Description And Comments

With new characters (an ax-murdering bride), scenes, and effects added in 2006, The Haunted Mansion is a fun attraction more than a scary one. An ingenious preshow serves as a vehicle to deliver guests to the ride's boarding area, where they board "doom buggies" for a ride through the mansion's parlor, dining room, library, halls, and attic before descending to an uncommonly active graveyard. Disney employs almost every special effect in its repertoire in The Haunted Mansion, making it one of the most inventive and different of all Disney attractions. Be warned that some youngsters build a lot of anxiety concerning what they think they will see. The actual attraction scares almost nobody. Though this mansion is the original, the ride is somewhat shorter and lacks the high-tech interactive upgrades of the Walt Disney World version.

The Haunted Mansion is one of veteran Unofficial Guide writer Eve Zibart's favorite attractions. She warns:

Don't let the childishness of the old-fashioned Haunted Mansion put you off: this is one of the best attractions [in the park]. It's jam-packed with visual puns, special effects, hidden Mickeys, and really lovely Victorian-spooky sets. It's not scary, except in the sweetest of ways, but it will remind you of the days before ghost stories gave way to slasher flicks.

Each September, The Haunted Mansion substitutes a special holiday version of the attraction that runs through early January. Inspired by Tim Burton’s 1993 stop-motion musical The Nightmare Before Christmas, the overlay features characters such as Jack Skellington and Oogie Boogie cavorting among the familiar mansion haunts to songs from Danny Elfman’s classic score. Everything from the outside facade, the signage, the stretch room pre-show, and the entire ride is decked out with Nightmare story. Started in 2001, it's been very popular with the Disneyland locals and first-time visitors alike. In overlay mode, it's an entirely different attraction, and definitely worth a look if you've only seen the original attraction. Be aware that the attraction will be closed for several weeks before and after the holiday season to install and remove the overlay.

Touring Tips

This would be more at home in Fantasyland, but no matter - it's Disney at its best: another not-to-be-missed attraction. Because The Haunted Mansion is in an especially high-traffic corridor (between Pirates of the Caribbean and Splash Mountain), it stays busy all day. Try to see The Haunted Mansion before 11:30 a.m. or while a parade is in progress. In the evening, crowds for Fantasmic! gather in front of The Haunted Mansion, making it very difficult to access.

While the Haunted Mansion has a set of FASTPASS booths to its left, they are usually only turned on during the holiday overlay (mentioned above) season, when the foot-traffic to Mansion is much higher. And even during the holiday season, there is no guarantee FASTPASS will be offered every day. During the overlay, we recommend using FASTPASS (if available) to visit this attraction, and to make it a higher priority than during other times of the year.

Haunted Mansion Wait Times

This chart shows you roughly how long you'll wait for Haunted Mansion when you visit on a day with a given Disneyland Crowd Level. The blue bars represent the average "peak" wait time (that is, how long the line will at its busiest). The bottom and top black lines represent the range of peak wait times to expect (for you fellow nerds out there: it's the 5th percentile and 95th percentile of peak wait times). Please note that these are estimates, and for a better forecast for your travel dates, see Haunted Mansion Wait Times.

Special Comments

Not to be missed; frightens some small children; some of Disneyland's best special effects.

Special Needs

Other Attractions in New Orleans Square

Touring Plans with Haunted Mansion

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