At a glance
The coaster draws directly on the famous mine cart chase in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984). The adventure starts in line: you walk through an abandoned archaeologists’ camp, littered with Jeeps, crates, notebooks, and forgotten tools, before taking a staircase up to the temple entrance. The story is simple: Indiana Jones has set up a railroad to haul away his archaeological finds, and he invites you to take the tracks. Except the mine cart quickly runs off course, and the temple turns into a wild race through the ruins, plunging down slopes, through tight turns and dark tunnels, before flipping you upside down in a loop hidden in the scenery.
On the technical side, it’s a 566-meter coaster with an 18-meter height, reaching 58 km/h (36 mph), and the first Disney coaster in the world with a 360-degree inversion, two years ahead of Space Mountain.
Shiva is the deity honored in this temple, and keep an eye out for Naga, a cobra that pops up in several spots as a wink at how much Indy hates snakes.
The roughest coaster in the park. A mine cart run through a crumbling archaeological dig, with sharp turns, a fast drop, and a surprise vertical loop. The jungle-covered temple scenery is especially well done. Single Rider often shortens the wait, which helps, since the jolts can catch unprepared guests off guard.
History
Opened on July 30, 1993 with George Lucas in attendance, a year after the park’s grand opening, the ride was dreamed up as part of the Added Capacity Program to take pressure off Big Thunder Mountain, the park’s only roller coaster at the time. It was first planned as a temporary attraction until Space Mountain arrived, but its success made it permanent. It’s the only Disney roller coaster based on Indiana Jones. The versions in Anaheim (1995) and at Tokyo DisneySea (2001) are a different kind of dark ride.
Between April 2000 and December 2004, the ride ran backward under the name Indiana Jones and the Temple of Peril: Backwards!, until the experience was dropped because the sensations were judged too rough.
Discover the full story of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Peril.
Technical specs
- Top speed
- 58 km/h
- Duration
- 1 min 14
- Length
- 600 m
- Opened
- 1993
- Type Coaster
- Opening date July 30, 1993
- Duration 1 min 14 sec
- Top speed 58 km/h (36 mph)
- Maximum height 18 m
- Number of inversions 1
- Track length 600 m
- Number of trains 6
- Cars per train 2
- Riders per car 6
- Riders per train 12
- Hourly capacity 1,472 riders/hour
- Height requirement 1.40 m
- Design Walt Disney Imagineering
- Manufacturer Intamin
- Engineer Werner Stengel
Theme & world
Levels & accessibility
- Fear level moderate
- Thrill level big thrills
- Emotional impact moderate
- Perceived wait moderate
- Height requirement 1.40 m
- Recommended age teens, adults
- Wheelchair access must transfer from wheelchair
- Open to pregnant visitors
Premier Access, Single Rider, PhotoPass
Skip the standby line whenever you like. Handy in peak season, when the wait often goes past 60 minutes.
A "single rider" line: you fill the empty seats, often much faster than the standby line.
No PhotoPass on this ride.
This ride stays closed during Extra Magic Time and only opens when the park does.
Who it’s made for
Pros and cons
The highlights
- Carefully themed line
- The only outdoor loop in Disneyland Park
- A historic coaster in Disneyland Park
The downsides
- Sudden jolts that are hard on your back and neck, a short ride, and no storytelling during the ride itself
My verdict
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Peril has the only outdoor loop in Disneyland Park, and it’s also the roughest coaster at the resort. The mine cart whips through sharp turns and a fast drop at 58 km/h (36 mph), on a short 1 min 14 sec run through an archaeological dig setting. The thrills are straightforward, with no onboard story, but the line is beautifully themed. The minimum height is 140 cm, which makes it one of the most restrictive coasters in the park for families.
It’s one of my personal favorites in Adventureland, but fair warning: you have to like getting shaken around. My insider tip is to press your head firmly against the headrest right from the start. It makes all the difference for your neck and your ears. If your kids don’t meet the height requirement, ask for a Rider Switch (formerly Baby Switch) ticket at the entrance, so both parents can ride one after the other without waiting in line again. And for fans, Single Rider saves a ton of time at peak times. If the temple’s backstory intrigues you, Disneyland Paris has posted a video on its YouTube channel that tells the full story of the ride.
Julie’s tip
Best time to go
Based on this ride’s wait time history, updated every day.
Map & getting there
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Peril is at the back of Adventureland, between Pirates of the Caribbean and Adventure Isle.
Your questions about this ride
01 How can you avoid long lines for the most popular rides?
To skip long lines at Disneyland Paris, I mix several strategies. First, Single Rider is free and really speeds things up on the rides that offer it, including Crush’s Coaster, Flight Force, Ratatouille, and Spider-Man, as long as you don’t mind boarding apart from your group. Next, Disney Premier Access is a paid service that guarantees you priority entry on the headline rides. If you’re staying at a Disney hotel, Extra Magic Time lets you into the park before official opening, and that’s the best time to ride the popular attractions back to back without waiting. Last, heading to the busiest rides during a parade or a big show empties the lines dramatically.
02 Are the wait times posted in the park accurate?
Yes, the wait times shown in the app or on the park’s screens are generally accurate. They’re often equal to or slightly longer than the real wait, which helps you plan your day better.
03 How can I find out if a ride will be under refurbishment during my vacation?
Disneyland Paris posts the list of rides closed for refurbishment on its official website several weeks ahead of time. Since the parks are open year-round, maintenance crews sometimes work on days the park is open, which leads to temporary closures. My tip: check this calendar (or the one on my blog) before you book, especially if there’s one particular ride you really care about.
04 What are the height requirements for each ride at Disneyland Paris?
Here are the minimum heights for the thrill rides at Disneyland Paris. In Disneyland Park: Autopia at 0.81 m, Star Tours and Big Thunder Mountain at 1.02 m, Star Wars Hyperspace Mountain at 1.20 m, and Indiana Jones and the Temple of Peril at 1.40 m. In Disney Adventure World: Toy Soldiers Parachute Drop at 0.81 m, The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror at 1.02 m, Crush’s Coaster at 1.07 m, and Avengers Assemble: Flight Force and RC Racer at 1.20 m. All the other rides have no height requirement, which families with young kids love.
05 Which rides at Disneyland Paris feature loops or inversions?
At Disneyland Paris, three rides turn you upside down. In Avengers Campus, Avengers Assemble: Flight Force launches you through inversions on an indoor coaster in total darkness. Over in Discoveryland, Star Wars Hyperspace Mountain is another indoor launched coaster with inversions, this time with a space theme. As for Indiana Jones and the Temple of Peril, it has one loop, out in the open air. If big thrills are your thing, put these three at the top of your list. You need to be at least 1.20 m tall for the first two and 1.40 m for the third.
