Tower of Terror II was a steel shuttle roller coaster at Dreamworld on Queensland’s Gold Coast, built by Swiss manufacturer Intamin. It opened on January 23, 1997 as the original Tower of Terror, an LSM-launched reverse freefall coaster that rocketed a single 14-passenger train from 0 to 100 mph in just seven seconds, briefly making it the fastest roller coaster on Earth.
In September 2010, Dreamworld relaunched the ride as Tower of Terror II, flipping the train to face backward through the launch and adding a 206-metre tunnel section for a reworked experience. The coaster remained one of the tallest and fastest in the world for over two decades before Dreamworld permanently closed it on November 3, 2019, with the coaster’s track dismantled from the shared Dreamworld Tower structure over the following months.
Stats at a Glance
- Park: Dreamworld, Coomera, Queensland, Australia
- Manufacturer: Intamin
- Opened: January 23, 1997 (relaunched as Tower of Terror II in September 2010)
- Closed: November 3, 2019
- Height: 115 m (377 ft)
- Top speed: 161 km/h (100 mph)
- Length: 376 m (1,235 ft)
- Inversions: 0
The Ride Experience
Riders boarded a single train of 14 seats and were blasted out of the station by a linear synchronous motor launch, reaching 100 mph in about seven seconds before rocketing up the 115-metre tower. At the top, the train briefly went weightless for roughly 6.5 seconds before the cycle reversed and the train fell back down the same tower, through the launch tunnel and into the station.
When it debuted in 1997, the ride’s combination of height and speed made it the world’s tallest and fastest coaster for a short period, and it kept records for fastest coaster and tallest drop for years afterward. The 2010 relaunch changed the train orientation to face passengers backward for the initial launch, adding a new sensation to the existing layout.
Closure and Legacy
Dreamworld closed Tower of Terror II for good on November 3, 2019, as part of a broader shift in the park’s ride lineup that made room for future expansion. Only the coaster’s track and train were dismantled from the shared 119-metre Dreamworld Tower, with removal beginning in March 2020 and substantially complete by mid-2021; the tower itself remained standing and kept operating The Giant Drop, the freefall ride it has always shared, without interruption.
At the time of its closure, Tower of Terror II still ranked among the tallest, fastest, and steepest-drop steel coasters in the world, a testament to how far ahead of its era the Intamin design had been when it debuted in 1997.
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Tower of Terror II FAQs
Is Tower of Terror II still operating at Dreamworld?
No. Dreamworld permanently closed Tower of Terror II on November 3, 2019, and dismantled its track and train from the shared Dreamworld Tower, with removal substantially complete by mid-2021.
Was the Dreamworld Tower itself demolished?
No. Only the Tower of Terror II coaster track was removed. The 119-metre Dreamworld Tower structure still stands and continues to operate The Giant Drop freefall ride.
How fast was Tower of Terror II?
It launched riders to 161 km/h (100 mph) in about seven seconds using a linear synchronous motor launch system.
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Photo: Matt.morris00 / CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.