SkyFly: Soar America offers a flying theater style of travelog, an immersive, big-screen experience on a moving chair rack that creates the feel of flying while also cruising through some of America’s most fabulous landscapes. The sensory effects also include wind, mist and even scents, to simulate the reality of flight, and absorb all the senses into the realism of the experience.
Image courtesy of SkyFly
You’ll be able to get some amazing views of the Smoky Mountains and other beautiful sites across the country, all within an outstanding adventure ride that surrounds you with an amazing three-dimensional experience. It’s a unique experience, from one of the few such operations in the country, and located in The Island entertainment complex in Pigeon Forge.
SkyFly has its guests board an “airship” built in steam-punk style, to create a historic feel in what is actually a state-of-the-art ride system that mimics the feeling of flying. A range of sights, smells and sounds surround you as the 50-foot spherical screen encompasses your airship, where you’re suspended off the ground. The ride tips, tilts and drops to create a fully-immersive experience, with wind and mist, creating a level of realism that really has to be experienced to understand.
Music accompanies the adventure, with soundtracks recorded in the heart of Nashville’s Music Row by a 70-piece professional orchestra of talented musicians. This professionalism is only a small part of the attraction’s $20 million development and construction cost, and reviewers have compared the ride to the best that Universal or Disney have to offer in California or Florida, proving that the attraction is second to none in terms of realism and quality.
The ride provides fifteen different immersive experiences across North America, including the Smoky Mountains, Yellowstone, Yosemite, the Tetons, Sequoia groves, Squamish in British Columbia, Niagara Falls, Mount Rushmore, Maui Hawaii, the Grand Canyon, Tracey Arm Fjord in Alaska, Utah’s Fisher Towers, the Bristol Motor Speedway, the Everglades and Chimney Rock in North Carolina.
Videos run while you wait in line in beautiful surroundings, making the wait a part of the entire experience, an approach taken by Disney and Universal for popular rides to make the wait more enjoyable and immersive. When you actually board the airship, the arrangement of seats gives everyone a front-row experience, as the staff kindly reassure you during the wait to enjoy your experience.
Though there is some motion in the airship, it’s designed to mimic the calm, quiet movement of an actual airship, providing an experience with no specific age limit, but with some size and weight requirements to fit the safety harness of the ride’s chairs (not suitable for pregnant women).
SkyFly is located at The Island entertainment complex in Pigeon Forge, and the experience must be booked and scheduled – allow half an hour for the entire adventure (the ride itself is about 7 minutes). Tickets (and Gift Cards) are available online through the ride’s website.
Useful Information
SkyFly: Soar America
131 The Island Drive Ste 1000, Pigeon Forge, TN 37863
Tel: (865) 217-1430
Open Daily 10am-11pm
Web: skyfly.com
