At a Glance
Duration: 5 minutes, 30 seconds
Look Out For: some scary theming and a huge animatronic of Ursula
Opening on December 6th, 2012, Under the Sea: Journey of the Little Mermaid is a classic Disney dark ride taking you along on Ariel’s magical adventure. But how scary is Journey of the Little Mermaid? Let’s take a look at the stats:
1. Ride Length
Journey of the Little Mermaid has a ride duration of 5 minutes and 30 seconds. However, you may spend a few extra seconds on the ride vehicles during loading, unloading, or for the slight delays which happen fairly often.
2. Height Requirement and Warnings
Journey of the Little Mermaid has no height requirement. In addition, Disney has no official warnings for this attraction.
3. Ride Vehicles and Restraints
The Journey of the Little Mermaid ride vehicles consist of individual cars (or clam shells) that seat approximately 2 passengers with a shared lap bar. They are extremely similar to the “doom buggies” you’ll find across the park at the Haunted Mansion.
4. How Does Journey of the Little Mermaid Work?
Journey of the Little Mermaid works like any other Disney dark ride, moving the ride vehicles along a predetermined track through the show scenes. Like in the Haunted Mansion, there is about a minute of slow backwards movement – to immerse you in going under the sea. Aside from this, however, there are no unexpected ride elements, making for a very smooth and gentle riding experience.
5. Is Journey of the Little Mermaid Scary?
Journey of the Little Mermaid is not intentionally scary overall, but certainly has some spooky and ominous moments. While most of its runtime is happy, happy happy – the one scene involving Ursula, the sea witch, is undeniably a little bit frightening.
After passing under Flotsam and Jetsam (who welcome you ominously from overhead) you’ll come face to face with a massive animatronic of Ursula in front of her cauldron. Aside from her intimidating size (about 8 ft tall and 12 ft wide) she is clearly meant to be scary – especially when she starts chanting and is underlit by eerie green light. As the most advanced animatronic in the ride, she has dynamic and lifelike movements – making her all the more terrifying, in my opinion.
Aside from Ursula’s scene, there really isn’t anything spooky about the ride. Every other scene is happy and whimsical – hitting the whole family-friendly thing right on the nose. In fact, they even gloss over the climax of the movie and Ursula’s death by just having a dinky cut-out of her in the background of one of the final scenes.
It should also be noted that even some of the happy scenes could be a little overwhelming in the sensory department. The sound design in most Disney dark rides can be a bit loud, and the “Under the Sea” scene in particular can feel somewhat chaotic with it’s many colorful characters singing and dancing around you. Many riders won’t think anything of it, but it’s important that everyone knows what to expect – especially those of us with sensory sensitivity of any kind.
6. How High is Journey of the Little Mermaid?
Journey of the Little Mermaid does not involve heights. As an indoor track ride, you and your ride vehicle will remain on the ground at all times.
7. How Fast is Journey of the Little Mermaid?
Journey of the Little Mermaid does not go fast. Like on many other Disney dark rides, you will just slowly meander through the show scenes.
8. Does Journey of the Little Mermaid Have Drops?
Journey of the Little Mermaid does not have drops. In fact, as I stated before, there are no unexpected ride elements whatsoever – making for a very smooth and gentle ride.
9. Does Journey of the Little Mermaid Cause Motion Sickness?
Journey of the Little Mermaid should not cause motion sickness for most riders. While the ride vehicles do turn slowly to face the show scenes and go briefly backwards (for about 60 seconds), there is no spinning, large screens, or 4D effects that might cause nausea.
10. Is Journey of the Little Mermaid Claustrophobic?
Journey of the Little Mermaid could be slightly claustrophobic to some riders. With its slightly longer than average ride duration and “undersea” theming, this attraction could feel slightly confining at moments. Many of the show scenes – as well as the queue – have an enclosed “grotto”-type setting, but the amount of time spent in both is relatively short. It’s also worth nothing that this ride tends to have delays fairly often and you may spend a few more seconds on-ride than you planned to.
11. Are There Animatronics on Journey of the Little Mermaid?
There are many animatronics on Journey of the Little Mermaid, one of which being particularly scary. Aside from the aforementioned Ursula sighting – see the “Is it Scary” section for more details – there are approximately 200 animatronics on this attraction. While most of them are friendly, familiar faces of beloved characters, the humans can feel a bit uncanny at times – especially given their propensity to malfunction. They are certainly a bit more cartoonish than what you’ll find on Pirates of the Caribbean or Spaceship Earth, but they can be unsettling all the same.
Journey of the Little Mermaid Queue Walkthrough
The queue entrance is located outside in the Fantasyland area of Magic Kingdom. After entering the line, you’ll wind your way through an outdoor section in front of the castle before making your way into a nice, cool indoor grotto.
While some may find the tight spaces and cave-like structuring to feel a bit claustrophobic, the spectacular theming, sound design, and music makes for an immersive experience overall. Like the queue for Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, there’s so much to look at that it may distract you from feeling too confined.
You’ll wind around – passing a small animatronic of Scuttle the seagull at one point – before finding yourself in a large, castle-like room with domed ceilings and lanterns. Before you know it, you’re at the loading station and ready to board the ride.
Journey of the Little Mermaid Ride Walkthrough
As the ride vehicles set off, you’ll first encounter Scuttle beginning to tell the tale of The Little Mermaid. Your clam will rotate backwards slowly as you “descend” under the sea, spotting Ariel briefly on a small overhead screen. This backwards segment lasts for about 60 seconds before you face the next show scene, finding an animatronic Ariel singing her classic song, “Part of Your World.”
From there, you’ll head right into the “Under the Sea” scene featuring Sebastian and over a hundred dancing animatronic sea critters. You’ll pass another dancing Ariel animatronic on your way through and make your way into Ursula’s Lair. After passing underneath Flotsam and Jetsam, you’ll find Ursula in front of her cauldron, singing and chanting as a green light illuminates the room. This is really the only scary moment in the entire ride, and before you know it, you’re on to the “Kiss the Girl” scene, being serenaded again by Sebastian and his friends.
You’ll pass animatronic Ariel and Eric under beautiful mossy willows before seeing them triumphantly in their happily ever after in the very next scene. As I mentioned before, there is a small carnival-cut-out-type prop in the background hinting at Ursula’s defeat, but it’s not in-your-face or really scary at all. Finally, you’ll find yourself at the finale with King Triton and the whole gang at the royal wedding. With that, the ride comes to an end and you’ll be right back at the loading station.
That’s it! Remember, everyone’s riding experience is a little bit different and only you can decide whether to hop on that ride vehicle or not. I just hope this guide helps you be prepared and enjoy every second of your Disney experience!
So what do you think? How scary is Journey of the Little Mermaid? Leave a comment to help keep this guide up to date!
For a full visual of the ride and queue, be sure to check out this video from JohnYChen:
