Monsters, Inc. Mike & Sulley To The Rescue!

January 2006 – present

LOCATION

Hollywood Land – When entering from Buena Vista Street, follow the main street until you see the path split off on the left. Follow this path and you will see Monsters Inc., just beyond the stages.

BACKGROUND

When California Adventure began its major renovation and expansion, Imagineers looked for opportunities to incorporate more characters into the park. Using a track from the former ride Superstar Limo, Imagineers saw the opportunity to install another dark ride in California Adventure, and Monsters Inc. was the perfect fit. Today, Monsters Inc. attracts visitors of all ages, and adds a key storytelling component to Hollywood Land!

EXPERIENCE

Details:

• Single Rider Line – no
• Fast Pass – no
• Height Requirement – none
• Duration – 4:00

Guests looking for a trip through Monstropolis begin their journey with a tour of Monsters Inc. The line weaves through the halls of Mike and Sulley’s workplace, with loops around the vending machines and other clever references to the movie. When it’s time to start, guests load into taxis, but their scenic trip through the city quickly turns to chaos when the monsters discover that a child is loose in Monstropolis! The taxis lead riders through the most iconic spots from the film, including Harryhausen’s Sushi Restaurant, The Child Detection Agency, and finally, Monsters Inc. headquarters. From the taxis, guests watch Boo, Mike, and Sulley avoid detection and race to return Boo to the human world. After a climactic battle with Randall in the door room, Mike And Sulley bring Boo back to her door safely. When she’s finally back home, the CDA employees decontaminate the taxis from human exposure, and guests have a final moment with Roz before returning to Monsters Inc. headquarters.

MY RATING: ★★★★☆

Monsters Inc. is definitely an underappreciated ride in California Adventure. It has a lot of cool visual tricks, like mirrors in the door room and flashing lights in the detox area, which make the experience extremely lifelike and fun from start to finish. The ride does a great job of guiding guests through the movie’s plot, and is one of the most thorough dark rides in the resort. If you’re a Monsters Inc. fan, this one is a must!

VISITING TIPS

Monsters Inc. is tucked away in the back of Hollywood Land, so a lot of guests walk right by without realizing it! So unless you’re visiting California Adventure during peak season, you shouldn’t have a problem boarding quickly. If you do visit during the summer, my advice would be to ride Monsters Inc. midday. You will likely have to wait in line, but the building is air conditioned, so you’ll have a nice break from the heat. Another option: visit Monsters Inc. as late as possible; families with small kids tend to end their days earlier, and you’ll probably have a shorter wait.

TRIVIA

Monsters Inc. used the existing track, cars, and animatronics from “Superstar Limo”, offering one of the easiest and quickest installations of any Disney ride.

Roz is interactive! If you take a photo of her, she’ll comment, and sometimes she responds directly when someone chats her up.

This is one of the only dark rides in the park to incorporate smells; the most noticeable scent is ginger, which can be found in the sushi restaurant scene.