Hollywood Studios
Disney’s Hollywood Studios theme park was the third to open on Walt Disney World property in May of 1989. It is designed after the 1930’s and 1940’s era in Hollywood. The park is represented by its icon the replica Sorcerer’s Hat from the Disney movie Fantasia. This park is made up of six different themed areas, although the design is not as easy to navigate as the other Disney Parks.
Hollywood Boulevard
Hollywood Boulevard is the main entrance to all other parts of the park and is lined with several shops selling Disney merchandise. This is also the main place to watch parades that take place in the park as well as street entertainment that takes place throughout the day. This is very similar to Main Street, U.S.A. in the Magic Kingdom, just on a little smaller scale. At the end of Hollywood Boulevard is the parks icon, the Sorcerer’s Hat. Directly behind the hat is a replica of Grauman’s Chinese Theater in Hollywood. The replica theatre is home to The Great Movie Ride, a slow moving dark ride that plays tribute to many classic films of the past including The Wizard of Oz and Raiders of the Lost Ark.
 Star Tours: The Adventure Continues in Echo Lake
Streets of America
The Streets of American section of the park is themed after a Hollywood backlot where the backdrops and city facades make for great photo opportunities. There are street facades resembling San Francisco and New York for guests to explore and use in their pictures. This section of the park is currently home to the Studio Backlot Tour ride which includes a tour of the American Film Institute Showcase as well as a tram ride through the backlot areas of Disney’s Hollywood Studios. The tram ride includes a ride through Catastrophe Canyon, a live move set. Also in the Streets of American section is Jim Henson’s Muppet Vision 3D as well as a playground area patterned after the Honey, I Shrunk the Kids movie. The newest addition to the Streets of America is the Lights, Motors, Action! Extreme Stunt Show which is a look at how vehicle action sequences are used and made for movies.
 Entrance to Animation Courtyard
Sunset Boulevard
Sunset Boulevard was an expansion to Hollywood Studios that was opened in the summer of 1994. The street is home to the main focal point of the Hollywood Tower Hotel, which is home to the thrill ride The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror. This thrill ride, which is based on a television series the Twilight Zone, is one of the most intense at Disney World. Located next to the Tower of Terror is Rock n’ Roller Coaster starring Aerosmith. This indoor coaster is another favorite of thrill ride fans with its high speed launch and three inversions, marking the first Disney coaster to go upside down. Sunset Boulevard is also home to the Theater of the Stars which is the home to Beauty and the Beast Live on Stage, a Broadway style musical that features many of the highlights and great songs from the Disney film.
 Toy Story Midway Mania! on Pixar Place
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 The Great Movie Ride on Hollywood Boulevard
Echo Lake
The Echo Lake area is set around a small lagoon just to the left of Hollywood Boulevard. There are many attractions, shows, and services in the Echo Lake area. This area is designed around the Golden Age of Hollywood. Echo Lake is home to the newly renovated ride Star Tours: The Adventure Continues. This ride is a first of its kinds as there are over 50 different ride sequences for this simulator ride so it is an entirely different experience every time. This area of the park is also home to the Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular which re-enacts some famous scenes from the Raiders of the Lost Ark movie as well as showing how these movie stunts are performed. Echo Lake is also the location for the Jedi Training Academy where each day a group of children get to become “padawan learners” and get “lightsaber training” from a Jedi master. Finally, one of the newer attractions at Hollywood Studios is the American Idol Experience, where parks guests get to try out and sing in front of a live studio audience every day.
 Lights, Motors, Actions Extreme Stunt Show in Streets of America
Animation Courtyard
Animation Courtyard is a look at many traditional Disney attraction including The Magic of Disney Animation and Disney: One Man’s Dream. The Magic of Disney Animation shows guests how animated characters are created and even gives those guests a chance to draw a character themselves. Disney: One Man’s Dream is another piece of Disney history as it looks at the life and legacy of Walt Disney by looking back at the beginnings of his dreams and how Disney World came to be. There are also two live shows in this section of the park. Voyage of the Little Mermaid is an adventure using puppets, lasers, music, projectors, as well as human actors to tell the story from the Little Mermaid. Playhouse Disney: Live on Stage! also entertains younger guests with their favorite characters from the Disney Channel.
 The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror on Sunset Boulevard
Pixar Place
Pixar Place is the most recent addition to Hollywood Studios and is a conversion of several of the soundstages that were used when movies were actually produced there. This street is designed after the home of Pixar Animation Studios, Disney’s partner in animated movies. The only attraction here is Toy Story Midway Mania!, an interactive 3D ride through live carnival games, each of which is hosted by a different character from Toy Story. Since its opening this ride has become one of the most popular in all of Walt Disney World.
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Fantasmic!
Nights come alive at Hollywood Studios in the Hollywood Hills Amphitheater as it plays host to the remarkable Disney spectacle of Fantasmic! This show which has seen great success at several Disney locations features fireworks, live actors, water effects, fire, music, numerous boats, decorated rafts, and projected images onto mist screens feature Disney film and movie footage that has been altered to fit the theme of this show. This show is a must see attraction at Hollywood Studios and traditionally draws a standing room only crowd in the 7,000 seat amphitheatre.
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