We visited Fun Spot America in Orlando on September 4, and the sister park in Kissimmee on September 5. Two great parks that surpassed our expectations, with some of the most fun of our entire Focus on Florida tour and by far the most extreme and terrifying experience of the trip too.
On arrival at the Orlando park we were suitably impressed, with ample free car parking (expect to pay around $20 per day at all other theme parks in Florida) and a bright and colorful entrance. We picked up our 'single day pass' wristbands in no time at all, from a friendly and welcoming team.
First of all we hit up the park's two main roller coasters, wooden coaster White Lightning and inverted coaster Freedom Flyer.
Both are really enjoyable coasters, the former with over 2000 feet of glorious wooden track through a barrage of twists, turns and air time hills - one of only three wooden roller coasters in Florida. The latter a modern inverted coaster, not too intense so perfect for families as well as thrillseekers, as it swings through a series of swooping maneuvers over the park.
After the coasters, we headed over the the park's array of go-kart tracks, and with four circuits to choose from we were spoilt for choice! Conquest, Commander, Quad Helix and Thrasher each offer a unique course, and with a single day pass they are all included with no additional charge - a very rare, and most welcome benefit. These are thrilling tracks with sharp corners and steep drops, the go-karts reach high speeds, and staff make everyone aware of the rules to ensure that safety comes first.
Next we took on the park's three thrill rides, a classic Enterprise, the Screaming Swing ride Space Invader and fairground spinner Rip Curl. However, none of this would prepare us for what was to come, the towering 250ft tall Skycoaster, the world's largest.
Described as "the closest thing to jumping out of a plane, besides jumping out of a plane", it was unlike anything we have ever experienced. After a short briefing we were harnessed up and taken to the loading platform. At this point you are then attached to the flight cables (up to 3 people can ride together) and winched to the top of the launch tower, there are fantastic views of the area to enjoy if you are not too terrified to take them in!
Upon reaching the top a coundown begins... 3-2-1-fly! and one of the riders must pull a ripcord to detach you from one of the cables and send you hurtling down to the ground (face first!) at up to 70mph before levelling out and swooping over the lake and up into the air on the other side of the gigantic arch. Once this most intense part of the experience is over riders swing back and forth in a pendulum motion until you are going slowly enough to catch a ring near the loading platform and are pulled back down.
The staff were very professional, putting us at ease at all times. The attraction costs $20 each with a single day pass and you can also purchase a video of your whole experience as a record of your achievement. Our hearts were pounding as we were raised up, and the free fall completely took our breath away, but we immeditely loved it and had our minds on riding the even taller version at the other park.
Another feature of the Orlando park is Gator Spot, a small walkthrough attraction featuring a variety of alligators and crocodiles. This is again included with a single day pass and is a nice addition to the range of rides and attractions available at the park. The Fun Spot America in Orlando also offers a selection of family and kiddie rides, an arcade and places to eat and drink.
The following day we arrived at the Kissimmee park full of anticipation, for the new wooden roller coaster Mine Blower and our second Skycoaster experience.
We went straight to the roller coaster and being a quiet day at the park we got straight on in the front row. Mine Blower is 82 feet tall, reaching over 48mph and features a stunning 360-degree barrel roll inversion over the station. There is a also themed entrance and the coaster itself looks brilliant, with 'explosives' mounted to the front.
This is the first inverting wooden roller coaster in Florida, and it feels fantastic, the whole ride is so intense and it doesn't let up until the very end. We then had another ride in the back row and were almost crying in laughter as the coaster threw us about, it was relentless!
After taking a breather, we felt ready to take on the world's tallest Skycoaster, at a whopping 300ft tall. The overall experience is very similar to at Orlando, however that extra 50ft in height results in a noticably longer free fall - in fact we were told that we would be accelerating towards the ground for the first 150ft - so despite having conquered the other version we were just as nervous. It was incredible, we loved it, and felt a great sense of achievement.
The rest of our time at Fun Spot America in Kissimmee was spent enjoying the park's other thrill rides including the wild mouse Rockstar Coaster, and the go-karts which again have 4 circuits to choose from; Vortex, Chaos, Road Course and Slick Track. Just as the other park, there are also a variety of family and kiddie rides, as well as an arcade plus food and drink outlets.
Once it was dark we went back to Mine Blower for back-to-back rides in the dark, an already brilliant ride became even better, feeling much faster and the perfect end to our day.
If like us you are in Florida for a few weeks and are staying in either Orlando or Kissimmee we would definitely recommend stopping by at one or both of the Fun Spot America parks. Don't expect the immersive theming, dark rides and shows found at the bigger parks - but an extra dose of genuine fun, in what feels like a 'local' park. The owners clearly have a great sense of pride, as both parks are spotlessly clean, very fresh and all the rides look well maintained. The staff were all really friendly too. If you've brave enough, you can even experience a Skycoaster at night!
