Disneyland Paris At McDonald's

Bonjour! Are you ready for an Escargot McMuffin and a Wine McFlurry? Great, because it's time to visit Disneyland Paris at McDonald's!

Disneyland Paris opened in April of 1992, and back then it was known as Euro Disneyland. I've never been there, but I remember watching the Grand Opening on TV, hosted by Don Johnson and Melanie Griffith. This special mentioned some Coming Attractions, including a Little Mermaid ride and a Beauty and the Beast show (neither of which was built), Discovery Mountain (the French version of Space Mountain, which did open in 1995), and the Disney MGM Studios Europe (which transformed into the Walt Disney Studios Park that opened in 2002).

Euro Disneyland had a bumpy start, which led to the new name of Disneyland Paris and a change in plans. The park has been promoted at McDonald's locations in Europe a number of times over the years, and this 1997 3D Relief Map/Puzzle Disneyland Paris Happy Meal illustrates some of the early additions and French Twists.

The Disneyland Hotel is located right at the front entrance to the Disneyland Paris theme park. The Disneyland Paris resort also has other hotels on property, including Disney's Hotel New York, Disney's Newport Bay Club, Disney's Sequoia Lodge, Disney's Hotel Cheyenne, Disney's Hotel Santa Fe, and Disney's Davy Crockett Ranch.

The Main Street, U.S.A. at Disneyland Paris features the Liberty Arcade and the Discovery Arcade, covered walkways to protect visitors from rain and snow.

In France, Frontierland and Adventureland switched places. Big Thunder Mountain is located on an island, and the roller coaster trains run through a tunnel under the water to get to the Mountain.

Phantom Manor is a Western version of the Haunted Mansion, with a whole new story set in Frontierland's town of Thunder Mesa. This continues a tradition of having the Haunted Mansion in a different land in each park. At Disneyland in California, the Haunted Mansion is in New Orleans Square. At Walt Disney World, it is in Liberty Square. The version in Tokyo Disneyland is in Fantasyland. The upcoming Mystic Manor in Hong Kong Disneyland will be in a new area called Mystic Point.

There is no Splash Mountain at Disneyland Paris. There have been rumors for years about a completely different theme for a version of the attraction in France. Due to the cold winter months, perhaps it is not a priority. If it ever gets built, my guess is that it would have a Woody's Round-Up theme, and feature Jessie, Bullseye and Stinky Pete.

Exclusive to Adventureland at Disneyland Paris is Indiana Jones et le Temple du Peril (Indiana Jones and the Temple of Peril), which is the first looping roller coaster at a Disney park (check out the loop on the attraction in this park map piece). This mine cart ride opened in 1993 as part of an accelerated expansion plan to increase park capacity.

Adventureland is also home to Pirates of the Caribbean, La Cabane des Robinson (Swiss Family Treehouse), Adventure Isle (this park's answer to Tom Sawyer Island) and another 1993 addition, Le Passage Enchante d'Aladdin (Aladdin's Enchanted Passage Walkthrough). There's no Jungle Cruise here.

Adventureland has also been a rumored location for a version of Splash Mountain over the years. This may be a totally baseless rumor. At any rate, I'd love to see a Splash Mountain with characters and settings from The Jungle Book (I know Baloo and King Louie and their movie have been very popular in Europe).

The European Fairytale characters have "come home" to Fantasyland at Disneyland Paris. Here you'll find Le Chateau de la Belle au Bois Dormant (Sleeping Beauty Castle). Exclusive to Disneyland Paris is La Taniere du Dragon (The Dragon's Lair) and an elaborate hedge maze called Alice's Curious Labyrinth. Classic attractions include Blanche-Neige et les Sept Nains (Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs), Les Voyages de Pinocchio, Le Carrousel de Lancelot, It's a Small World, Peter Pan's Flight, the Mad Hatter's Tea Cups, and Dumbo The Flying Elephant (note that the Dumbo vehicles on this map are wearing goggles---the artist took some artistic license here).

In 1993, Fantasyland expanded with Les Pirouettes du Vieux Moulin, a ferris wheel based on the 1937 Disney short, "The Old Mill" (you can see it on this map). In 1994, Fantasyland added Le Pays de Contes de Fees (Storybook Land Canal Boats) and a mild roller coaster called Casey Jr., Le Petit Train du Cirque (Casey Jr. Circus Train).

Tomorrowland at Disneyland Paris is called Discoveryland, and is based on the works of Jules Verne. Discoveryland opened with the Orbitron, Autopia, Star Tours and Captain EO. In 1994, Les Mysteres du Nautilus "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea" walk through opened.

Space Mountain: De la Terre a la Lune opened in 1995, and was based on Jules Verne's "From the Earth to the Moon." The attraction got a new theme ("Mission 2") in 2005. The Buzz Lightyear Laser Blast was new for Discoveryland in 2006.

Disneyland Paris had a big McDonald's promotion in Europe in 1995/1996.

Squeeze a plastic Disneyland Paris building, and it pops open to reveal a hidden Disney character.

Since Space Mountain was the big new attraction, it was naturally a big part of this promotion.

Here's another French Twist for you: This set was also sold at Blockbuster video stores in the United States. That's where this Donald Duck toy is from.

In 2001, Disneyland Paris celebrated with a Circus/Carnivale theme at McDonald's.

I like the pairing of Genie and Abu.

This McDonald's set is a mix of plush puppets and plastic action figures.

I wonder why they did not use Dumbo for this Happy Meal.

I think the Hippo is the funniest character in this set.

Wow, McDonald's in Europe sells "Fish Fingers." Do they sell Mincemeat pies along with the Apple and Cherry variety (and currently, Strawberry Creme) we see in the United States?

Bon Anniversaire, Disneyland Paris! I hope to visit you someday!

Disneyland's Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple Of The Forbidden Eye

For Disneyland's 40th Birthday in 1995, the park got a magnificent present: Indiana Jones Adventure.

If you fly to Disneyland in California, make sure to fly Delta Air Lines. It was the Official Airline of Disneyland and Walt Disney World (as seen in this fantastic ad).

The Temple of the Forbidden Eye can be found deep in the jungles of Adventureland at Disneyland in Anaheim, California.

Walt Disney Imagineering pulled off an amazing feat when they added Indiana Jones Adventure to Disneyland. The entrance to the attraction starts at the Jungle Cruise. Park guests hike through the jungle and temples to get to the ride. It's a clever way to get people to the massive show building located in what was part of Disneyland's old parking lot. These days, the Indiana Jones building can be seen near the tram station at Downtown Disney.

Indiana Jones and the Jungle Cruise are so close that they are featured together in a McDonald's Happy Meal Toy. As part of Disneyland's 40th Anniversary in 1995, McDonald's issued a Jungle Cruise boat vehicle/viewer (piloted by King Louie from The Jungle Book) as part of its Disneyland Adventures Happy meal.

Look inside the viewer, and you'll find a (cropped) picture of a Jungle Cruise boat sailing past the Temple of the Forbidden Eye. Interestingly, the Splash Mountain toy in this same set uses a photo of the Walt Disney World version of the ride.

Climb aboard a Troop Transport vehicle and embark on a wild expedition with an Audio Animatronic Indy.

Yes, the boulder is here, too!

As the official Airline of Disneyland and Walt Disney World, Delta had the scoop on the Indiana Jones Adventure. The March 1995 issue of Delta's Sky Magazine had a great article by Walter Roessing chronicling the creation of the latest collaboration between Disney and George Lucas.

Wait a second. Indiana Jones isn't a Disney character. How is he in Disneyland? George Lucas and Disney have been working together since the late 1980s, starting with the Star Wars themed Star Tours attraction (opened in 1987). In 1989, Indy debuted at Walt Disney World's Disney MGM Studios (now called Disney's Hollywood Studios) in the Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular and as an Audio Animatronic figure in The Great Movie Ride.

For Disneyland, Indiana Jones would star in a blockbuster thrill ride and park guests would feel like they were living in the movies.

Indiana Jones Adventure show producer Susan Bonds was challenged with bringing the the world of Indy to life in a bold new way.

Indiana Jones Adventure featured brand new attraction vehicles that could be programmed with different ride combinations.

A "Young Indiana Jones Adventure" stunt show had previously been announced for Disneyland as part of "The Disney Decade" in the early 1990s (it was mentioned in a Disneyland TV special hosted by "Night Court" star Harry Anderson).

Mentioned here are the other attractions developed by Disney and George Lucas, including Indiana Jones et le Temple du Peril mine train at Disneyland Paris, the first looping Disney coaster.
The Forbidden Eye belongs to a deity named Mara. Visitors are warned to "Beware of the eyes of Mara." Messages in a "Maraglyphics" language are written throughout Indiana Jones Adventure. Check out the decoder at my pal Darrin's Dad's Dish Retro Blog.

Indiana Jones Adventure is still extremely popular today. Consider making it your first destination on a trip to Disneyland.

Back in my day, you could get a magazine at Woolworth's for 10 cents. That's because this 1984 Indiana Jones Dynamite magazine was deep discounted sometime around 1988.

This issue also features Sting and The Police, the Fonz, The Dukes of Hazzard and more!

Did you ever wonder what Harrison Ford's high school yearbook picture looked like? Well, wonder no more!
Harrison Ford is a great actor and a carpenter. It's smart to have a Plan B.

Wait a minute. Harrison Ford wasn't the first choice to play Indiana Jones?

George Lucas and Steven Spielberg originally chose Tom Selleck to play Indiana Jones. I can't imagine anyone other than Harrison Ford as Indy.

I first heard about Disneyland's Indiana Jones Adventure back in June of 1993. At this time, I was told that the ride would also be in Walt Disney World in Florida in 1998 as part of Disney's Animal Kingdom.

"Countdown to Extinction" opened in Animal Kingdom's Dinoland, using characters from the then-in-production 2000 Disney film, "Dinosaur" and the ride system created for the Indiana Jones Adventure.

"Countdown to Extinction" was renamed "Dinosaur" when the film debuted.

Even though I like dinos, I think Indiana Jones is easily the winner here.

This poster advertisement was common when Indiana Jones Adventure opened in 1995. This ad is from a San Diego hotel magazine.
I got to experience Indiana Jones Adventure for the first time in 2008, and thought it was amazing. I think it's a shame that Walt Disney World did not get the same attraction.

The Indiana Jones Adventure did make it to Tokyo DisneySea in Japan.

In Japan, the ride is called Indiana Jones: Temple of the Crystal Skull, and it opened in 2001 in Tokyo DisneySea's Lost River Delta section.

The ride in Japan was planned years before the movie Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull debuted in 2008.

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (the movie) is set in the 1950s, and introduces greaser Mutt Williams (Shia LaBeouf).

Burger King had a nice Indiana Jones toy promotion in time for the movie, including Motor Wheels Mutt. Mutt? Indiana? I guess the Jones family liked to balance out their common last name with an unusual first name.

I was not able to get all these toys. The only other one I got was the Indiana Jones Journal, which was nothing to write home about.

I would have liked the Stunt Jump Mine Cart and the Boulder Escape Indiana Jones.

Harrison Ford proves that age is just a number.

I had read that the Indiana Jones Adventure attraction with a new theme was proposed for Disney's Animal Kingdom not too long ago, at a site near Expedition Everest. My guess is that it wasn't built because the park's Dinosaur attraction uses the same ride system. The Indiana Jones ride was also reportedly a possibility for Disney's Hollywood Studios in Florida, but that plan was shelved.

These days, the Disney Parks are selling Indiana Jones Disney Racers die cast cars.

I'd love to see Disney's Hollywood Studios at Walt Disney World in Florida get a Lucasfilm Land. It could feature a new Indiana Jones Adventure and a Star Wars expansion beyond the updated Star Tours. I think it would be a surefire hit.

In 2013, Lucasfilm became part of Disney, so it seems like we'll probably see much more of Indy and the Star Wars characters at the Disney Parks (and other places, too).