Motor Boat Cruise

Last updated
Motor Boat Cruise
Disneyland
Area Fantasyland
Coordinates 33°48′50″N117°55′03″W / 33.813986°N 117.917604°W / 33.813986; -117.917604
StatusRemoved
Opening dateJune 1957 (June 1957) (As Motor Boat Cruise)
1991 (1991) (As Motor Boat Cruise to Gummi Glen)
Closing date1991 (1991) (As Motor Boat Cruise)
January 11, 1993 (January 11, 1993) (As Motor Boat Cruise to Gummi Glen)
Ride statistics
Attraction typeMotor boat
Designer WED Enterprises
Theme Disney's Adventures of the Gummi Bears (1991-1993)
Riders per vehicle3 or 4

Motor Boat Cruise was an attraction at Disneyland in Anaheim, California, in which patrons steer motor boats, which were guided through a hidden track similar to the Autopia ride. It operated from June 1957 until January 11, 1993. [1]

Contents

History

Motor Boat Cruise opened in 1957 on the border between Fantasyland and Tomorrowland. The waterways of the Motor Boat Cruise shared space with other attractions such as the Viewliner train and bridges for Junior Autopia.

The design of the boats appears very similar to those illustrated in a "Boat Ride Apparatus" patent filed by Edgar A. Morgan and Karl W. Bacon, of Arrow Development. [2] Arrow Development was involved in the design of many attractions at Disneyland between 1953 and 1973. [3]

Major changes took place in 1959 to the three attractions in the area. The Viewliner and its railroad track were gone, and replaced by the elevated beam of the Disneyland Alweg Monorail. The new Fantasyland Autopia and an expanded Tomorrowland Autopia replaced the Junior Autopia. The lagoon which had once been home to the Phantom Boats was turned into the lagoon of the Submarine Voyage. [4] The Motor Boat cruise remained.

In 1991, as part of the Disney Afternoon Avenue event, the Motor Boat Cruise became the Motor Boat Cruise to Gummi Glen. Plywood characters from Adventures of the Gummi Bears made Gummi Berry juice along the waterway.

On January 11, 1993, the Motor Boat Cruise closed permanently, in part due to the negative reactions to the Gummi Bears overlay, as well as its operating budget being needed for Mickey's Toontown. Its loading platform and landscaped grounds are now called Fantasia Gardens.

In 2001, an attraction considered by WDI to be the true successor to the Motor Boat Cruise, Aquatopia, opened at Tokyo DisneySea in Japan.

Current status

In 2007, the former Motor Boat Cruise waterways were drained during construction of the neighboring attraction, Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage. During this time, around 2/3 of Motor Boat Cruise's former waterways were filled in with landscaping, creating more of a space buffer between the freshwater-based submarine lagoon and the 'green system' water of Motor Boat Cruise's area. During this time, the former tracks that lay hidden beneath the green water were covered up or destroyed. In April 2007, a new dam was built, and water filled back into the area known as Fantasia Gardens (the former Motor Boat Cruise loading dock). It is expected that the last portion of surviving track around the dock, will also be destroyed (and filled in) whenever Disney decides on what to do with the land. The Motor Boat Cruise's old dock was repurposed into a waterside dining area for the neighboring Edelweiss Snacks, and is used as one of many locations to hand out candy during Mickey's Halloween Party.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Magic Kingdom</span> Theme park at Walt Disney World

Magic Kingdom Park, previously known as Walt Disney World Magic Kingdom (1971–1994) and The Magic Kingdom (1994–2017), is a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida, near Orlando, Florida. Owned and operated by The Walt Disney Company through its Parks, Experiences and Products division, the park opened on October 1, 1971, as "Walt Disney World Magic Kingdom", the first of four theme parks at the resort. The park was initialized by Walt Disney and designed by WED Enterprises. Its layout and attractions are based on Disneyland Park in Anaheim, California, and are dedicated to fairy tales and Disney characters.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">PeopleMover (Disneyland)</span> Former attraction at Disneyland

The PeopleMover, sometimes referred to as the Goodyear PeopleMover and WEDWay PeopleMover, was a transport attraction that opened on July 2, 1967, in Tomorrowland at Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California. Guests boarded small trains that ran on elevated tracks for a "grand circle tour" above Tomorrowland. The term "people mover", now in wider use to describe many forms of automated public transport, was first coined as the name for this attraction. PeopleMover was originally only a working title, but became attached to the project over time. The attraction was initially seen as a serious prototype for intercity public transport. The ride closed on August 21, 1995, but its station and track infrastructure—which it shared with its short-lived successor, Rocket Rods—remain standing as of 2023. A second PeopleMover opened on July 1, 1975 in Tomorrowland at the Magic Kingdom in Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida near Orlando, Florida, and is still operating today.

<i>The "E" Ticket</i> Former fanzine

The "E" Ticket was a fanzine devoted to the history of Disneyland and its attractions, especially the park as it existed during the lifetime of Walt Disney, publishing forty six issues between 1986 and 2009. It was edited and published by Disneyland fans Leon Janzen and Jack Janzen until Leon's sudden death on September 9, 2003. The last issue published by the brothers was the Fall 2003 Issue, #40, on Adventure Thru Inner Space. Jack continued the magazine without his brother, beginning with #41 in October 2004. In the final issue, #46, Jack noted that making the magazine "Hasn't been much fun without Leon", and he decided to end the magazine's run.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matterhorn Bobsleds</span> Roller coasters at Disneyland

Matterhorn Bobsleds are a pair of intertwined steel roller coasters at Disneyland in Anaheim, California. It is modeled after the Matterhorn, a mountain in the Alps on the border between Switzerland and Italy. It is the first known tubular steel track roller coaster. Located on the border between Tomorrowland and Fantasyland, it employs forced perspective to seem larger.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tomorrowland (Disney Parks)</span> Themed land at Disney theme parks

Tomorrowland is one of the many "themed lands" featured at all of the Magic Kingdom styled Disney theme parks around the world owned or licensed by The Walt Disney Company. Each version of the land is different and features numerous attractions that depict views of the future. Disneyland Park in Paris includes a similar area called Discoveryland, which shares some elements with other Tomorrowlands but emphasizes visions of the future inspired by Jules Verne.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fantasyland</span> Themed land at Disney theme parks

Fantasyland is one of the "themed lands" at all of the Magic Kingdom-style parks run by The Walt Disney Company around the world. It is themed after Disney's animated fairy tale feature films. Each Fantasyland has a castle, as well as several gentle rides themed after those Disney animated feature films.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage</span> Attraction at Disneyland

Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage is an attraction in the Tomorrowland area of Disneyland Park in Anaheim, California. It opened on June 11, 2007. Based on the characters and settings of the 2003 Disney·Pixar film Finding Nemo, it is a re-theming of the classic Submarine Voyage attraction that operated from 1959 to 1998.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Disneyland Monorail</span> Transit line at the Disneyland Resort

The Disneyland Monorail is an attraction and transportation line at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California, United States. It was the first daily operating monorail over all.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Autopia</span> Attraction at Disney theme parks

Autopia is a race car track Disneyland attraction, in which patrons steer specially designed cars through an enclosed track. Versions of Autopia exist at Anaheim, California and Disneyland Paris in Marne-la-Vallée, France. There was also an Autopia at Hong Kong Disneyland on Lantau Island, Hong Kong before it closed on June 11, 2016. Other versions of the attraction can be found at the Magic Kingdom as the Tomorrowland Speedway and formerly at Tokyo Disneyland as the Grand Circuit Raceway. A previous generation of Disneyland's Autopia operated for over a decade at the Walt Disney Hometown Museum in Marceline, Missouri; one of the retired cars is now on display.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Skyway (Disney)</span> Former amusement ride in Disney parks

The Skyway was a gondola lift attraction at Disneyland, at the Magic Kingdom, and at Tokyo Disneyland. Since all versions of this attraction took riders back and forth between Fantasyland and Tomorrowland, the route from Tomorrowland was called Skyway to Fantasyland, and the route from Fantasyland was called Skyway to Tomorrowland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Submarine Voyage</span> Former attraction at Disneyland

The Submarine Voyage was an attraction at Disneyland in Anaheim, California. The attraction features vehicles designed to resemble submarines. It first opened on June 14, 1959, as one of the first rides to require an E ticket. It was part of a major expansion of Tomorrowland, which included the Matterhorn Bobsleds roller coaster, an expanded version of Autopia, the Disneyland Monorail, and the Motor Boat Cruise. The Submarine Voyage closed on September 8, 1998; at that time, it was reported that the attraction would reopen with a new theme by 2003, but that did not occur. The attraction ultimately reopened in June 2007 themed to Disney and Pixar's Finding Nemo, and now operates as Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">20,000 Leagues Under the Sea: Submarine Voyage</span> Former Dark Ride at the Magic Kingdom Theme Park

20,000 Leagues Under the Sea: Submarine Voyage was an attraction at the Magic Kingdom theme park at Walt Disney World from 1971 through 1994. Based on the characters and settings of the 1954 Disney film 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, it was a re-theming of the Submarine Voyage attraction at Disneyland. The ride involved a 20-minute submarine ride through a lagoon filled with sea life and mermaids.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Viewliner Train of Tomorrow</span> Former Disneyland attraction

The Viewliner Train of Tomorrow was a 2 ft 6 in narrow-gauge, miniature train that once operated alongside portions of the Disneyland Railroad main line.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aquatopia</span> Ride at Tokyo DisneySea

Aquatopia is an attraction at Tokyo DisneySea theme park at the Tokyo Disney Resort in Chiba, Japan. Located in the Port Discovery area of the park, it is the second attraction to use a trackless ride system designed by Walt Disney Imagineering. The trackless ride system uses computers to guide the vehicles throughout the ride.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Disneyland</span> Amusement park in Anaheim, California

Disneyland is a theme park in Anaheim, California. Opened in 1955, it was the first theme park opened by The Walt Disney Company and the only one designed and constructed under the direct supervision of Walt Disney. Disney initially envisioned building a tourist attraction adjacent to his studios in Burbank to entertain fans who wished to visit; however, he soon realized that the proposed site was too small for the ideas that he had. After hiring the Stanford Research Institute to perform a feasibility study determining an appropriate site for his project, Disney bought a 160-acre (65 ha) site near Anaheim in 1953. The park was designed by a creative team hand-picked by Walt from internal and outside talent. They founded WED Enterprises, the precursor to today's Walt Disney Imagineering. Construction began in 1954 and the park was unveiled during a special televised press event on the ABC Television Network on July 17, 1955. Since its opening, Disneyland has undergone expansions and major renovations, including the addition of New Orleans Square in 1966, Bear Country in 1972, Mickey's Toontown in 1993, and Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge in 2019. Additionally, Disney California Adventure Park opened in 2001 on the site of Disneyland's original parking lot.

<i>Celebrate! Tokyo Disneyland</i> Nighttime show at Tokyo Disneyland

Celebrate! Tokyo Disneyland was a nighttime spectacular at Tokyo Disneyland that premiered on July 10, 2018, alongside Dreaming Up!, Let's Party Gras, and Hello, New York! as part of the 35th anniversary of Tokyo Disney Resort. The show was produced by Walt Disney Creative Entertainment, under Lead Creative Executive of Parades and Spectaculars Steve Davison.

References

  1. ↑ Strodder, Chris (2017). The Disneyland Encyclopedia (3rd ed.). Santa Monica Press. pp. 341–342. ISBN   978-1595800909.
  2. ↑ USpatent 3113528,Bacon, Karl W.&Morgan, Edgar A.,"Boat Ride Apparatus",published December 10, 1963, assigned to Arrow Development
  3. ↑ O'Brien, Tim (November 30, 1998). "Pioneers share Living Legend Award". Amusement Business. 110 (48): 20.
  4. ↑ Geryak, Cole (March 30, 2017). "Disney Extinct Attractions: The Phantom Boat Cruise". The Laughing Place. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.