Amusement Park News

Silver Dollar City will introduce a new experience to the Ozark Mountains in 2027 with Miner's Mountain Express. Billed by the park as "America's Most Legendary Family Coaster," the attraction will combine a multigenerational thrill ride with a story rooted in the history of the park and the surrounding region.

The coaster's narrative is inspired by the story of the Ozarks that led to the creation of Silver Dollar City.

The attraction will cast riders as passengers aboard runaway mine cars racing across Daredevil Pass. Inspired by the Marble Cave Mining Company, which operated at the site in the 1880s, the story sends riders through rugged terrain, around boulders and past a flooded mine shaft in search of a lost entrance to Marvel Cave.

More than a half-mile of track will make Miner's Mountain Express the longest family coaster in the Midwest, according to the park. Marvel Cave was originally known as Marble Cave but was renamed after prospectors discovered that it contained no marble.

The coaster will follow the natural contours of the Ozark Mountains above Marvel Cave, a United States Registered Natural Landmark first explored by the Osage centuries ago.

The commitment to authenticity will include a 15-story working mine headframe sourced from a Missouri mine. The coaster will feature two lift hills and 15 airtime moments, more than any other coaster at Silver Dollar City.

"For over 65 years, Silver Dollar City has entertained our guests through fun story-based adventures. This family coaster has been designed so that multiple generations of families can enjoy the mountain-themed adventure together," said Brad Thomas, president of the Silver Dollar City Company.

The experience will feature detailed, immersive theming. Erica Rutledge, senior creative director at Herschend Creative Studios, said the team carefully considered "how families could step into the park's own origin story, which literally began with a hole in the ground called Marvel Cave."

"Every building, every tool and every detail was thoughtfully designed to honor the people who came before us while creating an unforgettable adventure for today's families."

Weathered mining structures, rugged rockwork, authentic equipment and historically inspired details will help establish the setting. Miner's Mountain Express is a custom collaboration between Silver Dollar City and MACK Rides of Waldkirch, Germany, which also manufactured the park's Time Traveler coaster.

Silver Dollar City's Maintenance & Construction team, designers and craftspeople are developing much of the construction, theming and storytelling alongside Herschend Creative Studios.

The coaster is part of a $150 million investment in Silver Dollar City's next chapter that also includes the new Silver Dollar City Resort, scheduled to open in 2027.

Silver Dollar City attracts visitors from every state, and the investment is intended to support continued growth for the park and the region while positioning the Ozarks as a multiday destination. The projects will also extend the park's celebration of Ozarks heritage.

The ride will last three minutes and 18 seconds. Its 39-inch minimum height requirement, when accompanied by a supervising companion, is designed to make the experience accessible to younger guests and multiple generations of families.

Miner's Mountain Express will anchor Daredevil Pass, a newly created section of the park connecting the coaster with WildFire, PowderKeg and the American Plunge.

The new coaster's arrival will follow the retirement of Thunderation, the Arrow Dynamics mine train that has operated at Silver Dollar City since 1993. Thunderation is scheduled to close Jan. 2, 2027, after 33 years.

The coaster has carried more than 27 million riders along 3,022 feet of track. Standing 80 feet tall and reaching 48 mph, the ride offers scenic views of the Ozarks and features a 910-degree double helix into a mine shaft. Thunderation was Silver Dollar City's first bona fide roller coaster and was the fastest mine train coaster to date when it opened.

Silver Dollar City incorporated Thunderation's retirement into its ongoing story. The fictional Marvel Cave Mining Company ordered the coaster removed so it could conduct geological surveys and resume mining operations beneath the park.

"This mountain was never meant to be borrowed forever," fictional foreman Jedidiah "Jed" Campbell said in the park's announcement. "There are still undiscovered sections of that mine and we intend to see what it holds."

Campbell will also appear in the story for Miner's Mountain Express. His belief that "where there's a will, there's a way" inspires families to continue searching for the lost entrance to Marvel Cave and discover that perseverance, rather than luck, leads to adventure.

That same sense of perseverance and adventure will carry into the new attraction when Miner's Mountain Express opens in spring 2027.