Disney Imagineering has been wowing us for decades. Walt Disney’s introduction of Disneyland transformed the concept of a simple amusement park into a cohesive and immersive theme park. The inclusion of audio animatronics to park attractions brought an added sense of reality to the carefully crafted stories. The increase in wireless technology has been improving guest experiences in the parks, as well as Disney resorts. The theming of the park areas themselves transport guests to other lands, and some of Disney guests’ most beloved park experiences come from the classic and current dark ride attractions.
Dark rides were in existence before Walt built his beloved park, and technology has improved greatly since Walt first got involved in the theme park business. Let’s take a really short trip around the track of dark ride technology, from the earliest development to the current trackless designs, then explore the present. We’ll even peek at the future of Disney dark ride concepts.
The earliest dark rides appeared in the late 1800s. From there, dark rides have traditionally been based on two rider transportation concepts: a small boat canal and a tracked vehicle path.
Let’s Take a Cruise – Early Tunnel Boat Rides
Early passenger boat dark rides would take guests in small groups of two to four people on a cruise through a dimly lit indoor canal. The boats were not powered; they would simply float along with the flow of water within the canal chute. The themes of these canal rides would often be the old “Tunnel of Love” with a romantic feel, or an underground cave with artificial subterranean scenes.
“Old Mill” or “Mill Chute” themes were also popular, and would take on a more unsettled feeling to give guests a chill and a thrill. The early Mill Chute-type rides were the predecessors to the modern day flume rides as they would include a drop near the end of the ride.
Walt Disney revolutionized the canal boat ride concept by increasing the magnitude of the experience and using it to tell a story. “it’s a small world” – famously developed by Disney for the 1964 World’s Fair in New York – carries upwards of twenty guests in each boat on a gentle cruise around the world through the eyes of a child. Jungle Cruise, while not a traditional dark ride, similarly uses increased boat capacity to introduce more guests to the story. The larger flume rides that gained popularity in the later 1900s were also enhanced by the Walt Disney Company through the complement of storytelling. This addition gave guests a full story experience rather than the simple “wait-for-it” flume ride with simple curves and a large final drop.
Out of the Water – Tracked Vehicle Rides
The first tracked vehicle dark ride, called the Pretzel, was patented in 1928. Instead of water propelling the boats along the prescribed path, the vehicles were powered electronically along a clearly defined track or rails. The earlier tracked dark rides were mostly themed to circuses and haunted houses. Crude by today’s standards, the typical thrill of these early dark rides would be in the sudden slam, scream, and appearance of scary objects, such as clowns or skeletons.
Walt Disney revolutionized the tracked dark ride concept by using the ride to tell a story, or at least present a comprehensive story arc, rather than relying on cheap thrills. Disney’s classic Fantasyland dark rides include favorites such as Peter Pan’s Flight, Snow White’s Scary Adventures, and Alice in Wonderland.
Disney Legend Roger Broggie and Bert Brundage developed the Omnimover system for Walt Disney’s WED Enterprises. The term Omnimover was coined by Disney Legend/Imagineer Bob Gurr, as a portmanteau of OmniRange and PeopleMover. The Omnimover system allows the ride vehicles to swivel in a prescribed direction, allowing the ride designers to guide the guests’ view of the experience. This control further enhances the ability to tell the story.
The first Disney ride to use the Omnimover system was Adventure Thru Inner Space, which opened in Disneyland’s Tomorrowland in 1967.
Going Off the Rails – The Introduction of Trackless Technology
The most recent technological advancements in dark rides come without tracks, without rails, and seemingly without borders. Guest vehicles are no longer tethered to the floor with cables and brackets. Dark rides have improved to give riders the smoothest and most unpredictable experience yet, thanks to wireless technology.
Disney Imagineering hinted at technology to come with the debut of Twilight Zone Tower of Terror at Disney MGM Studios in 1994. While the attraction does not use the same current trackless dark ride technology, the individual elevator cabs travel horizontally along an interior corridor to get to the fateful elevator shaft, giving guests the feeling they are truly floating towards another dimension.
True “trackless” dark ride technology uses a combination of WiFi, RFID (radio frequency ID), and LPS navigation (local positioning system – think of it as a miniature, localized version of GPS), to offer riders a truly immersive experience. The technology once again allows guests to be more a part of the story, rather than simply passing through it.
Disney debuted this trackless technology at Tokyo Disneyland in September 2000 with Pooh’s Hunny Hunt. The technology was so far ahead of its time that the first trackless ride system did not debut in America until 16 years later.
Today, Disney boasts numerous trackless dark ride attractions worldwide. Here they are, in the order of their debut.
Pooh’s Hunny Hunt – Tokyo Disneyland (September 2000)
Pooh’s Hunny Hunt is Walt Disney Imagineering’s first trackless dark ride, and is considered by many to still be the best. Guests in the attraction ride in trackless “hunny pots” to embark on a zig zag journey through the Hundred Acre Wood. Riders search for “hunny” with Pooh, bounce with Tigger, tangle with some Heffalumps and Woozles, and eventually end up in Pooh’s bedroom for a nap. The sudden whimsical movements of the individual hunny pots would not be possible in a traditional tracked system.
Aquatopia – Tokyo DisneySea (September 2001)
As you might guess, Aquatopia is a water-based ride, and it is inspired by Disneyland’s Autopia – a classic track-based car driving experience. This attraction differs from most in this list in that it is not a dark ride. Guests board trackless outdoor hovercraft boats in small groups to embark on a path through a watery lagoon. Along the way, riders have the ability to choose where they go, but attraction’s safety controls prevent the boats from colliding with each other or travelling outside the prescribed path. The trackless trick here is that the water in the lagoon is only about five inches deep. The “boats” travel on wheels located underwater, and the constant movement of the water creates the illusion that the water is deeper than it actually is.
Mystic Manor – Hong Kong Disneyland (May 2013)
Mystic Manor continues the Society of Explorers and Adventurers (SEA) theme of Tokyo DisneySea, and tells the story of Lord Henry Mystic and his monkey, Albert. Having recently acquired an enchanted music box, Albert opens the box and brings everything inside the house to life. Guests ride their horseless carriages through this attraction to explore several of Lord Mystic’s rooms full of enchanted artwork, collectibles, antiquities, and many otherworldly oddities. The carriages travel through the manor in groups of four.
The trackless system allows for the individual carriages within the caravan to split apart at times during the journey, giving each individual carriage a unique ride experience.
Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure – Disney Studios Park, Paris (July 2014) and EPCOT (October 2021)
French cuisine is on the menu at Gusteau’s Restaurant. Guests gather on the rooftops of Paris and find themselves no larger than the size of a rat. They board their “ratmobiles” as they prepare to cook an amazing signature dish.
After deciding on their famous ratatouille dish, Remy and the riders fall through a swinging roof glass-pane above Gusteau’s, winding up on the restaurant’s kitchen floor. Remy leads guests on a chase sequence through the kitchen, the cooler, under the oven, through the dining room (causing a riot among the diners), into the restaurant’s ventilation system, and eventually into Remy’s private kitchen to put the finishing touches on the culinary masterpiece. The technological prowess of the trackless design provides guests with the ability to scurry through trouble like a rat being chased, and the combination of the theme, animatronics, and projection mapping present the attraction as more of a classic Fantasyland dark ride amplified for EPCOT’s modern technological era.
Luigi’s Rollickin’ Roadsters – Disney California Adventure (March 2016)
Luigi is a favorite among Cars fans. He has invited his cousins from “Carsoli” Italy, to Radiator Springs for a dance festival in the tire yard behind his Casa Della Tires shop. Like Aquatopia, this is not a dark ride, but an outdoor celebration. Guests ride in pairs in their own car vehicles, and the whole family moves and spins in unison to Italian music. This attraction won’t make thrill seekers break a sweat, but it is incredibly charming. The trackless technology shines through in the variation of the “dances” the cars and their guests can perform. There are several different dance sequences, and each group of guests enjoys a different experience. The trackless technology allows for the addition of new dance sequences in the future, and even seasonal variations.
Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance – Disney Hollywood Studios (December 2019) and Disney Hollywood Studios (January 2020)
This most technologically advanced ride experience to date puts guests in the middle of the battle between the Resistance and the First Order. Guests in the Resistance base are forced to flee from an oncoming First Order invasion. However, the escape pod gets intercepted and taken in by a First Order Star Destroyer. Resistance hero Finn leads a charge to rescue the guests from the Star Destroyer.
Guests are ushered into escape vehicles piloted by reprogrammed droids. Through a series of encounters with First Order stormtroopers, First Order vehicles, and Supreme Leader Kylo Ren himself, the guests are finally rescued and transported to a safe haven. The frantic pace and back-and-forth movement of the guests’ escape vehicles are achieved through the trackless technology, and near the breathtaking end of the escape sequence, guests even endure a short fall to escape the grasp of the First Order.
Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway – Disney Hollywood Studios (March 2020) and Disneyland (January 2023)
Would you believe Mickey Mouse has never had a ride attraction of his own until now? Guests in this attraction board a train for a ride around Runnamuck Park as guests of Mickey and Minnie. Goofy is the conductor, and as you might expect, things don’t exactly go smoothly. Goofy accidentally hits a switch that breaks up the train cars. Guests enjoy a chaotic journey aboard the runaway train that travels through a carnival, twister, waterfall, big city and factory with the trackless train cars splitting apart and reconnecting along the way.
Guests even stop for a short dance at Daisy’s studio. This is a joy ride not to be missed, and the quick pace of events is possible thanks to trackless technology.
Enchanted Tale of Beauty and the Beast – Tokyo Disneyland (September 2020)
Concept descriptions of this upcoming attraction describe guests boarding enchanted trackless serving cups and saucers that dance in rhythm to the film’s well-known music and follow Belle on a romantic musical adventure inside the enchanted Castle where she dances her way into the heart of the Beast, just in time to break the fateful spell. This attraction promises to be a celebration of the positive spirit Belle brings to this enchanted castle.
While Disney isn’t the only organization to include trackless dark rides in their theme parks, Imagineers have consistently enhanced the guest experience using their signature storytelling mastery. Storytellers use the trackless design to highlight the story, not the technology itself, to the enjoyment of countless guests of all ages.
How about you? Do you have a favorite dark ride, regardless of the technology? What type of dark ride experience would you like to see Disney develop? Let me know with a message on social at: Instagram Facebook X
