There's NO Matterhorn at WDW????

[ExPirateShopGirl]

Tell me it isn't so! That's one of our favorite things about DL... When I was little we only lived about 25 minutes away from Anaheim but the drive to Disneyland seemed to take FOREVER... and the moment we spied the Matterhorn we knew we were almost there!

 

[Liz]

I'm sorry! No Matterhorn at WDW! But there's so much other fun stuff to do you hopefully won't even miss it! I love Matterhorn too!

 

[penguinande]

I was just as shocked as you were when I found out but when I read about all the great stuff at the other parks, I realized that it will be more than made up for. MK doesn't have much that DL doesn't have, and that's why I'm planning on focusing more on the other parks (although I will still visit MK)

 

[heathriel]

Yeah, there are most definitely some things in Disneyland that I miss in Disney World, but isn't Expedition Everest going to be Matterhorn-like?

 

[JamesD]

Do you know how tall the Matterhorn Mountain would have to be to overshadow the 189 foot Castle? That's one of the reasons the castle is so much smaller at Disneyland.

 

[ExPirateShopGirl]

Do you know how tall the Matterhorn Mountain would have to be to overshadow the 189 foot Castle? That's one of the reasons the castle is so much smaller at Disneyland.

Did Disney make the castle smaller in DL purposely? I wasn't aware of that!

 

[LeftCoaster]

Did Disney make the castle smaller in DL purposely? I wasn't aware of that!

Nope. Sleeping Beauty castle was considered more of a weenie than the park centerpiece. Also, if Sleeping Beauty Castle were "full sized", then it'd throw off the forced perspective used on Main Street and other visible surrounding areas. Since Disney had less space to work with, they relied heavily on the forcedperspective.
Keep in mind too that the Matterhorn came 4 years after the park opened and was constructed fairly quickly.

 

[Martha7]

Don't worry, ExPirateShopGirl, I also grew up about a half hour from DL (Claremont.) There's so much in WDW, that you won't even notice that there's no Matterhorn. California Adventure has a lot of the rides that WDW has, and when I visited a year ago to see my brother and his family. I kept saying, "Oh, Disneyworld has that ride in the Animal Kingdom, or look, they're building the Tower of Terror. Disneyworld has that ride in MGM." It's all Disney and it's there for us to enjoy! Now, WDW is getting Soarin' Over California in EPCOT! You'll have a great visit!

 

[goofyernmost]

Nothing in WDW will be over 189 ft. because in Florida anything higher than that has to have aviation warning lights on top. Who needs a fantasy with red lights flashing on the top? Florida is pretty much sea level so 189 ft seems high to them.

 

[SnackyStacky]

Nothing in WDW will be over 189 ft. because in Florida anything higher than that has to have aviation warning lights on top. Who needs a fantasy with red lights flashing on the top? Florida is pretty much sea level so 189 ft seems high to them.

200 ft. requires the aviation lights.

The Tower of Terror is the tallest attraction at the World at 199 ft, for just the reason you mentioned. One foot more, and the light would have had to go at the top.

And, I'd urge everyone to read JimHillMedia.com. He actually JUST ran a story about Walt Disney World's Matterhorn. (or lack thereof). They WERE going to build one when they constructed the Magic Kingdom. He claimed it was to go where Mickey's Toontown Fair currently sits, but he got a lot of mail from cast members who say that that's incorrect because there actually SUPPORTS that were installed behind It's A Small World that are still there.

They stopped construction because they then planned to build a Swiss pavilion in Epcot. (ironically enough, between Italy and Germany) And they thought it would be cool to build it there. BUt I believe the funding fell through.

Like I said - read JimHillMedia.com He's the biggest Disney Geek alive, and he runs stories like that all the time. He's always got some interesting story about Walt Disney World.

 

[SnackyStacky]

Here's the article. Scroll down a bit. It's one of the last "Why For" questions he answers.

http://www.jimhillmedia.com/mb/articles/showarticle.php?ID=1328

 

[erinch]

I grew up in Redlands. Watching for the Matterhorn mountain thrusting up through the smog was the end of the "forever" ride to get there. Although I now live in PA and we've been to WDW 10 times I think, I still feel the pang every time of not seeing the matterhorn.

I remember I was petrified to ride it until I was 10 or so, because it was so "fast."

My brave, tall daughter rode RnR at age 4. Life has speeded up since I was a kid.

 

[goofyernmost]

200 ft. requires the aviation lights.

The Tower of Terror is the tallest attraction at the World at 199 ft, for just the reason you mentioned. One foot more, and the light would have had to go at the top. QUOTE]

You are, of course, correct. I just accidentially focused on 189 instead of 199. That, however, is why nothing will ever be higher than ToT unless it's 199 feet, 11 and 99/100's inches. Probably be cutting it too close though!

 

[peter11435]

200 ft. requires the aviation lights.

The Tower of Terror is the tallest attraction at the World at 199 ft, for just the reason you mentioned. One foot more, and the light would have had to go at the top. QUOTE]

You are, of course, correct. I just accidentially focused on 189 instead of 199. That, however, is why nothing will ever be higher than ToT unless it's 199 feet, 11 and 99/100's inches. Probably be cutting it too close though!

This is also the reason why the wand on SSE has a blinking red light on top.