Legends grew of the once-legendary Ashoka Palace that can be found deep inside the jungle. This temple drew promises of vast riches, ornate structures, beautiful flower baths, and more all just inside the doors. With no proof of its existence, the legends surrounding this temple grew and grew hoping someone would find the place. For years, this palace seemed like nothing more than an old folk tale.
Suddenly, a supposed "map" to the temple was found by nearby locals. The only problem? There was no clear starting point on the map. That didn't stop the locals, however. Everyone wanted to be the first to find this luxurious palace.
Unfortunately, many explorers set out to find this place only to disappear in the jungle and never be heard from again. Luckily, Indiana Jones isn’t the typical explorer...
Guests enter underneath a large wooden sign with the name of the attraction, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Peril. Guests can see the titular Temple of Peril located by the river with screams emanating from the far-off jungles likely from those who have been unlucky enough to stumble into these accursed jungles.
The queue starts at the camp that the head archaeologists of the expedition have set up in the former courtyard of the palace. These courtyards have large columns that match with the architecture of the temple along with beautiful gardens that haven’t aged a day full of primroses and trees where lanterns hang. Due to a mighty earthquake shortly after Ashoka’s death, the courtyard is now at a lower level than the temple. Tents are set up, artifacts retrieved from the archaeological dig of the nearby baths are scattered all over the ground on the sides of the pathway. Some of the more unusual ones include a barrel full of sesame seeds, sharp axes, and a huge collection of brimstones.
A jeep contains an Ozarko radio that mostly plays 1930’s swing tunes, but occasionally tunes into a conversation between Indy and Sallah who are ecstatic at finally finding a way to get to the temple through the use of a minecart system. They note that the rails that were already in place were made out of a type of metal that they’ve never seen before and that they should examine it once they’ve finished exploring the temple.
Just before guests enter the dig site, they see Indiana Jones’s personal tent that includes some of his prized possessions, such as books on Ashoka and his legendary palace and a map of India with a red dot marking where exactly Ashoka's Palace is located.
Going under a bridge high above, guests enter the dig site of the palace baths. Scaffolding is set up while for the dig and equipment is scattered hastily near the walls. After a few switchbacks located under the scaffolding guests enter into the indoor baths. The baths have a fire motif to them, perhaps to remind people of a warmer place. On a wall between the two pools, what was undoubtedly once a shrine before the archaeologists moved the artifacts out is wall art showing Ashoka shaking hands with what appears to be a non human creature, but its face is chipped off.
Then guests enter into a room that at first appears to be a cellar of some kind, but once the ceiling heightens reveals itself to be a cave. Guests go gradually up an incline around a snake pit that would make Indiana Jones shudder. Torches line the vine covered walls. In the center of the room is a gigantic tree and on its branches are exotic jewels. Guests exit the snakepit room where they get a great view of the dig site and Ashoka’s Palace courtyard after a short stretch of walking through the jungle, guests then cross a wooden bridge located above the dig site.
Now getting closer to the loading station, guests enter a shaded area with an ancient fountain in the center. The fountain is empty, but there’s no sign of water damage, only fire damage. On the top of the fountain is a scale. The Devadatta minecart boarding station is located underneath a series of arches that match the temple. On to Ashoka's Temple guests go!
Conceptual mock-ups of the layout. The finalized Temple of Peril wooden coaster combines elements from both, plus thematic details which cannot be realized in these visual formats.
Guests leave the loading platform to make a sharp turn into the temple. The ride begins with a dark ride section.
The first area of the temple is ornate and full of beautiful ornate granite fixtures. The legends were true! Ashoka's Palace is full of anything and everything one's heart desires.
The guests enter the next room to see that maybe the legends of the palace weren't all true. The next room can barely be described as a room. This open area is dark and gloomy and gives a certain feeling of "dread". Suddenly, the room lights up from fire lining the walls. While the walls were nice and bright, it left the center of the room a dark and fiery evil place. The only way such a terrible place could be designed is if the creator had visited hell itself.
"This isn't what I thought it would be!" Indiana Jones exclaims. An Audio-Animatronic version of him can be seen on the far wall. Through some lighting and practical effects it appears as if the fire is coming towards them as the cars continue on to the next room.
"We have to get out of here, Salah went that way!" Indy yells at guests pointing at a way out as they turn the corner. The coaster's lift-hill can be found here.
Trains start to climb an enclosed lift hill. This section is indoors: partly to protect sight lines from the nearby Pirates of the Caribbean, and partly to continue with the thematic storytelling.
While going up the lift hill, guests notice unrecognizable writing on either side of the coaster. Indy can be heard saying "It sounds like a curse. Those who find out the truth about the temple must stay in this jungle forever. I don't like the sounds of that."
After hearing that, the walls and roof of the temple start to shake and fall apart, similar to the earthquake effect found on certain Big Thunder Mountain Railroad attractions. It seems like as guests climb the lift hill, the entire temple could collapse at any moment.
At the top of the lift hill, guests can find a second Indy AA pushing a mine cart with Salah already inside. "We need to get out of the Jungle before it keeps us here forever! Down this way! We are right behind you!" The guests round a small corner and exit out of the top of the tunnel before the first steep drop.
Guests plunge down the initial 29 meter drop. Out-of-control mine carts rush through a twisting scaffolding track which recklessly meanders through the haunted temple complex and through the jungle primeval. This initial plummet propels trains into an underground tunnel located beneath a fearful stone mausoleum. Within the tunnel, jagged spikes line the ceilings, like traps just out of riders' reach!
Mine carts continue their desperate escape from Ashoka's Hell! Riders are disoriented by a thrilling series of dips, airtime hills, and twisting turns. Rising from the temple tunnels, trains rush through vine-gnarled culverts. Ahead is a massive monolith with four sides, like the famed stone heads of Angkor Wat, each one bearing Ashoka's graven image. Four times throughout the ride, trains will rush through this edifice, and each time riders will bear witness to an ever more fearsome Ashoka face belching out water or flames.
A hard turn to the ride spins trains back around towards the Ashoka monument, all while rising up to the treeline and down into canyons of exposed skeletons. Speeding through the temple, trains charge through a maze of arches, pillars and stupas.
The following temple complex is a thrilling blur. Trains dive beneath temple pyramids into more booby-trapped tunnels, into smoke-filled catacombs of red-lit lava. The minecart track dips down into hand-carved canyons inspired by Ellora Caves.
A final, thrilling coaster section sees guests constantly dipping into the underground and suddenly rising up amidst crumbling ruins, until a final right turn hurtles trains into the brake run in the shadow of the grand temple.
As guests come around the final corner, they come to a minecart crashed into a boulder. In it, guests can see Salah sitting there fanning the sweat off with his hat. Outside of the minecart, Indy is standing and facing the guests.
"We got out this time, but we may not be as lucky the next time we look for a temple like this! Stay out of trouble."
And with that, the cars pull back into the loading platform.
A virtual POV of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Peril. (Some details, such as the interior temple theming, don't match up with the actual attraction.)