184 Witches Rode The Orlando Eye in a Halloween Record Ride at ICON Park
Pointed hats filled the capsules at sunset on October 21 as 184 costumed guests rode the 400-foot wheel on International Drive — a count verified on site, presented by organizers as a world record, and reprised tonight when the wheel lights orange, green and purple for Halloween.
Orlando's Halloween season has a record entry of its own. On Wednesday, October 21, 184 people dressed as witches boarded The Orlando Eye at ICON Park on International Drive for a sunset ride 400 feet above the city, in an event organizers presented as a world record for the most people dressed as witches on an observation wheel. The official participant count was verified by Norah White, president and CEO-elect of the I-Drive District, and guests received complimentary admission as a thank-you for taking part.
The 400-foot wheel — the tallest observation wheel on the East Coast, with 30 enclosed, air-conditioned capsules — filled with pointed hats and cloaks for the ride, and costumed characters from Merlin Entertainments' sister Florida attractions joined the celebration, including LEGOLAND Florida's Wacky Witch. One point of precision: whether a formal record organization has certified the mark remains unclear, so the record stands as the organizers' presentation of a locally verified count, not a certified title.
The celebration is not finished. The Orlando Eye is lit in orange, green and purple tonight, October 31, for Halloween, and a ticket for a limited time also includes admission to SEA LIFE Orlando or Madame Tussauds Orlando. For a tourism corridor that measures its holidays in turnstile counts, 184 witches at 400 feet is the kind of number International Drive knows how to use.
