An indoor roller coaster or enclosed roller coaster is a roller coaster built inside a structure. The structure may be unrelated to the ride, or it may be intended solely or primarily for the ride. Many indoor coasters are custom made and placed in amusement parks or shopping malls. LaMarcus Adna Thompson, who pioneered the construction of the first simple roller coasters, initially built "scenic railway" rides including "indoor tableaux, panoramas, and biblical scenes illumined by car-tripped switches and flood lamps". A "completely enclosed roller coaster" called the Twister was built as early as 1925. Walt Disney World's Space Mountain was one of the first rides considered to be an indoor roller coaster, and was "the first indoor roller coaster where riders were in total darkness for the length of the ride so they couldn't tell where the drops or turns would occur".
List of indoor roller coasters
Inside structures purpose-built for the ride
Asia
- Alien Taxi at Trans Studio Cibubur
- Comet Express at Lotte World
- Kereta Misteri at Dunia Fantasi
- Panic Coaster – Back Daaan at Tokyo Dome City Attractions
- Revenge of the Mummy at Universal Studios Singapore
- Star Wars Hyperspace Mountain at Hong Kong Disneyland
- Tron Lightcycle Power Run at Shanghai Disneyland Park
- Xtreme Coaster, Festival Mall, Alabang, Philippines
Europe
- Vogel Rok at Efteling
- Cagliostro at Rainbow MagicLand
- Crazy Bats at Phantasialand
- Crush's Coaster at Walt Disney Studios Park
- Eurosat - CanCan Coaster at Europa-Park
- Huracan at Bellewaerde
- Revolution / Mount Mara at Bobbejaanland
- Movie Park Studios at Movie Park Germany
- Rock 'n' Roller Coaster avec Aerosmith (closed) at Walt Disney Studios Park
- Psyké Underground at Walibi Belgium
- Star Wars Hyperspace Mountain at Disneyland Park (Paris) also named Space Mountain de la Terre à la Lune (1995-2005) and Space Mountain Mission 2 (2005-2017)
- Van Helsing's Factory at Movie Park Germany
- The Walking Dead: The Ride at Thorpe Park
- Winja's Fear & Force at Phantasialand
Australia
North America
- The Dark Knight Coaster at Six Flags Great Adventure, Six Flags Great America and Six Flags México
- TRON Lightcycle/Run at Magic Kingdom
United States
- Blazing Fury at Dollywood
- Black Diamond at Knoebels Amusement Resort
- Disaster Transport at Cedar Point, removed to make way for GateKeeper
- The Exterminator at Kennywood
- Fire in the Hole at Silver Dollar City
- Flight of Fear at Kings Dominion and Kings Island
- Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind at Epcot
- Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts at Universal Studios Florida
- Mystery Mine at Dollywood
- Revenge of the Mummy: The Ride at Universal Studios Florida and Universal Studios Hollywood
- Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith at Disney's Hollywood Studios
- Runaway Mountain at Six Flags Over Texas
- Skull Mountain at Six Flags Great Adventure
- Space Mountain at Magic Kingdom and Disneyland Park
- Laff Trakk at Hersheypark
Inside structures unrelated to the ride
Asia
- Jungle Storm at Chakazoolu Indoor Theme Park
- Sky Train within the Dragon Centre
- Supersonic Odyssey at Cosmo's World
- At the Wonderful World of Whimsy in Cityplaza 2
Europe
- Boomerang at Attractiepark Toverland
- Linnunrata at Linnanmäki
- Piratenbaan at Plopsa Indoor Coevorden
- Piratenbaan at Plopsa Indoor Hasselt
- Winjas at Phantasialand
North America
Canada
- Autosled at Galaxyland
- Crystal Bullet at Crystal Palace (closed in 2014)
- Dragon Wagon at Galaxyland
- Galaxy Orbiter at Galaxyland
- Mindbender at Galaxyland (closed in 2023)
United States
- Avatar Airbender at Nickelodeon Universe (Mall of America)
- Back at the Barnyard Hayride at Nickelodeon Universe (Mall of America)
- Canyon Blaster at Adventuredome
- Fairly Odd Coaster at Nickelodeon Universe (Mall of America)
- Nickelodeon Slime Streak at Nickelodeon Universe (American Dream Meadowlands)
- Pepsi Orange Streak at Nickelodeon Universe (Mall of America)
- Roller Coaster at Neverland
- The Shredder at Nickelodeon Universe (American Dream Meadowlands)
- SpongeBob SquarePants Rock Bottom Plunge at Nickelodeon Universe (Mall of America)
- TMNT Shellraiser at Nickelodeon Universe (American Dream Meadowlands)
References
- Terence G. Young, Terence Young, Robert B. Riley, Theme Park Landscapes: Antecedents and Variations (2002), p. 246.
- Robert Cartmell, The Incredible Scream Machine: A History of the Roller Coaster (1987), p. 145.
- Life Magazine Editors, LIFE Inside the Disney Parks: The Happiest Places on Earth (2018), p. 82.
- Wade Sampson, "The Secret Origin of Space Mountain", MousePlanet.com (August 8, 2007).
- Priscilla Hobbs, Walt's Utopia: Disneyland and American Mythmaking (2015), p. 43.
- "HONG KONG RIDES A WAVE OF WONDERFUL WHIMSY | Journal of Commerce".