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Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World in Florida and Disneyland in California share many of
the same rides.
We’ve already explored the rides in Tomorrowland, Adventureland and Frontierland so if you haven’t
seen those videos yet, definitely check em out.
Now Fantasyland was heavily requested by a lot of you so like we’ve done in the previous
videos, we’ll use Magic Kingdom as the model and explore these Fantasyland rides that can
also be found at the Disneyland Park.
But which park does each ride the best?
Well that’s what we’re gonna discuss, as we count down the Top Disney World vs Disneyland
Rides: The Fantasyland Edition.
The first ride we’ll start off with is the Carousel.
Both are actually authentic antique carousels that were purchased from other parks before
they became Disney rides.
The King Arthur Carousel at Disneyland was an opening day ride in 1955 and it was built
in 1922 by the Dentzel Carousel Company.
It was purchased in 1954 from the Sunnyside Amusement park in Toronto, Ontario Canada.
Now during the Fantasyland overhaul in 1983, the carousel was moved from the original location
here to where it currently resides today.
At Magic Kingdom the Prince Charming Regal Carousel was also an opening day ride in 1971
and it was built in 1917 by the Philadelphia Toboggan Company.
Originally it had a home at Belle Isle Park in Detroit Michigan then it was later relocated
to Olympic Park in Maple Wood New Jersey where it was purchased by Disney in 1967.
Now both are elegant carousels with a rich history.
They’re in the exact same spot, centred with the castle archway where the sword in
the stone in front of it.
They play organ versions of your favorite Disney songs while you spin in a circle and
gallop up and down on a horse.
Aside from small design details, both carousels are very similar but magic Kingdom’s is
a bit bigger with 5 horses in each row as opposed to four at Disneyland.
So because of the larger capacity, I’m gonna sat that Magic Kingdom does the carousel the
best.
It’s time to board our pirate ship and head off to Neverland in Peter Pan’s Flight.
The ride was an opening day attraction at both parks and it’s unique from other Disney
dark rides since you’re suspended on a rail above the show scenes.
You get a great birds eye view of all the action.
It’s become a very popular ride at each park, attracting some of the longest waits
in fantasyland.
A lot of the same scenes can found in both versions of the ride but they aren’t identical
and it starts right as you enter the bedroom.
The pirate ship at Magic Kingdom flies past these trees, where as at Disneyland you soar
over the London rooftops; I personally think the load scene at Disneyland is more effective.
One of my personal favourite scenes at Magic Kingdom is the flight over London.
Its very 3 dimensional, with quite a bit of detail as you watch the lights glisten below,
where as at Disneyland, overall it’s a very flat and 1 dimensional scene.
Now Peter Pan’s Flight at Magic Kingdom has a larger track layout with a ride time
of about 2 minutes and 55 seconds.
Peter Pan’s Flight at Disneyland is a bit more compact, and with a ride time of only
2 minutes and 10 seconds some of the scenes feel rushed especially from the pirate ship
sequences until the end of the ride.
Now Disneyland’s star filled version of Neverland is impressive and you could say
that its more realistic compared to Magic Kingdom’s cartoony animated version.
This might be the case but theres this distinct nostalgic feeling at Magic Kingdom.
There’s more action and storytelling, like the scenes with the lost boys and the mermaids
and it transitions smoothly into the pirate ship segments.
Now Peter Pan’s flight at Disneyland was recently refurbished in 2015 and it received
some new animatronic figures in the bedroom, updated lighting, and a pixie dust effect.
{Peter Pan} Pixie dust!
Peter Pan’s Flight at Magic Kingdom hasn’t seen any major updates and is virtually the
exact same ride that opened in 1971; it even still uses some original Captain Hook dialogue
from the 1955 version at Disneyland.
{Captain Hook} Help me Mr. Smee.
Help me.
Could Magic Kingdom’s ride use a good refurbishment, absolutely, but there’s still a lot of detail
in the ride and it has this certain charm.
There’s definitely pros and cons to each version and this one is a close call.
Even though Disneyland has the more modern effects, it does fall short on length and
feels rushed so in the case of Peter Pan’s Flight, I’m gonna say that Disney World
does this ride the best.
Next we’ll take a spin on the teacups at the Mad Tea Party where the ride at both parks
was found on opening day.
This ride system at Disneyland and Magic Kingdom is the exact same where three small turntables
that rotate clockwise are situated on a larger turntable that rotates counterclockwise.
There’s 18 teacups in total and since the individual teacups also spin, this means that
3 different spinning motions all at once-so its a lot of spinning.
The major difference between the Mad Tea Party rides is Disneyland’s is out in the open
and Magic Kingdom’s is under a roof.
Now a fun little fact is that when the Mad Tea Party opened in 1971 at Magic Kingdom,
it was originally out in the open as well and remained roofless until 1974.
This is also when they added the teapot in the centre with the Dormouse.
It’s a cute little touch but I personally think the ride looks better without a roof,
what do you think?
Now what really sets the ride apart at Disneyland is the atmosphere and theming.
The ride was moved here to this location in 1983 from its original location where the
carousel is today.
This allowed the Mad Tea Party to be set in this Alice in Wonderland area of Fantasyland.
It has a really cozy and whimsical feel to it, much like the movie.
The lanterns and vines really set the mood especially at night, so in this case of the
Mad Tea Party Disneyland does this ride the best!
The next ride can be found deep in the Hundred Acre Woods.
The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh originally opened at Magic Kingdom in June of 1999 replacing
Mr Toad’s wild ride.
It wasn’t until 4 years later that the ride opened at Disneyland, but here its not a Fantasyland
ride and instead it can be found in Critter Country; it replaced the country bear Jamboree.
Now like Peter Pan’s Flight, The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh uses the same idea but
the rides aren’t completely identical.
Some of the scenes are laid out differently and even the order is switched around.
Like the rain scene.
At Disneyland this is the 2nd scene, where as at Magic Kingdom it’s the second last
scene.
This change does make a lot of sense though since you’re going from a blustery day into
a rain storm, plus it has better sets and a better lightning package.
Now Magic Kingdom does have this fun scene in Owl’s house which isn’t in the ride
at Disneyland and has a longer Tigger scene, but Disneyland has the longer hephelumps and
woozles scene.
Each of the ride vehicles are different in appearance but both move up and down as it
follows the action of the ride.
I think a lot of the transitions from scene to scene are much smoother at Disneyland.
They do a better job at telling a cohesive story in the ride, as opposed to it just being
a ride with a bunch of different scenes from the movie, which is kinda what Magic Kingdom
feels like.
It’s also fun to see how Disneyland repurposed some of the same figures and which scenes
were upgraded.
Now both are a similar length, but in the case of the Many Adventures of Winnie the
Pooh, I’m gonna have to say that Disneyland does this ride the best.
Next we’re gonna soar through the sky on Dumbo the Flying Elephant.
This has become an iconic image associated with the Disney theme parks.
The ride is a simple aerial style carousel that allows riders to manoeuvre the elephant
up and down.
Dumbo was an opening day attraction at Magic Kingdom in 1971, and at Disneyland the ride
was supposed to be an opening day attraction but it didn’t open until a month later.
The ride system at both parks is the exact same thing, the only difference is that Magic
Kingdom has two Dumbo spinners instead of one.
The second spinner was added during the New Fantasyland expansion, so this increased capacity
definitely gives Magic Kingdom a big point.
Today, neither of the rides are in the same location as when they first opened.
At Disneyland, Dumbo used to right be across the landing area from the Casey Junior Circus
Train then moved in 1983.
At Magic Kingdom, Dumbo used to be across from the Storybook treats restaurant until
2012 when it moved into Storybook Circus.
Now in terms of theming, Magic Kingdom hits this one out of the park since Dumbo, a movie
that places at the circus, now has the ride taking place at a circus.
This area looks really great and I personally like the ride’s design a lot better.
The spinners have a more elegant look with all the gold trimming and details compared
to the ride at Disneyland that was built to look like a toy set.
This is actually what Magic Kingdom’s looked like before it was moved.
The double capacity, really makes a difference since its such a low capacity ride as it is,
so in the case of Dumbo the Flying Elephant, Magic Kingdom does this ride the best.
It’s finally time to take a leisure cruise around the word on one of the most iconic
Disney rides.
It’s A Small World was originally conceived and built in only 11 months for the 1964 New
York World’s Fair.
After the fair closed, the ride was relocated from New York to Disneyland and it opened
in May of 1966.
Once Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World was built, It’s A Small world was part of the
attraction lineup on opening day.
Now like the other dark rides, the whole idea of the attraction is the same as it uses same
it’s a Small World song sung by these miniature animatronic dolls.
Aspects of Mary Blair’s scenes from Disneyland were reproduced at Magic Kingdom but these
rides are far from being identical and right off the bat I’m gonna say that Disneyland
does It’s A Small World the best.
Now sure, Disneyland’s version of the ride is pretty historical but that’s not the
reason why it’s the best.
Lets start off with the entrance which is such an integral aspect of the attraction.
As you approach It’s A Small World and see the white facade against the blue sky, it
evokes this whimsical feeling; you know you’re about to experience something special.
Having the load area outdoors really gives the attraction it’s character and as you’re
riding through the gardens, this whole facade is really just the first show scene on the
ride; especially if you get one of these surprises as your boat passes by.
At Magic Kingdom, they weren’t able to build an outdoor entrance due to amount of rain
Florida gets, so everything needed to be built indoors.
It’s no where near as magical as Disneyland and it feels like you’re just stepping into
a warehouse and I mean, you kinda are.
The ceilings in the ride are really high and the show scenes are very spread out, they
don’t really immerse you the way Disneyland does.
Just take a look at the Jungle scenes.
Not only are the sets more immersive but they’re much more elaborate.
The one scene that I do think that’s much more elaborate in Florida is the finale; there’s
a lot of kinetic energy which just leaves you with this warm feeling.
I also really like are the flooded waterways as opposed to the fume style waterways at
Disneyland.
The flooded waterways provide a seamless connection of the scene from either end.
If you’ve been on the ride at Disneyland you may have noticed characters that aren’t
in the Florida version.
In 2005, 28 new animatronics depicting Disney characters were added to their native regions
of the world.
This was in addition to the original animatronics and they blend in quite nicely.
It’s A Small World at Disneyland also has a much longer ride time of just over 15 minutes
where as at Magic Kingdom it’s only about 11 minutes.
Now in no way am I saying that Disney World’s version of It’s A Small World is a bad ride,
its definitely still a classic, but in terms of comparing it with its west coast counterpart,
Disneyland does this ride the best.
So, do you agree with any of the choices?
Which versions of the ride would you chose?
I’d love to know!
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