Mark Twain Riverboat, Sailing Ship Columbia, Davy Crockett Explorer Canoes and ‘Fantasmic!’ Return to Add More Fun for Summer 2017

ANAHEIM Calif. (July 28, 2017) — Guests visiting the Disneyland Resort this summer will enjoy the magical mix of nostalgia, nighttime entertainment and new attractions that make the Resort a guest favorite year after year.

The Disneyland Railroad, an original Disneyland attraction and park icon, reopens July 29, 2017. This fan-favorite attraction now travels a new scenic route along the north bank of the Rivers of America, where it traverses stunning new rockwork and waterfalls providing guests with breathtaking views along both sides of the train. Guests also will enjoy this new landscape from the water as they welcome the return of the popular watercraft — Mark Twain Riverboat, Sailing Ship Columbia and Davy Crockett Explorer Canoes.

Kim Irvine, art director for the Rivers of America project, envisioned what it will be like for guests: “It’s hard to believe that right here, smack dab in the middle of bustling freeways and high-rises, you can enjoy a relaxing ride on an open-air train car and sail on a ship or canoe down a rolling river, surrounded by towering pine and oak trees with sightings of deer, elk, moose and beautiful waterfalls.”

Another classic, “Fantasmic!,” re-opened July 17 on the Rivers of America, telling the story of Mickey Mouse and his vivid imagination, Guests cheered as they welcomed back this nighttime spectacular’s classic theme song and the engaging storyline that has been treasured for 25 years. And explorers celebrated the re-opening of Pirate’s Lair on Tom Sawyer Island in June.

At Disneyland Park

Once again, guests will enter Walt Disney’s original Magic Kingdom to the sounds of train whistles and chugging engines, a familiar part of the Disneyland Railroad. The steam-powered locomotives, among the few still operating today, take guests on relaxing and entertaining tour through the park. And, for the first time, engineers guide the trains on a left-hand turn in the park after they venture over a trestle that closely hugs a dramatic new shoreline along the Rivers of America in Frontierland.

A gorgeous new Columbia Gorge section highlighted by five new picturesque waterfalls is the backdrop as guests enjoy their journey aboard one of Walt Disney’s favorite attractions. Landscapes inspired by four of America’s majestic rivers — the Mississippi, the Columbia, the Missouri and the Rio Grande — are carefully recreated, complete with indigenous rock formations, natural forests and wildlife, and the waterfalls.

The sounds will be as entertaining as all the sights as guests listen to singing birds, eagle cries, the whinny of an Indian Chief’s horse, a Riverboat captain’s voice, an emotional score and more. As the tour continues, conductors narrate the trip with stops at Mickey’s Toontown, Tomorrowland, Main Street, U.S.A., and New Orleans Square.

Just before pulling into the Main Street Station, guests are transported to a new place and new time as they view dioramas of the Grand Canyon and Primeval World. Updated for the first time since opening in 1958, the Grand Canyon section creates a dramatic experience with refurbished flora and fauna, some fun surprises and the orchestral Grand Canyon Suite by Ferde Grofé. In the Primeval World, newly painted sets, dinosaurs and creatures blend with new effects and lighting.

For nighttime entertainment, “Fantasmic!” returns this summer featuring new scenes with characters from “Aladdin,” “Tangled,” “The Lion King” and “Pirates of the Caribbean.” One dazzling sequence finds Aladdin and Jasmine discovering “A Whole New World” as they float on their flying carpet over a bed of fog on the Rivers of America. The sensational “Fantasmic!” adventures come alive with new mist screens and innovative projection mapping technology to create visuals that are brighter and more vibrant than ever before.

Limited-Time Only Opportunities

While guests are enjoying the return of the popular Rivers of America entertainment, they are making sure to experience the family fun that will soon be gone.

The Main Street Electrical Parade continues nightly performances at Disneyland, through August 20, with favorite scenes such as Cinderella’s ball, the appearance (and disappearance) of Elliot, the smoke-breathing, tail-wagging “Pete’s Dragon,” and the glittering “To Honor America” finale.

And at Disney California Adventure Park, guests are screaming with thrills on the new Guardians of the Galaxy: Mission: BREAKOUT! attraction while they “Hero Up” and take in all of the excitement of Summer of Heroes. This epic celebration, which brings Super Heroes to life like never before in Hollywood Land, runs through Sept. 10, 2017.