Disneyland has opened the updated queue and expanded grounds around its Haunted Mansion attraction, and unveiled the new Madame Leota-themed gift shop.
The spooky dark ride was closed for renovations from January, reopening in time for Halloween. The updated experience around the Haunted Mansion has now debuted, and with it the stand-by queue has returned.
As shown in first-look images, the new grounds and gardens are being guarded by a pair of ravens, which “often represent a connection between the world of the living and the spirit world”, Disney said in a blog post.
Guests will also see the crouching figure of a cat, as well as a personal garden retreat designed by one of the mansion’s inhabitants, Master Gracey.
Further along the queue, riders will get a look at Madame Leota’s garden, which “is dipped in a mystical energy; as if every plant, statue, and trinket is under Leota’s spell”.
Highlights in the queue experience also include the new greenhouse, which belongs to all of the mansion’s ghosts.
With the updates, guests using a mobility device are now able to use the main queue and entrance to the Haunted Mansion.
After riding, they exit via a new accessible elevator that extends the story of the attraction with a gallery of original Imagineering artwork and more.
As for the Haunted Mansion’s new gift shop, this is located by the exit and is called Madame Leota’s Somewhere Beyond. It’s expected to open this winter.
Madame Leota’s Somewhere Beyond
Somewhere Beyond is a carriage house that used to store the same ornate carriage seen on the mansion’s front yard. It’s filled with eclectic furniture, including a crystal ball and the original parlour chandelier used by Madame Leota in séances at the mansion.
“As a powerful medium moving between worlds, Madame Leota comes and goes a lot and is excited to welcome guests to her home, soon,” said Disney.
The Madame Leota-themed shop will sell souvenirs inspired by the Haunted Mansion, as well as Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas, including clothes, accessories, collectibles and home decor.
Images courtesy of Disney
