Disneyland Park

In the summer of 1959, Walt’s dream of including a mountain in Disneyland came to life when the Matterhorn Bobsleds attraction opened (#MatterhornMonday). The ride is still in operation today with only minor cosmetic and theming changes happening throughout the years. Walt’s fascination with the real Matterhorn Mountain first grew during a set visit to the production of his live-action feature film Third Man on the Mountain (1959). Legend has is that while in Switzerland, he mailed a souvenir postcard back to Imagineering with a hand-written note: Build This. While the Disneyland version resembles its real-life counterpart, its peak is only 147 feet high, making it exactly 100 times shorter. Queue Details While the Matterhorn doesn’t have a very elaborate queuing area, the few details present are entertaining. Check out the entry sign to the main loading area, it features the red and white cross of the Swiss flag surrounded by with a number of other symbols representing the flags and arms of cantons of Switzerland. The control booth that can be seen from the ride’s loading area is designed in a Swiss chalet style which features an angled roof and an intricately designed wooden balcony rail. Ride Details Throughout […]

The Partners statue is an iconic statue of Walt and Mickey located in Disneyland’s hub in front of Sleeping Beauty Castle. Designed by Disney Legend Blaine Gibson, it’s one of five identical statues located around the world. Discover all of them and learn more in our blog post: Partners: The History, Details, and Insight Into Walt & Mickey’s Most Famous Statue. Official Information: Disneyland.com

Sleeping Beauty Castle is the iconic centerpiece of the original Disneyland Park and the only Disney castle whose construction was personally overseen by Walt Disney. Its aesthetic was largely influenced by the famed Neuschwanstein Castle based on designs by Imagineer Herb Ryman. While Neuschwanstein and other real European castles were imposingly large to intimidate common citizens, Walt supposedly wanted his castle to be friendly and less intimidating, so it was built on a smaller scale. A representation of the Disney family coat of arms can be found above the castle’s Main Street facing archway. The official Coat of Arms consists of three gold fleur-de-lis on a red fess (representing purity), a crest with a red lion passant-guardant (representing bravery or courage), and the motto Vincit qui patitur meaning: He conquers who endures. The emblem used on the castle is a custom design featuring the lion symbol. A similar emblem can be found on Cinderella Castle in Magic Kingdom and its clone in Tokyo Disneyland. Today, the castle houses a Sleeping Beauty Castle Walkthrough attraction where guests can see various dioramas telling the story of the 1959 animated film, Sleeping Beauty, using the film’s original Eyvind Earle style of artwork. Just across the […]

In 1987, the original version of Star Tours opened in Disneyland’s Tomorrowland. The motion simulator ride based on the Star Wars franchise featured Captain Rex, a droid that attempted to fly guests to the planet Endor. In 2011, Disney debuted an updated version of this ride: Star Tours – The Adventures Continue. The new ride uses advanced 3D technology, randomly chosen alternate scenes, and frequent updates with new characters and locations as new Star Wars films come out. The new version also exists at other Disney Parks around the world: Disney’s Hollywood Studios, Tokyo Disneyland, and Disneyland Paris. Queue Details Captain Rex can still be found in the new version – the droid is near the entrance to the queue’s cargo bay, ready to be shipped far, far away as DEFECTIVE stickers are now stuck to him. The security droid found at the end of the cargo bay room is G2-4T. This gossiping droid is voiced by actor Patrick Warburton. Warburton has starred in a number of Disney projects including the voice of Kronk in The Emperor’s New Groove (2000) and the host of both Soarin’ Around the World in Disney California Adventure and in Epcot. The droid found during the boarding pre-show is Aly […]

The Town Square firehouse is located at 105 Town Square on Main Street, U.S.A. in Disneyland Park. The design of the building draws inspiration from Fort Collin’s historic firehouse as it looked during Imagineer Harper Goff youth. The Colorado firehouse, along with Walt’s memories of growing up in Marceline, was used by Goff during the ideation and design of Disneyland‘s Main Street. While the Town Square building displays authentic turn-of-the-century firehouse equipment inside, this isn’t actually a working firehouse. The second floor of this building, however, holds a great piece of historic Disney significance: it was designed as an apartment for Walt to live in during the construction of Disneyland, and later for himself and his family to stay and entertain VIP guests while visiting the park. On the opening day of Disneyland, we (Mouseketeers) were in Walt Disney’s private apartment above the Main Street Fire Station when the gates of the park opened for the first time. I was standing next to him at the window, watching the guests come pouring through the gates. When I looked up at him, he had his hands behind his back, a grin from ear to ear, I could see a lump in […]