For a stress-free Disney or Universal Studios vacation, let the FREE expert planners at Royal Carriage Vacations take care of every detail including dining reservations, applying discounts, and onboard cruise credit.
Do you know about this secret walkthrough of the castle? I loved getting to experience it!
Disney Castles
Each Disney Resort in the world has a castle. Collectively, the castles are the icon of Disney Parks. From the first day Disneyland opened, Guests around the world have been greeted by the unmistakable castle!
Disney World, of course, has Cinderella Castle. She is perhaps the most well known! Did you know Tokyo Disneyland ALSO has Cinderella Castle? It does, but of course, it looks a bit different!
In Disneyland Paris, find Le Château de la Belle au Bois dormant. Castle of Magical Dreams is at Hong Kong Disneyland and the ulta-big Enchanted Storybook Castle is at Shanghai Disney Resort.
Sleeping Beauty Castle
The original is Sleeping Beauty Castle in Disneyland Park. Walt Disney loved fairytales and he wanted a castle to welcome his Guests. So, he toured several castles around Europe to get a feel for the architecture and design. Walt put Herb Ryman in charge of designing Sleeping Beauty Castle.
Why did Walt choose Sleeping Beauty Castle? The company was working on the film at the same time as the planning and construction of Disneyland. Walt saw this is as a great opportunity to promote the movie!
Did you know? The drawbridge has only been lowered twice—once at the opening of the park in 1955 and again in 1983 at the rededication of Fantasyland.
Although it is the smallest of the Disney castles (they couldn’t afford the size that Walt wanted!), it really set the tone for the other castles around the world and inspires each of us when we see them for the first time!
Not only is it a beautiful sight to behold, but there is also a fun attraction inside the castle. Guests can actually walk through Sleeping Beauty Castle to experience scenes from the story! Although this did not open until 1957, it has been a favorite, but somewhat secret, past-time of Guests visiting the park.
Where to find the entrance of the walkthrough
The entrance can be a bit tricky to find. After all, there is so much going on in this one little area behind Sleeping Beauty Castle! You have attractions like Peter Pan’s Flight and Snow White’s Enchanted Wish. Then, there is the check-in for Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique and characters roaming around.
When you walk through the castle from Main Street, to the left you will see the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique check-in area and then another walk through to Frontierland. There is a sign that reads “Sleeping Beauty Castle” with a blue umbrella over it. That is the entrance!
Be aware that you will be walking through darkened corridors and climbing staircases, so keep this in mind if you have people in your party who may frighten easily or have mobility issues. There is an accessible experience available next to the castle walkway.
What you will find
Once inside the castle, you will see the book that tells the story of Sleeping Beauty. “In a far away land long, long ago, lived a king & his queen. Many years had they longe for a child and finally their wish was granted. A daughter was born. They called her Aurora.”
There are beautiful curtains along with stone walls and flooring. This, coupled with the dark corridors and winding passageways, really make you feel like you are exploring a medieval castle!
As you continue along the path, you will come upon more diorama scenes from the story with accompanying text in the book. There are also light and sound effects. The neat part is the scenes are inspired by the film’s original Eyvind Earle artwork.
Unbeknownst to Maleficent, the Good fairy Merryweather had changed the curse so that the Princess would not die, but sleep. The three good fairies put the entire kingdom to sleep as well, until the day Aurora would wake.
Want to learn more?
As mentioned above, Walt chose Sleeping Beauty Castle for Disneyland to promote the film’s release in 1959. Just two years after the park opened, Disney wanted to promote it even more now that the film was in production.
This is when they decided to create the walkthrough, and you can see a more up close video of it in Episode 6 of the Disney+ series “Behind the Attraction.” Specifically, head to minute 10:45 to learn more about the history of the attraction and hear from Disney legend Kim Irvine where she explains how effective the lights and artwork are at drawing Guests in.
The episode also mentions the walkthrough has been redesigned twice and closed for 7 years! Nonetheless, this is a very special piece of Disneyland Park.
Final Thoughts
The castle walkthrough was not crowded at all when I visited. I only saw a couple other people at various points of the walkthrough. This would be an excellent activity to do when you need a break from the crowds of Fantasyland. It was cool, dark, and quiet.
Another great thing about this attraction is that it is completely self-led. Take as much or little time as you want to explore, and you do not have to wait to go through it again! You could probably make it through this in less than 5 minutes if you just slowly pass through and take in each scene for 30-45 seconds.
However, I really encourage to take the time to enjoy each scene. The diorama scenes have so much detail in them! Do not miss the end when Maleficent turns into the fire-breathing dragon!
Have you ever been through Sleeping Beauty castle? Did you know about this walkthrough? Let us know in the comments below and share this post with a friend visiting Disneyland!
Share the love!
