Yeah, I'm bringing one new land after another. I've been sitting on this for months and wanted to get the whole park pitch out at last!
Next we have the
Frozen land that will serve as the headliner of WDSP's expansion, with Elsa's palace appearing to serve as the new weenie. I wanted to make the land a bit bigger than the intended version, taking elements from Hong Kong and Tokyo DisneySea's versions too.
We leave behind Mickey’s Toontown, finding ourselves before a beautiful Scandinavian fjord, with an ornate galleon anchored in the bay. Beyond is the magnificent icy blue castle of the Queen Elsa and Princess Anna. For the first time in forever, the Kingdom of Arendelle, the setting of
Frozen, comes to Disneyland Paris. The Kingdom of Arendelle is a magical kingdom that celebrates the world of
Frozen, also realistically capturing Scandinavian culture.
Upon entering the kingdom, guests travel across a wooden bridge and are greeted to the sight of the mighty, mysterious Northern Mountain, the rustic kingdom town, and the royal palace, the roofs and spires sparkling with Elsa’s icy magic. The village’s architecture strives for authenticity, using many wooden, colourful houses, taking inspiration from the Finnish city Porvoo, using a lot of stave church-esque roofs. The permanent, enchanted snow on the rooftops is a celebration of Elsa’s magic and union with her sister and people.
Every morning in the land, the
Opening of the Royal Gates Ceremony occurs as the city heralds, Anna, and Elsa dramatically open up the royal castle to the guests, with Elsa, appearing on the docked galleon to enchant the snow, and cause a small puff of snowfall to burst out of the castle’s highest spire. This ceremony is replaced in the winter months with the
Arendelle Snowy Celebration, Elsa, Anna, Kristoff, and Olaf coming together to celebrate Christmas. If weather conditions are bad, then the ceremony will occur within the royal castle.
The village has many nooks and crannies, back passages and paths to explore, with a lot of hidden story elements to uncover, the lives of the people of Arendelle playing out across the land. Olaf, for example, has been on the search for Elsa’s Snowgies, who can be found hidden across the village and rest of Arendelle. Cast members play the role of Arendelle’s citizens and shopkeepers.
There are several shops and restaurants in the village, all sharing the Finnish/Scandinavian architecture, but each with their own distinct theming. Our first stop is
Treasures of Arendelle, a homely antiques shop, owned by an eccentric collector, Heiderich Seeken, who has searched far and wide for the strange and wonderful, putting them on display. The store primarily sells
Frozen merchandise, but particularly unique products, toys, clothes, etc. including some “ice” replicas of scenes from the movie.
Frozen Fractals is a mint-green wallpapered glassmakers, in operation through four generations of the same family. Elsa’s special powers inspired the owners to create many new beautiful glass and crystal creations – magic snowglobes, sparkly treasures, tiaras, earrings, jewellery, hair pins, glasses, goblets, and ceiling ornaments based on the diamonds seen in
Frozen II. The centrepiece is a replica of the royal castle made of crystal. The shop has a kiln at the back where guests can watch and learn how the glass gifts are forged by professional glassmakers.
The Royal Seamstress is a slightly more grander building, but appears to be quite messy above the shop, since a roll of fabric hangs out the top floor window. Madame Olivia Kankatt, the royal seamstress, has thrown open the doors to her fabulous boutique, allowing guests the chance to buy her creations. Clothes for men, women, boys and girls are available, where children can become princesses, princes, and even ice harvesters.
Knothole Workshop (actually misspelt, meant to read “Knott Hole Workshop”) is a busy, cluttered woodcarving workshop where guests can buy hand-whittled wooden gifts, crated within the building by professional carvers. The outside has a small viewing area, with many carvings decorating the little garden.
The
Spirits of the Fjords is on the water’s edge, being a toy and bookstore. Parts of an old ship,
The Sea Bear, are built into the shop, telling the story of an old sea captain, Seamus Briny, who lived an adventurous life of sea travel but retired to Arendelle, putting his finds up for sale. This shop contains a lot of merchandise related to
Frozen II, but also celebrate the myths and culture of Finland, Norway, and Iceland.
Planted on opposite sides of the town square are two rival pubs,
The Red Rooster and
The Blue Nokken, whose grouchy landlords, named Lars and Edwina, who have been in a funny feud for years, arguing over everything. Currently, they have rivalling fanclubs for Anna and Elsa, guests capable of participating in a little street entertainment where the royal sisters visit the square, and get caught up in the contests of wits between the two pub owners. Both pubs sell similar yet different menus, including a signature lutefisk dish.
Grovbrød Bakery is a humble classical bakery that sells Scandinavian bread, cakes, sandwiches, donuts, pastries, and other tasty offerings, like Karelian pastry and pulla sweet bread. Next door is
Mabel’s Ice Cream, a lovely ice cream parlour using fresh, homemade flavours, each based on our heroes of Arendelle.
The final destination in the village are the
Reindeer Stables, a small petting zoo where the ice harvesters’ reindeer live, though this attraction closes early than most due to the care needed for the animals.
Through the village streets, we come to the
Royal Castle, a humble yet still beautifully built castle, made with a fusion of European and Norwegian architecture. Magic has covered the rooftops, turrets, and flagpoles with ice, with the highest spire resembling a snowflake. Guests can access the castle by crossing a bridge, and venture into the inner courtyard. Here, they will find
Elsa’s Ice Rink, where guests can get their skates on and go for some slippery fun, or learn how to skate from the royal skating instructors.
Within the castle, gets can find themselves exploring the halls of the Arendelle royal family.
The Royal Ballroom Banquet is the land’s major restaurant, set within the castle’s ballroom, where guests are honoured visitors to Arendelle and welcome to have a meal from the castle’s kitchens. The restaurant would be a cousin to the Be Our Guest Restaurant, though with a little less focus on restrict booking times, with guests welcome to wander in and take photographs from a perimeter around the ballroom. The menu is a rich variety of European and Scandinavian meals. Elsa, Anna, Kristoff, and Olaf will make the occasional appearance to interact with guests.
On the first floor is the
Frozen Storybook Alcove, a walkthrough attraction where magic storybooks, stain glass windows, and special effects recreate scenes from Anna and Elsa’s journey as sisters.
Towering over the land stands the North Mountain, around the size of the Matterhorn, with Elsa’s ice palace perched on top. The mountain hides a show building for the land’s signature attraction, but also hosts a secondary attraction on its own.
A rocky path leads off from the side of the castle, into a mysterious series of caves that lead under the mountain and beyond. This is the entryway to
Frozen: Into the Unknown, an indoor boat ride, which takes guests through the magical mists into Northuldra, bringing characters and music from
Frozen II to life. The attraction takes some inspiration from both Maelstrom and Frozen Ever After, specifically the grand boats that propel guests on their journey.
The story would technically take place after
Frozen II, though would remain a little vague, depending on if a second sequel is to come out (yes, please!). A celebration is at hand for the reunion between Arendelle and Northuldra, led by Elsa and Anna. Guests are invited to board boats, and travel through Northuldra to Ahtohallan, where Elsa awaits them.
Through a series of caves, guests find the grotto of the rock trolls, where Grand Pabbie tells stories to young trolls about the efforts and sisterhood of Elsa and Anna. We come across a stone quay, where our chariots into the unknown await.
Through a veil of mist, we travel through the Arendellean countryside, under the shadow of the North Mountain. Olaf and Sven direct us to travel down the snowy river and through the standing stones that lead to Northuldra. The boat enters Northuldra, passing through the beautiful, idyllic autumn forest at night, where the air elemental Gale makes its presence known, sending leaves fluttering around us. Olaf plays with Gale, blown apart in a flurry of leaves.
The boat passes through the village of the Northuldra, who perform “Vuelie” as we pass by, Matthias and Yelena cautioning us to not upset the spirits. Our pleasant journey continues, visiting the herds of reindeer, cared for by Kristoff and Ryder. Elsa sings the call of Ahtohallan, only to awaken the salamander fire spirit, who ignites the trees around us, bouncing after us in curiosity. This causes a tree to fall, diverting the river current, sending the boat careening through the home of the slumbering earth spirits. Disturbed by our presence, one sends the boat plummeting down a drop into a cave.
Just when it appears we are lost in the caves, Anna appears with a lit torch, directing us down a path that leads to Elsa. She warns of another drop too late, as we fly down another waterfall, and drawn into a water tunnel, created by the water spirit Nokk. The mighty steed guides us through the tunnel, til we magically resurface outside Ahtohallan, a beautiful glacier of memories and music. As we drift into the glacier, we hear Elsa singing “Show Yourself” through reflections in the ice.
Then, with a burst of snow and light, we enter Elsa’s new throne room, where she continues her magnificent rendition of “Show Yourself”. With a little magic, Elsa sends our boat backwards downriver, miraculously returning us to the shore, through the ruins of the dam, and towards Arendelle. The sun begins to rise as we pass through the fjord, where Anna and Elsa stand together hand-in-hand, alongside Olaf, Kristoff, and Sven, bidding us farewell. In a final scene, we see Olaf telling Marshmallow about the events of the ride in his own way, as we reach the loading zone, and head for the exit, which pops out through another hidden cave.
Of course, the highest point in the kingdom is the North Mountain. Two wooden tracks have been built to wind and weave in, out, and around the mountainside. This is the E-ticket
North Mountain Sleigh Rush, a spiritual successor to the Matterhorn, but with a
Frozen spin. Travelling through the ice harvesters’ tool house and stables, guests will find themselves at the foot of the great mountain. They are invited to a fun race up the mountain and then back down again. There are two stations in the loading area, built within the vicinity of the Rock Trolls’ grotto. Grand Pabbie explains to guests the “rules” of the race, all based on who can get down the mountain first wins. The sleigh vehicles have room for about twenty people, four per row. Grand Pabbie uses his magic to send the sleighs up to Elsa’s palace.
On the way up, the sleighs are side-by-side, reaching the peak, and go into the palace where Elsa freezes the way down to make the ride more fun. Then, hold onto your hats and winter boots, as the way down is fast and fun. The sleighs slide down the wooden tracks towards the ground, with a feeling of thrills found in Radiator Springs Racers. The track weaves in and out of the mountain, passing by vicious wolves, and a grumpy Marshmallow. The race is unpredictable, so the winner is always spontaneous and a surprise. Due to France’s weather, the tracks are covered by canopies, built into the mountainside itself to avoid rain and wind.
The final stop in the snowy kingdom is
Wandering Oaken’s Trading Post and Haberdashery, set at the western foot of the mountain. The jolly Oaken has expanded his business, now owning both his trading post and now a cozy, comfy restaurant, that serves as a steakhouse. The haberdashery is split between a summer and winter department, with plenty of Oaken-patented merchandise and products, including an entire section dedicated to Oaken’s personal own sun balm, bathing lotions, and other products.
MEET & GREETS
Attractions
-Opening of the Royal Gates Ceremony (Ouverture de La Cérémonie des Portes Royales)
-Arendelle Snowy Celebration (Célébration Enneigée d'Arendelle) (seasonal)
-Reindeer Stables (Écuries de Rennes)
-The Royal Castle – Frozen Storybook Alcove (Le Château Royal - Alcôve du Livre de Contes "Frozen")
-Frozen: Into the Unknown (Frozen: Dans l'Inconnu)
-North Mountain Sleigh Rush (Course de Traîneau des Montagnes du Nord)
-Elsa’s Ice Rink (Patinoire d'Elsa)
Shopping & Dining
-Wandering Oaken’s Trading Post and Haberdashery (Poste de Traite et Mercerie de Wandering Oaken)
-The Royal Ballroom Banquet (Le Banquet Royal de la Salle de Bal)
-The Red Rooster and The Blue Nokken (Le Coq Rouge et Le Nokken Bleu)
-Treasures of Arendelle (Trésors d'Arendelle)
-Frozen Fractals (Fractales Congelées)
-The Royal Seamstress (La Couturière Royale)
-Knothole Workshop (Atelier de Knothole)
-Spirits of the Fjords (Esprits des Fjords)
-Grovbrød Bakery (Boulangerie Grovbrød)
-Mabel’s Ice Cream (Crème Glacée de Mabel)
...
SEMI-OFF TOPIC, BUT MERCIFUL DEATH!