Top 5 Ways to Improve the Haunted Mansion

Haunted Mansion Disneyland

The Haunted Mansion is one of the most iconic Disney attractions not based on any film. The 999 happy haunts have become an integral part of the Disney Parks. But even being so iconic it has still seen a lot of changes over the years. New animatronics have come over the years and even entirely new scenes and overlays. Its cousin attraction Phantom Manor recently saw an extensive redesign. So what changes could still improve the original version of the ride?

We are talking purely theoretical changes here to both versions of the US mansion that have not been officially announced.

Hatbox Ghost


Ok, this one is just for Disney World, but come on how does Disney's flagship park not have one of the most iconic of the 999 happy haunts. Since this character was brought back to Disneyland it has only grown in popularity and it really should make its way to every version of the ride. It just makes the attic a more complete experience.

Haunted Mansion Christmas

Don't get me wrong, I love Haunted Mansion Holiday, and it really needs to come to Disney World. But let's not kid ourselves, this is a Christmas ride, not a Halloween ride. The movie it's based on, Nightmare Before Christmas could really be attributed to either holiday, but the ride only takes inspiration from the Christmas portions of the ride. Plus Haunted Mansion is already the best Halloween ride Disney has, and shutting it down for the spookiest time of the year is just strange.

Meet and Greet Characters

Disney has made meet and greet characters for several of the most iconic characters from this ride, but their appearances are so few and far between you have likely never seen them. These characters need to be featured more often. At the very least at the Halloween parties on both coasts, but ideally more often than that. Disneyland already has an ideal spot for this in the rarely used Fastpass Distribution location.

Updated Bride

Now I'm going to go on record here and say I am not in favor of going back to the beating heart bride. The effect, if it was going to come back would need some modernizing. But at the same time, the current Constance should be an embarrassment. At the very least make it an actual animatronic and not the mannequin with projections that it is today. I would make it a sort of hybrid of the two brides, possibly also pulling inspiration from Phantom Manor's bride.

Exit Laugh

This is one of my favorite effects from the Disneyland version of the Haunted Mansion and it makes me sad that its not there when I leave the ride at the Magic Kingdom. For those who have only been on the version in Disney World, this effect is a ghostly laugh right as you step out of the Haunted Mansion, making you feel like a ghost actually has followed you home. It's such a simple effect, just a hidden speaker, that I wish they would just implement it.

So if you could change one thing in the Haunted Mansion what would it be? Let me know in the comments. Also thanks for reading the last article in our Haunted Mansion 50th series here at Theme Parks and Entertainment. Be sure to come back for more articles released daily about theme parks worldwide and more.


Comments