Heigh ho. Heigh Ho You will go to the Seven Dwarfs Mine. But to get there, you’ll have to board the mine train cars that sway from here to there. (Please forgive the poor attempt at rhyming lyrics.)
The roller coaster is not super exciting (not that it was intended to be), and the show part is a bit short (no midget pun intended). The roller coaster is nonetheless exciting enough to satisfy ride warriors, yet accessible enough for riders of almost all thrill tolerance levels. And the elements of the show are exceptionally cute and engaging.
- Ride Type: Steel coaster with some dark ride characteristics.
- Top speed: 34 mph
- Location: New Fantasyland
- FastPass + Availability: Yes
- Height requirement: 38in (97cm)
- Excitement scale (0 = Wimpy!, 10 = Yikes!): 4
- Could you handle it? It is not designed for younger children like the nearby kiddie coaster, The Barnstormer. It’s fast and exciting, but not that fast and exciting. There are no investments. If you’re fine on the other Magic Kingdom mine train ride, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, you’d be fine on the Seven Dwarfs mine train.
Craft industry
Located in the center of New Fantasyland, the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train is the literal and figurative centerpiece of the land of the Magic Kingdom. Guests can walk the entire perimeter of the dramatic journey and see its mine train cars moving in and out of its low mountain.
The journey begins with a short hike through the Fantasyland Forest. The line leads guests past the Seven Dwarfs Cabin (one of many cabins scattered throughout the Disney storybook). The thatched roof building is charming and obviously well maintained by its hardworking inhabitants. However, no one seems to be home. That’s because the industrious Dwarves are going to work in the nearby mine. (Cue the whistle).
Continuing towards the mine, guests find some interactive items to help keep them busy while they wait to board the journey. Disney has been incorporating fun diversions into the queues of its recent and updated attractions. (It’s a great idea and begs the question: What took them and other parks so long?) Among the activities is a gem washing game in which guests move electronic facsimiles of gemstones around a gate and combine.
Swinging between the rocks
Each car on the five-car trains seats four passengers. With a roller coaster design, the first of its kind, the cars can independently pivot from side to side, kind of like a baby’s crib. (That’s just one of the seven cool features of the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train Ride.) The amount and intensity of the roll (which never gets that intense) depends largely on the weight distribution of the passengers. If two strong parents sit on the right side of cars with their two young children occupying the seats on the left, there would not be as much swaying as in a more balanced car.
(If you end up with no one sitting next to you, like I did on one of my walks, there could be practically no side-to-side movement.)
An interesting attribute and benefit of rocking cars is that they can absorb some of the lateral G-forces (side to side) as they can pivot freely. When the train travels through a turn or an inclined curve, the passengers and the carriages sway together. In a traditional roller coaster train, the carriages remain stationary and the passengers absorb the brunt of the G-forces. In the most intense roller coasters, passengers can crash into the sides of cars or their coaster sitting next to them. they.
It’s also worth noting that the carriages toward the rear of the train sway more and offer an overall more exciting ride. If your thing is emotion, wait for the rear car; if you prefer a lighter ride, opt for the front car.
After taking off inside the station, the train leaves for some gentle maneuvers in the open air and goes up the first hill of the elevator. The mining equipment can be seen alongside the slopes. Some relatively gentle hills and curves cause cars to sway before slowing down to enter the mine. Like other hybrid roller coaster / dark ride attractions, such as Universal’s Revenge of the Mummy, the trains are capable of delivering roller coaster-like thrills and behaving like slow ride vehicles.
Awesome characters
Inside the mine, passengers first meet Dopey, who is, unsurprisingly, gloriously happy while working (but, alas, he doesn’t whistle). As with the rest of the paintings, the scene is brilliantly lit, accessories, such as colored gems, are beautifully reproduced, and the soundtrack, with songs from the classic movie, sounds great. But the character himself is a show stopper.
Disney Imagineers have been experimenting with the combination of traditional animatronic figures and digital mapping projected images. The expressive eyes of little Sebastian the Crab on the Little Mermaid ride, for example, are projected backward onto the moving figure. The dwarf characters represent the next evolution of the marriage between animatronics and projected media. The eyes, mouths, and other features of the comparatively large figures (they may be dwarfs, but they tower over Sebastian) are animated with remarkable fluidity.
Dopey and his six co-workers walk away with a level of authenticity heretofore impossible. It seems especially fitting that the dwarf characters come to life with projected images since around 1937 Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was the first full-length animated film.
The scenes inside the mine are quite impressive. They are also filled with Disney’s beloved brand of joy and wonder. Unfortunately, in less than a minute, the show’s sequence feels too cutting and abrupt. We want more height! (That’s the price to pay for a hybrid ride that has to divide its time between the elements of the roller coaster and the show.)
The train leaves the mine via a second lift hill. Projected into the rock work are silhouettes of the dwarves marching towards the work. It was created using a scene from the original movie. The train takes a satisfying dive, accompanied by just a hint of airtime, and leans to the right while cruising on a propeller. After a few more twists and turns, head back to the station.
Before entering the unloading area, there is a final cutscene. We’re not giving it away (and we hope we didn’t divulge too many spoilers), but we would kindly ask you to make sure you and your companions turn right and stay right for a final pleasant surprise.
The Seven Dwarfs Mine Train is a wonderful attraction. It’s innovative, undeniably charming, and a great entry-level roller coaster for young roller coaster fans. It is also a suitable centerpiece for New Fantasyland. However, with its emotions toned down and its show scene truncated, we wouldn’t call it an E-Ticket trip. It’s definitely a strong D ticket and, ahem, a gem of a ride.
