WINTER HAVEN – Final preparations are underway inside and outside of Florida’s newest roller coaster, the Galactic Coaster, which is scheduled to open this month at Florida’s Legoland theme park.
Space-themed Lego models, including rotating passenger-customized rides and a next-generation animatronic named Biff Dipper, are a prominent part of the indoor coaster.
Near the entrance, a much larger-than-life model of LEGO Set 918, a spaceship introduced in 1979, is displayed brick by brick.
The ship is “a classic ship, but with special decorations that can only be found at Legoland Park,” says Rosie Brailsford, senior project director of Merlin Magic Making, Merlin Entertainment’s creative arm.
About four years ago, Brailsford was asked to work with the Lego Group to develop an attraction that would work on a global platform, she says.
“There’s a line from the ’70s and different reproductions of it, and you can find that at Lego Galaxy,” she says. “So this is kind of a fusion of past and present, and also an opportunity for future iterations.”
Brailsford guided the Orlando Sentinel on a special walkthrough of the attraction (no rides yet), which opens to the public on February 27th.
The upside-down minifigure is one of the aliens that greets visitors to the LEGO Galaxy Area and Galactic Coaster at LEGOLAND Florida. The new indoor roller coaster opens on February 27th. (Dwayne Bevill/Orlando Sentinel)
The exterior of the Galactic Coaster includes a recreation of an actual space-themed LEGO playset. The coaster opens on February 27th at Legoland Florida. (Dwayne Bevill/Orlando Sentinel)
The exterior of the Galactic Coaster includes a recreation of an actual space-themed LEGO playset. The coaster opens on February 27th at Legoland Florida. (Dwayne Bevill/Orlando Sentinel)
Legoland in Florida is preparing to unveil its indoor roller coaster. Its entrance includes structures based on enlarged LEGO minifigures and toy sets. Galactic Coaster opens to the public on February 27th (Dwayne Bevill/Orlando Sentinel)
Lego’s cosmic flowers appear to be blooming in the play area of the Galactic Coaster, an indoor coaster that opens at Legoland Florida theme park on February 27th. (Dwayne Bevill/Orlando Sentinel)
An upside-down minifigure, the Alien Tourist, stands in the courtyard, offering a photo opportunity for Legoland Florida visitors. The park’s Galactic Coaster is scheduled to open to the public on February 27th (Dwayne Bevill/Orlando Sentinel)
Biff Dipper, Legoland Florida’s next-generation animatronic, will greet theme park visitors as part of the new Galactic Coaster row. The ride opens to the public on February 27th. (Dewayne Bevil/Orlando Sentinel)
Rosie Brailsford, senior project director at Merlin Magic Making, guides visitors in line for the Galactic Coaster, an indoor coaster opening February 27 at Legoland Florida. (Dwayne Bevill/Orlando Sentinel)
A poster in one room of the new Galactic coaster row shows off the ride’s digital options. The attraction opens to the public on February 27th. (Dwayne Bevill/Orlando Sentinel)
The first lobby of the new Galactic coaster includes Lego spaceship models, some of which are discontinued and difficult to find. The indoor roller coaster opens to the public on February 27th. (Dewayne Bevil/Orlando Sentinel)
Galactic Coaster’s rotating ride vehicle includes a lap bar that descends over passengers’ heads. Visitors access the vehicle through a moving walkway. (Dwayne Bevill/Orlando Sentinel)
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The upside-down minifigure is one of the aliens that greets visitors to the LEGO Galaxy Area and Galactic Coaster at LEGOLAND Florida. The new indoor roller coaster opens on February 27th. (Dwayne Bevill/Orlando Sentinel)
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what is outside
The new coaster is located on the site of the Flying School ride, which closed in August 2023. The outdoor queue overlooks the park’s Driving School attraction. There are two entrances, one from the Legoland water park.
The spaceship is surrounded by Lego characters and there are also photo opportunities. An alien tourist figure wearing a flowered shirt, red shorts, a light blue hat, and a large old-fashioned camera takes snapshots of a family of green, antennae-bearing aliens. Duplo’s play area, named Tot Spot, is designed for the youngest visitors and includes a Lego shuttle. (A shade structure has been added.) Nearby are a large LEGO space flower and a robot dog.
Early on, potential riders meet Captain Olivia on screen.
“She welcomes you to Lego Galaxy and explains just a few of the missions you’ll be working on,” Brailsford says.
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A large screen will broadcast a 10-minute loop with details of upcoming events.
“There are so few backstory moments here that as you walk around the land, your subconscious already starts to absorb what’s going on,” says Brailsford.
what happened? In the Galactic Coaster universe, they are preparing for a “possibly destroyed asteroid.”
what’s inside
The front lobby features a large blocky version of the LEGO Galaxy logo, a little interplanetary and a little NASA meatball. Below are actual assembled Lego models, some of which are vintage and hard to find, Brailsford said.
A series of halls and customized posters lead to a large briefing room with the lead engineer, the animatronic Biff Dipper. He is about 4 feet tall and stands on a high platform. His arms, legs, and head move, and his face is animated under the visor of his space helmet. He greeted the prospective riders (sometimes there were up to 80 people in the room) and explained his goals. It’s us versus the asteroid.
“Most of the Legoland minifigures are static, sleek minifigures. … Biff is essentially the next generation of what we want to do on a show basis,” Brailsford says. Legoland says they partnered with Engineered Arts in Cornwall, UK to create the figure, which features 45 facial animations.
Merlin “works closely with Lego to make sure all the Lego movements are true to the minifigure movements, not just random movements,” she says.
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Other characters on screen will give you directions for the ride and advance the story of how to deal with that asteroid. Plan A and Plan B (the big web plan) have failed and Plan C needs help. Plan C involves a “swarm of separators.”
This room contains some interesting visuals, including blueprints for vehicle options and a sign that says, “Interested in time travel? Meet here last Monday at 2 p.m.”
From here, Biff sends Ryder to a room where vehicle options are selected. Riders select design features such as wings, tail, and nose. Choices range from the practical to the fanciful, with add-ons like hamburger wings and disco balls. Each selection takes 15 seconds on the console, after which the overall appearance is uploaded to the RFID-enabled bracelet. There are over 600 possible combinations.
The idea is said to be to make the spacecraft “stunning enough to attract the attention of the Separatists like never before.” Also, try not to get caught by them.
Next stop is the Galactic Coaster loading bay.
vehicle
Passengers travel to the real vehicle via a moving walkway. The vehicle seats four passengers and has a lap bar that hangs from above.
The ride will move into an airlock space, where “you’ll find yourself in a great piece of work,” Brailsford says. It stays there for about 10 seconds, “and then takes off on its adventure at 40 miles per hour,” she says.
“And during the drive, there’s a kind of redemptive moment.”
The Sentinel walkthrough did not include a ridethrough. Brailsford said the experience will be smooth and the launch will be more impressive, perhaps even more intense than Legoland Florida’s sister attraction, the Dragon Coaster. Height requirement is 36 inches when accompanied by an adult. Unaccompanied visitors must be at least 48 inches tall.
“It’s not that it’s scary or anything, but I feel like being indoors gives you a little bit more of the thrill factor,” she says. “It’s dark, so I don’t really know where I’m going.”
The rotation is programmed, she said. “It’s different from free spinning.”
Legoland’s website says you can expect “special effects, synchronized lighting and surprise appearances from classic Lego Space characters.”
The ride lasts approximately 1 minute and 30 seconds and, in keeping with theme park tradition, exits through a gift shop (officially known as Orbital Outpost).
Another Galactic Coaster is under construction at California’s Legoland, scheduled to open on March 6th, and there could theoretically be more Galactic Coasters. Legoland theme parks are also located in New York, England, Denmark, Germany, Malaysia, Dubai, Japan, South Korea, and China.
“We have a basic story and land concept that we can tweak and tweak if we decide to release it,” Brailsford says. “It might not necessarily be this vehicle. It could be another vehicle with a different story in the world.”
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