Sail high into the moonlit sky with Peter Pan. Board a colorful galleon and, with the help of some pixie dust, embark on a high-flying adventure, passing many of the unforgettable settings and scenes made famous in Disney’s animated film, Peter Pan.
Journey to the Darling children's nursery and behold the first meeting of Wendy, Michael, John... and Peter Pan. Sail through the nighttime sky over London, where famous sites like Big Ben and Tower Bridge mingle with a confection of glittering lights. Then, descend into Neverland, home to volcanic peaks and sparkling waterfalls.
Once there, glimpse the Lost Boys and Mermaid Lagoon and sail past Skull Rock. Swoop into Pirate's Cove, home to an enormous pirate ship, and behold Peter Pan in a swashbuckling duel with Captain Hook. Finally, make your way back to London, leaving a defeated Captain Hook far behind.
History[]
In some early concept designs of the attraction, before it was decided for galleons to be the ride vehicle, it was originally planned for guests to ride on the back of Peter Pan himself. The original intent of the attraction was for guests to fly through the ride as if they were Peter Pan, which also applied to Snow White's Scary Adventures & Mr. Toad's Wild Ride. Audiences did not quite grasp this concept and were left wondering why Peter Pan was not in the Peter Pan attraction. The Walt Disney World version of the ride, which opened in 1971, expanded on the original Disneyland attraction. While the overall theme and format of the ride was consistent with the original in California, the Magic Kingdom ride, as with the other dark rides, would feature its characters in Audio-Animatronics style. Peter Pan himself appears in the ride as well.
In 1983, Disneyland's Fantasyland was in a phase of major overhaul. Some of Fantasyland's rides were relocated to make way for expanded versions of existing dark rides, as well as the addition of a new one. The posh redo of Fantasyland now resembled a rustic European village in the Alps, rather than a medieval fair. Mr. Toad's Wild Ride and Snow White's Scary Adventures moved their respective loading areas and partial murals indoors. Peter Pan's Flight continued to feature a colorful mural which depicted the characters from the film. During this renovation, the original Pirate Ship Restaurant and Skull Rock were closed permanently and removed. The riggings, lanterns, and other props from the restaurant were added to Peter Pan's Flight. An Audio-Animatronic Peter Pan was added to the ride.
Attraction[]
Disneyland[]
Original version (1955 - 1982)[]
The original ride featured the ride vehicles flying through scenes of the nursery, over London, onward to Neverland, and finally through Skull Rock, where riders saw Captain Hook, Mr. Smee, Giant Octopus, Fish Color 3, The Lost Boys camp, Princess Tiger Lily, and the Crocodile before unloading. The exterior of the attraction had a medieval design and the queue was outside.
Expanded version (1983 - 2015)[]
Departing from the station, but before entering the actual ride building, guests fly over the rooftops of London. The new version of the ride includes Audio-Animatronic versions of the characters, like at the Magic Kingdom in Florida. As part of the new remodel, scenes from the Florida ride were added to Disneyland, including the pirate ship deck where Peter and Hook duel on the tip of the ship's bowsprit (at the Magic Kingdom Peter and Hook duel on the ship's mainsail). Few scenes are identical between the two versions(such as the London scene in Florida being much more detailed, three-dimensional and realistic, the Neverland scene in Florida omitting the rainbow and stars and the final scene having only a crow perched on Skull Rock and Tick-Tock appearing twice), but they are very similar nonetheless.
The new Disneyland ride opened as part of New Fantasyland on May 25, 1983. After winding through the queue, guests board a three-passenger miniature galleon, which is suspended from a track on the ceiling above to enhance the sensation of flying through the air. The ship leaves the load area and winds through the Darlings' nursery, passing Nana the Nursemaid next to some toy blocks which spell "D1SN3Y" when read backwards. Wendy, Michael, and John Darling are on the bed and Peter Pan's shadow is on the wall.
Guests hear Peter Pan saying, "Come on, everybody! Here we go!"(in Florida, the audio is, "And off we go! Off to Neverland!") At this point, the ship flies out the nursery window and over moonlit London. Lights twinkle all around. Below guests are miniature versions of some of London's famous landmarks, including St. Paul's Cathedral, Big Ben, the Tower Bridge, and the River Thames.
Then, going past "the second star to the right and straight on 'til morning," the flying ships reach Neverland, where guests pass some of its landmarks, including the Indian village, a glowing volcano, The Lost Boys camp, Mermaid Lagoon and Skull Rock. It is here that guests encounter some of Neverland's most famous residents, including Princess Tiger Lily, Mr. Smee, Tick-Tock the Crocodile, and Peter's arch rival, Captain Hook, in addition to Peter and the Darlings.
2015 update[]
On February 2, 2015 the attraction closed for refurbishment. It was originally scheduled to reopen on May 21, 2015, but was later pushed back to July 1, 2015.[2] New animatronics of Wendy, John, and Michael now fly above John's bed in the Nursery (previously John and Michael were sitting in John's bed, with Wendy sitting on a chair next to them). New special effects were also added to the London and Neverland scenes.[3]
Magic Kingdom[]
Original version (1971 - 2014)[]
The load/unload area features Omnimover-style moving ramps, like those found at the Haunted Mansion, to allow for a smoother flow of traffic and the lap bars in the ship vehicles are padded on top. The scenes in the ride are on a larger scale and feature Audio-Animatronic figures. Upon entering the very beginning of the nursery, a play tea party featuring two famous American toys, Raggedy Ann and Andy, can be seen. The Lost Boys camp and Mermaid Lagoon are now a part of the Never Land scene. Also, Hook's 48-foot pirate ship is included, complete with deck, masts, sails, and rigging. Guests see Hook and Peter engaged in hand-to-hand combat on the mainsail, while the boys are lashed to the mast and Wendy is about to walk the plank. Then, guests see Peter and the Darlings posed victoriously on the ship, poised to sail into the sky, back to London. Disney's Fastpass is also available.
2014 update[]
In 2014, this version was upgraded to include an updated indoor queue, wherein the old washrooms were removed. The new queue starts by entering into a corridor with interactive murals. It then leads you into the Darling family residence, with a special emphasis on the nursery. This new queue has an extremely high attention to detail.[4] If you look very carefully, there are suitcases and shopping bags on and near Wendy's bed, revealing that the Darlings went on vacation to Paris, France.
Tokyo Disneyland[]
Original version (1983 - 2015)[]
Peter Pan's Flight at Tokyo Disneyland in Tokyo Disneyland is nearly identical to the Walt Disney World version.
2016 update[]
In early 2016, Peter Pan's Flight was renovated to include new digital effects throughout the attraction. A new Neverland scene was added, where guests now fly over the island of Neverland at nighttime, before flying past the Lost Boys, the Mermaids and the Indians.
Disneyland Paris[]
Peter Pan's Flight at Disneyland Park in Disneyland Paris is nearly identical to the expanded Disneyland version, but is 3 minutes long, while the other versions are about 2:30 minutes long.The mermaid lagoon scene is placed in another area too. It also has the largest capacity per boat, with at least four guests riding compared to two or three. The transport system was manufactured by Intamin.
Shanghai Disneyland[]
Peter Pan's Flight opened alongside the rest of Shanghai Disneyland in 2016. Unlike previous iterations, this version features four-person vehicles instead of two. These vehicles also have the ability to stop and change speed, unlike before. The ride also includes enhanced versions of scenes from previous iterations, as well as new scenes, such as a "splashdown" into Skull Rock.
Corey Burton - Captain Hook, Mr. Smee (1983 version)
Candy Candido - Indian Chief
Jimmy MacDonald - Captain Hook (1955 Disneyland and 1971 Walt Disney World versions)
Dallas McKennon - Mr. Smee (1955 Disneyland and 1971 Walt Disney World versions)
Trivia[]
A hidden Mickey is located at the beginning of the ride. When the ship ascends, the shape of Mickey's head, formed by three cookies, can be seen below to the right.
Ariel from The Little Mermaid can be seen in the Mermaid Lagoon area in the Walt Disney World version.
At the end of the Disney Sing Along Songs video "You Can Fly!", music from Disneyland's version is heard during the reprise of the titular song.
In the original 1955 Disneyland version of the ride, Captain Hook is voiced by legendary sound effects artist Jimmy MacDonald while Mr. Smee is voiced by Dallas McKennon. Their voices would later be used in the Walt Disney World version in 1971, where they can still be heard today.
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Seasonal:A Merry Stitchmas • It's Good To Be Bad With The Disney Villains • La Parade de Noël Disney • Mickey et le Big Band de Noël • Mickey's Halloween Celebration
Seasonal:Chantons La Reine des Neiges • Disney's Maleficious Halloween Party • Disney's Showtime Spectacular • Dr. Facilier's Carnival-Loween • Following the Leader with Peter Pan • Goofy's Skeletoons Street Party • Frozen Summer Fun! • The Forest of Enchantment: A Disney Musical Adventure • Le Voeu de Noël de la Princesse Aurore • Mickey's Magical Celebration • Mickey's Winter Wonderland • Mickey and his Magic Halloween Night • La Parade d'Aladdin • Wishes
Resorts
Disneyland Hotel • Disney's Hotel New York - The Art of Marvel • Disney's Sequoia Lodge • Newport Bay Club Hotel • Disney's Hotel Cheyenne • Disney's Hotel Santa Fe
Return to Never Land:Edward • Jane • Danny • Nana II • Octopus
Locations
London • Bloomsbury • Nursery • Big Ben • The Second Star to the Right • Neverland • Neverland Jungle • The Jolly Roger • Mermaid Lagoon • Skull Rock • Indian Camp • Hangman's Tree
Songs
Peter Pan:The Second Star to the Right • You Can Fly • A Pirate's Life (Is a Wonderful Life) • Following the Leader • What Made the Red Man Red? • Your Mother and Mine • The Elegant Captain Hook • Never Smile at a Crocodile
Return to Never Land:I'll Try • Here We Go Another Plan • So to Be One of Us Deleted:The Pirate Song • The Boatswain Song • I'll Give You One Guess Remake:All Grown Up • Behemooth • Ode to the Falling
