Disney Down Under: A New Resort From BrerPanther

[Brer Panther]

It seems to be a requirement that every Armchair Imagineer needs to design his own Disney Resort at SOME POINT.

So here's mine: a twist on the old Disneyland Australia idea. Information on the parks will be coming soon, but for now, have a logo!

 

[brb1006]

Since the sequel to the first Rescuers took place in Australia. There needs to be a Rescuers themed area complete with a Soarin style ride where you are joined by Bianca and Bernard on a new rescue mission. Complete with special effects such as water spraying at you during scenes where you splash into water and the ride can be similar to the Amazing Spiderman attraction where you're ride vehicle is half motion-simulator half roller coaster.

 

[Brer Panther]

All right, let's get started!

The entranceway to Disney Down Under is a giant, gleaming arch topped by a statue of Mickey Mouse. On both sides of the arch is a mural of various Disney characters, from Donald Duck to Wreck-It Ralph. As you pass under the arch, you’ll notice that there are odd-looking tracks over your head… Monorail tracks! Finally, you come to an enormous fountain with Sorcerer Mickey conducting the waves.

The fountain looks a bit like this one at Disney's California Adventure.
​

If you go down the path to the left of the fountain, you’ll find the theme park P.I.X.A.R. Over Australia and the Downtown Disney shopping and dining complex. And if you take the north path, well, you’ll find the resort’s main theme park…

First, you must park your car in the park’s parking lot. Like the Magic Kingdom, the parking lot is comprised of twelve small sections, each named after a Disney character: the Mickey section, the Donald section, the Goofy section, the Minnie section, the Eeyore section, the Aladdin section, the Pinocchio section, the Elsa section, the Snow White section, the Timon section, the Lumiere section, and finally the Bambi section.

Once you park your car, the park’s entrance doesn’t look much different from the entrances of Disney’s other theme-parks. Outside the train station up above is a flowerbed in the shape of Mickey Mouse’s head. However, once you pass under the train station, you won’t find yourself walking right down the middle of Main Street U.S.A., oh no… Instead, you’ll find yourself on…

Hollywood Boulevard​

Hooray for Hollywood! You never know who you might see as you make your way down the streets of this little slice of Hollywood in the Land Down Under. And unlike Main Street U.S.A., there are plenty of attractions, as well as a few nice places to shop or eat.

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In fact, this area of the park features many shops. The Art of Disney, on your left, is a fantastic place to grab a work of art. Top Dog Tailors, also on your left, specializes in clothing for all ages. On your right is Cover Story, which boasts a selection of great books, and Mickey’s of Hollywood, which mainly specializes in Disney merchandise. Hungry? The Emerald City Café is a wonderful place for a light snack. You can munch on bagels, muffins, doughnuts, and other Breakfast treats in a Wizard of Oz-themed environment. Or, if you’re thirsty, you can grab a milkshake at the Starring Role Soda Fountain. If not, come back later so you can grab dinner at Hollywood & Vine or the Crystal Palace.

http://.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/crystal-palace.jpg
Pooh and Tigger greeting dining guests at the Crystal Palace.​

But for now, let’s do some attractions. Located inside the Hollywood Boulevard Theater is Movie Magic!, a theatrical show (or so it seems) about how movies are made using the same technology as the Ellen’s Energy Adventure attraction at EPCOT. The attraction exits out into the Filmmaker’s Treasure Trove gift shop.

The ride vehicles for Movie Magic! look very much like the ones used at Ellen's Energy Adventure, albeit with a dark blue color scheme decorated with white stars rather than purple and grey.​

It is also on Hollywood Boulevard that you can hop aboard the Disneyland Australia Railroad, which takes you around the park, with stops at Frontierland and Mickey’s Toontown.

The train on its way back to Hollywood Boulevard from Mickey's Toontown.​

Finally, near the far end of Hollywood Boulevard is a rather creepy house that you’d swear is haunted. Indeed, that’s the Haunted Mansion. Those who “ain’t afraid of no ghosts” can journey into the mansion and encounter its residents, all of them ghosts. To be precise, there are 999 happy haunts, but there’s room for a thousand. Any volunteers?

The Haunted Mansion ends with an encounter with three Hitchhiking Ghosts. Beware, they might follow you home!​

Sitting at the end of Hollywood Boulevard is the Beast’s Castle. Home to the Beast from Beauty and the Beast, if you head inside you’ll eventually find yourself in another area of the park, Fantasyland. But we’ll get there later…

The Beast's Castle will look something like this...​

Hollywood Boulevard
Attractions
1. Movie Magic!
2. Haunted Mansion
3. Disneyland Australia Railroad
Shopping and Dining
A) Art of Disney
B) Mickey’s of Hollywood
C) Cover Story
D) Top Dog Tailors
E) Filmmaker’s Treasure Trove
F) Emerald City Café
G) Hollywood & Vine
H) Crystal Palace
I) Starring Role Soda Fountain

 

[Flippin'Flounder]

I like it

 

[orlando678-]

Great ideas! I wonder how the haunted mansion is rethemed to the Hollywood surroundings.

 

[KeithVH]

 

[Flippin'Flounder]

Is HM just the same as WDW's?

 

[Brer Panther]

Not really, though there are similarities.

 

[Brer Panther]

Say, did you hear that? It sounded like the roar of a lion… And it’s coming from the other side of that bridge!

​

Lined by glowing torches and constructed from logs and vines, that bridge leads the way into Adventureland, an exotic jungle environment where a new adventure is always lurking around every corner. In the rivers below, you might spot a crocodile or two, or a skeleton in a rowboat, a pith helmet on his head and an oar in his hands. Animal sounds can be heard from the foliage on the riverbanks.

Once you cross the bridge, parkgoers find themselves in a tropical jungle environment with lots of trees, waterfalls, streams, bushes, and mist. Lots of mist. In truth, this jungle isn’t completely uninhabited. There are a few buildings here and there, with roofs made of grass and rain-worn walls.

If you didn’t grab a bite on Hollywood Boulevard, now is a great time to stop at the Grinning Rhinoceros Bar for a smoothie. The bar was first opened by a traveling British bartender in 1954 after a run-in with a hungry black panther and a group of mischievous monkeys. It mainly specializes in sodas and smoothies, but it also sells “Fountain of Youth Water”, a special kind of water the man fetched from the stream (don’t get your hopes up; it’s just regular bottled water in a fancy souvenir cup).

Or for a larger meal, there’s the Adventureland Lakeside Veranda, which mainly specializes in pizza, pasta, and salads. As they dine, guests are entertained by four colorful birds who have somehow been granted with the ability to talk: Jose, Michael, Pierre, and Fritz.

The four birds that sing for guests as they eat: Jose, Michael, Pierre, and Fritz.​

To your left as you enter Adventureland are the remains of a large stone temple. Presumably, at one point this was home to a sultan, but now its home to a dark ride based on one of Disney’s most popular films of the 1960s. Journey Into the Jungle Book was the idea of my fellow Armchair Imagineer, DisneyManOne, who has created the ride-through featured below:

When you look at current trackless rides, the main point is just to see that the vehicles in front of you follow a different path that you take. To emulate this in a suspended ride, where you obviously must be supported by a physical track, this ride will have 3 different tracks that load in a straight line, but separate and pass through the scenes along different paths. The paths will not cross, that would be exceptionally complicated. In load and unload the 3 tracks follow parallel close to each other, with just enough room for the mechanism to sit over the track and hang the vehicle. The vehicles for each of the tracks are different so that the seating compartments line up in load and unload, meaning that the left vehicle cantilevers right under the track and the right vehicle cantilevers left. As far as I know, this system does not exist currently. I quickly drew a example track layout, but it is just lines, so no defined show scenes. Each of the 3 tracks are within an inch of 1046'.

The queue path takes us over the stream and into a cave to the left of the temple. In this cave, you'll find out that the queue actually doubles as an animal exhibit! Amongst the ruins that are being reclaimed by the jungle, I would put in exhibits for smaller, but no less important, critters of the Asian rain forest.As the ruins are being overgrown, little things like lizards, snakes and spiders would be moving in.
Some examples would include the green snake and the red tailed rat snake. Both of these reptiles are fairly commonly found in zoos and make great exhibits. A good creepy animal would be a hunstman’s spider. Many kinds of these spiders live in Asia. They are huge and hairy and looking at them makes your skin crawl. Perhaps there could be a submerged section of the ruins that is now home to the unusual snake-necked turtle. And I wouldn’t leave mammals out, either. Prevost squirrels do well in captivity, are fun to watch and, with their bizarre color pattern (mahogany fur on the belly and black and white up top), they make fun zoo animals.

We exit back out into the jungle, now inside the show building. We approach load, where we see a line of hanging vehicles, looking like carved tree trunks, hanging by vines from the canopy above. The vehicle seats 2 per row with 2 rows. This system's biggest issues is the access to the maintenance bay since it cannot just split and pass directly into a backstage area. After some thought, I decided that the best decision would be that at some point in the path, each track has a split that gently descends down to the basement, passes underneath the scenes of the attraction, and rises again in the maintenance building to the east of the show building. I also considered track splits into small bays that contain a track elevator, moving the vehicle down to the basement, but that would radically slow the process of moving vehicles.

A mural very similar to the picture above decorates the loading area.​

Of course, the ride takes you through the story of The Jungle Book. Beginning right off quick with the wolves and the pack leader talking about Mowgli and Shere Khan, who hates men. The story (and the ride) then moves quickly to introducing Bagheera and then the Dawn Patrol. For this scene, I really want to have the cars vibrate, as if they're being shaken by the thunderous footsteps of the elephants. Leaving the elephants behind, we meet Baloo who does an awesome audio animatronic version of "The Bare Necessities.”

Of course, the plot turns to the monkeys. On this attraction, you will have animatronic monkeys on both sides of you as well as above you with one coming awfully close to the top of your head all the while mocking Baloo and stealing his man cub. At this point, the ride takes you to King Louie himself singing “I Wanna Be Like You.” I envision this scene to be big and wide open, not unlike the Under the Sea part of the Little Mermaid dark ride. The end of this part of the scene would have the stone pillars coming close to crumbling and falling around you. Mowgli, of course, runs away again, and we meet Kaa dangling over the river looking at you with his hypnotic eyes.

We finally meet Shere Khan and the vultures. There's a great big climax scene, where Mowgli, Baloo, Bagheera and the vultures all fight off Shere Khan. A neat fire effect would come into play. The boat ride then ends with Bagheera and Baloo watching as Mowgli and Shanti go off into the man-village. The exit to the attraction would be a replica of the man village (and since this is Disney this would likely be a gift shop--the Bare Necessities gift shop, if you will).

Characters from the movie are easy to find near the attraction.​

Nearby is another attraction in a similar but different-looking temple: Indiana Jones and the Temple of the Fire Snake. Guests join Indiana Jones for a trip into the lair of the dreaded Fire Snake, where you’ll encounter skeletons, rats, and the Fire Snake himself, a large cobra with piercing red eyes, a blood-curdling cry, and the ability to breathe fire (of course!). You may get scorched!

​

Tourists. Why did it have to be tourists?​

There are some incredible animals in Adventureland. However, most of them are rather dangerous. Fortunately, there’s a way to get up-close-and-personal with these animals without being devoured: the World-Famous Jungle Cruise!

Al E. Gaterr, the man responsible for this whole Jungle Cruise thing, once found an ancient tablet that can transport you to any place in the world. He quickly seized the opportunity to have the tablet chopped up, with each piece put on the front of a different boat. And amazingly, it worked! Soon, hundreds of tourists were coming to Africa so they could “see all of the world’s jungles in one day!”… For a buck twenty. But nobody minded the price because of how cool the idea sounded. At least, until they ran into HEADHUNTERS. No, really. While traveling down the river Nile, they were suddenly attacked by HEADHUNTERS. Don’t worry, though, they were able to come out AHEAD of the others. Heh heh heh… Seriously, though, they made it out alive. But unfortunately for Al E. Gaterr, many of the people wanted a refund.

​

It's okay to take pictures of bathing elephants... They all have their trunks on!​

Near the attraction’s exit is (of course) a small gift shop called Trader Sam’s, where you can buy an ever-popular “I Survived the World-Famous Jungle Cruise” t-shirt. They’re selling like hotcakes! Other shops in the land include Colonel Hathi’s Club (where you can grab a pith helmet of your own), Professor Porter’s Safari Supply (named after the goofy father of Jane Porter from Disney’s version of Tarzan), and Island Imports (just in case you need a bathing suit on this trip).

The jungle foliage and grassy roofs transition into a small Caribbean town overrun by pirates. The main draw of this section of Adventureland is Pirates of the Caribbean, an indoor boat ride about a group of pirates and their quest for treasure. Captain Jack Sparrow, however, is out for the treasure himself. The ride exits out into the Treasure Chest gift shop. And if you’re hungry, you can stop by the Tortuga Tavern for a taco.

Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me...​

Adventureland
Attractions
1. The World-Famous Jungle Cruise
2. Indiana Jones and the Temple of the Fire Snake
3. Journey Into the Jungle Book
4. Pirates of the Caribbean
Shopping and Dining
A) Bare Necessities
B) The Treasure Chest
C) Professor Porter’s Safari Supply
D) Colonel Hathi’s Club
E) Island Imports
F) Trader Sam’s
G) Tortuga Tavern
H) The Grinning Rhinoceros Bar
I) Adventureland Lakeside Veranda

 

[Brer Panther]

Yee-haw! Saddle up, pardners, ‘cause we’re goin’ back to the time of cowboys and Indians. The wilderness is up ahead!

Welcome to the town of Polecat Gulch. Named for its unusually large population of polecats (skunks), the only reason anyone came to live in this critter-infested town was that it was a fantastic place to get rich. Big Thunder Mountain overlooked the town, and it was crawling with gold. To get here, you can either take the Disneyland Australia Railroad (which has a station here) or follow a pathway near the entrance to Pirates of the Caribbean in nearby Adventureland.

The train station in Frontierland.​

You’re probably interested in what I said about “gold”, aren’t you? No need to get excited, Big Thunder Mountain is just ahead. You can take the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad inside the mountain to search for gold, but be warned: flash floods and earthquakes are common in Polecat Gulch, and if you’re caught in one this normally tame train ride can be the wildest ride in the wilderness!

Many of the residents of Polecat Gulch have businesses here. Many have literally set up shops, such as the Polecat Gulch General Store and the Frontierland Trading Post (a great place to find pins). One miner, Will U. Bea, has built a shop for miners in search of gold near the exit to Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. It’s called the Will U. Bea Mine Supply store. Others have set up restaurants. If you’re hankerin’ for some meat, stop by the Saddleback Steakhouse, or you could catch dinner and a show at the Diamondback Rattlesnake Saloon. There’s also the Frontierland Shooting Gallery, where those who consider themselves a lucky shot can practice their shooting.

​

Rather close to Big Thunder Mountain is another attraction, the Western River Expedition. Based on a discarded idea for Walt Disney World, the Western River Expedition is sort of like Pirates of the Caribbean, but with cowboys rather than pirates. A ride-through will come later.

There’s also the Lewis and Clark Riverboat, which many of Polecat Flats’ residents used to get to the town.

Of course, Polecat Flats isn’t the only part of Frontierland that’s worth exploring… The nearby forests are crawling with wildlife: rabbits, foxes, bears, raccoons, vultures, wolves, alligators, porcupines, weasels, and yes, skunks are among the animals you can find. Most of the folks in Polecat Flats see ‘em as creatures to be feared, but in truth they’re no less civilized than you and me.

Like the residents of Polecat Flats, the animals have also et up shops and restaurants for you to enjoy. Crocodile Mercantile is the first shop you’ll come across, stocked with merchandise relating to Disney’s forest fauna (as in, characters from Bambi, Song of the South, The Fox and the Hound, ect.). The Briar Patch gift shop, meanwhile, specializes in merchandise relating to this forest’s most popular attraction (but more on that in just a moment).

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Inside the Briar Patch gift shop.​

Many of the residents of Polecat Flats who have gone into the woods say that they came across a seemingly-abandoned theater… But music could still be heard from inside. They’re not crazy. That theater is the home of the Country Bear Jamboree, a paw-clapping, toe-tapping hoedown hosted by a group of goofy, gy bears from the backwoods. Nearby is the Hungry Bear Restaurant, an eatery recently opened by one of the Country Bears, Liver Lips McGrowl.

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The Five Bear Rugs: Zeke, Zeb, Ted, Fred, and a bear named Tennessee.​

It’s not easy to miss the large mountain sitting in the center of these woods. Its slopes of mud and the gnarled tree trunk sitting at the top are easy to spot, as is the waterfall that rushes down from a hole in the mountain and into the briar patch below. This is Chickapin Hill, or Splash Mountain as it’s more commonly called. While this version of the popular log flume attraction is admittedly rather similar to the version in Florida, similarities to California and Tokyo’s versions are abundant, too.

The mountain looks like a cross between California and Florida's mountains.​

If you keep walking, eventually you’ll reach the entrance to the attraction, which is a large barn topped with a wood-carved sign with the words “SPLASH MOUNTAIN” painted on it. Atop the sign is a large framed image of six characters from the attraction: Brer Rabbit, Brer Fox, Brer Bear, Brer Frog, Brer Gator, and one of the much-beloved Fishing Geese. The six critters sit in a log (Brer Bear, naturally, is in the back, while Brer Frog is holding onto the front) which is hurtling down the waterfall that leaks out of Chickapin Hill, screaming in terror. Let’s head inside!

As you go inside, you’ll notice that the quene is rather similar to that of Walt Disney World’s, complete with various quotes from Uncle Remus, a roaring fireplace, and portraits of characters seen in the ride including Brer Rabbit, Brer Fox, Brer Bear, Brer Frog, and even Brer Gator. Posted at various parts of the quene are signs warning you that you WILL get wet on this ride (and chances are that you may get SOAKED). Near the end of the quene, you’ll also see a sign reading LAST CHANCE TO EXIT, as well as several critter houses, one of which belongs to Brer Frog. In fact, if you look inside, you’ll be able to see the shadow of Brer Frog, who is telling a story to some younger critters.

Finally, riders make it to the load area, which like Tokyo’s version is held indoors and looks quite similar to the load area of Florida’s version of Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, albeit with some Song of the South-esque touches here and there. Likewise, the logs, like Florida and Tokyo, have three rows of two, making for a total of six passengers. Once everyone has boarded the log, the log departs from the load area as a Goofy-esque voice gives off the safety speil: “Fer yer safety, remain seated with yer hands, arms, feet and legs inside the log and be sure to watch yer kids. Have a zip-a-dee-doo-dah ride!”

After a few minutes of drifting through a dimly-lit cave illuminated only by a few nooks and crannies that expose the outside world, we head up the first lift hill. Seated in a rocking chair near the top of the hill sits Brer Frog, smoking a pipe and telling the story of Brer Rabbit to a young rabbit, a young turtle, and a young porcupine. He says to them (and us), “Mark my words, you three, that Brer Rabbit is gonna put his foot in Brer Fox’s mouth one of these days! If you ask ME, sooner or later, Brer Fox and Brer Bear are gonna catch that Brer Rabbit for sure!”

Brer Frog sits near the top of the hill.​

Passing up by Brer Frog, you dip down a small drop that takes you outside. Then, you go around the mountain and enter the second lift hill, which is inside a sawmill. As you go up, you see logging material and several hand-crafted wooden things (like a canoe). As you pass up the lift hill, “How Do You Do” starts playing in the background in the same country-western style of Walt Disney World and Tokyo Disneyland’s versions (this IS Frontierland, after all).

Finally, you get to the top of the lift hill and go down a very small drop. Then you see that you are now MUCH higher up than before, giving you a FANTASTIC view of the park. You also see several critter dwellings, such as those of Brer Rabbit and Brer Fox. After you pass by Brer Bear’s cave house (the bear can actually be heard snoring inside the cave), you go down the first big drop of the ride, “Slippin’ Falls”.

Brer Bear's house... Do not disturb!​

The drop lands you in the middle of a lush, colorful swamp. Your first stop is The Old Watering Hole, which has a strict NO FISHING policy. That, however, has not stopped a few geese (about seven for those keeping track) from fishing here. They’re not having much luck - one has caught an old boot, another a hat, and others nothing. Regardless, all seven geese sing cheerfully to the passers-by. Nearby the geese are three cheerful bullfrogs wearing floppy yellow cowboy hats that hum along to the music. We also see Brer Frog again, this time fishing from the back of Brer Gator, who is currently fishing as well.

​

After we pass under the bridge, we see Brer Rabbit outside his Briar Patch home with Brer Turtle. He tells him and the riders that he’s running away from home in search of adventure. Little do they see Brer Fox and Brer Bear across the river, the fox standing on the bear’s shoulders, hiding behind a tree and plotting to catch the rabbit.

You then go past a small critter jugband playing made up of a porcupine drumming on a turtle’s back, a raccoon playing the harmonica, and a turkey playing a guitar. As we leave the scene, we go under a set of train tracks. A rabbit (not Brer Rabbit) and a fox (not Brer Fox) go by above our heads on a railroad handcar.

Then you see Brer Fox and Brer Bear again. Brer Bear has gotten caught in Brer Fox’s trap for Brer Rabbit and is currently hanging up and down, suspended from a rope. Brer Fox, who mains the rope, angrily tells him to get down. Across the river, a proud-looking dog in a cowboy hat watches the scenario from atop his trusty donkey.

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Entering the next scene, we see Brer Rabbit, hopping away from the rouges and laughing. Passing under a branch where three baby possums hang from their tails, a roadrunner watching them from his perch on a nearby rock, we come across some hitchhiking critters up ahead: An alligator holding a suitcase, an orange tomcat, and a bald eagle. The three ask us (in song) to be taken along to the Laughing Place they’ve been hearing so many great things about.

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Finally, you turn a corner and see that Brer Fox is trying to push Brer Bear’s enormous rear end through a hole in a tree. A sign next to the tree says “This a-way to the Laughing Place”, presumably painted on there by Brer Rabbit, who peeks out from behind a nearby log. In one hand he holds a paintbrush, he uses the other hand to cover his mouth to hold back his giggling. As we enter the tree through an arch formed by its roots, one can hear Brer Bear say, “I don’t see no Laughing Place. There’s nothing in here but bees!”

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Suddenly, we hear a loud CRACK and hurtle into the pitch blackness, accompanied by the screams of the fox, the bear, and the rabbit. Then, just as quickly as we went down, we shoot back up and finally land in a rocky tunnel with beehives, vines, and roots hanging from the ceiling. The music has now changed to “Everybody’s Got a Laughing Place”. Seated near the end of the tunnel is Brer Bear, screaming in pain due to the fact that a beehive has somehow lodged itself on his nose. Across the river, Brer Rabbit laughs at the bear’s misfortune, but he doesn’t notice that Brer Fox is behind him, holding a beehive and preparing to drop it over the rabbit’s head.

We then zip down a much smaller waterfall and go through the rest of the Laughing Place, which appears to be in a cavern with geysers, waterfalls, and vines. First, you see three animals riding geysers: a fox, a rabbit, and a turtle. A brown bear eats honey out of a broken beehive. A donkey showers under a waterfall. Little weasels pop in and out of nooks and crannies here and there. A hound dog spins around in a rowboat. Finally, we see two storks balancing on mushrooms. All of these critters sing “Everybody’s Got a Laughing Place”.

Near the exit to the Laughing Place, we see Brer Fox, who holds a beehive-stuck Brer Rabbit by the ears. The rabbit begs to be let go, but the fox ignores his pleas and taunts him.

​

The happy music changes to the same version of “Burrow’s Lament” used in Florida and Tokyo’s versions as we pass through a forest of spooky-looking trees (it’s hard to make them out, though, as the room is very dark). The climb to the big drop is just up ahead, and directly above it are the Boothill Boys, those two rascally vultures, wearing top hats and tuxedos. They warn us in threatening tones of voice that it’s time to be turning around… If only we COULD…

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"If you've finally found your Laughing Place... How come you aren't laughing?"​

Thunder rumbles and lightning flashes as our log boards a lift hill and chugs up to the top of the mountain, the dramatic music growing louder and louder. Finally, near the top of the hill, we see Brer Fox’s lair. Inside, Brer Rabbit is tied to a barbeque spit next to a sizzling cauldron, Brer Fox (whose shadow is all we can see) menacing him. The fox tells our hero that he’s going to be roasted, to which Brer Rabbit says that he’s fine with that as long as Brer Fox doesn’t throw him into the Briar Patch. As we reach the very tip-top and emerge into the open daylight, all of the park spread out below us, Brer Fox congratulates himself for thinking up that idea and announces to Brer Rabbit (and us) that he’s going to do just that. The log tips downward and we hurtle down the 53-foot waterfall and land in the Briar Patch with a KER-SPLASH!

As we’re emerging from the Briar Patch, an instrumental country western version of “Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah” leaks into our eardrums. We travel outside the mountain’s exterior for a few minutes, then finally head back into the mountain.

We pass under a banner reading “WELCOME HOME, BRER RABBIT” and enter the ride’s fantastic finale. The centerpiece of this scene is a gigantic riverboat topped with chickens, foxes, can-caning geese, a goose in the pilot’s chair, and a pig at the organ. Nearby the Swamp Boys, a band made of three alligators, plays. All the critters sing “Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah”. We leave the room after seeing one last sight: Another band made up of a rooster on the washboard, a lanky wolf blowing into a cornjug, a beaver sawing a fiddle, a bear drumming on an upside-down washtub and a skunk playing a one-stringed “thang”.

​

After that, we see none other than Brer Fox, who is currently standing atop Brer Bear’s briar-stuck bottom to escape Brer Gator, who is currently chomping on his tail. As the fox howls in pain, he angrily blames Brer Bear for letting Brer Rabbit get away (despite the fact that it was really his own fault). Cruising past them, we then see Brer Rabbit, who is currently relaxing outside of his Briar Patch home, happy to be home after a long day of almost getting eaten. One of these days, he tells us, he’ll have to thank Brer Fox for throwing him back home.

​

The attraction’s unload area is held inside what appears to be a Boat Rental Shack. Seated on the porch outside is Brer Frog again, finishing up his story to the younger critters. “And that’s how Brer Rabbit was able to outwit Brer Fox and Brer Bear. He sure learned his lesson,” he chuckles. “You can’t run away from trouble… There ain’t no place that far.” Finally, our log comes to a complete stop, and we are given the opportunity to unload and travel back to Disneyland Australia for another adventure. The attraction exits out into the Chickapin Hill Photography Studio, where you can pick up a picture of your splash into the Briar Patch.

Frontierland
Attractions
1. Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
2. Western River Expedition
3. Lewis and Clark Riverboat
4. Country Bear Jamboree
5. Splash Mountain
Shopping and Dining
A) Will U. Bea Mine Supply
B) Polecat Gulch General Store
C) Frontierland Trading Post
D) Crocodile Mercantile
E) Chickapin Hill Photography Studio
F) The Briar Patch
G) Diamondback Rattlesnake Saloon
H) Saddleback Steakhouse
I) The Hungry Bear Restaurant

 

[The90skid]

Long time lurker, first post in the Imagineer threads. BrerPanther, I have always enjoyed reading yours and DisneyManOne's theme park ideas. Keep up the creativity!!

 

[Brer Panther]

Remember when I said that the Beast’s Castle is in fact an entryway to the most magical land in the park? Let’s head inside the castle on our way to a place where dreams come true…

The Beast’s Castle, despite its foreboding nature, is a rather lovely place on the inside. Like the murals of Florida’s Cinderella Castle, stain glass windows tell the story of Beauty and the Beast as we pass by. There isn’t an attraction in the castle, but you can grab a bite upstairs at Lumiere’s Kitchen, or find a nice book at Belle’s Library.​

If you enter Fantasyland from Frontierland, you’ll find yourself in the first subland: the Enchanted Forest, a quaint little forest that the Seven Dwarfs, Merlin the Magician, and Winnie the Pooh call home. You never know who you might see.

The Seven Dwarfs’ house is on your right, and if you go inside you’ll find the load area to Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, a dark ride based on Disney’s first animated feature film. Next door is Grumpy’s Gifts, a small gift shop and THE place in the park for princess merchandise.​

The Seven Dwarfs are always in the mood for visitors, but avoid that other cottage in the woods. That belongs to the wicked Mad Madame Mim, and if you head inside you’ll find yourself in the middle of A Wizard’s Duel. This theater-in-the-round show traps guests in the clutches of Mim until Merlin arrives to save the day, via challenging her to a duel where you have to keep changing yourself into an animal to win. But Mim won’t play fair, and is always thinking up loopholes!

However, there’s always a good time to be had in the Hundred Acre Woods, where Winnie the Pooh and pals are always on some sort of adventure. You can join Pooh in the search for honey on The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, which is basically a combination of Florida’s version of the ride and Tokyo’s Pooh’s Hunny Hunt. The attraction exits out into (what else?) a gift shop, Hundred Acre Goods.

Rapunzel’s tower, which stands tall near the Mim’s cottage, marks the entrance to Rapunzel: A Tangled Tale, the last dark ride in the Enchanted Forest. Below is a ride-through courtesy of DisneyManOne.

There are two different starting points for the queue: the stand-by queue circles the base of the tower, while the FASTPASS queue immediately heads into the caverns. Taking a cue from the Little Mermaid queue, the indoor, cavern features mini-games with Pascal. Successfully completing mini-games would illuminate a starburst above on the ceiling.

At last, we finally reach the loading area. A mural seemingly drawn by Rapunzel is shown, depicting the Kingdom at night. Drawings of Rapunzel, Flynn, Pascal and Maximus stand on a grassy ledge next to the Kingdom. But unlike other Fantasyland dark ride murals, this one has animation. At certain times, floating lanterns appear in the sky and magically float away.

The ride vehicles themselves are floating lanterns. They seat four to five guests and use the Kuka arm system with a 270 degree horizontal rotation and a gentle, pneumatic lift of about 3-5 ft. The entire ride is on one level, since there are no major drops that can’t be achieved with screens and movement of the vehicles’ lifts.

Anyways, once all are aboard their floating lantern, they pass through some trees and into the first scene. The first scene takes place in the woods. An AA Flynn Rider stands next to his WANTED poster, lamenting how they never get his nose right. The neigh of a horse (Maximus) sounds and he tells riders "Gotta run!” Vehicles then pass an AA Mother Gothel calling Rapunzel to let down her hair.

The lanterns then entirely face left and pneumatically rise. A screen shows Rapunzel's hair, Mother Gothel climbing, followed by Flynn, who motions for you to keep it a secret. The lanterns move into the Tower chambers, where an AA Rapunzel and Pascal paint the walls. The vehicles move through the tower interior with quick scenes of Rapunzel singing “When Will My Life Begin”, Gothel singing “Mother Knows Best” and, finally, Rapunzel confronting a tied up Flynn.

The lanterns then turn backwards to exit the tower, pneumatically lowering in sync, as another screen-room simulates returning to the forest level. In the forest, Rapunzel swings around the tree in celebration as she happily yells “Best day ever!” and Flynn rolls his eyes. The lanterns then head towards the open doors of the Snuggly Duckling. The Duckling is filled with AA ruffians, all of them singing “I’ve Got a Dream” with Rapunzel. Also present are the Stabbington Brothers, eyeing Flynn and cracking their knuckles. Maximus’ neigh will sound behind us as the lanterns approach the hidden passageway.

In the underground escape tunnel begins in a keg room then enters a cavern that has an opening to the tower clearing and forest beyond and castle in far distance (scrim). The lanterns re-enter sunlight in the very large quarry/dam/canyon room. We see Flynn and Maximus fighting along with the Stabbington Brothers. Rapunzel swings across a ravine using her hair. It becomes clear that the dam is about to burst (water sprays out of it) and the canyon collapses. A boulder almost slams into the turning ride-vehicle, at which point an on-ride photo is snapped.

The excitement of the quarry is followed by a mellower moment at a nighttime campfire with Flynn & Rapunzel. But nearby Gothel discourages Rapunzel and the Stabbington Brothers prepare to grab Flynn. Back in the tower, events unfold in a magic mirror as Rapunzel and Gothel look on (screen): “The world is a cruel place.” Flynn is hurt. A sunburst in the mirror and Rapunzel gasps, exclaiming she is the lost princess. The lanterns enter the main Tower room where a short-haired Rapunzel weeps over a dying Flynn. She sings the healing incantation as sunbursts light up all around them. A harrowed Gothel can be seen falling out the window, as we hear Flynn's recovering voice.

The lanterns enter a royal chamber where we see Maximus standing proud with a bag of apples with Pascal looking on from the horse’s head and Rapunzel and Flynn embracing the King and Queen. The lanterns exit the castle balcony and enter the Grand Finale of the attraction where "I See the Light" plays and a super-detailed miniature of the castle, the city & the boat-filled bay are laid out before & below them (in perspective: closer boats are larger). It is evening and glowing lanterns, fiber-optics and projected lanterns surround the gently rising/lowering/rotating vehicles to create a mesmerizing effect.

In the denouement scene, the lanterns pass the entrance to the castle. Rapunzel and Flynn wave goodbye as Maximus stands nearby, smiling and occasionally winking at guests. Pascal waves goodbye using his tail. The lanterns pull back into the loading station and guests enter into a gift shop, called Flynn’s Pilfered Goods.

Despite its name, the nearby Snuggly Duckling Tavern is actually a good place to find some of the roughest, toughest, meanest thugs in the forest. And some darn good food as well.

If you enter Fantasyland from the Beast’s Castle, you’ll find yourself in the next subland, Merry Ole England. Since many of Disney’s movies take place in England, it seemed appropriate to have much of Fantasyland be based on it.

To your left is one of Disney’s most iconic attractions: Peter Pan’s Flight, in which guests board flying pirate ships and go on an adventure to help Peter Pan battle Captain Hook and his pirates in Neverland. Near the attraction’s exit is a restaurant, Hook’s Galley, where you can dine on the finest seafood in all of Neverland, and a gift shop, Neverland Treasure Trove.

Serving as sort of a replacement for Disneyland’s Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride is another dark ride in this subland. Escape From DeVil Manor, based on One Hundred and One Dalmatians, this attraction casts riders as Dalmatian puppies on the run from Cruella DeVil, who wants to make a coat out of their fur.

There’s one more dark ride here: A Jolly Holiday With Mary Poppins, based on Mary Poppins. Hop aboard a carousel horse and enter one of Bert the Chimney Sweep’s chalk drawings for a magical adventure. Wow, I’m so bad at descriptions, aren’t I?​

The last subland of Fantasyland is Small World Square. There really isn’t that much of a theme here, it’s basically just a charming little area for the attractions in Fantasyland that wouldn’t fit in the Enchanted Forest or Merry Ole England.

As you might have guessed from the name, the centerpiece of Small World Square is another Disney Parks classic, “it’s a small world”. We all know what this ride is like. The happiest cruise that ever sailed around the world. A ride-through will come later.

For those not interested in a trip around the world, it’s Topsy-Turvy day over at the Festival of Fools. This theatrical show, similar to Festival of the Lion King at Disney’s Animal Kingdom, encourages guests to help Quasimodo the Hunchback of Notre Dame turn all of Paris upside-down. That’s the way it is on Topsy-Turvy Day!

Pinocchio, the wooden boy who became real, is also around. On The Adventures of Pinocchio, guests are tasked by the Blue Fairy to help Pinocchio prove himself worthy of being a real boy… Which turns out to be no easy task!

Conductor Mickey Mouse is late for a performance at the Fantasyland Music Hall. Can Donald resist the temptation to see if he’s up to the task? And if he isn’t, will the concert end in disaster? Find out in Mickey’s Philharmagic, a marvelous 3D show located near the entrance to “it’s a small world”.​

There are three shops in Small World Square: Geppetto’s Clockwork Shop (located at the exit of The Adventures of Pinocchio), Small World Toy Shop (where you can buy a replica of one of the dolls seen on the ride), and Mickey’s Music Store (at the exit of Mickey’s Philharmagic). Also here is a small restaurant, Figaro’s Village Haus, featuring Italian specialties, and a bakery, Brazzle Dazzle Bakery, based on Pete’s Dragon.

Fantasyland
Attractions
1. The Beast’s Castle
2. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
3. The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
4. A Wizard’s Duel
5. Rapunzel: A Tangled Tale
6. Peter Pan’s Flight
7. Escape From DeVil Manor
8. A Jolly Holiday With Mary Poppins
9. “it’s a small world”
10. Mickey’s Philharmagic
11. The Adventures of Pinocchio
12. Festival of Fools
Shopping and Dining
A. Belle’s Library
B. Lumiere’s Kitchen
C. Hook’s Galley
D. Hundred Acre Goods
E. Mickey’s Music Store
F. Neverland Treasure Trove
G. Geppetto’s Clockwork Shop
H. Brazzle Dazzle Bakery
I. Flynn's Pilfered Goods
J. Small World Toy Shop
K. Grumpy’s Gifts
L. Figaro’s Village Haus