I cannot tell a lie; this month’s column is late… for a reason You see, the subject at hand is the closure of the Disneyland Skyway, which took place on November 9, 1994. I made it the subject of my October column because there’s a bigger subject to tackle in November. But that’s for another month. Or later this month, actually.
Following its soft opening on June 10, 1956 and official opening on June 23, the Skyway became a familiar part of the Disneyland background. It traveled from Fantasyland to Tomorrowland, or vice versa. But not, despite what anyone will tell you, in a round trip.
The trip from Fantasyland began in a charming Swiss chalet, tucked into the crest of a hill that rose above the westernmost corner of Storybook Land. The steps you see in this view are the exit from the chalet; the entrance was up a separate set of stairs off to the left.
Here is the view from the top of the stairs, just outside the chalet and the boarding platform. Once aboard, the views overlooking the Magic Kingdom of 1994 were spectacular.
First, of course, there was Storybook Land. The launch was almost directly over the Casey Jr. Circus Train platform below.
Guests could also admire the intricate mechanism of Dumbo the Flying Elephant. This version had been installed as part of the “New Fantasyland” of 1983.
The view to the other side of the gondola took in the rest of the Fantasyland courtyard and the back of Sleeping Beauty Castle. This particular view across Fantasyland’s varied rooftops was taken in 1988. Disneyland celebrated Mickey’s 60th birthday with a giant, inflatable Sorcerer’s Apprentice, just visible in the distance beyond the main entrance.
Gliding over the Mad Tea Party, marking the easternmost edge of Fantasyland, it’s a small world could be seen. Here it is in its original white, blue, and gold livery.
In 1991 a large marquee entrance, marking the entrance to Disney Afternoon Live! was added to this scene.
Here is pretty much the same view from the ground, with the Skyway gondola visible overhead.
The view from above was more colorful after it’s a small world was painted in pastels in December of 1992.
With Fantasyland behind us, it was time to pass through the Matterhorn and an encounter with its infamous resident. The Skyway gave guests a more leisurely opportunity to study the Abominable Snowman and even get a clear photo.
The vista that greeted guests as they emerged from the Matterhorn was not quite as charming as Fantasyland’s whimsical roofscape. Tomorrowland’s aesthetic in 1994 was definitely geared toward the world on the move, with the People Mover, Rocket Jets, Space Mountain, and the Monorail (almost directly below at this point) in view.
Here is a view of the descent into Tomorrowland, taken from the Monorail platform. The Autopia added another futuristic transport system to the land.
Here is the reverse of that previous view. Now the Rocket Jets are in the foreground, with the People Mover loading platform below. The Skyway cars can be seen emerging from the Matterhorn, headed to the Tomorrowland platform.
A Swiss chalet would be very much out of place in Tomorrowland. Guests seeking the one-way trip to Fantasyland made their way up a winding staircase to a somewhat industrial-looking structure attached to the side of the Carousel Theatre. The staircase seen in this view was the exit, where passengers arriving from Fantasyland descended into Tomorrowland.
This all changed, of course, after the November 9, 1994, permanent closure of the Skyway. With cables and gondolas removed, the station was enclosed in a large, blank wall.
Hard to believe, but that wall is still there today, covered by a dense stand of trees in a planter that replaced the lower landing of the exit stairs.
Interestingly, the entrance stairs are still in place. This is the lowest flight of steps, which can be found behind a small hat shop just across from the entrance to the Autopia.
A look around the other side reveals the rest of the steps, making their way flight by flight to the loading platform above. This served as the bulk of the queue line for the Skyway in Tomorrowland.
The Tomorrowland loading area was also quite a bit larger than the quaint little chalet at the other end of the line. Because of this, a large area to the back was used to store additional gondola cars, which could be added to the line as needed.
After November 9, these cars no longer launched out below the highest point in the People Mover track, just above that small hat shop.
Today, a massive tree fills the space where once guests launched out across Tomorrowland.
And what became of that Swiss chalet over in Fantasyland? For many years it remained in place, a picturesque but out-of-reach remnant of a different time. In 2013 a very different view of that chalet became available— but only for guests who knew where to look.
Work had commenced on clearing land for the Galaxy’s Edge expansion, and for several months the old Skyway chalet could be seen, albeit from the back. The years, as they say, had not been kind.
And then, on June 15, 2014, came the unkindest cut of all. The chalet was gone, and wooden debris was piled up at the bottom of the hill it once commanded.
From inside the park, the view showed a dramatic change. Where once a building nestled in the trees, there was now a clear view through the tangled branches, to the open sky beyond. For guests who knew where to look, something was missing.
Today, that same area has been filled in with trees, and it is unlikely that anyone will give it a second glance. But two puzzling clues to the Swiss chalet’s existence have been left in place.
These steps, cutting through the rockwork at the base of the hillside, can be found behind a cluster of outdoor vending carts. This is the lowest landing of the set of steps that led up to the entrance.
Not far away, facing the exit ramp from the Casey Jr. Circus Train, are the last three steps of the Skyway exit, complete with a polite but firm warning sign that the area is off limits.
But that’s still not all that remains in Fantasyland. When the Skyway was built in 1956, there were two tall towers between the station and the Matterhorn.
Both of these towers can be seen in this view from 1988. When New Fantasyland was being designed, the Imagineers had to work around these fixed points. The one nearest the chalet ended up in a large planter bed. For the other, the designers provided a space between Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride and the Mad Hatter’s Shop.
Here is that large planter today. It can be found in front of the raised terrace where the Casey Jr. Circus Train boards.
You have to get a little closer to see the last remaining location. Shade trees now hide the spot, but if you enter the queue line to the left of Mr. Toad, you will see a square planter that creates a narrow section in the line. And you will know why it was designed that way, and just what used to be there, thirty years ago at Disneyland.
