Disneyland
Submarine Takes Last Voyage
September
8, 1998
On September 8, 1998, Disneyland's Submarine Voyage
attraction closed its hatch with a 7 a.m. ceremony officiated by U.S. Navy Commander
Robert Thomas. Started in June 1959, the Nautilus and seven sister submarines -
the Triton, Sea Wolf, Skate, Skipjack, George Washington, Patrick Henry, and
Ethan Allen - had allowed 38 Disneyland guests at a time to take their own
voyage with a major portion of the
simulated voyage taking place
under the Arctic Ocean's polar ice cap.
The
attraction, which featured ride vehicles designed to look like Navy nuclear
submarines, opened on June 14, 1959 as the Submarine Voyage and was one of the
first rides to require an E
ticket. The Submarine Voyage was part of a major expansion of Tomorrowland
and Fantasyland,
which also included the Matterhorn
Bobsleds roller coaster, an expanded version of Autopia,
the Disneyland
Monorail, and the Motor
Boat Cruise with the attraction originally planned to feature glass-bottom
boats and when initially conceived, the Submarine Voyage was to
feature real fish and other sea creatures, though the idea proved to be
unfeasible.
It closed on September 9,
1998, at that time, it was reported that the attraction would reopen with a new
theme by 2003, but that did not come to pass. The attraction ultimately
reopened in June 2007 themed to Disney·Pixar's Finding Nemo, and now operates
as
Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage.
Currently, the Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage is also undergoing
reimagining but it is tentatively planned to reopen this fall. Whether it is to the North Pole, or to Australia,
the Submarines at Disneyland
remain one of its iconic attractions.
And that’s what happened today in Disneyland history.
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