Featured Attractions

Thursday, March 15, 2018

Theme Park Thursdays: A Walk in the Park?


A day at DISNEYLAND typically involves a lot of walking. If several things had happened as originally planned, it would have involved a lot more walking.

Before there was DISNEYLAND, there was Disneylandia. Disneylandia was to be a traveling exhibit of Disney-related miniatures that would travel from town to town on a train. During Disneylandia’s week in town, guests could purchase tickets to tour the walk-through exhibits. After a financial analysis of the project, it was not deemed feasible because not enough paying customers could walk through the exhibit to break even. Walt Disney shelved the idea, which eventually became DISNEYLAND.


Years later when Walt Disney was planning out DISNEYLAND, he again considered another walk-through attraction based on Alice in Wonderland. Yet again, it was seen as not being feasible as a walk-through attraction because of the film’s popularity and the large crowds that it would attract. The walk-through became a ride-through.


Apparently not one to give up on the walk-through concept completely, Walt Disney’s original plans for Pirates of the Caribbean called for it to be a walk-through Pirate Museum. After his ideas became too big for a museum, Walt Disney changed his plans and Pirates of the Caribbean became a boat ride.