Located in the Magic Kingdom’s Adventureland, Pirates of the Caribbean Ride is one of Disney’s most popular attractions. It’s always been a favorite with visitors, but after the hit movies, it’s even more so.
Walt Disney himself helped with the ride’s design, and it opened just three months after his death. The ride begins at a Spanish fortress, where guests enter and walk through dimly-lit corridors that are littered with cannons and other pirate paraphernalia.
At the dock, you enter an open-air “boat” and float through the dark. After plunging over a waterfall, the boat enters underground caverns and winds up amidst a pirate battle. Next, the vessel passes through a town that has been taken over by buccaneers.
Captain Barbossa and his gang of cutthroats are searching for Jack Sparrow, and they feel certain the town is hiding him. Look closely, and you’ll see Jack hiding amongst some dress mannequins. Later in the Pirates of the Caribbean Ride, you can spot Captain Jack hiding in a barrel, and at the end of town, Jack can be seen in the treasure room.
Pirates sack the town and make it their own, and the magistrate is dunked under water while being interrogated as to the whereabouts of Sparrow. Other animated swashbucklers can be seen playing chess, singing, and merrily chasing wenches.
At the end of the Pirates of the Caribbean Ride, a speed ramp takes guests to the ground-level gift shop. This is a fun ride, with no height restrictions. Some scenes, however, might be too intense for very small children.
Included in the ride are storms, buried treasure, fires, spooky voices, swords, pirate ships, the shadowy visage of Davy Jones, and numerous pirate skeletons. Pirates of the Caribbean should be avoided by anyone with back problems, neck problems, hypertension, or heart conditions.
Flash photography is not allowed. Guests on motorized scooters or ECVs will have to leave their transportation and transfer to one of the wheelchairs on hand at the attraction. From the wheelchair, these guests will transfer to the boat.
I hope you enjoyed my Pirates of the Caribbean Ride review. It’s a very fun ride that puts you right in a pirates fight and plundering. Make sure you ride it when you go to the magic kingdom!