Top 10 Thrill Rides in 2024
The United States of America has no shortage of wild rides for thrill-seekers to choose from. From extreme zip lines to super-fast and hair-raising rollercoasters, exciting rides are offered from coast to coast. If you love a great and thrilling adventure, you will appreciate our list of the ten wildest rides in America. Picking them wasn’t easy as there is a multitude of great rides to pick from, but the ten rides below are sure to be added to any thrill-seeker’s bucket list in short order. Be ready to read some seriously long lists of people who are not allowed to ride these rides, such as pregnant women and young children, because these wild rides are dangerous, thrilling, extreme, and just plain fun!
The Dragon Blaster – Schlitterbahn Waterpark
Galveston Island, Texas
The Dragon Blaster, located in Schlitterbahn Waterpark in Galveston Island, Texas, is the world’s first uphill water coaster. Yes, we said uphill. This waterslide makes ordinary waterslides look like baby toys. The colossal ride uses over 3,000 gallons of water each minute to launch riders uphill at amazing speeds of up to 35 miles per hour.
The ride begins with a 20-foot drop and then proceeds to propel riders quickly through twists, turns, and drops before plummeting them 270 feet downwards in total darkness. This water ride is not for the faint of heart.
Slingshot – Magical Midway Thrill Park
Orlando, FL
At Magical Midway Thrill Park in Orlando, Florida, you will find the amazing and exciting ride known as the Slingshot. Bungee jumping pales in comparison to this huge slingshot that launches riders 390 feet above the ground. Your heart will race as the ride slowly tilts you back and ushers you into the launching position.
Then, if you can manage to keep your eyes open after launch, you will enjoy sweeping views of beautiful Orlando while your heart races even more as you soar through the air as if you are Superman.
Jet Boat Tour
Snake River, Idaho
If you are looking for a calm and enjoyable tour of the Snake River in Hells Canyon, Idaho, do not go on a boat ride called the Boogie Boat by Snake River Adventures. It may begin in a calm manner, but it certainly does not stay so.
With three colossal engines that produce thrust with a horsepower of 1,000, the boat reaches speeds of up to 70 miles per hour and takes riders through an exciting tour of the Snake River’s over 100 white water rapids covering 216 miles.
Kingda Ka – Six Flags Great Adventure Park
Jackson, New Jersey
Kingda Ka in Six Flags Great Adventure Park in Jackson, New Jersey is certainly no ordinary roller coaster. It is reported to be the world’s tallest and fastest roller coaster and thrills millions of riders every year. By tall, we mean a record 456 feet tall, which is the equivalent of 45 stories tall!
By fast, we mean riders are launched by special hydraulic mechanisms and soar at an amazing 128 miles per hour. On the way down from the huge height, riders will endure a 270-foot spiral and probably leave their stomachs behind as they are traveling so fast.
Biplane Thrill Rides
Camarillo, California
Do not even think about riding on one of these biplane thrill rides if you have a weak stomach. In fact, airsick bags are reported to be provided on all flights. Performed by experienced air show aerobatic pilots, these flights take you through maneuvers like the inverted flat spin and the double hammerhead.
There is a range of flights, but the wildest and extreme ones are the “Extreme Flight” and the “Insane Flight”. The “Extreme Flight” will take you through rolls, loops, hammerheads, and maneuvers called the “Cuban Eight”, the “Wingover”, the “Humpty Bump”, and inverted flight. Yikes! The “Insane Flight” is like the extreme one but it also includes gyroscopic maneuvers like the “Torque Roll” and “Tailslide”.
Zero-G
Arlington, VA
Zero G is a specially modified Boeing 727 that tours around the United States and gives people the once-in-a-lifetime feeling of complete weightlessness. Parabolic arcs are performed by experienced pilots in order to create periods of a total weightless environment.
During these periods of time, you will feel just like an astronaut in space and be able to fly, float, flip, and soar as if you are actually in space yourself. This experience is so amazing that even the acclaimed astronaut Buzz Aldrin called it “exhilarating”.
Lake Placid Bobsled Experience
Lake Placid
Ever wondered what it is like to be an Olympic bobsledder? You can get your chance by experiencing the Lake Placid Bobsled Experience in Lake Placid, New York. Professional drivers and brakemen take riders through twists and turn down the icy slopes at neck-breaking speeds.
The ride begins at the half-mile point on the same track used by Olympic racers and whips riders through Shady, Labyrinth, and The Heart, which are turns known by racers across the world.
ZipRider – Icy Strait Point
Hoonah, Alaska
Said to be the world’s largest zip line, this wild ride in Icy Strait Point, Hoonah, Alaska is definitely not for people who have a fear of heights. The ZipRider is 5,330 feet long, 300 feet high at its highest point, and has a vertical drop of 1,300 feet.
It takes six riders at a time, traveling at speeds of up to 60 miles per hour, over the beautiful scenery which includes breathtaking views of Port Frederick and Icy Strait.
River Boarding
Merced River, California
Instead of taking a boat trip down the Merced River in Yosemite National Park, you can actually enjoy riverboarding. Riders use specially made boards that were inspired by boogie boards that people use at the beach. Participants in the river boarding experience navigate the river’s cold white waters at about 25 miles per hour, riding wave after wave of frothy wetness. This experience is so wild and extreme that, before heading out, riders have to suit up to protect themselves against jagged rocks, hypothermia, and drowning.
There is said to be a whirlpool that only the toughest and bravest of people attempt to navigate. It is a pocket that is formed when the rushing water pours over the rocks and pushes back upstream, creating a whirlpool of dangerous proportions.
Hades – Mt. Olympus Park
Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin
Located in Mt. Olympus Park in Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin, Hades is a thrilling roller coaster like no other. The scary ride peaks at 160 feet off of the ground and plummets riders onto a 65-degree drop at 70 miles per hour. As if the ride isn’t scary enough, the coaster actually drops the riders from broad daylight into the complete and total darkness of an 800-foot passageway underneath a parking lot.
This is the length of two football fields! If that isn’t enough to satisfy your thrill-seeking nature, you will be glad to know that the ride then whips around a 90-degree curve only to throw you, once again, into the tunnel of darkness.