Finally, the waiting is over and millions of Haunted Mansion lovers like myself can see the results of many months of refurbishments the Imagineers bestowed on the classic attraction! Like many fans of Pirates who believed that, the original "Flavor" would be lost, fear not! Not only did the Imagineers outdo themselves, they did it even better than Pirates.
The basic ride is intact; the major differences being the addition of several new "Ghostly Scenes" fantastic audio upgrades, all of the Audio-animatronics are cleaned-up, some with new costumes, some new additions to the graveyard scene, improved lighting, and other changes I will mention. Let us start with the outside. The first new improvement is the Weather-covered walkway. Here it is brand-new; the color is a nice "Blood-Red." It is wider with all new fan enclosures and lighting. The "Horseless Hearse" is all spruced up and a turned-over fountain is in front. As you pass by the large glass "Conservatory" there is a strobe light and thunder sound effect, even in the daylight it looks good, cannot wait for the nighttime. As you pass the cemetery, it too is all cleaned and trimmed up; there is even a new "Burial Mound" of earth on Master Gracie's and Leota's plot.
Finally, the old creaky doors opened and I entered the study. Seasoned "Mansion" fans will notice the picture of Master Gracie over the fireplace is enhanced and brighter. It appears that several newer images were added, it looks nice and eerie. Enter the "Stretching Room" Again; veterans will notice that the portraits of Mortals in their "Corruptible" states appear either newer versions or enhanced originals. The wallpaper, a nice touch is a nice blood red tint and the most obvious is the sound. The newer version seems to come from all around the room, with echoes at the right time. Surround sound at its best! It is also much louder than original. Another addition is when the room stretches; you now hear groans of straining wood and other intangibles. In addition, when you look up after "My way out" the hanging figure is new and easier to see.
As you board your "Doom-Buggies," you will notice some familiar portraits on the wall. These are from the former picture gallery you passed through with the eyes following. Now when you enter there are three large windows on the left with lighting flashing outside and brand new pictures on the right. From there you enter the library, which is just about unchanged, a few items have been moved, and the busts still follow you around. Entering the music conservatory, again unchanged we still have our ghost shadow playing. Now for the big changes! Those long dark hallways with the spider webs are gone. Now there is the "Staircases to Nowhere" Here through clever Imagineering on both sides appear stairways criss-crossing all over and eerie green "Footsteps" walking all over. Creepy! Right after the staircases, you come around and on both sides, there are glowing "eyes" staring and blinking at you. Just a note…Young children might be frightened by some of these new enhancements, use judgment. The rest of the attraction up to Leota's séance room is the same, just enhanced and easier to see. In the Séance room, like in California Leota's head floats on the table and all the musical instruments hovering around are three-dimensional and are a big improvement over the old. The Ballroom (It still has the table setting Hidden Mickey!) has some new ghosts and colors seem to be enhanced.
The next scene, the Attic has been completely changed. Gone is all the clutter and junk. Instead, on both sides, you will see wedding portraits of the "Bride" in the attic with a groom, but no head on the grooms! I counted six and at the end, the old bride on the right is gone, she is now on the left. The Imagineers did another top-notch job for the bride appears to be a hologram, in scary, ghostly blue with a hatchet. I could not catch the dialogue, but something to do with the grooms And their fate. The cemetery scene is also enhanced, everything is easier to see, and there are a few new ghosts and a great skeletal dog howling on a rock.
It took many months of going without my favorite attraction at Walt Disney World, but the wait was well worth it. I cannot imagine anyone with a complaint on this upgrade. Pictures are still hard to get without a flash, but I uploaded a few for a sneak peek. There is still no fast pass and none is planned. As before, the queue line moves very quickly, even today on opening day the lines were long, but the wait was no longer than 20mins. Can't wait to go back this week!
More photos can be found here.
