Seven Dwarfs Mine Train
Seven Dwarfs Mine Train is a steel roller coaster located at Magic Kingdom and Shanghai Disneyland Park. Manufactured by Vekoma, the roller coaster is situated in the Fantasyland sections of both parks.[5] The Magic Kingdom version opened to the public on May 28, 2014, as part of a major park expansion called New Fantasyland,[6] while the Shanghai version opened on June 16, 2016.[1][2] The ride is themed to Walt Disney's 1937 film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, the first full-length, traditionally-animated feature film.
| Seven Dwarfs Mine Train | |
|---|---|
The largest drop and bridge of the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train at Magic Kingdom. | |
| Magic Kingdom | |
| Park section | Fantasyland |
| Coordinates | 28°25′14″N 81°34′48″W / 28.42056°N 81.58000°W |
| Status | Operating |
| Soft opening date | May 21, 2014 |
| Opening date | May 28, 2014[3] |
| Replaced | 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea: Submarine Voyage (1971–94) Ariel's Grotto (1996-2004) Pooh's Playful Spot (2005–10) |
| Website | Official website |
Individual Lightning Lane Available | |
| Seven Dwarfs Mine Train at Magic Kingdom at RCDB | |
| Shanghai Disneyland Park | |
| Name | Seven Dwarfs Mine Train 七个小矮人矿山车 |
| Park section | Fantasyland |
| Coordinates | 31°08′51″N 121°39′20″E / 31.147459°N 121.655519°E |
| Status | Operating |
| Soft opening date | May 7, 2016 |
| Opening date | June 16, 2016[1][2] |
| Website | Official website |
FastPass available | |
Single rider line available | |
| Seven Dwarfs Mine Train 七个小矮人矿山车 at Shanghai Disneyland Park at RCDB | |
| General statistics | |
| Type | Steel |
| Manufacturer | Vekoma |
| Designer | Walt Disney Imagineering |
| Model | Custom |
| Track layout | MK700 "J" |
| Lift/launch system | Two chain lift hills |
| Drop | 39 ft (12 m) |
| Length | 2,000 ft (610 m) |
| Speed | 34 mph (55 km/h) |
| Inversions | 0 |
| Duration | 2:50 |
| Height restriction | 38 in (97 cm) |
| Trains | 5[4] trains with 5 cars. Riders are arranged 2 across in 2 rows for a total of 20 riders per train. |
| Theme | Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs |
Must transfer from wheelchair | |
History
The Fantasyland section of the Magic Kingdom underwent a large expansion and renovation from March 2010[7] through May 2014.[8][9] As part of the expansion, the Magic Kingdom's original Snow White attraction, Snow White's Scary Adventures, was permanently closed on May 31, 2012 and replaced with Princess Fairytale Hall, a new Disney Princess meet and greet.[9] A new area themed to Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, featuring Snow White's cottage and the new Seven Dwarfs Mine Train roller coaster, was dedicated on May 2, 2014 and officially opened on May 28, 2014.[3][10] The ride soft-opened in the Magic Kingdom on May 21, 2014,[11] fully opening a week later on May 28, 2014, Replacing 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea: Submarine Voyage (1971-94) and Pooh's Playful Spot (2005-10).
Description
Queue
The queue hosts a few interactive activities. One was a gem-sorting game where guests match up three jewels of different shape but the same color, but has since been replaced with an overlay of immovable physical gems. There is also a spot with barrels full of gems that guests spin to create reflective animations of the Seven Dwarfs on the ceiling. If all of the dwarfs are present on the ceiling, an animation of Snow White appears in the middle of the Dwarfs' animations. Finally there are the "musical spigots," a gem washing station with wooden taps carved to woodland animals. There are 12 spigots each representing a note on the chromatic scale.[12]
Attraction
The ride travels both indoors and outdoors, similar to Frontierland's major attractions, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and Splash Mountain. Unlike roller coasters such as the Incredicoaster and Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith, this attraction is designed to appeal to a family-oriented crowd with enchanting scenery and cartoonish architecture; it retains details from the original 1937 film.[13] The attraction features a new ride system of a "tilting vehicle". This new technology simulates the swaying and tipping one would expect to experience in a mine cart.[8][14]
Songs from the film, such as "Heigh-Ho", are featured in the attraction.[15] Most of the Audio-Animatronics, including the Dwarf figures of Doc, Happy, Sleepy, Grumpy, and Bashful performing their Yodel Song in the final scene, are recycled from the demolished Snow White's Scary Adventures attraction. Additionally, the vulture figures from the previous attraction ride are perched on a mining structure early in the ride. Many of the figures within the cave are new designs from the animation team, with the most important and recognizable contribution being Doc's high range of motion, two-degree-of-freedom wrist.[15][16]
The ride features two on-ride cameras that provide videos and pictures for guests to buy through Disney's PhotoPass, which it began doing on September 18, 2014.[17] It is one of only two Walt Disney World attraction to provide videos for guests, the other being The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror.[18][19] Unlike the rest of the attractions at Walt Disney World with on-ride cameras (with the exception of Frozen Ever After and Slinky Dog Dash), there are no monitors to view the ride pictures and, instead, they are automatically added to a guest's My Disney Experience account via RFID in the guest's MagicBand linked to the account, if riding with one on their wrist.
The ride layouts are the same in the Florida and Shanghai versions of the ride. The major differences between the two are that the Shanghai version has all its songs in Mandarin instead of English. Also at the final brake run, while both versions have a hut with Snow White dancing, the Florida version is much closer to the tracks as compared to the Shanghai version, where a well with several animals playing inside it is in place.
Incidents
On November 1, 2014, falling embers from Wishes fireworks show landed on the fake grass exterior of the ride, causing a fire near the bridge that the coaster travels on just before entering the mine. This caused the ride and the surrounding area to be evacuated.[20] The fire was first reported around 10:20 p.m. Reedy Creek Fire Department responded and extinguished the fire within minutes, according to eyewitnesses. By 11 p.m., multiple eyewitnesses said the fire was out. There were no injuries reported. The surrounding area reopened later that night, and the ride reopened at 12:30 p.m. the following afternoon.[21][22]
References
- ^ a b Smith, Thomas (January 12, 2016). "Opening Date Set for Shanghai Disney Resort, Disney's Newest World-Class Destination". DisneyParks Blog. Retrieved January 12, 2016.
- ^ a b Smith, Thomas. "Shanghai Disneyland Themed Lands to Include New Attractions, Live Shows". disneyparksblog.com. Disney Parks. Retrieved September 17, 2015.
- ^ a b Smith, Thomas (May 2, 2014). "Seven Dwarfs Mine Train Opens May 28 at Walt Disney World Resort". Disney Parks Blog. The Walt Disney Company. Retrieved May 2, 2014.
- ^ "Review: Seven Dwarfs Mine Train mixes Disney charm, technology, thrills". Tampa Bay Times.
- ^ "Seven Dwarfs Mine Train". May 22, 2014.
- ^ Marden, Duane. "Seven Dwarfs Mine Train (Magic Kingdom)". Roller Coaster DataBase. Retrieved April 2, 2011.
- ^ "Fantasyland Expansion Begins with Groundbreaking at Magic Kingdom Park". Disney Parks Blog. Disneyparks.disney.go.com. March 3, 2010. Retrieved June 2, 2014.
- ^ a b Smith, Thomas (January 18, 2011). "Update on New Fantasyland at Magic Kingdom Park". Retrieved January 20, 2011.
- ^ a b "Disney World's Fantasyland expansion". WOFL FOX 35. January 18, 2011. Retrieved January 18, 2011.
- ^ Fickley-Baker, Jennifer. "All in the Details: Imagineers Create The Dwarfs Cottage at Seven Dwarfs Mine Train". Disney Parks Blog. The Walt Disney Company. Retrieved March 19, 2014.
- ^ "Orlando Theme Park News | Daily News and Photo-updates Covering Central Florida's Attractions: Seven Dwarfs Mine Train Soft-Opening TODAY (May 21)". Orlandoparksnews.com. May 21, 2014. Retrieved June 2, 2014.
- ^ Mauney, Matt (April 22, 2014). "Disney reveals interactive game inside new Mine Train attraction". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved November 2, 2014.
- ^ Hill, Jim (May 27, 2014). "Seven Dwarfs Mine Train Literally Puts a New Face on the Disney Theme Park Experience". The Huffington Post. Retrieved September 12, 2014.
- ^ "Seven Dwarfs Mine Train ready to roll 2014". Park World Magazine: 7. October 2013.
- ^ a b "Seven Dwarfs Mine Train comes to life as final piece of New Fantasyland at Magic Kingdom – Complete ride-through video". Orlando Attractions Magazine. Dream Together Media, LLC. May 2014. Retrieved May 1, 2014.
- ^ Fickley-Baker, Jennifer. "All in the Details: The Changing Terrain of Seven Dwarfs Mine Train at Magic Kingdom Park". Disney Parks Blog. Disney.
- ^ Glassburn, Kelly. "Photos, Videos Capture Your Seven Dwarfs Mine Train Ride at Walt Disney World Resort". disneyparks.disney.go.com. Disney Parks. Retrieved February 7, 2015.
- ^ Glassburn, Kelly. "MyMagic+: Video Captures Your Twilight Zone Tower of Terror Drop at Walt Disney World Resort". disneyparks.disney.go.com. Disney Parks. Retrieved February 7, 2015.
- ^ Wallace, Sandi. "Disney PhotoPass Service Simplifies Access to Walt Disney World Photos, Videos". disneyparks.com. Disney Parks. Retrieved November 2, 2014.
- ^ "There was a small fire tonight at Seven Dwarfs Mine Train..." twitter.com. @attractions (Attractions Magazine). Retrieved November 2, 2014.
- ^ "Seven Dwarfs Mine Train catches fire at Walt Disney World, no injuries reported". WGHP FOX 8. November 1, 2014. Retrieved November 2, 2014.
- ^ Harris, David (November 1, 2014). "Fire at Seven Dwarfs train at Disney, officials say". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved November 2, 2014.
External links
- Seven Dwarfs Mine Train announcement at the Disney Parks Blog
- US patent 8360893, Derek Howard, "Roller Coaster Vehicle", assigned to Disney Enterprises, Inc.
- Big update on opening date of Seven Dwarfs Mine Train in Magic Kingdom
- All in the Details: Imagineers Create The Dwarfs Cottage at Seven Dwarfs Mine Train
Media related to Seven Dwarfs Mine Train at Wikimedia Commons