Pteranodon Flyers Review
These beautiful Pteranodons don't want to carry you for too long
Have you noticed something weird about our ride-card up above? Yep, Pteranodon Flyers is labeled as a “roller coaster”. Don't worry, this one is quite relaxing, possibly even more than something like The Barnstormer at Magic Kingdom. It's called a roller coaster mostly for technical reasons, as you're suspended on a vehicle and gently swing to the sides as your Pteranodon flies over Jurassic Park at low speeds.
Pteranodon Flyers is one of the most unusual rides in Islands of Adventure, and maybe the only ride in Florida where you need both a child and an adult to fill up the vehicle. The young guest sits in front, while the adult sits behind, and then it’s time to fly all over Camp Jurassic for just over a minute. While some may find the short duration disappointing, there are still guests who appreciate the overall experience.
The Good
This attraction is primarily designed for kids. I appreciate the freedom the vehicles offer, as you're suspended in the air with your legs hanging and a simple lap bar keeping you secure. Rest assured, it's completely safe, especially since you're just gliding around and gently swaying side to side. It's also not a thrilling ride by any means. It's there for your kids to enjoy swinging and observing everything from above.
The Bad
Uh-oh, I know what you are thinking. “Only one paragraph talking about the good stuff, so is this that bad!?” relax, I do think that Pteranodon Flyers might be a cool option if you have children, but I wouldn’t call it a must see ride. Let’s check the main problems with it.
The first major one is the long queues and the ride height restrictions. You need to come here with someone that isn’t tall, which, most of the time, means that you need to visit this ride with your own children. This actually doesn’t have anything to do with weight limitations, but ride capacity: there are only three birds flying across the track at any given time, and each bird can only carry two guests. This means that the load capacity is really terrible, which also contributes to long queues. Universal tries to “fix” the ride capacity by putting height restrictions there, which only helps a little. Expect wait times to be around 30-40 minutes most of the time.
“Hey, 30-40 minutes isn’t that long of a wait time!” Well, the second issue is that this ride is incredibly short. You're only swinging for about 80-90 seconds, which is disappointing, especially considering that you need to wait in line for half an hour. If the ride lasted closer to three minutes, I wouldn't have any issue with the restrictions, but it's over in the blink of an eye, making it not worth visiting most of the time.
Will Kids enjoy it?
Young children will still find this enjoyable, even if they feel the ride is short. Ensure your little ones aren't afraid of heights, as the suspension height is higher than that of the Seuss Trolley Train Ride. Also, keep in mind that your child will be seated "alone" in front of you, which might cause anxiety since they won't be able to see you. However, it's pretty cool to gently swing to the sides and feel the wind across your face.
