We've carefully selected the world's most terrifying coasters for all you adventure travelers out there. From zero gravity free falls to the tallest gut-wrenching drop to the coaster with airforce equivalent speed, expect a few life altering experiences at the theme parks that host these rides...

Up Next: Top Thrill Dragster

Location: Cedar Point, Sandusky, Ohio

Scream Factor:The Ohio theme park laid claim to the fastest and highest roller coaster title in 2003 with the opening of this 42-story screamer. And while the superlatives have since been topped, it doesn't make a ride on Top Thrill Dragster any easier to swallow.

Up Next: Drop Zone

Location: Paramount Kings Island in Kings Island, Ohio

Scream Factor: It's hard to say whether the scariest part is in the dreadful anticipation on the ride up or the death-defying drop itself during this free-fall freaker near Cincinnati.

Up Next: Kingda Ka

Location: Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson, N.J.

Scream Factor: Honors for the tallest and fastest roller coaster on Earth go to this gut-wrenching ride in New Jersey that opened in 2005. It's 50 seconds of sheer terror as you soar to record heights of 456 feet, only to plunge straight down like an inverted firecracker in a 270-degree spiral.

Up Next: Tower of Terror

Location: Dreamworld on the Gold Coast in Australia

Scream Factor: For serious thrill seekers, it's worth the trip Down Under just to jangle the nerves on the Southern Hemisphere's tallest thrill ride. From a dizzying height of 38 stories, riders plummet at 100 miles per hour during a zero gravity free fall like no other.

Up Next: The Incredible Hulk Coaster

Location: Islands of Adventure,
Orlando, Fla.

Scream Factor: We'd give away half the fun if we told you about the terrifying start to this killer coaster at Universal's Islands of Adventure. Suffice to say that your heart and your throat will be getting intimately acquainted thanks to g-forces that are roughly equivalent to a U.S. Air Force F-16 fighter attack jet.

Up Next: Superman Ride of Steel

Location: Six Flags New England in Agawam

Scream Factor: Hang-time addicts can't get enough of this Massachusetts hyper coaster with some of the scariest drops on record. You'll go faster than a speeding bullet on the mile-long steel track that doesn't let up on the thrills until the screeching finish.

Location: Thorpe Park in Surrey, England

Scream Factor: Rolling from loop to loop, it's hard to tell whether you're right side up or upside down. Complete with a 90-foot loop and back-to-back corkscrews, Colossus pours on the exhilaration and gives the feeling of never letting up.

Up Next: More AOL Travel Stories

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• Outdoor/Parks
• Spa Resorts
• Theme Parks

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