When Walt Disney envisioned the Happiest Place on Earth, one themed land in particular warmed his heart. As an illustrator, he was in the business of imagination. He’d think of things and then bring them to life with his drawings. When he started making movies, he chose a classic fairytale by the Brothers Grimm for his first production.
Uncle Walt always loved fantasy. When he constructed Disneyland, he carried that philosophy over to the park. There, he built an entire land based on beloved stories. You’ve visited it many times, but you may not know some of its history. Here are five fun facts about Fantasyland.
Walt’s favorite themed land
“What youngster has not dreamed of flying with Peter Pan over moonlit London, or tumbling into Alice’s nonsensical Wonderland? In Fantasyland, these classic stories of everyone’s youth have become realities for youngsters – of all ages – to participate in.”
These words gushed out of Walt Disney’s mouth as he described his vision for Fantasyland. In selecting the rides at the various themed lands, Disney kept coming back to Fantasyland. It was the place where imagination was the only limit in construction, a concept that the park founder eventually expanded to all of Disneyland when he said:
“Disneyland will never be completed. It will continue to grow as long as there is imagination left in the world.”
For all of the wonders of Tomorrowland and Adventureland in particular, the opening of Disneyland was always predicated around the joy of Fantasyland, the place where fantasy and reality joined thanks to the willpower of Uncle Walt.
The largest expansion
Image: DisneyWhen Walt Disney World debuted in 1971, Disneyland started to look a bit aged. People always embrace the shiny, new thing, often at the expense of the comfortable older thing. Seeking to restore some of the luster of the Happiest Place on Earth, Imagineers decided to update their facilities in 1983.
As a tribute to the place that their founder loved, Fantasyland enjoyed most of the rejuvenation. This area received the largest themed land expansion in the history of the park up to that point. Due to the massive restructuring of the area, Disney even renamed it as New Fantasyland and yes, we’ll discuss how history repeated itself in just a moment.
The major change in appearance at New Fantasyland was in the style of the buildings. Originally, they had a Renaissance style, as that was the 1950s perception of a land of fantasy. In the early 1980s, Disney went a different way, altering the appearance to that of a Bavarian village.
The first fireworks display
I previously wrote a detailed description of how fireworks became a thing at Disneyland and other theme parks. What I didn’t mention at the time is something that’s fascinating for this discussion. Fantasyland was the first themed land to host a fireworks exhibition at a Disney themed land.
Imagineers chose this location for the sake of convenience. The entrance to the land connects directly to Sleeping Beauty Castle. In fact, Disney’s even offers a tour of this area that dates to 1957, one year prior to the first true fireworks show at Disneyland.
The timing isn’t coincidental. Park planners wanted to entice guests to spend a full day at Disneyland rather than leave early. To exit the park, they were likely to walk past Fantasyland and/or Sleeping Beauty Castle. The new tour and fireworks exhibitions were ways to persuade visitors not to leave just yet. Magic Kingdom later duplicated this methodology with Cinderella Castle and parts of Fantasyland.
Do Not Open until 2035
Image: DisneyIn 1995, Disney officials were confident enough in the longevity of the Happiest Place on Earth that they doubled down on the premise. Cast members buried a Time Capsule full of significant Disneyland memories. People left messages of hope and love for the children of the 21st century, a way that Disney was ahead of the curve on Millennials.
We still won’t know the official contents for a long time, though. The Time Capsule isn’t due for opening until 2035, forty years after its burial. But the good news is that we’re more than halfway done with the wait! The date in question has significant importance to park officials, too. They will open the Time Capsule on July 17, 2035, the 80th anniversary of the Happiest Place on Earth.
History repeated itself in 2012
Image: DisneyDisneyland updated their version of Fantasyland only 18 years after the park opened. Magic Kingdom waited a bit longer. Their original Fantasyland stood from 1971 into the 21st century. In 2009, executives confirmed at the D23 Expo that this park would get a New Fantasyland, too.
The timeline for change was much slower here and for good reason. Magic Kingdom’s Fantasyland is much larger than the Disneyland version. When Disney chose to build out Magic Kingdom with New Fantasyland, they had to make more extensive alterations. In fact, they more than doubled the original size of this area, increasing from 10 to 21 acres. To put that in perspective, the entirety of Disneyland is only 84 acres.
The five-year plan for (New) New Fantasyland required the demolition of existing parts of the themed land, primarily Mickey’s Toontown Fair and Snow White’s Scary Adventures. The Disneyland update of Fantasyland had featured a new dark ride, albeit one that isn’t thought of as one of Disney’s best efforts. That attraction was Pinocchio’s Daring Journey. Magic Kingdom couldn’t very well update Fantasyland without adding their own E Ticket attraction.
Image: DisneyAs you know, that ride became Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, the most popular ride at Magic Kingdom right now. Wait times are consistently an hour or longer, which speaks to the quality of this twisting roller coaster.
What’s remarkable about the New Fantasyland update is that Disney added several other things beyond the roller coaster. The Barnstormer, a new stop at the Fantasyland train station, and a new child-friendly area called Storybook Circus were early additions.
Image: DisneyImagineers also constructed a new wienie, Beast Castle, the home of Be Our Guest Restaurant. Meanwhile, Princess Fairytale Hall quickly became a beloved character meet-and-greet spot, and two other entertaining attractions siphoned park traffic. Enchanted Tales with Belle is an interactive story that would warm Uncle Walt’s heart, while Under the Sea: Journey of the Little Mermaid is one of the most underrated dark rides at Walt Disney World.
Over the course of a few years, New Fantasyland improved in virtually every way from the prior 40 years of existence. For the second time, Imagineers rebuilt a beloved themed land, plus-ing it as only they can. More importantly, they paid tribute to the man who founded the park. Fantasyland was always his favorite, and so it should be the themed land that receives the most loving attention.
