Dark ride

For other uses, see Dark ride (disambiguation).

A market scene from Fata Morgana, a ride in Efteling

A dark ride or ghost train is an indoor amusement ride on which passengers aboard guided vehicles travel through specially lit scenes that typically contain animation, sound, music, and special effects.

Terminology

In most uses, the term refers to ride-through attractions with scenes that use blacklights, whereby visible light is not introduced to the space, and only show elements that fluoresce under ultraviolet radiation are seen by the audience. The size of each room containing a scene or scenes is thus concealed, and the set designer is able to use forced perspective and other visual tricks to create the illusion of distance. Typically, these experiences also use a series of opaque doors between scenes to further control the views of the audience within a space-constrained building. Prominent examples of the technique include Disneyland's Snow White's Scary Adventures, Pinocchio's Daring Journey, Peter Pan's Flight, Mr. Toad's Wild Ride, and Alice in Wonderland, which all share the same show building, and which all rely on the use of blacklights in almost every scene.

History

The first dark rides appeared in the late 19th century and were called "scenic railways" and "pleasure railways". A popular type of dark ride, commonly referred to as an old mill or tunnel of love, used small boats to carry riders through water-filled canals. A Trip to the Moon began operation at the 1901 Pan-American Exposition. Leon Cassidy of the Pretzel Amusement Ride Company patented the first single-rail electric dark ride in 1928. Historically notable dark rides include Futurama at the 1939 New York World's Fair and Pirates of the Caribbean at Disneyland.

Modern attractions in this genre vary widely in their use of technology. Smaller-scale rides often feature the same sorts of simple animation and sounds that have been used since the genre's early days, while more ambitious projects can feature complex animatronics, special effects, and ride vehicles.

To improve the effect and give a sense of journey, passages in dark rides frequently change direction. Sudden curves give a sense of surprise and allow new scenes to surprise the rider. The rides may also feature sudden ascents or descents to further the excitement.

Variations

Dark rides have a number of variations that are not necessarily mutually exclusive.

Ghost train

In the United Kingdom, New Zealand, and Australia, dark rides with a scary theme are called ghost trains.

The first ride to use the name "ghost train" was that of Blackpool Pleasure Beach. The ride was imported in 1930 and originally titled The Pretzel, but pretzels were uncommon in Britain and not a recognised object, it was soon renamed after The Ghost Train, a popular play of the time known for its special effects, a film adaptation of which was showing in 1931. It was rebuilt in 1936 and has remained unchanged since. Blackpool Pleasure Beach is also home to Valhalla, the world's largest indoor dark ride, known for its many complicated effects and being a water ride manufactured by Intamin.

Prolific designers of dark rides in the UK include Keith Sparks and John Wardley between the 1970s and 1990s. Notable UK dark rides include: Phantom Fantasia at Thorpe Park; The 5th Dimension, Terror Tomb and Professor Burp's Bubbleworks, at Chessington World of Adventures; Around The World in 80 Days, The Haunted House, Toyland Tours and Hex – The Legend of the Towers at Alton Towers; and Valhalla at Blackpool Pleasure Beach. Also, Derren Brown's Ghost Train at Thorpe Park, although despite containing the phrase 'ghost train' in its name, it is actually a motion simulation and virtual reality attraction.

In Australia, a dark ride is named The Ghost Train at Luna Park, Melbourne, and a similarly named ride was destroyed by fire in 1979 at Luna Park Sydney.

Interactive dark ride

As the name suggests, interactive dark rides feature a component that allows the riders to be involved directly in the story of the attraction. The vast majority of interactive dark rides are shooting dark rides, with a small number featuring different forms of interaction.

A shooting dark ride requires riders to aim and shoot at targets throughout the ride. Each vehicle is equipped with hand-held or vehicle-mounted light guns. Successfully "shooting" a target usually triggers special animation such as flashing lights or moving the target. The more targets riders hit, the higher their scores at the end of the ride. The use of the light guns varies between rides and ranges from killing aliens on Men in Black: Alien Attack at Universal Studios Florida to calling turkeys on Gobbler Getaway at Holiday World & Splashin' Safari. The ride systems used for conventional dark rides allow for the easy conversion into shooting dark rides. This conversion is evident in Duel: The Haunted House Strikes Back! at Alton Towers and Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin at Disney's Magic Kingdom. The latter uses facilities that previously housed If You Had Wings, Delta Dreamflight, and Take Flight. A recent dark ride, Wonder Mountain's Guardian based at Canada's Wonderland, has the world's longest interactive screen, at over 500 ft. long.

Aside from shooting dark rides, other interactive dark rides do exist. Etnaland's award-winning Haunted School dark ride has been described by Park World magazine as "one of the most idiosyncratic dark rides". The ride is themed to a school exam, with riders individually answering multiple-choice questions throughout the ride. Riders are graded on their responses, with each receiving a school report at the end of the ride.

Trackless dark ride

Trackless dark rides feature ride systems where automated guided vehicles are used instead of those that run on guide rails. These vehicles have the benefit of being able to cross over existing paths, reverse, and rotate on the spot. Some trackless dark rides, such as the Big Red Car Ride at Dreamworld, rely upon a buried wire for navigation. Others, such as Mystic Manor at Hong Kong Disneyland, Symbolica at Efteling or Ratatouille: L’Aventure Totalement Toquée de Rémy at Disneyland Paris rely on Wi-Fi and RFID-based local positioning systems.

Enclosed roller coaster

Main article: Enclosed roller coaster

While some roller coasters may be indoors, simply enclosing a roller coaster does not make it a dark ride. Dark coasters are roller coasters that feature heavily themed layouts, special effects (such as animated characters, fire, smoke, and sound/lighting effects), and a dark ride portion that abruptly transitions into a roller coaster-style layout with heavily banked turns, sharp turns, steep drops, and helices. Some of these rides feature backwards motion, as well as forwards motion, and many of them have launches in place of lifts, because they are built inside structures designed specifically for the ride. A few of them feature inversions.

Some examples include: Blazing Fury at Dollywood; Revenge of the Mummy at many of the Universal Parks & Resorts (featuring a launch from the dark ride section into the coaster section); Seven Dwarfs Mine Train at the Magic Kingdom (which features a ride though the Dwarfs' diamond mine on a tour of their mining operations); Scooby-Doo Spooky Coaster at Warner Bros. Movie World (a wild mouse roller coaster featuring a ghost-train section, vertical lift and backwards drop); and Verbolten at Busch Gardens Williamsburg (featuring an indoor "event building" themed to an escape from the haunted Bavarian Black Forest that includes a free-fall track section). Test Track at Epcot, Journey to the Center of the Earth at Tokyo DisneySea, and Radiator Springs Racers at Disney California Adventure each use a slot car track rather than that of a roller coaster, but they provide a similar pairing of dark ride scenes with a high-speed thrill ride.

Other attractions incorporating dark ride elements

Particularly in Disney-built or -influenced parks, a number of attractions use traditional dark-ride features, such as animatronics and lighting for dramatic effect, but are not "rides" in that patrons never get into any type of vehicle. Examples include the walk-through dioramas inside Disneyland's Sleeping Beauty Castle or theater-based Disney attractions like Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln, The Hall of Presidents, The American Adventure (Epcot), and the Enchanted Tiki Room. Walt Disney's Carousel of Progress (and its now-closed Disneyland replacement America Sings) does not feature vehicles, but moves its audience using a rotating carousel-like theater.

The Tomorrowland Transit Authority PeopleMover in the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World and the Disneyland Railroad both include brief dark-ride scenes, but for the most part transport guests outdoors. Expedition Everest at Disney's Animal Kingdom, the Matterhorn Bobsleds at Disneyland, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and Space Mountain at several Disney parks, and Big Grizzly Mountain Runaway Mine Cars at Hong Kong Disneyland likewise include some dark-ride elements, but function primarily as indoor/outdoor roller coasters.

List of dark rides

Title	Opened	Location	Notes
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea: Submarine Voyage	1971 2001	Magic Kingdom Tokyo DisneySea	Walt Disney World Resort version closed 1994
Abenteuer Atlantis	2007	Europa-Park
Adventure Thru Inner Space	1967	Disneyland Park (Anaheim)	Replaced in 1985 by Star Tours
Alice in Wonderland	1958	Disneyland Park (Anaheim)
Apiland	2000	Parc du Bocasse
Apirama	1979	Meli-Park	8-minute boat dark ride with one drop - closed in 1999, transformed by new owner into Bos van Plop (Plopsaland De Panne)
Antarctica: Empire of the Penguin	2013	SeaWorld Orlando	A first-of-its-kind motion-based trackless dark ride developed by Oceaneering International
Bermuda Triangle	1994	Sea World	Closed in 2010 to make way for Storm Coaster
Blazing Fury	1978	Dollywood	Based on Silver Dollar City's Fire in the Hole
Blå Tåget	1935	Gröna Lund	Renovated 2011
Boo Blasters on Boo Hill	2010	Canada's Wonderland Carowinds Kings Island Kings Dominion	Formerly a Scooby-Doo-themed ride, rebranded after the parks did not renew the licence
(Het) Bos van Plop	1999	Plopsaland De Panne	8-minute boat dark ride with one drop - on track of former Apirama.
Bubbleworks	1990	Chessington World of Adventures	Water dark ride, originally Prof. Burp's BubbleWorks. Closed altogether in 2016.
Buzz Lightyear attractions	1998 2004 2005 2005 2006	Magic Kingdom Tokyo Disneyland Disneyland Park (Anaheim) Hong Kong Disneyland Disneyland Park (Paris)
Calico Mine Ride	1960	Knott's Berry Farm
Carnival Festival	1984	Efteling
Cave Train	1961	Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk
Challenge of Mondor	2008	Enchanted Forest (Turner, Oregon)
Challenge of Tutankhamon	2001	Walibi Belgium
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory: The Ride	2006	Alton Towers	Formerly Around The World In 80 Days (1981-1993), then Toyland Tours (1994-2005). Currently SBNO
Chocolate Tour at Hershey's Chocolate World	1973	Hersheypark
The Curse of DarKastle	2005	Busch Gardens Williamsburg
Den Flyvende Kuffert	1993	Tivoli Gardens
The Den of Lost Thieves	1998	Indiana Beach	Previously opened in 1969 as the Mystery Mansion
Derren Brown's Ghost Train	2016	Thorpe Park	An attraction that also incorporates virtual reality headsets and motion simulation
Dinosaur	1998	Disney's Animal Kingdom
Dracula's Castle	1974	Lagoon Amusement Park	Refurbished with new scenes in 2007, featured in episode 27 ("Blind Luck") of the 1987-88 television series Werewolf
Droomvlucht	1993	Efteling
Duel - The Haunted House Strikes Back!	1992	Alton Towers	Formerly The Haunted House, refurbished with different scenes and laser gun game system in 2003
El Laberinto del Minotauro	2000	Terra Mítica
El Rio del Tiempo	1982	Epcot	Changed to Gran Fiesta Tour Starring The Three Caballeros in 2007
High Dive	1994	Wakayama Marina City | Porto Europa	Arrow Dynamics flume ride
Escape from Pompeii	1996	Busch Gardens Williamsburg
E.T. Adventure	1990 1991 2001	Universal Studios Florida Universal Studios Hollywood Universal Studios Japan	Universal Studios Hollywood version closed 2003, Universal Studios Japan version closed 2009
Fata Morgana	1986	Efteling
Fire in the Hole	1972	Silver Dollar City
Ghost Blasters	2006	Nickelodeon Universe
Ghost Hunters	1998	Segaworld Sydney	Closed
Ghostwood Estate	2008	Kennywood
Gobbler Getaway	2006	Holiday World
Gran Fiesta Tour Starring The Three Caballeros	2007	Epcot	Formerly El Rio del Tiempo dark ride since 1982
The Great Movie Ride	1989	Disney's Hollywood Studios
The Great Pistolero Roundup	1999	Family Kingdom Amusement Park
Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey	2010 2014 2016	Universal's Islands of Adventure Universal Studios Japan Universal Studios Hollywood
Hartenhof (Court of Hearts)	2012-2020	Efteling	Project cancelled, replaced by Symbolica with the same theme but a different type of attraction from another supplier
The Haunted Mansion	1969 1971 1983	Disneyland Park (Anaheim) Magic Kingdom Tokyo Disneyland
Hex – The Legend of the Towers	2000	Alton Towers	Walkthrough dark ride featuring a Vekoma Madhouse ride ending
If You Had Wings	1972	Magic Kingdom
Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple of the Crystal Skull	2001	Tokyo DisneySea
Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple of the Forbidden Eye	1995	Disneyland Park (Anaheim)
It's a Small World	1964 1966 1971 1983 1992 2008	1964 New York World's Fair Disneyland Park (Anaheim) Magic Kingdom Tokyo Disneyland Disneyland Park (Paris) Hong Kong Disneyland
Jocco's Mardi Gras Madness	2000	Six Flags New Orleans	SBNO since 2005
Journey to Atlantis	1998 2004 2007	SeaWorld Orlando SeaWorld San Diego	Refurbished in 2017	Elevator scene in San Diego version
Justice League: Alien Invasion 3D	2012	Warner Bros. Movie World
Justice League: Battle for Metropolis	2015 2015 2016	Six Flags Over Texas Six Flags St. Louis Six Flags Great America
Kärlekstunneln (Tunnel of Love)	1917	Gröna Lund	Refurbished 1987
Kingdom of the Dinosaurs	1987	Knott's Berry Farm	Closed 2004, replaced by Voyage to the Iron Reef
Knott's Bear-y Tales	1975	Knott's Berry Farm	Closed in 1987, replaced by Kingdom of the Dinosaurs
The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Undersea Adventure	2011 2012	Disney California Adventure Park Magic Kingdom
Living with the Land	1982	Epcot
Looney Tunes River Ride	1991 1996	Warner Bros. Movie World Warner Bros. Movie World Germany	Closed in 2011 Closed in 2004
Maelstrom	1988	Epcot	Closed in 2014 for refurbishment of new ride Frozen Ever After
Magical Powder	2002	Lagunasia
The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh	1999 2003 2005	Magic Kingdom Disneyland Park (Anaheim) Hong Kong Disneyland	Magic Kingdom installation replaced Mr. Toad's Wild Ride, Disneyland Park (Anaheim) installation replaced Country Bear Jamboree
Monsters, Inc. Mike & Sulley to the Rescue!	2006	Disney California Adventure Park
Monsters, Inc. Ride & Go Seek	2009	Tokyo Disneyland
Men in Black: Alien Attack	2000	Universal Studios Florida
The Mine of Lost Souls	1985	Canobie Lake Park	Refurbished in 1992 by the Sally Corporation
Minen	2003	Tivoli Gardens
Monster Mansion	2009	Six Flags Over Georgia	Tales of the Okefenokee 1967-1980; Monster Plantation 1981-2009
Mr. Toad's Wild Ride	1955 1971	Disneyland Park (Anaheim) Magic Kingdom	Magic Kingdom installation closed in 1998 and replaced by The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
Mystic Manor	2013	Hong Kong Disneyland
Mystic Motel	2013	Ladera Ranch, Southern California	Notable for being homemade, Mystic Motel contains a small walkthrough, as well as the 60-ft ride
Nemesis: Sub-Terra	2012	Alton Towers	Dark ride combining a drop tower and a small walkthrough, currently standing but not operating
Peter Pan's Flight	1955 1971 1983 1992 2016	Disneyland Magic Kingdom Tokyo Disneyland Disneyland Park (Paris) Shanghai Disneyland Park
Phantasmagoria	1973	Bell's Amusement Park (Tulsa, OK)	Was one of the largest and longest haunted amusements in the country with a two-story track and 27 tricks and surprises, ride was demolished June 19, 2007 when Bell's Amusement Park was permanently closed
Phantom Fantasia	1983	Thorpe Park	Later Wicked Witches Haunt, closed in 2000 by fire.
Phantom Manor	1992	Disneyland Park (Paris)
Phantom Theater	1972	Kings Island	Closed in 2002 and replaced with Scooby-Doo's Haunted Mansion and later with Boo Blasters on Boo Hill
Piccolo Mondo	1982	Europa-Park	Before 2011 refurbishment Ciao Bambini
Pinocchio's Daring Journey	1983 1983 1992	Tokyo Disneyland Disneyland Park (Anaheim) Disneyland Park (Paris)
Piraten in Batavia	1987	Europa-Park	Boat ride with one big drop
Pirates Cove	1972	Waldameer Park
Pirates of the Caribbean	1967 1973 1983 1992	Disneyland Park (Anaheim) Magic Kingdom Tokyo Disneyland Disneyland Park (Paris)
Pooh's Hunny Hunt	2000	Tokyo Disneyland
Ratatouille: L’Aventure Totalement Toquée de Rémy	2014	Walt Disney Studios Park
Reese's Xtreme Cup Challenge	2000	Hersheypark
El Rescate de Ulises	2001	Terra Mítica	The longest dark ride in Europe
River Caves	1905	Blackpool Pleasure Beach
Roger Rabbit's Car Toon Spin	1994 1996	Disneyland Park (Anaheim) Tokyo Disneyland
Scooby-Doo's Haunted Mansion'	2000 2001 2002 2002 2003 2004 2005	Canada's Wonderland* Carowinds* Six Flags Fiesta Texas Six Flags St. Louis** Kings Island* Kings Dominion* Parque Warner Madrid	* indicates ride closed in 2009 to make way for Boo Blasters on Boo Hill ** indicates ride closed in 2014 to make way for Justice League: Battle for Metropolis
Shootout at the Flooded Mine	1968	Silver Dollar City
Sinbad's Storybook Voyage	2001	Tokyo DisneySea
Snow White's Scary Adventures	1955 1971 1983 1992	Disneyland Park (Anaheim) Magic Kingdom Tokyo Disneyland Disneyland Park (Paris)	Magic Kingdom installation closed in 2012, replaced by Princess Fairytale Hall
Spaceship Earth	1982	Epcot
Spectacolo	2005	Wiener Prater	Free-fall dark ride
Splash Mountain	1989 1992 1992	Disneyland Park (Anaheim) Magic Kingdom Tokyo Disneyland
Stitch's Great Escape!	2004	Magic Kingdom
Submarine Voyage	1959	Disneyland	Original version closed 1998, reopened as Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage in 2007
The Swiss Chocolate Adventure	2014	Swiss Museum of Transport (Verkehrshaus), Lucerne	Covers an area of 700 square meters
Symbolica	2017	Efteling	Dark ride about Efteling's mascot, Pardoes, system delivered by Dutch company ETF, development from cancelled project Hartenhof.
Terroride	1967	Lagoon Amusement Park	Refurbished with new scenes in 2007
Timber Mountain Log Ride	1969	Knott's Berry Farm
Tomb Blaster	2002	Chessington World of Adventures	Formerly Terror Tomb, refurbished in 2002 with different scenes and laser gun game system added, replaced The 5th Dimension in 1994
Toy Story Midway Mania!	2008 2008 2012	Disney California Adventure Park Disney's Hollywood Studios Tokyo DisneySea
Transformers: The Ride	2011 2012 2013	Universal Studios Singapore Universal Studios Hollywood Universal Studios Florida
Universum der Energie	1994	Europa-Park
Valhalla	2000	Blackpool Pleasure Beach
Voyage to the Iron Reef	2015	Knott's Berry Farm
Wacky Factory	2010	Lake Winnepesaukah	Formerly Castle
The Whacky Shack	1982	Joyland Amusement Park
The Whacky Shack	1970	Waldameer Park
Wild West Adventure	2000	Attractiepark Slagharen
Wonder Mountain's Guardian	2014	Canada's Wonderland

See also

• Old Mill (ride)

External links

• Laff In The Dark: Dark Ride and Funhouse information
• The Bill Tracy Project: Dark Ride Designer
• Sally Corporation: Dark Ride Designer
• Garmendale Engineering: Dark Ride Designer
• Holovis: Dark Ride Designer
• Halloween Productions, Inc. Dark Ride Designer
• Alterface : Dark Ride Designer
• The Dark Ride Project  : A VR Dark Ride archive