Astro Orbiter is an attraction in the Tomorrowland section of the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World. It is basically the same ride as Dumbo, in that you sit in a small vehicle attached by an arm to a spinning center, and you have the ability to move the car up and down as you circle around. The difference is that (1) your vehicle is a space ship, and (2) the platform on which you start sits about 2 stories above ground level. You wait in line on the ground and when it it is your turn you take an elevator up to the platform to start your little adventure.  Lift your car up while you go around and you end up with a very nice view of the park.

The Fuji x100s is a perfect camera to get a photo while riding this attraction: somewhat small and light, with quick focus, good image quality, and no lens zoom. When you point the camera somewhere you have a good idea what you are going to get even if you are not looking at the LCD screen or viewfinder.

Some people find the motion and height of this ride disconcerting. For what it’s worth, I have a mild case of acrophobia that can be triggered by some high amusement park rides, but Astro Orbiter did not bother me at all. Also the cars are rather tight. Some large people might need to ride solo, fitting 2 adults would be a neat trick unless they are both quite small, and even adult/child combinations need to be carefully arranged.  By the way, I am related to two of the 3 poeple you see here.