Disneyland - Anaheim

To make the most of Disneyland - the ultimate corporate-escapist fantasy and the blueprint for countless imitations worldwide - throw yourself right into it. Don't think twice about anything and go on every ride you can. The high admission price includes them all, although during peak periods each one can entail hours of waiting in line. Over four hundred "Imagineers" worked to create the Indiana Jones Adventure , based on the Steven Spielberg movie franchise. Two hours of waiting are built into the ride, with an interactive archeological dig and 1930s-style newsreel show leading up to the main feature - a giddy journey along 2500ft of skull-encrusted corridors in which you face fireballs, falling rubble, venomous snakes and, inevitably, a rolling boulder finale. Disney claims that, thanks to computer engineering, no two Indiana Jones rides are ever alike. Judge for yourself. Among the best of the older rides are two in Adventureland : the Pirates of the Caribbean , a boat trip through underground caverns, giving you the chance to sing along with animatronic pirates; and the Haunted Mansion , a riotous "doom buggy" tour in the company of the house spooks. Fantasyland consists mainly of low-tech fairy-tale rides that won't scare the kiddies, but is much better than the tedious, dumbed-down Toontown to the north, a real snooze for adults. Tomorrowland is Disney's vision of the future, where the Space Mountain roller coaster zips through the pitch-blackness of outer space, and the Star Tours ride simulates a journey into the world of George Lucas. This section of the park has been updated in the last few years with space probes and "rocket rods," which underscores how Cold War-era this area still remains in its outlook.

$17,500,000 to build.