Get your thrill on at Pier Park’s XD Darkride Experience, where a variety of interactive and highly immersive adventures promise to deliver the ultimate in excitement. Although the attraction can best be defined as a movie, this categorization doesn’t do it justice. It also incorporates thrill ride and gaming elements to provide an active experience in which you and your fellow adventurers feel fully involved. It may seem like a tourist trap at first glance, but you’d do yourself a disservice by skipping it due to its goofy design or premise.
The movies at XD Darkride Experience are short and sweet, making them ideal for killing a few minutes before dinner or as a much-needed break during a long day of shopping at Pier Park. Between the brief pre-show talk and the five-minute movie, you can expect to spend somewhere between ten and fifteen minutes at this attraction. Depending on lines and ride availability, however, you may be forced to wait a bit longer.
Once you’ve been instructed on safety precautions and other essentials, the fun begins. The theater’s seats aren’t extremely comfortable, but they’re perfectly suitable for a ten-minute movie experience. More importantly, they move during the ride to deliver an extra dose of excitement. You won’t just be sitting passively or hanging on for dear life, however. Rather, you and your fellow riders will be equipped with laser guns that allow you to take an active role in the experience. Don’t worry if you have horrible aim; the impressive visuals will ensure that you still have a great time.
Here are some of the available experiences you might want to try:
Los Banditos
This kid-friendly ride may deliver more laughs than thrills, but therein lies the appeal. The movie’s premise centers around a mad scientist equipped with an army of robot cowboys. Your efforts to keep these crazy cowboys in check will send you on a wagon, on a train, and down the river — all as you witness the scenery and adventurous atmosphere of the Wild West.
Road Fighters
This exciting ride introduces you to an intriguing post-apocalyptic world, in which every day represents yet another fight for survival. Armored machinery plays a key role in this fast-paced thriller, which will have you and your loved ones on the edge of your seats.
Zombies
One of the most frightening options at XD Darkride Experience’s Pier Park location, this movie transforms you into a proud graduate of the police academy, ready to take on your very first night of patrol. Your early work as an officer initially appears to involve a traffic accident, but nothing could have prepared you for the army of zombies you encounter instead.
If you have a few minutes to spare and a thirst for adventure, you’ll have a great time at Pier Park’s XD Darkride Experience. This is your opportunity to momentarily immerse yourself in a terrifying, yet enticing new world. You’ll emerge feeling excited, inspired, and ready for another movie adventure.
Insider Tips:
– Not all shows at the XD Darkride Experience are necessarily suitable for children. Your mileage may vary; what is perfectly thrilling for one kid could be absolutely terrifying for the next. In general, however, young children enjoy the cartoon-style robot cowboys of the Los Banditos show. In most cases, the zombie-themed movie is worth avoiding when you visit with young children. Keep in mind, however, that your kids may also be restricted by their height, as all visitors must be at least 40 inches tall. When in doubt, feel free to ask the attraction’s staff members for recommendations. They will be happy to steer you in the right direction.
– If the brief ride experience just isn’t enough, feel free to take advantage of reduced rates, which are applied for all additional rides during a single visit.