When Walt Disney was building Disneyland, he originally wanted to include a haunted house that guests could walk-through. He asked his core imagineers to come up with a design, something that would look haunted but would still look presentable in his pristine park. After rejecting countless designs, he finally came up with one that fit his idea of what this attraction should be. It was not a walk-through attraction anymore, but a ride through a haunted house, with a ghost as your tour guide. It was eventually determined that Walt wanted to build a new area in Disneyland where the Haunted Mansion could be placed. This new area, called New Orleans Square, opened in 1966 with the Haunted Mansion building built, but the ride was not opened. Guests began to wonder why, and many started coming up with their own theories. One popular Urban Legend was that the ride was too scary, and that a guest had ridden it during a "soft opening", and had a heart attack from fright. This was completely untrue, because the ride interior wasn't built yet! However, when Walt Disney died in 1966, there was more conflict regarding the mansion's story line and whether it should be a "funny" or "scary" ride. The Haunted Mansion in Disneyland eventually opened on August 9, 1969.
When the Magic Kingdom opened in 1971, it received it's own Haunted Mansion. Disneyland's version was a Southern plantation, and Disney World's was a Colonial mansion.
The rides are both very similar, and we're going to focus on the Disney World mansion now. Here's a complete ride-through of the attraction; you'll almost feel like you're there! While you watch, I'll explain to you what's happening, since the video isn't perfect. Go ahead, press play! I promise it isn't too scary! Make sure you watch it in HD!
The Haunted Mansion is located in Liberty Square. Master Gracey owns this mansion, and as you walk up, you can see his hearse and invisible horse.
Waiting in line for the ride, you'll notice how detailed the entire mansion is, and you have the option to enter through the cemetery or just the normal line. The cemetery is more for small children who may be a little frightened, because this cemetery is interactive with gags and funny interactive tombstones.
As you walk into the mansion, you're directed into the stretching room. This room has four portraits, and the room actually looks like it's stretching (spoiler: you're actually in an elevator, taking you to the basement where you get onto the ride). This is where you meet your "Ghost Host", who lets you know that there are no windows, no doors, and no way out of this room. At this point, you're probably a little freaked. Step into the dead center of the room! And watch as the room stretches before your eyes. Is it your imagination? Maybe. But you, my friend, need to find a way out! Or, you can use your host's way of leaving, which is shown when the lights go out and his hanging corpse is shown on the ceiling.
Now, a maid will direct you out of the stretching room and to where you board your doom buggy. This is the vehicle you will ride in. Once you're in the Doom Buggy, your journey really begins. The ghost host is with you the entire journey, giving you a grand tour of his mansion. There are 999 ghosts residing here, but there's room for 1,000!
Through the first hallway, you see that a thunderstorm is happening outside. Every time the lightning flashes, the portraits on the walls change. A ship becomes shipwrecked, a woman becomes Medusa, etc.
Then enter the library, where it seems the busts are following your every move.
Pass a piano playing by itself,
staircases that lead to nowhere,
eyes peering at you through the walls,
a candlestick floating in an endless hallway,
someone trying to break out of their casket,
a demon clock with it's hands on the number 13,
Madame Leota in her floating crystal ball summoning the spirits through a creepy (and awesome) ritual,
ghosts partying in the ballroom (this is where your ghost host leaves you for a while, saying he needs to go and join the party),
a murderous ghost bride in the attic,
and ghosts partying outside in the graveyard. The graveyard is where your ghost host finds you again.
Once you're out of there, you're warned that a ghost may follow you home. You're shown the three hitchhiking ghosts, and pass a mirror where one of them is indeed in your ride car!
Then Little Leota sends you off, saying that there's always room for one more ghost.
"Hurry back, hurry back! Be sure to bring your death certificate! If you decide to join us, make final arrangements now, we've been dying to have you."
Back in Liberty Square, you're near the entrance to the ride. Welcome back to the mortal world! Now, wasn't that fun?
The haunted mansion looks awesome. I'm a huge fan of scary stuff. This would be a reason for me to go to disneyland!
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