Snow White's Adventures


Snow White's Adventures is an attraction currently at Disneyland and Tokyo Disneyland and formerly the Magic Kingdom in Walt Disney World that opened on July 17, 1955, October 1, 1971, and April 15, 1983. It was a much darker version of the Snow White film, with the title character nowhere to be found.
The ride was designed to feel as if you were Snow White, explaining why she did not appear at all in the ride. Very few guests got this point, considering the ride focuses on the Witch character. The ride had 7 Witch models, and only one scene with frightened Dwarfs. It was one of the opening day attractions at the park.

Ride overview

Disneyland

For the original 1955 version of the attraction, it was intended for park guests to experience Snow White's story through her point of view, which is why she herself wasn't in her own attraction.
After guests boarded their ride vehicles, they would begin their adventure by venturing the mine where the dwarfs dig for diamonds. At the mine's exit, Dopey could be seen pointing to a sign reading "BEWARE OF THE WITCH". After passing by a forest full of Snow White's animal friends, the guests would approach a fork in the road, with arrows pointing to the dwarfs' cottage or the Wicked Witch's Castle, the vehicles would turn in the direction of the castle, with two vultures ominously perched on a tree near it. At the castle entrance, the vehicles would begin to escape toward the direction of the cottage, only for a gate to fall down and trap the guests inside.
As the guests went through the castle halls, passing by skeletons moaning "Go baaack!", guests would see the Witch at her cauldron, preparing her poisoned apple. Then, after escaping the castle, the vehicles wind through a dark forest filled with living trees, before finally reaching the dwarfs' cottage, with the Witch standing in the doorway to offer the guests her apple. Finally, the vehicles would travel toward the entrance of a cave, with the Witch standing above it trying to move a boulder to crush the guests with. Upon entering the dark cave, the guests would hear the Witch meeting her demise before returning to the boarding area and exiting the attraction.

Magic Kingdom

The queue was similar to Tokyo Disneyland's current queue for the ride. It featured the Seven Dwarfs' mine, with their cottage visible in the distance.
Guests got in the vehicles, which capacity was four passengers. They began by entering the castle in a scene very much like the 1994 ride; however, there was no part where Snow White was seen cleaning. Instead, they saw a side of the Dwarfs' cottage as "I'm Wishing" played in the background. Upon entering, with the Queen watching in a nearby window, the guests saw her standing in front of a mirror, but not the magic one. The Evil Queen says, "Mirror, mirror, on the wall...", before she turned into the Wicked Witch, continuing with, "I AM THE FAIREST ONE OF ALL!". Guest then crashed through the dungeon where two trapped skeletons cry out for help. The Witch was then seen at her cauldron preparing a poison apple. The riders crashed out of the castle, only to bump into the Witch on a boat with the apple. Guests then fled through a dark forest with scary trees and alligator logs.
Soon, guests arrived in the Seven Dwarfs' cottage to see forest animals peering in at them. The furniture inside the cottage all have frightened faces on them. The guests then passed the Seven Dwarfs, walking up the stairs to their room to investigate a frightening shadow, and the Witch was waiting in the doorway with the apple. The guests then entered the Diamond Mine, where the witch tried to topple over the timber beams while asking, "Enjoy your ride?", and crash a minecart into the vehicles. Her final appearance was on top of a doorway, pushing an enormous jewel onto the riders while cackling and saying, "GOODBYE, DEARIE! EEHEEEHEE!". Riders would then enter a room full of flashing cartoon-like strobe lights with the Witch's cackling, bizarrely distorted and sped up and skipping like a broken record, echoing in their ears, thus implying that the witch had killed you. Guests then returned to the load area and disembarked.
Disney legend Ginny Tyler did the voice of the Wicked Witch in this version, while Mel Blanc, Paul Frees, Hal Smith, Hans Conried and Dallas McKennon did the voices of the Seven Dwarfs. The same actors also voiced the Dwarfs in the Mickey Mouse Revue.

Tokyo Disneyland

Tokyo Disneyland represents a mix of the American versions at the time of the park's opening, although it is largely based on the pre-1994 Walt Disney World version. It begins in the castle where the Queen transforms into the Witch, moving on to the dungeon and passing her on boat. After going through the forest, guests enter the cottage and instead of seeing the dwarfs passing up the stairs seeing the shadow, the Seven Dwarfs are seen Doing The Dwarfs' Yodel song, with Snow White watching from the stairs. Exiting the cottage, guests find the Witch outside waiting for them, then enter the mines. They approach the cottage again to find the Witch is once again waiting. The ride ends like Disneyland's version, with the Dwarfs and Witch on the cliff.

Refurbishment and Aftermath

In 1982, it was closed at Disneyland alongside the rest of Disneyland's Fantasyland and reopened on May 24, 1983 as Snow White's Scary Adventures. The Disneyland version closed on January 7, 2020 for refurbishment again.
On October 14, 1994, it was closed for refurbishments and reopened as Snow White's Scary Adventures. This version was a lot more lighthearted and faithful to the original film, with Snow White appearing 5 times, the Dwarfs celebrating, a happy ending, and fewer scenes with the witch. Snow White's Scary Adventures still lives on in Disneyland Park, Tokyo Disneyland, and Disneyland Paris. The Magic Kingdom version closed on May 31, 2012 due to the Expansion of the New Fantasyland section, and was replaced with both the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, and Princess Fairytale Hall, the following years.