You will find at least one Pixar-themed attraction in every Disney theme park. Disney's Hollywood Studios already hosts Toy Story Midway Mania, which not only will remain in the park, it will expand, as Disney is adding an additional track for the ride in attempt to help reduce its notorious long wait times.
As fans await an announcement on what Disney will bring to DHS, what should they hope to see? What are the best Pixar-themed attractions around the world? Which ones are the worst? Theme Park Insider readers have been rating and reviewing attractions at top parks around the world, so we tallied those votes to rank Disney's Pixar attractions.
1. Cars Land
Disney California Adventure
Disney's best Pixar-themed development anchored the redevelopment of what might be considered DHS's sister park, the formerly-maligned Disney California Adventure in Anaheim. DCA borrowed DHS's Pan Pacific Auditorium-inspired entry gates for its refurbishment, and at one point, DHS was slated to get DCA's Cars Land in return. But those plans were shelved like Wheezy. Will they return?
2. Toy Story Midway Mania
Disney's Hollywood Studios, Disney California Adventure, Tokyo DisneySea
No matter where Disney installs this carnival-themed shooter ride, it draws huge crowds. But it's already in DHS.
3. Ratatouille: The Adventure
Walt Disney Studios Paris
Disneyland Paris's second gate opened this 3D dark ride to good reviews last summer, but attendance continued to drop at the struggling park, bringing into question just how badly people want to spend more time with a rat who cooks. Disneyland Paris is said to have a five-year exclusive on this ride, making it even more unlikely as a DHS expansion candidate.
4. Crush's Coaster
Walt Disney Studios Paris
Fans endure the longest waits at the Disneyland Paris Resort to ride this relatively low-capacity indoor spinning coaster, but those who do ride almost always rave about it.
5. Monsters Inc. Ride and Go Seek
Tokyo Disneyland
The Tokyo Disney Resort is Disney's only resort to feature three Pixar-themed shooter rides, with this game of "flashlight tag" one of the most popular attractions in Tokyo Disneyland.
6. Buzz Lightyear
Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom, Disneyland, Tokyo Disneyland, Disneyland Paris, Hong Kong Disneyland
Disney's first Pixar-themed ride is one of the few attractions to be featured at every Disney theme park resort around the world. (Trivia time: Name the others!)
7. Turtle Talk With Crush
Epcot, Disney California Adventure, Tokyo DisneySea
This interactive experience lies somewhere between show and meet and greet, but it doesn't take much space and fans generally give it good marks.
8. Finding Nemo - The Musical
Disney's Animal Kingdom
Nemo doesn't get the love from theme park fans that Disney's Lion King and Aladdin shows get, but it still routinely fills its Disney's Animal Kingdom theater with enthusiastic crowds.
9. It's Tough to Be a Bug!
Disney's Animal Kingdom, Disney California Adventure
A 4D movie with plenty of gross-out moments, this A Bug's Life-themed show has plenty of young fans in Florida, even as it is has been on hiatus in California in favor of Ant Man previews.
10. Monsters, Inc: Mike and Sulley to the Rescue
Disney California Adventure
Some might be surprised to see California's version of a Monsters Inc. dark ride ranked so low, but that might be because in comparison with the ride it replaced — the epically-hated "Superstar Limo" — "Mike and Sulley to the Rescue" seems like the next coming of the Haunted Mansion.
11. Monsters, Inc. Laugh Floor
Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom
This animated, yet interactive, comedy show might have gotten its biggest laugh the first time a Disney fan typed its acronym on a fan forum.
12. Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage
Disneyland
This retheme of Disneyland's submarine ride is actually the largest ride in the park, due to the need to duplicate the show experience for both side of the sub. It's widely tipped for elimination, as Disneyland looks for space to accommodate new Star Wars and Marvel attractions.
13. The Seas with Nemo and Friends
Epcot
Another retheme of an aquatic attraction, but here Nemo and Friends can't measure up to the true stars of The Seas pavilion — the real sea animals within.
14. Cars Race Rally
Walt Disney Studios Paris
If The Onion were to design a stripped-down, low-budget, spoof version of California Adventure's Cars Land, it'd have this.
15. Toy Story Playland
Hong Kong Disneyland, Walt Disney Studios Paris
If Disney claims that these two collections of basic carnival rides with Toy Story-decor are popular, it would only be because they were installed in mostly empty parks where fans were desperate for anything to do. Perhaps that's Disney's strategy with Hollywood Studios? Clear out the park and leave much of it shuttered for so long that fans will be happy when anything new appears.
16. A Bug's Land
Disney California Adventure
Home to our readers' choice as the worst major theme park attraction in the world, Disney's least-loved Pixar-themed land stands next to its most beloved, illustrating the cliche "if at first you don't succeed, try again."
Based on our readers' ratings, if Disney chooses to duplicate an existing Pixar-themed attraction at DHS, it would show its Walt Disney World fans the most love by bringing over Cars Land, or if not that, perhaps Crush's Coaster or Monsters Inc. Ride and Go Seek. Disney would be showing its Florida visitors a big middle Mickey finger, instead, by choosing to build another Cars Race Rally, Toy Story Playland, or A Bug's Land in the park.
What do you think?
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I hope Disney show they are realy creative and WDW is a worldclass destination by showing us something new that is on quality and theming to match Carsland.
Railroad - although Tokyo isn't a grand circle trip
it's A Small World
Dumbo
Fantasyland Carousel - named for different characters park to park
Tea Cups
Space Mountain - different names in some parks
Tomorrowland Spinner - Astro Orbiter, etc
Autopia
Buzz Lightyear shooter
The trivia question sites "Ride" so I'm not including spectaculars, parades and attractions that are not ridden.
Plus there are a few films (Wall-e, Up, incredibles, etc.) that have yet to be fully realized in attractions.
I'd say that the top two and the bottom three are the real outliers here, and that the 11 in the middle are pretty close together in terms of perceived quality. The bottom three are the only real dogs here -- I'd gladly go on any of these other attractions.
Personally, among the 11 in the middle, I'd rank the Nemo musical higher and the Bug 4D show lower.
As for the foreign Pixar offerings the three main ones, ranked 3-5 all seem cool. All the talk is on DHS though and the speculation is fun, but I agree with lots of people here. We need to know whats coming to the park! Afterall a place called Pixar Place needs more than just one representative.
Inside Out is also a huge commercial and critical success. Add that to the list of possibilities.
While Tuck and Roll's bumper cars are anemic, I can think of a lot worse rides at Disney such as that pathetic looking Cars flat ride at Paris Disney Studios. Toy Story Land would be nice if it were actually fun with interesting rides. I went to HKDL and the Toy Story rides were so boring (even for kids), though the theming was great. Guests should be able to play more in Toy Story Land so it needs more interactive and exploratory areas like at DL's Toontown or Goofy's Paint House at TDL.
The interesting thing is that many of the Pixar attractions, though slighly different, use elements that are the same, especially for Finding Nemo.
I'd love to see the Ratatouille ride, Crush's Coaster and Monsters Inc. Ride and Go Seek at WDW. Ratatouille is an exclusive for five years, but after the DHS expansion, they could start building it at Epcot! Or am I dreaming a bit too much?
Monsters, Inc. dark ride isn't much better. The "animatronic" characters are really just semi-mobile statues, and the theme of the ride is ripped off from Roger Rabbit (which, in turn, is ripped off from Mr. Toads). From the minute the ride starts, it's obvious it's a rush job, something more akin to Six Flags quality than Disney. It, too, is ready for replacement.
Given Frozen's entry at Epcot, it's an easy bet to think Ratatouille can be far behind. It would be nice if they could think of a way to change EPCOT's "purpose" to accommodate more family-friendly, character-based rides.
As for DHS, I really don't want them to simply drop in a copy of Cars Land in and call it a day. I'd rather see a Pixar expansion containing rides that don't exist in the United States and/or completely original rides. An upgraded copy of Crush's Coaster with double the capacity would be a good choice, as would a clone of Ride and Go Seek. These could be complemented by a Cars attraction and/or something based on another of Pixar's unrepresented films (Incredibles or Inside Out would be great choices). Don't put Ratatouille in DHS...it would fit the France pavilion at Epcot better.
I know that Hong Kong's is a little different, but it's along the lines of Paris' Discovery Mountain (= Space Mountain), isn't it?
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DHS needs a Cars Land to give the park another E-Ticket attraction. Since they are shedding the studios conceit, there is no fear that Cars Land will be a pale imitation with cheap facades. It could have the full rockwork.
So what might hold off on Cars Land is the rumored Star Wars Land. How elaborate will this new land be?
Ratatouille should go into Epcot as the World Showcase section has few attractions, which should not be a problem in timing as there is so much work, they won't get to it until 10 years later.