prepare her, she was absolutely amazed by every single detail about every single park, land, ride, attraction, shop, restaurant, resort, etc. and she is now a full blown WDW fanatic! Getting back to my original statement; Big Thunder Mountain is now her favorite coaster in the world. She says she has more fun on it than any other coaster type ride she has been on, and we ride it at least a half dozen times on every trip.

"Whoa!" 12 years ago by Aaronardo

What looks like a kiddie ride

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad closed for refurbishment (Reopening Date TBA) Jan 06, 2025 to Mar 31, 2026

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad closed for refurbishment Jan 16, 2024 to Jan 20, 2024

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad closed for refurbishment Jan 09, 2023 to Jan 14, 2023

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad closed for refurbishment Feb 14, 2022 to Feb 18, 2022

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad closed for refurbishment Jun 07, 2021 to Jun 12, 2021

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad 2012 refurbishment

12 years ago8 mins

Big Thunder Mountain is a rollercoaster-type attraction located in Frontierland at the Magic Kingdom. Guests board a mine train at the Big Thunder Mining Co. for a trip through the mountain range.

Details

FASTPASS: Yes
Height/Age Requirement: At least 40" tall

Facts and Trivia

Trains: 6 trains, each featuring 1 engine and 5 cars.

Train names: U.B. Bold, U.R. Daring, U.R. Courageous, I.M. Brave, I.B. Hearty, I.M. Fearless.

Rider capacity: 6 guests per car gives a total of 30 guests per train.

Track length: 2780 ft.

Speed: 24-30mph.

Mountain Height: 100 ft

Ride duration: 3 mins 25 seconds.

Animatronics: There are 20 Audio Animatronic figures.

Height requirement: At least 40 inches tall.

Voices artist: The spiels for "the wildest ride in the wilderness" were recorded by Dallas McKennon who also provides the voices for Benjamin Franklin in The American Adventure.

Music List

Believe Me If All Those Endearing Young Charms (Melody: 1775; lyrics and music: 1807-1808)
The Big Rock Candy Mountain (1885)
The Blue Tail Fly, or, Jimmy Crack Corn (1846)
Clementine (Oh, My Darling Clementine - 1884)
Hand Me Down My Walking Cane (1865)
Home on the Range (c.1873)
Little Brown Jug (1869)
The Red River Valley (1896)
Shenandoah (c.1826)
Sweet Genevieve (1869)
Turkey in the Straw, or, Old Zip Coon (1834)
When You and I Were Young, Maggie (1866)

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Big Thunder Mountain Railroad

Frontierland, Magic Kingdom