 Source: Matthew Luhn
A while back, I wrote a post about land concepts for Disneyland that never came to fruition. And of course, lands aren’t the only creative concepts that don’t become reality! Here are a few of Disneyland’s concepts for thrill rides, that ultimately would never see the light of day.
Late 1960s
- Space Voyage – After the overwhelming success of the Matterhorn Bobsleds, Walt was eager to create more roller coasters. Originally, he intended to build a coaster with four separate tracks, offering huge capacity compared to most other attractions in the park. Over time, this idea wasn’t scrapped so much as re-worked over and over, eventually becoming Space Mountain.
Late 1970s
- Herbie the Love Bug – With mounting pressure from neighboring theme parks to create more thrill rides, Imagineers conceptualized a second thrill ride for Fantasyland. Based on the popular Herbie the Love Bug series, this ride would have been a sort of hybrid between Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride and Indiana Jones. Passengers would ride a love bug that could perform tricks, even splitting in half, across San Francisco landmarks.
- Mickey’s Madhouse – For a while, Disney planned a 5-acre circus area adjacent to It’s A Small World. This space would include several smaller attractions and shows, but the centerpiece was a thrill ride centered on Mickey. Like a scaled-down Space Mountain, this ride would have been a “wild mouse” style coaster in the dark, the premise being that visitors are traveling into the world of 1930s black and white cartoons.
Late 1990s
- Indiana Jones and the Lost Expedition – At first, Indiana Jones wasn’t going to be limited to one attraction in Adventureland. The Lost Expedition was to be almost like a land within a land, including Indiana Jones Adventure, a new route through the themed area for the Railroad, and a mine cart roller coaster. Ultimately, the mine cart coaster and rerouted railroad never came to fruition, leaving Indiana Jones Adventure as a standalone attraction.
Early 2000s
- Critter Country 500 – The Country Bear Jamboree never gained the popularity in Disneyland that it had in the Magic Kingdom, and by the 2000s, Imagineers were brainstorming a replacement. For a while, the leading idea was a soapbox derby dark ride, which would feature the characters from the Jamboree. Due to the amount of construction and logistical requirements for this kind of attraction, the idea was scrapped in favor of Winnie the Pooh.
- Geyser Mountain – Long before Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge changed the landscape of Frontierland forever, Imagineers envisioned a second coaster in the quieter north end of the land. Like the Tower of Terror across the promenade, Geyser Mountain would have been a drop ride tossing guests up into a geyser. In fact, this attraction was actually quite close to becoming reality – until budget cuts doomed it.
- Monsters, Inc. Roller Coaster – Instead of a dark ride, the original idea for Monsters. Inc was an indoor roller coaster. This ride would have taken up a LOT more space, using areas now designated for the sound stages, Mickey’s Philarmagic, and the existing dark ride.