News New Haunted Mansion Grounds Expansion, Retail Shop Coming to Disneyland Resort in 2024

[duncedoof]

A proper Nightmare Before Christmas ride would be sweet, and would spare us from this headache.

Popularity metrics for the real Mansion would stabilize if they'd just let it breathe.

 

[Nland316]

A proper Nightmare Before Christmas ride would be sweet, and would spare us from this headache.

Popularity metrics for the real Mansion would stabilize if they'd just let it breathe.

Halloween Town would honestly be a great DL Forward addition.

I saw the idea be brought up on these forums not too long ago, and I couldn’t help think about how much sense that makes.

I honestly think it’s a better concept than Villains.

 

[etc98]

Some great before and after here.

I’m confused why there are still three paths in the queue. Before it was standby, lightning lane, and the accessible exit. But with the new elevator, I thought the accessible exit wasn’t going to be through the front anymore.

Especially because there are only two signs above the entrance, I’m just so confused what that middle path will be used for.

Maybe the left and center paths are both standby, and it’s like Jungle Cruise or Thunder Mountain where the line splits in two, but here it’s just the entire queue is split?

 

[Castle Cake Apologist]

I believe the above is a projection but I’ve seen a video where the physical figure is clearly there after the projection is gone.

I could be wrong, but I'm 98% sure the scrim is completely covered with a physical screen during HMH for the projection. You can't see into the actual show scene.

 

[Chet Dakota]

At DLR now and rode it the past few days. Hatbox Ghost was not working on our rides. Seems odd since the ride has been closed and under refurbishment for so long.

I just don't get this overlay. Some of it is good, like the Jack in the cemetery, but it is mostly a bunch of boxes and black lighting covering up the real show.

 

[Phroobar]

Looks like the gifts in the mirrors are animated now.

 

[mickEblu]

I could be wrong, but I'm 98% sure the scrim is completely covered with a physical screen during HMH for the projection. You can't see into the actual show scene.

No, you re right. I’m guessing maybe what threw me off was that I never realized they actually have the hanging corpse there during the projection/ HMH version. All I notice is Jacks big cartoon head and then its operation get out of the holding pen.

 

[TP2000]

Minor correction, but the HHGs have never been a Pepper's Ghost effect. They're just mannequins rotating in perfect synch with the Doombuggies on a carousel behind two way mirrors. Brilliantly simple and incredibly effective.

Here's a few photos of that Ghost-Go-Round carousel mechanism from backstage.

For the NBC version of the ride for the past 23 years, they would just remove the ghosts on sticks and replace them with gift boxes on sticks. It was all very simple, but done so beautifully and with such wonderful showmanship that it looked wildly impressive.

It also helps that the ride debuted in 1969, when everyone was talking about NASA and landing on the moon and the bold new future we were suddenly living in. So people assumed that the visual effects in The Haunted Mansion were being done with Space Age stuff like "holograms" and computerized wizardry, when it was just good old-fashioned spook house tricks taken to a higher level of showmanship by Imagineering.

 

[Phroobar]

Where the bride stood in the attic there are some beams. It kind of feels like a piece of glass will go there for a new Pepper's ghost illusion. It could be similar to Jack Sparrow AA's transformation in Shanghai's Pirates but for the bride?

 

[duncedoof]

Detour: Hey! Listen to this wicked thing...

 

[BasiltheBatLord]

I love HMH, contrary to most on here, but no doubt it stays for way too long every year. Running a Christmas attraction in July is freakin' insane.

 

[Phroobar]

Detour: Hey! Listen to this wicked thing...

I have the original LP. I played it constantly as a kid. I can still recite it. I like the part about the ghost in the corridor of doors.

 

[Disney Analyst]

Some progress:

 

[Nirya]

Ok, question since I'll be at the parks the next few days at night.

Have the virtual queue slots all been grabbed quickly and none are available later, or do I stand a chance at grabbing a slot if I get there around 7/8?

 

[Misted Compass]

Ok, question since I'll be at the parks the next few days at night.

Have the virtual queue slots all been grabbed quickly and none are available later, or do I stand a chance at grabbing a slot if I get there around 7/8?

The VQ has been consistently open even later than that so you should be fine, although I'm not sure how D23 crowds will impact that.

 

[Vegas Disney Fan]

I believe prepandemic the transition to HMH took only 10 days, so it's entirely possible if they want to put in the effort to.

I love HMH but the long transition has to be an intentional cost saving decision to offset the cost of changing over the ride. Disney can add hundred foot tall Christmas trees to multiple parks, decorate a dozen hotels, and decorate entire parks in a couple of nights, there’s no reason the HM should take a couple weeks.

I’d be incredibly disappointed if they stopped doing HMH but it’s also getting a little ridiculous how early it opens, even in a normal year, October 1st to Jan 1st would be plenty for HMH, that would also mean reducing their ridiculously long Halloween party schedule though so very unlikely to happen. As long as they start the Halloween parties in August I don’t think there’s any chance we’ll stop seeing HMH in August also.

 

[Disney Irish]

I love HMH but the long transition has to be an intentional cost saving decision to offset the cost of changing over the ride. Disney can add hundred foot tall Christmas trees to multiple parks, decorate a dozen hotels, and decorate entire parks in a couple of nights, there’s no reason the HM should take a couple weeks.

I’d be incredibly disappointed if they stopped doing HMH but it’s also getting a little ridiculous how early it opens, even in a normal year, October 1st to Jan 1st would be plenty for HMH, that would also mean reducing their ridiculously long Halloween party schedule though so very unlikely to happen. As long as they start the Halloween parties in August I don’t think there’s any chance we’ll stop seeing HMH in August also.

There is a difference between putting up surface level decorations on facades and completely retheming an attraction.

If the HMH change over was just throwing up a bunch of decorations on the exterior of the mansion it would take one night. But they are literally replacing sections of the attraction interior every time they switch over from regular HM to HMH. That takes time and testing to ensure that everything is working properly, not something that can be done overnight or even in a day or two.

 

[Parteecia]

Ok, question since I'll be at the parks the next few days at night.

Have the virtual queue slots all been grabbed quickly and none are available later, or do I stand a chance at grabbing a slot if I get there around 7/8?

I got in the VQ tonight around 5pm and my number came up at 10pm.

 

[TP2000]

I got in the VQ tonight around 5pm and my number came up at 10pm.

And was it everything you hoped for?

Could you tell it had been freshened and refurbished? Or did it feel/look the same. Was the Omnimover mechanism quiet?

 

[Parteecia]

And was it everything you hoped for?

Could you tell it had been freshened and refurbished? Or did it feel/look the same. Was the Omnimover mechanism quiet?

Lol, we left at 9 to avoid post-shows traffic. We are So SoCal.