Seven Dwarfs Mine Train

Seven Dwarfs Mine Train
The largest drop on the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train. Photo: Disney
Magic Kingdom
Land	Fantasyland
Attraction type	Steel roller coaster
Opening date	May 28, 2014
Ride duration	2:30 minutes
Height requirements	38" (97 cm)
Based On	Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
Disney Genie +	No (Lightning Lane Exclusive)

The Seven Dwarfs Mine Train is an attraction located in Fantasyland.

The Seven Dwarfs Mine Train was initially announced on January 18, 2011 as part of the updated plans for the Fantasyland Expansion ^[1]. At this time, Disney explained that the attraction would feature a "first-of-its kind ride system with a train of ride vehicles that swing back and forth as they whisk along the track" ^[1]. In conjunction with the plans for New Fantasyland, Disney further announced that the dark ride attraction Snow White’s Scary Adventures would be closing on May 31, 2012, in order to make way for Princess Fairytale Hall ^[2]. This closure left the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train as the park’s sole representation of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.

Construction on the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train's track began in September 2012 ^[3]. During the construction of the attraction, Chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts Tom Staggs asked Imagineering if they could increase the quality of the Seven Dwarfs Audio Animatronics. Walt Disney Imagineering then decided to use new projection mapping technology to give the Dwarfs more realistic looking facial movements ^[4]. In order to make then Dwarfs as similar to the movie as possible, Walt Disney Animation's Special Projects team watched the 1937 Disney movie Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs over and over. The team then animated the characters for the new attraction ^[4].

The Seven Dwarf Mine Train soft opened in New Fantasyland on May 21, 2014 ^[5], with the official opening taking place one week later on May 28, 2014. On hand for the festivities were Snow White and Seven Dwarfs, as well as Orlando Magic basketball players Victor Oladipo and Tobias Harris ^[6].

Sneezy inside the Seven Dwarf's diamond mine.

Queue

The Seven Dwarfs Mine Train queue begins with guests walking through the forest outside of the mine. After making their way through the outdoor portion of the queue, guests reach the first interactive area. In this covered section, guests can play a digital game where they sort gems which are floating along a trough. In another nearby interactive area, guests can place their hands under water spouts, creating a colored stream of water that also plays a musical note. Using the twelve notes, guests can play a tune from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Entering the interior part of the queue, guests reach the third interactive area. Here they can spin barrels of jewels to reveal projections of Doc and the other dwarfs on the ceiling. The faster guests spin the barrels, the more active the projections on the ceiling become. After traveling through the indoor section of the queue, guests reach the loading area.

Music Heard in the Queue ^[7]

In the attraction’s queue area, guests can hear instrumental versions of the music from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. The music was rerecorded in a way that makes it sound like the Dwarfs themselves are playing the songs ^[8]. The songs heard in the queue include:

• "I'm Wishing"

• "With A Smile And A Song"

• "Whistle While You Work"

• "Heigh Ho"

• "Bluddle-Uddle-Um Dum"

• "The Silly Song"

• "Someday My Prince Will Come"

• "Music In Your Soup"

• "You're Never Too Old"

Ride

Dopey inside the Seven Dwarfs' Mine

After reaching the loading area, guests board mine cars that appear to have been made by the Dwarfs. The Seven Dwarfs Mine Train features a brand new ride system that allows guests to “tilt” their car left and right. This feature gives guests the swaying feeling that they would experience in mine car.

The attraction begins with guests leaving the loading area and moving outdoors, before going up the attraction’s first lift. As two vultures look on from above, the train begins to wind its way through the forest and around the mine. Next, the train slows down as guests enter the Seven Dwarf's Mine. Here, the Dwarfs can be seen lollygagging as they dig for jewels. Continuing on, guest see the five o’clock alarm go off and Doc begins to sing Heigh-Ho. After Doc's opening yodel, the other Dwarfs join in the song. Along the right hand wall of the mine, guests can see silhouettes of the Dwarfs as they head home from work.

At this point in the attraction, guests head back outside. Here, they go down the attraction's largest drop before continuing their winding decent. Finally, the trains pass the Dwarf's cottage where the Dwarfs can be seen performing the Yodel Song with Snow White. As the groups celebrates inside the cottage, the evil Queen can be seen outside the front door cackling, as she is about to give Snow White a poison apple. After passing by the cottage scene, guests arrive at the unload area.

To see a ride-through of the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train click play below:

The vultures found on the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train were formerly located inside Snow White's Scary Adventures. Photo Credit: Disney

Bashful- Jeff Bennett

Doc- David Ogden Stiers

Happy- Stephen Stanton

Grumpy- Corey Burton

Sleepy- Bill Farmer

Sneezy- Bob Joles

Dopey- Frank Welker

The Witch- Susanne Blakeslee

Snow White- Kathrine Von Till

Forest Animals- Frank Welker

• The silhouette animation of the Dwarfs seen at the end of the mine scene was taken directly from the film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs ^[4].

• The vultures seen at the top of the attraction’s first lift hill were previously found in the demolished Snow White’s Scary Adventures attraction ^[10].

• Similarly, the Animatronics of Bashful, Doc, Happy, Grumpy, and Sleepy seen inside the cottage scene were also previously housed within Snow White’s Scary Adventures ^[11].

• The Animatronics of Dopey, Snow White and Sneezy in the cottage were created specifically for the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train ^[11].

• The mine contains jewels in 4 different sizes and 6 different colors (red, green, amber, purple, blue and clear) ^[12].

• In the queue guests can hear the song "Music in Your Soup," which was cut from the film but re-recorded for the Mine Train attraction ^[12].

• The mine cars were designed to look like they were handmade by the Dwarfs, aged, and shaped with an ax ^[12].

• On the ceiling near the top of the attraction’s second lift hill (the hill guests go up as they leave the mine) guests can see a hidden Oswald the Lucky Rabbit tribute ^[13].

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1} http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2011/01/update-on-new-fantasyland-at-magic-kingdom-park/
2. ↑ http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2012/05/snow-whites-scary-adventures-will-become-part-of-magic-kingdom-park-history-may-31/
3. ↑ http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2012/09/all-in-the-details-first-track-laid-at-seven-dwarfs-mine-train-at-magic-kingdom-park/
4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1 4.2} http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jim-hill/seven-dwarfs-mine-train-l_b_5401086.html
5. ↑ http://www.wdwmagic.com/attractions/fantasyland/news/21may2014-seven-dwarfs-mine-train-soft-opens-to-guests.htm
6. ↑ http://www.insidethemagic.net/2014/05/seven-dwarfs-mine-train-officially-opens-at-walt-disney-world-completing-new-fantasyland-magic-kingdom-expansion/
7. ↑ http://www.parkeology.com/2014/06/bold-new-worlds-seven-dwarfs-mine-train.html
8. ↑ https://books.google.com/books?id=0i54BwAAQBAJ&pg=PT47&lpg=PT47&dq=%22Seven+Dwarfs+Mine+Train%22+%22Music+In+Your+Soup%22&source=bl&ots=ilCLAp6vnv&sig=EfrIu6KdjCzzurWet4xL19ZVnxU&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwio_KG6jJnKAhXG5yYKHUlnDR8Q6AEIMTAE#v=onepage&q=%22Seven%20Dwarfs%20Mine%20Train%22%20%22Music%20In%20Your%20Soup%22&f=false
9. ↑ http://voicechasers.com/database/showprod.php?prodid=5436
10. ↑ http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2013/12/imagineers-add-a-piece-of-snow-whites-scary-adventures-to-seven-dwarfs-mine-train-at-magic-kingdom-park/
11. ↑ ^{11.0 11.1} http://www.wdwmagic.com/attractions/fantasyland/news/28may2014-review---seven-dwarfs-mine-train-coaster-at-the-magic-kingdom's-new-fantasyland.htm
12. ↑ ^{12.0 12.1 12.2} http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2014/06/infographic-a-journey-through-seven-dwarfs-mine-train-at-magic-kingdom-park/
13. ↑ http://www.hiddenmickeyguy.com/news/seven-dwarfs-mine-train-hidden-oswald