Dumbo the Flying Elephant
| Dumbo the Flying Elephant | |
|---|---|
| Park | Magic Kingdom |
| Land / area | Fantasyland (Storybook Circus) |
| Type | Aerial carousel |
| Opened | October 1, 1971 |
| Designer | Walt Disney Imagineering |
| Height req. | None |
| Status | Operating |
Dumbo the Flying Elephant is an aerial carousel attraction in Storybook Circus, part of Fantasyland at Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World in Florida. Based on the 1941 animated film Dumbo, the ride lets guests board elephant-shaped vehicles and control how high they fly as they circle a central hub. It is one of the park's original attractions and the only ride design to be found at all six Disney castle parks around the world.
History
The original version of the attraction opened at Disneyland on August 16, 1955, about a month after that park opened. Versions were subsequently built as opening-day attractions at the other castle parks, including Magic Kingdom.
When Magic Kingdom opened on October 1, 1971, its Dumbo differed in small details from the California original. The elephants initially appeared without their familiar hats, and Timothy Q. Mouse, Dumbo's companion from the film, was not yet present on the central hub. Timothy was added around 1972, standing on a mirrored ball, and the vehicles were corrected shortly after opening. The attraction stood for its first two decades near the center of Fantasyland, close to Prince Charming Regal Carrousel.
A significant update arrived in 1993, when a new ride mechanism was installed and the number of elephants on the single carousel grew from ten to sixteen, increasing hourly capacity. Unlike versions at some other parks, the Florida ride could not include a central water feature for many years because the park's utilidor tunnels run directly beneath the site.
The largest change came with the expansion of Fantasyland in the early 2010s. Mickey's Toontown Fair closed to make way for the expansion, and its replacement, Storybook Circus, was designed around a circus theme drawn from the film. Dumbo closed in its original location on January 8, 2012, and a new installation soft-opened in Storybook Circus on March 12, 2012. A second, adjacent carousel followed, soft-opening on June 22, 2012, effectively doubling the attraction. The two carousels rotate in opposite directions — one clockwise and one counter-clockwise — the only Dumbo installation in the world arranged this way. The new location finally added water fountains beneath the vehicles, illuminated in changing colors at night, along with story panels around the base that illustrate scenes from the film. Scentsy became the attraction's sponsor in Florida in 2023.
Experience
Guests enter through a big-top tent that houses an indoor, interactive queue. Inside, children can play in an area themed to Dumbo's fire-rescue stunt from the film, while adults receive a pager styled as a circus ticket. When the pager signals, guests proceed to one of the two carousels and are assigned an elephant.
Each vehicle seats two to three guests in a single row and is mounted on an articulated arm connected to the rotating hub. Once the ride begins, a joystick inside the vehicle raises or lowers the elephant through a hydraulic ram, so riders choose their own altitude for the roughly 90-second flight. Music drawn from the film, including compositions by Frank Churchill and Oliver Wallace mixed with circus marches, plays throughout. Atop the attraction marquee, Timothy Q. Mouse now appears holding the magic feather, the token that in the film gives Dumbo confidence to fly.
A stationary Dumbo vehicle outside the attraction serves as a photo opportunity. Because there is no height requirement, the ride is often among the first attractions experienced by the park's youngest visitors, and it remains a visual centerpiece of Storybook Circus, especially after dark when its lighting and fountains are in full effect.