presents
Stanza I: Pines of Paris
Part I
All concept art you see here in this post was created by the amazing @Skipper2.
Perhaps Alice from “Alice in Wonderland” put it best when she first arrived in Wonderland: “Curiouser and curiouser.” That may very well be the reaction of guests when they come to Disneyland Paris. For until the summer of 2020, things at Fantasyland are sure to be topsy-turvy and some things known and loved at this area of Disneyland Paris's first theme park will be absent. This is due to the fact that the park is preparing several brand-new adventures to further enhance this most fantastic and unreal land.
That's right: Fantasyland will soon be getting a massive expansion, bringing to life some of the evergreen Disney classics, from past to present. With this expansion comes the removal of five notable points of interest: the Mickey meet-and-greet (formerly Fantasy Festival Stage), Princess Pavilion, Alice's Curious Labyrinth, Casey Jr.--Le Petit Train du Cirque and Le Pays des Contes de Fees (Storybook Land Canal Boats). Although we are quite sad to see these go, we hope that the newest additions to the Fantasyland family will truly live up to the golden Disney standard.
So, come with us, ladies and gentlemen. We'll show you all the wonderful new things the DLP Fantasyland expansion has in store!
First of all, let's begin with a few changes to the "Old" Fantasyland. With the Fantasyland expansion, we've decided to do something about that bare hill on the eastern complex, the one where the Beauty and the Beast animatronic show was once slated to go...
We've decided to turn this hill into something quite exciting...
Princess Gardens will be a new designated meet and greet area in Fantasyland. This location will operate similarly to Princess Fairytale Hall, where different princesses from a variety of movies will rotate in and out for meeting with guests. In order to not disrupt the beauty of Disneyland Paris's Fantasyland, marked by the natural landscaping and design, the meet and greet will not be a building facility but rather, like the nape implies, a winding garden, full of flowers with princess colors and the signature DLP cube trees. Once you get to the center, Belle, Tiana, Jasmine, Aurora, Cinderella, and many more (though only two at a time), will greet you in a charming, dreamlike gazebo and make your visit all the more magical.
With this new meet-and-greet, the Princess Pavilion will soon shut its doors. It is our hope to take the opportunity to restore the Pavilion's original purpose: serving as a post-show for "it's a small world".
In addition, there are various meet-and-greet gazebos surrounding the countryside. These are great places to get dramatic views of Fantasyland, and to meet up with various Disney pals. The Excellent Eight (that's Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Daisy, Goofy, Pluto, Chip and Dale) often make appearances at these gazebos, as do the characters whose stories are represented here in Fantasyland (Pinocchio, Winnie the Pooh, Mary Poppins, Peter Pan and Wendy, etc.).
With this New Fantasyland expansion, we've decided to go back and update one of the restaurants here: Toad Hall Restaurant. When the New Fantasyland expansion opens in 2020, you'll find that Toad Hall has turned into Cherry Tree Lane, a restaurant inspired by Walt Disney's 1964 masterpiece
Mary Poppins. As such, this restaurant features distinct areas inspired by some of the film's iconic settings and characters. There are three distinct areas, to be exact:
- Admiral Boom's Pub: Named for the former Royal Naval Officer that serves as a neighbor to the Banks, sea chanteys, displayed artifacts and dramatic murals portray life on the seven seas and some of Boom's escapades serving in His Majesty's Navy. And don't be surprised if the sudden burst of a cannon disrupts your meal and sends objects flying. That's just Admiral Boom's way of marking the time!
- Jolly Holiday Cafe: Bringing the outside inside, this part of Cherry Tree Lane is designed like a fanciful garden, straight out of Bert's chalk drawings. Designed after the Penguins' outdoor tea restaurant, this cozy retreat is the place to go if you want to feel like you're on your own "jolly holiday". In fact, don't be surprised if those wacky penguin waiters drop by to make sure your meal is going swimmingly, or if the local Pearly Band drops by to play some tunes!
- The Banks Residence: Who wouldn't want to feel like they're in the house that started it all? The stately Tudor manor the Banks call home has been converted into the third and final room of Cherry Tree Lane. There's all sorts of unique Easter eggs for fans of Mary Poppins to find, and all sorts of magic to be found. Don't be surprised to see bits of discarded paper rise up the chimney flue, or see toys put themselves away!
What's on the menu here at Cherry Tree Lane? Well, as in the days of Toad Hall, the menu is strictly British. Expect to see things like fish and chips, bangers and mash, black pudding, cottage pie and all sorts of British delicacies. Plus, Cherry Tree Lane is home to the "Jolly Holiday" Tea Platter--raspberry ice, cakes, and tea. It's complimentary!
Now, I'm sure you're wondering, "why has Toad Hall been converted to Cherry Tree Lane"? Well, that's because of what sprouted up just next door...
For the first Fantasyland thrill ride, we set our sights on one of the very original ideas the old time Imagineers had cooking for Walt's original Disneyland. While Mr. Toad's Wild Ride has always been a reliable favorite in California from day one, the roller coaster idea that came along with the concept never made it off the drawing boards...until now!
The Paris version of Mr. Toad's Wild Ride will be even more streamlined in plot than the Disneyland version in order to pack the coaster thrills through a logical and theme-driven context. Elevator pitch for this version is simple...Instead of stealing a motor car and careening all over the English countryside, this version will limit the actions to the confines of Toad Hall, thus making for both a more intimate and more crazy experience.
Much like Tower of Terror, all the action of this ride will be realistically contained within the larger than life exterior without the need for a hidden second show-building. As guests approach Toad Hall they can clearly see people in motor cars riding through the mansion's stately interior via strategically placed windows.
The queue for Mr. Toad works as a bit of a riff on Magic Kingdom's Haunted Mansion. The exterior of Toad Hall looms above us as we wind our way through Toad's gardens and greenhouses, all of which have tire tracks and destruction foreshadowing the craziness going on inside. Getting closer to the boarding area we hit a photo-op which will hopefully become an iconic part of the park's signature visuals...the ride's big four story plunge from a 3rd floor window of Toad Hall into a swimming pool below, the signature thrill moment of the attraction.
As guests wind their way through this section of queue, the excitement is cracked up by the sights and sounds of guests careening through the attraction's outdoor finale. The spinning of the motor car vehicles entices us further as we hit the end of our wait.
In the spirit of The Haunted Mansion, you'll board your motor cars in a makeshift garage Toad has set up in his extensive wine cellars. This is where load and unload happens. Cast members are directed to act as excited on the outside, nervous on the inside. They're getting paid in the context of the story to be hosts and hostesses for Toad's big "car show" event, but given the sounds going on from the mansion they can't help but be on edge and worry for guests safety in an exagerated manner.
The motor cars will be forward-facing with two rows of two, done up to be as similar to the ride vehicles of the Disneyland dark ride as possible while still allowing for a spinning motion. Technology wise this ride uses cars incredibly similar to Cobra's Curse at Busch Gardens Tampa, just without using that ride's signature elevator element.
After a brief lift hill up the staircase of the wine cellar, we enter the foyer of the mansion. An advanced AA of Toad is seen swinging from the chandalier over the doorway welcoming us to the "Car show" as we wind our way through the room to the tune of "Nowhere in Particular" which will once again serve as the theme song. Throughout the ride there will be small flywheels on the track to keep up momentum as there will be very few drops and hills in the track when were in the actual mansion. The fly wheels are meant to give the vehicles a consistent pace and not act as any sort of "launch" the traditional sense.
Heading up another lifthill to the second floor of the mansion we find ourselves in the library weaving our way through a series of bookshelves before almost being crushed by a series of shelves that fall down in a comedic domino-style fashion from the destruction. We then careen into the master bedroom where a 360 spin happens as the car "jumps" on to the bed.
Heading up one last small lifthill, we enter the grand ball room located in a scenic glass ballroom with a spectacular view of the pool. The track here winds its way through a series of banked turns in a dance-like fashion. Banked turns and fly-wheels to keep the pace make up the bulk-majority of the coaster track through the actual mansion portions to keep the ride as low to the floor as possible and maintain the illusion of "driving" through the mansion.
Finally we crash through a window and go down the signature "big drop" before hitting the natural breaks of the pool for a big splashdown that doesn't actually get us wet...ala Big Thunder or the Matterhorn. After that we go through some classic coaster elements like a helix directly over guests waiting in line and a series of air-time popping bunny hills before working our way back to the wine cellar.
Mr. Toad's Wild Ride promises fun and thrills for the whole family. It stands alongside Seven Dwarfs Mine Train in the Magic Kingdom as a great first coaster for kids that maintains a decent amount of thrill and a ton of fun even for adults.
Despite the loss of Alice's Curious Labyrinth, the story of Walt Disney's 13th animated masterpiece continues to be told here at Disneyland Paris. Taking up the other half of the space formerly held by Alice's Curious Labyrinth, Alice in Wonderland is essentially an updated take on Disneyland's own Alice in Wonderland dark ride.
Utilizing some of the former maze area, we pass through hedges on our way to the Queen of Hearts' castle, serving as the exterior. Heading inside, we find ourselves in an simulated outside environment. A large mural depicts the English countryside. Alice's sister sits under a tree, reading a book. Alice, on the other hand, is busy chasing the White Rabbit to who-knows-where. The Rabbit is heading towards his rabbit hole, a large opening in the side of the mural. Going into that hole is a never-ending line of ride vehicles, made to look like the Cheshire Cat, complete with glowing eyes and mouth. The Cat himself provides the spiel. Anyways, once you board your cat, it moves down the rabbit hole ahead. You go down a long descending ramp where you hear the usual Alice narration of falling down the hole. You go through the long hole, passing by some scenery that Alice sees in the film as she descended the hole. In fact, you see Alice herself floating about above your head as you pass by.
At the bottom of the ramp, you go through the usual scene of the Doorknob opening up into Wonderland. Beyond, you go through a glass maze, where you see multiple hall-of-mirrors-style scenes of yourself in your car. Suddenly, the glass hall turns very distorted, like water, changing into a scene of Dodo Rock, where the Dodo and various sea creatures are performing the crazy Caucus Race. You then pass by the seashore where you see the ever-late White Rabbit. You then head into the woods where you meet the Tweedles, who say whether to go this way or that way.
You then pass by the White Rabbit's house. And then you pass by the hookah-smoking Caterpillar seated on his mushroom, followed by the Garden of Live Flowers, where you meet Alice where she's singing “All In the Golden Afternoon”. Leaving the Garden, you then go past a few trees covered with signs pointing in every possible direction (e.g., THIS WAY, UP, DOWN, THAT WAY, YONDER, GO BACK, etc.). You then see the Cheshire Cat as he points the way into the Tulgey Wood, which follows immediately. You see Alice as she looks around, perplexed, and, of course, some of the forest's many residents, including an Accordion Owl, two Pencil Birds, two Hammer Birds, a flock of Bike-horn Ducks, a Drum Frog, a Cymbal Frog, a Birdcage Bird, an Umbrella Bird, and a group of Momeraths who point the way out of the forest.
Then the Cheshire Cat appears once again as he points the way to a “shortcut” home: the inevitable garden of the Queen of Hearts. You enter the hedge garden via a see-through tree. You then temporarily wind through the hedge maze, passing by some card people (clubs) “painting the roses red”. You go under a heart-shaped hedge and arrive at the Queen's Croquet Ground. Here, you pass by an arch made of cards and see the Queen of Hearts (the pint-sized King is behind her) preparing to play croquet. Then you head across the drawbridge to the Queen's Castle. The bridge is flanked on both sides the Queen's card guards (hearts).
Inside the castle, the Trial is in progress. As you enter, you are menaced by an executioner guard (spades) holding an axe. At one end of the courtroom, you see a Jury Box and at the other a box on which the accused stands (in this case, obviously, Alice). At the head of the courtroom is the Judge Box with the Queen herself on it. She is shaking her arms in rage and yelling,
“Off with her head!” On her left side is the King and on her right is the White Rabbit, blowing his trumpet.
You then turn inside the courtroom and make your escape with Alice near you. You go through a wall of card guards who try to block your escape route. But luckily, you escape into the Mad Hatter and the March Hare's Unbirthday Party. You also see a signpost pointing in every possible direction to the Party. You pass by the tea party in progress. You see the Hatter, Alice, and the Hare at the head of the table with the tea crockery on the table, performing their Unbirthday Song. The table is covered with tea crockery, with the Dormouse inside the main teapot. We pass under a cake that explodes under us. But then, we exit the room and see the Cheshire Cat yet again, pointing to the left and his eyes literally rolling. He says
“Still lost? Well, you could try this way.” We go left and enter a video tunnel (think Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin in Tomorrowland). It displays a disorienting spiraling area. We then start spinning in continuous 360 degree circles. Several characters can be seen flying by, each sharing a piece of dialogue.
Queen of Hearts: Off with their heads!
Mad Hatter and March Hare: A very merry unbirthday...
Cards: We're painting the roses red...
Flowers: They're all weeds!
Caterpillar: Who are you?
White Rabbit: I’m late! I’m late!
Tweedle Dee and Dum: How do you do and shake hands…
We soon leave the tunnel and see Alice sitting by a tree with Dinah in her lap. She says,
“Oh, Dinah, what a curious dream I had!” Then, we hear the chorus singing the title song as we head back to the unload area and exit our car.
Now, stepping into a tunnel in-between Cherry Tree Lane and Mr. Toad's Wild Ride, and you'll find yourself within the all-new expanded Fantasyland. Designed to look like its own little village, the expanded Fantasyland features three distinct styles and nationalities--Britain, Germany/Bavaria and France--that are designed to blend together seamlessly.
Carrying on the British styles of Peter Pan's Flight, Mr. Toad's Wild Ride, Cherry Tree Lane and the two Wonderland attractions is this all-new take on the Winnie the Pooh dark ride. Still based around
Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day, as has been the case ever since The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh opened at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom in 1999, this particular attraction sets itself apart from the rest by its ride system. This is an attraction based off of Maelstrom--or should I say, Frozen Ever After--at Epcot, utilizing a rotating log flume for a unique experience inspired by the short film's flood sequence.
Guests will begin their Journey into the Whimsical World of Winnie the Pooh in the new, forest themed section of Disneyland Paris's New Fantasyland. Here, guests will enter past an oversized storybook, before making a left down a wooded path. This path will take guests to the "Milne Library," as named after the author of the iconic Winnie the Pooh books. Upon entering this grand, stone, tudor style library, guests will weave through the bookshelves that contain a large number of Winnie the Pooh books, as well as other classics, such as the Alice in Wonderland books, Peter Pan, and even Sherlock Holmes. Guests continue winding until they enter one of four librarian's offices in groups of thirty. In these offices, guests are met by the librarian, and by an oversized book displayed on the wall entitled "Winnie l'ourson et le Lieu Inondé." The librarian welcomes guests, and encourages guests to do more than read books, but to explore them as well. Picking up on the guests confusion, he or she invites them to gather around the large book on the wall. The librarian opens the book, and as they say the classic words "once upon a time," the book is enshrouded in fog and laser effects, as its first illustration grows to reveal a new world, the world of the Hundred Acre Wood.
Guests would proceed forward, under a wooden canopy, as a large rain is growing. Water seems to never endingly pour overhead in this darker, indoor setting. We walk past traditional Hundred Acre Wood locales, like Rabbit's Garden and Eeyore's house, all abandoned by their owners who sought shelter. Eventually, our long, winding path leads us into piglets house, where guests are taken up a ramp to avoid the flooded portions. Here, guests board their oversized Hunny pots to escape the flood. These Hunny Pots are oval shaped boats, that have four rows. The first row holds up to three guests, while the second, third and fourth rows all hold four guests comfortably. Approximately four boats are dispatched per minute, thanks to a dual-loading system, allowing for this attraction to have a THRC of 3600 pph, although, the operational capacity is expected to hit around 3000 pph.
As guests float out of Piglet's house into the Hundred Acre Wood, guests will pass by a variety of Hundred Acre Wood Residents attempting to escape the flood. For instance, water will be spouting out of Gopher's hole as we rides atop the water stream, while Rabbit will be scene floating in an upturned umbrella. After this, guests will pass by Owl floating along in his rocking chair, spouting his musings at the guests, and finally, Kanga and Roo will be holding onto a nearby tree branch.
Soon, guests will turn a corner and encounter an animatronic Tigger that encourages guests to get to higher ground as they ascend a brief lift hill. Tigger will then ascend the lift hill with guests in his very bouncy projection form, which allows for a swarm of bees to overtake tigger, should another boat enter the lift hill, before the other reaches the top. Once at the top of the lift hill, things are noticeably drier as the water seems to be running back down the hill we just ascended. The boats approach Pooh's house, an, as we enter, it seems as though tigger has beat us there, as he is already talking to an animatronic Pooh bear. Tigger warns Pooh of Heffalumps and Woozles coming to steal his honey, but Pooh is instead dozing off. Pooh falls asleep, as everything but Pooh turns dark.
Through projection mapping technologies, pooh's house becomes transformed into a pack of Heffalumps and Woozles, as everything from his Hunny pots, to his support beams come alive. As guests exit Pooh's house, they enter into a Heffalump and Woozle wonderland, as they play in their festivities all around, guests will see some especially interesting vignettes. First, guests will pass a herd of Heffalumps all chugging Hunny out of the same pot. As guests continue forward, they come to a halt, as they are face to face with a woozle riding a heffalump whose trunk is extended towards us. With the turn of our boat, the Heffalumps blasts us with fog that the surrounding lighting makes look like Hunny, as we continue through this dream backwards. We wanter past Heffalumps playing Hunny like a harp, some color changing woozles thanks to projection mapping, before we enter the Heffalump and Woozle forest. Here, these creatures come alive as colorful trees, each one oozing with Hunny, before we stop at a particularly odd section of the forest. As our boats begin to change course once again, we hear the faint cry of Piglet calling "Wake Up". Soon, these trees transform into normal tress, as our boats are flung forwards into the river rapids, alongside Piglet floating in a chair and Pooh floating upside down in a Hunny pot. We continue forward towards an opening in the building that drops off like a waterfall. Piglet and Pooh disappear behind a bush to reset for the next bat as we continue forwards towards this ninety degree waterfall.
Once we reach the edge, our boats become connected to a motion platform that teeters us over the edge, as we turn ever so slightly. We then suddenly lurch backwards, down a different, much more mild waterfall, to find ourselves in a Hunny Grotto of sorts. Here, we are surrounded by hunny colored fountains, and Beehives that are oozing Hunny. Once our boats slows down from the momentum of the drop, we stop facing Winnie the Pooh, who is basking in the Hunny, as he rights our course back to the unload station, where we disembark and exit this one-of-a-kind adventure
Hundred Acre Gifts - Toy Shoppe & Bakery
Much like the adjacent Winnie the Pooh attraction that this gift shop goes with, the facade is unsuspecting with highly themed traditional English architecture. When walking by, you'll see a Pooh Bear set up display in the window, along with other toys, that will bring back memories of visiting the toy store at Christmas time as a kid and will pull guests inside.
Once you walk through the doors, you're overwhelmed with color and the fun atmosphere that is set up in the store.
Available for purchase will be a wide variety of toys aimed at younger children, in particular rows and rows of stuffed animals and books. There is also a bakery portion of the store, with different sweet treats much like you'd find at the Main Street Confectionery, but with a Winnie the Pooh theme. In addition, there will be seating available like a small coffee shop for you to relax with your snacks in the air conditioning (or heat!). So, while you make your way through this charming English village, be sure to take a stop at Hundred Acre Gifts - Toy Shoppe and Bakery for a honey-sweet break in the middle of the day (and maybe sneak a present for the little ones!).
Pretty good! 7/10!
