Whose Haunts are the Happiest? Let’s Take a Look at the “Haunted Mansions” in all of the Disney Parks

Welcome, foolish mortals! The Haunted Mansion is an iconic Disney Parks attraction. In fact, it’s so beloved that guests will find a version of this attraction at five Disney Parks worldwide!

And while they’re all inspired by the same spirit, each version of the attraction has a unique execution.

Let’s take a look at the different versions of The Haunted Mansion across the Disney parks!

The Haunted Mansion — Disneyland Park

Let’s start with the first version of The Haunted Mansion — the one located in Disneyland Park! Even though this was the first version of the ride, it wasn’t an opening day attraction. The Haunted Mansion first welcomed guests on August 9, 1969. Which made it the first major Disney attraction to open without the direct supervision of Walt Disney. And as the first version of the ride, the others draw inspiration from the original in Disneyland! The exterior of the attraction is themed after an old antebellum Southern mansion, so it perfectly complements the land in which it’s located — New Orleans Square.

Upon entering the front door of the mansion, guests are ushered into the iconic “stretching room,” which is actually an elevator that descends to a lower level. After walking through a wall of haunting portraits, which change as lighting flashes, guests enter their Doom Buggy to begin the tour.

The tour is led by the mysterious “Ghost Host,” who narrates the attraction as guests pass through chilling scenes including a séance conducted by Madame Leota, a party in the Grand Hall, and the very lively graveyard. While this version of the attraction is very similar to the one located in the Magic Kingdom, there are several unique elements. First, one of the 999 happy haunts in Disneyland is the Hatbox Ghost — who resides exclusively in the Disneyland version of the ride.

Also, the Disneyland attraction receives a seasonal overlay each year which includes characters from The Nightmare Before Christmas. The holiday version typically opens at the beginning of September and runs through the end of the year.

Now that we’ve seen the spooky original, let’s take a peek inside the other mansions!

The Haunted Mansion — Magic Kingdom

While the Disneyland version opened over a decade after the park first welcomed guests, The Haunted Mansion in Magic Kingdom was an opening day attraction for the Florida Project, offering mansion tours since October 1, 1971. And guests will notice a marked difference before they even enter. Since this ride is located in Liberty Square, it’s themed after the English Tudor style found in the lower Hudson River Valley in New York, to better match its surroundings.

There are a few smaller differences from the Disneyland version as well — guests enter through a side door rather than the front, the Stretching Room doesn’t take guests to a lower level, and the changing portraits and marble busts are encountered on the attraction rather than in the queue. Plus, a 2007 refurbishment of the attraction saw a few more significant on-ride changes as well. The Grand Staircase room is exclusive to the Disney World version of the attraction, as is the more substantial storyline of Constance, the ghostly bride in the attic.

Despite the different exterior aesthetics and some slight changes to the scenes, The Haunted Mansion in Disney World is pretty close to the original!

The Haunted Mansion — Tokyo Disneyland

This version might give you a bit of deja vu. The Haunted Mansion in Tokyo Disneyland opened in 1983, and it’s very similar to the Magic Kingdom version of the attraction. Located in the Fantasyland section of the park, the exterior is also in the same English Tudor style as guests will find in Disney World.

And the ride itself is also pretty close to the Magic Kingdom attraction. In fact, it was almost exactly the same before the Magic Kingdom version received a refurbishment in 2007. Instead of the Grand Staircase scene in the Disney World iteration, guests pass through a room with giant spiders. And the attic scene in Tokyo has ghostly heads which pop up to spook guests, rather than the Constance storyline seen in Disney World. But other than that, these haunts are very similar to their Florida counterparts!

Phantom Manor — Disneyland Paris

Now let’s start to shake things up a bit! While the overall spooky vibe of Phantom Manor is similar to the other attractions, this version of the ride has a different storyline than the first three we’ve touched on. The name change, therefore, is fitting! This ride opened with the park in 1992, and it’s located in  Frontierland. The style of the mansion and the accompanying storyline are altered to fit with the Frontierland theming.

Phantom Manor belongs to one of Thunder Mesa’s founding families, the Ravenswoods. And the patriarch, Henry Ravenswood, is incredibly protective of his only daughter, Melanie, whose four suitors all met untimely and mysterious demises.

The ghostly bride is a recurring character throughout the scenes in Phantom Manor. And given the large number of languages spoken by Disneyland Paris guests, Imagineers purposely designed this version of the attraction to rely heavily on visual and musical storytelling.

While many of the scenes themselves are similar to those in The Haunted Mansion, the inclusion of the Bride and the Phantom shift the storyline of Phantom Manor.

The biggest difference between the Phantom Manor scenes compared to those in The Haunted Mansion is the “graveyard scene.” Instead of a graveyard, Phantom Manor takes riders through a dilapidated ghost town in the western United States, again, keeping with the Frontierland theme.

With some pretty big changes to the storyline and scenes, Phantom Manor offers a unique experience for even the most seasoned riders of The Haunted Mansion!

Mystic Manor — Hong Kong Disneyland

Finally, we reach the most unique version of “The Haunted Mansion.” Mystic Manor opened in 2013 as the focal point of Hong Kong Disneyland’s Mystic Point. The ride itself is so different that guests might not even realize that it’s this park’s take on The Haunted Mansion!

Rather than focusing on ghosts or the deceased, this attraction focuses on historical artifacts which are brought to life. This change was made in order to make the ride more fitting for the Chinese culture. The attraction draws on the recurring Disney parks storyline of the Society of Explorers and Adventurers. The manor is owned by Lord Henry Mystic, and his extensive collection of artifacts becomes animated when his curious monkey, Albert, opens an enchanted music box.

While the storyline takes guests along with Albert as they try to escape the dangerous animated artifacts, there is another notable difference in this version of the attraction. Instead of the omnimover system used in other iterations of The Haunted Mansion, Mystic Manor uses a trackless ride system. Fitting for a collector like Lord Henry Mystic!

The Haunted Mansion is one of the most iconic Disney attractions worldwide. In fact, it’s such a popular ride that it’s received a place in five of the Disney parks! Each version of the mansion has its own unique charm regardless of which happy haunts reside there. We’d gladly let any of these spooky characters send chills down our spine!

Which version of The Haunted Mansion is your favorite? Let us know in the comments!

 

Post a Comment