Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind is the best trick ever

Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind brings new thrills to Walt Disney World’s EPCOT, and it’s by far the best ride I’ve ever been on.

Cosmic Rewind launch May 27 with a virtual queue and an individual Lightning Lane, and fans of roller coasters and action-packed driving experiences will love every minute. Especially Marvel fans who can’t get enough Guardians of the Galaxy.

Located near Mission: SPACE, Cosmic Rewind features a life-size Nova Corps Starblaster ship outside the attraction, and that alone is worth stopping for a photo, but then you walk in and it’s quite a Marvel experience. You’ll also be entitled to all of the Guardian cast members, including Rocket, Groot, Gamora, Star-Lord, and Groot.

Here is more about the experience, some of the biggest highlightsand what you can find at Treasures of Xandar.

The Galaxarium, the Xandar Gallery and the Phase Chamber

Step through the doors of Cosmic Rewind and you’ll find yourself in the Galaxarium, a circular space where the Worldmind, the Xandarian supercomputer, introduces you to space and Xandar’s starships, and the wonders of the galaxy. It looks like a planetarium as you walk through the queue and experience another world.

At the top of the Galaxarium, you enter the Xandar Gallery, where the queue winds through highlights of technology, ships, and a map of one of their cities. Along the way, you’ll also see some of the Guardians being interviewed for their heroism, and there’s also a scale model of a Starblaster, not to mention the Milano.

And then get ready to teleport into space in the phase chamber, where Nova Prime Irani Rael (the phenomenal Glenn Close) and the very funny Centurion Tal Marik (Terry Crews!), prepare you for the journey into the space aboard the cruiser Nova Corps Starcharter.

The journey in space

It’s all fun and games until a celestial steals the cosmic generator. Sure, visitors are supposed to get an introduction to Xandarian tech, but the hulking Eson spoils it all, and Rocket solves the problem by sending all the EPCOT Terrans after the stolen tech.

So after being transported into space, you’ll find yourself heading for the escape pods to follow Eson through time and space portals, while the Guardians of the Galaxy “cheer” you from the sidelines.

Honestly, they don’t have much faith in the mission, but they can’t get there to save the day themselves.

The Xandarian Starjumper, also known as Disney’s Omnicaaster, is so smooth and fast, spinning you up and down in the darkness of space. The experience is more intense than other Disney rides, but it’s also totally fun, and for those wondering, it doesn’t turn upside down.

Each Starjumper seats 4 people, and you’ll load the roller coaster in pairs, then experience a breathtaking ride. The closest comparison to any other ride would be Space Mountain, except the ride vehicles on Cosmic Rewind are totally next-gen. It’s a whole new type of ride that feels like it’s going through space while being totally fluid.

And on top of that, in true Guardians style, the ride is set to some of the best rock and pop music from the 70s and 80s. Riders will hear either “September”, “Disco Inferno”, “Conga”, ” Everybody Wants to Rule the World”, “I Ran” or “One Way or Another”. (On my ride I got “One Way or Another” which was great, but knowing what I know now I can’t wait to ride again and hope to get “Everybody Wants to Rule the World or “I Run”.)

With half a chance, I would have loved to ride Cosmic Rewind several times that day, and it will be a ride that people will look forward to doing again and again. The characters feel torn from the Marvel Universe, and the experience is the best ride Walt Disney World has ever had, let alone any ride in any park in Florida.

Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind is “the longest fully enclosed roller coaster at any Disney theme park and one of the longest enclosed roller coasters in the world” and features over 200,000 square feet.

Disney Imagineers also went to the set of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3so it looks like you can expect an update to some ride visuals after the movie releases.

Treasures of Xandar

Last but not least, I didn’t get to see the new store while I was there, but you’ll find Treasures of Xandar at the end of Cosmic Rewind, and it’s got some great new Guardians of the Galaxy merchandise. One collection draws inspiration from vintage concert merchandise, an Honorary Guardians collection in blue and gold and the Groot Through the Years collection.

And apparently the shop is run by The Broker, the character from the first guardians of the galaxy movie that doesn’t want to answer Peter’s questions about the Infinity Stone.

See the video

Here is an overview of my entire driving experience. You’ll see all the great racing highlights, including the reverse launch and some of my favorite parts. Feel free to leave me any comments or questions here or on the video and I’ll get back to you.

Images 2 and 3 courtesy of Walt Disney World. Main image by W. Andrew Powell/The GATE.