If there is one wooden roller coaster that coaster enthusiasts build entire road trips around, it is The Voyage at Holiday World in Santa Claus, Indiana. Since opening on May 6, 2006, this 6,442-foot giant has held the world record for wooden coaster airtime, delivering 24.3 seconds of sustained weightlessness across a nearly three-minute run through the Indiana hills — and as of 2026, that record still stands.
Built by The Gravity Group for $6.5 million, The Voyage punches far above its price tag: five underground tunnels, three drops exceeding 100 feet, and three sections of extreme 90-degree banking have kept it in the global top-five conversation for nearly two decades. Below, we cover the exact stats, how it stacks up against its closest wooden-coaster rivals, its full awards history through 2026, and everything you need to plan a visit.
Quick Answer
The Voyage at Holiday World is the current world record holder for wooden coaster airtime, delivering 24.3 seconds of weightlessness over 6,442 feet of track — a record that has held since it opened in May 2006. It crests a 163-foot lift hill, hits 67 mph, and features five underground tunnels (eight underground moments total), more than any other coaster on earth. In Amusement Today’s 2025 Golden Ticket Awards, it ranked #2 among wooden coasters worldwide, behind only Phoenix at Knoebels.
Stats at a Glance
Park: Holiday World & Splashin’ Safari, Santa Claus, Indiana. Manufacturer: The Gravity Group (Cincinnati, Ohio). Trains: Philadelphia Toboggan Coasters (PTC), two 24-passenger trains. Opened: May 6, 2006. Construction cost: $6.5 million. Materials: 320,000 board feet of Southern Yellow Pine and 750 tons of steel.
Lift hill: 163 feet. First drop: 154 feet at a 66-degree angle. Top speed: 67 mph. Track length: 6,442 feet (1.2 miles). Ride duration: 2 minutes 45 seconds. Height requirement: 48 inches minimum. Approximate capacity: 1,200 riders per hour.
World records held: most airtime of any wooden coaster (24.3 seconds) and most underground tunnels of any roller coaster (5 tunnels, producing 8 underground moments).
The Ride Experience
From the moment the train crests the 163-foot lift hill, The Voyage means business. The first plunge sends riders 154 feet downward at a 66-degree angle — among the steepest descents on any wooden coaster — immediately into the first underground tunnel. The darkness swallows the train at full speed before the track erupts back into daylight and launches straight into a relentless string of airtime hills.
What defines The Voyage is that it never finds a quiet moment. Three drops exceed 100 feet (154 feet, 107 feet, and 100 feet). Three sections of track bank to a full 90-degree angle. The out-and-back layout crosses over itself multiple times, weaving through the wooded terrain on the park’s edge in a way that makes the ride feel genuinely sprawling. By the time the brakes catch the train, riders have experienced 24.3 seconds of sustained weightlessness.
The five underground tunnels deserve special attention. Because some tunnels are wide enough for the track to enter more than once, riders experience eight separate underground moments — the disorienting sensation of charging into darkness at 67 mph before bursting back into sunlight. One tunnel houses the ride’s signature ‘triple down’: three back-to-back drops taken entirely in the dark, consistently the loudest moment of the ride.
The coaster is themed to the Pilgrims’ voyage aboard the Mayflower, fitting naturally into Holiday World’s Thanksgiving-themed section. The layout winds through mature trees on the park’s boundary, giving it an immersive, remote feel that few flat-field coasters can match.
How The Voyage Compares to Other Wooden Coasters
The Voyage is almost always discussed alongside a small handful of rivals. In Amusement Today’s 2025 Golden Ticket Awards, the top five wooden coasters worldwide were: Phoenix at Knoebels (its seventh consecutive #1 finish), The Voyage at Holiday World (#2), El Toro at Six Flags Great Adventure (#3), The Beast at Kings Island (#4), and Thunderhead at Dollywood (#5).
The comparison enthusiasts make most often is Phoenix versus The Voyage. Phoenix is a shorter, smoother ride at under 3,000 feet of track and around 45 mph, prized for its buttery pacing and re-rideability. The Voyage is more than double the length at 6,442 feet and hits 67 mph, trading some of Phoenix’s smoothness for sheer intensity and its unmatched, record-setting airtime total. Neither ride has been dethroned in its specialty in years.
The Voyage also placed 6th nationally in the 2026 USA TODAY 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards for best roller coaster — a category that includes steel launch coasters and hypercoasters, not just wood — with Phoenix again taking the top spot. Holding a top-six spot in a field that includes every type of coaster in the country is a strong showing for a wooden ride built on a modest $6.5 million budget.
Awards and Legacy
The Voyage announced itself immediately, winning the 2006 Golden Ticket Award for Best New Ride before a full season had even passed. It then swept the Best Wooden Roller Coaster category from 2007 through 2011 — five consecutive victories, a streak matched by very few rides of any type in the award’s history.
In 2013, TIME Magazine independently named it the top wooden coaster in the United States. It has remained a fixture near the top of Amusement Today’s annual rankings ever since, finishing #2 among wooden coasters worldwide in the 2025 Golden Ticket Awards, and landing at #6 nationally across all coaster types in the 2026 USA TODAY 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards — a resume that spans two decades of consistent recognition.
The ride also established The Gravity Group as a premier force in wooden coaster design. Founded by veterans of other firms, The Gravity Group used The Voyage as proof that modern engineering could extract something entirely new from wood and steel — and the coaster enthusiast community has never forgotten it.
Why Holiday World Makes The Voyage Even Better
The park surrounding The Voyage is itself worth talking about. Holiday World includes free unlimited soft drinks, free parking, and free sunscreen with every admission ticket — perks that are nearly unheard of at regional parks and make the overall cost of a visit feel genuinely reasonable. The park is family-owned, clean, and famously low-pressure in ways that bigger corporate parks rarely manage.
The Voyage is the headliner, but Holiday World operates two other celebrated wooden coasters — The Legend and The Raven — giving the park a legitimate ‘wooden coaster trifecta’ status among enthusiasts. For steel fans, Thunderbird is America’s first launched wing coaster. Together, these four coasters make Holiday World worth a dedicated trip for any serious thrill-seeker within a reasonable drive of southern Indiana.
Holiday World is celebrating its 80th anniversary season in 2026, having opened as Santa Claus Land in 1946. That institutional history shows in how the park runs: operations are smooth, staff are genuinely helpful, and queue management tends to be more efficient than you might expect from a regional park of this size.
Planning Your Visit
Holiday World sells tickets in several tiers — single-day admission, discounted advance-purchase online tickets, twilight tickets for shorter evening visits, and season passes for repeat visitors — with online pricing typically cheaper than buying at the gate. Because ticket prices and any seasonal promotions change year to year, check the official Holiday World tickets and passes page for current rates before you go.
Like most seasonal amusement parks, Holiday World operates on a spring-through-fall calendar with hours that shift by day and season, plus special event days that can extend operating hours. Rather than rely on a snapshot that will go stale, use the official Holiday World hours and calendar page to confirm the exact dates and times for your visit, since the park publishes its full operating calendar there and updates it directly.
Parking is free, which is unusual among regional parks and worth factoring into your overall cost comparison against nearby competitors.
Tips for Riding The Voyage
Riders must be at least 48 inches tall, and each of the two PTC trains holds 24 passengers across six cars with individual lap bars and seat belts. Because The Voyage is the park’s marquee attraction, it draws the longest lines on the property — riding first thing at opening or during the last hour before close will usually get you the shortest wait.
Front-row seats maximize the visual drop of the 154-foot first descent, while back-row seats tend to deliver the strongest airtime pops over the mid-course hills — riding it twice in different rows is a common enthusiast strategy for experiencing both. Loose items are not permitted in the restraint area, so use the provided lockers near the station before boarding.
The Voyage roller coaster FAQs
Does The Voyage still hold the world record for wooden coaster airtime?
Yes. As of 2026, The Voyage’s 24.3 seconds of airtime remains the record for any wooden roller coaster in the world, a mark that has stood since the ride opened in 2006.
How many tunnels does The Voyage have?
Five underground tunnels. Because a few are wide enough for the track to pass through more than once, riders experience eight separate underground moments during the ride — more than any other coaster on earth.
Is The Voyage the best wooden roller coaster in the world?
It depends who you ask. Amusement Today’s Golden Ticket Awards panel has ranked Phoenix at Knoebels the #1 wooden coaster for several consecutive years, with The Voyage holding steady at #2 in 2025. Enthusiasts often frame it as Phoenix for smoothness versus The Voyage for record-setting airtime and sheer intensity.
How tall do you have to be to ride The Voyage?
Riders must be at least 48 inches tall, the same height requirement Holiday World applies to its other major coasters.
How long is The Voyage, and how fast does it go?
The ride runs 2 minutes 45 seconds over 6,442 feet of track (about 1.2 miles), reaching a top speed of 67 mph after a 154-foot first drop.
What’s the best time of day to ride The Voyage?
Wait times are typically shortest right at park opening or in the final hour before closing, since it’s the park’s most popular attraction. Check the official Holiday World hours and calendar page before you go, since operating hours change by season.
Where is Holiday World located?
Holiday World & Splashin’ Safari is in Santa Claus, Indiana, in the southern part of the state.
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