33 photos of old Disney World attractions we wish would come back

The ride first opened in 1989, and was built within a replica of the famous Grauman's Chinese Theatre.

The celebrity signatures were implemented to replicate a similar walkway found outside Grauman's Chinese Theatre.

According to the Disney blog AllEars, everyone from Audrey Hepburn to Robin Williams left their mark at the Florida location.

After entering the replica theater, park visitors would wait in a "theater lobby" filled with real props from famous films, according to Disney blog WDW Info. Classic silent films were also displayed on screens along the line queue.

Park visitors then took a 22-minute-long ride through some of Hollywood's most famous movie scenes.

Throughout the ride, park goers viewed animatronic versions of scenes from films such as "Casablanca," "Fantasia," "Alien," and "Singin' in the Rain," among others.

And there were live actors involved in the ride too. According to Paste, each ride was "taken hostage by a cast member playing either a 1930s gangster or a bandit from an old Western."

In its place, Disney created its first-ever Mickey Mouse ride called Mickey and Minnie's Runaway Railway. The trackless ride, which opened at Hollywood Studios on March 4, tells the story of a runaway train as it encounters obstacles like bad weather and stampeding bulls.

The attraction is also the first at Disney to feature two story lines in one ride, according to the Orange County Register.

The "extreme stunt show" was first brought to Disney World as part of the park's Happiest Celebration on Earth event in 2005, according to Extinct Disney, a blog about retired park attractions.

The show was inspired by the similar Moteurs… Action! Stunt Show Spectacular in Disneyland Paris.

Famous Disney characters also made appearances in the show, including Herbie the Lovebug and Lightning McQueen from "Cars."

But to make room for new "Star Wars" and "Toy Story" attractions, Disney chose to end the show on April 2, 2016.

Because Hollywood Studios was originally designed to honor the magic of moviemaking, Disney created a backlot that resembled streets from famous American cities, like New York and San Francisco.

There wasn't much to do on the Streets of America — as every building was fake or locked — but the area still made parkgoers feel as though they'd been transported to another place. It also provided great photo ops, and a relaxing environment tucked away from the park's rides.

But according to Yesterland, a blog about retired Disney attractions, the Streets of America closed for good on April 2, 2016, and has since been replaced by the giant Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge land.

The MGM Studios water tower, also known as the "Earffel Tower," once served as a recognizable landmark signifying your arrival at the movie-inspired theme park. It was first built in 1988.

Even after the park was renamed Hollywood Studios, the tower — adorned with Mickey ears — stood standing. But in January 2016, Disney World announced the 130-foot-tall landmark would be taken down.

By April 29, 2016, it followed attractions like Lights, Motors, Action! and the Streets of America by being removed from the park permanently.

The castle was transformed on October 1, 1996, according to Disney Everyday, a blog dedicated to the the Florida theme park. It was covered in pink-and-white paint that looked like icing, fake candy canes, and 26 decorative birthday candles. The park's birthday celebration went on for 15 months, and the castle remained decorated until January 31, 1998.

While Disney World won't be celebrating another 25th birthday, the castle would look stunning if decorated for other milestones.

The smaller land was located within Magic Kingdom, and was home to meet-and-greet areas, rides inspired by classic Disney characters, and playgrounds, among other attractions.

The two walk-through replicas of Mickey and Minnie's cartoon homes were arguably the most famous part of the land.

Those who visited were able to tour Mickey's living room, bedroom, kitchen, and garden, among other areas.

Attractions Magazine reported that Disney held the VIP party on February 12, 2011, after Magic Kingdom closed for the night.

During the reported event, park cast members were said to have taken photos with Disney characters throughout Toontown.

Like the Great Movie Ride, Disney's Studio Backlot Tour was one of the first rides built for Hollywood Studios in 1989.

According to the Orlando Sentinel, the attraction originally took hours to walk through and doubled as a working studio. At the time, visitors were even able to get a glimpse of television productions being filmed on the lot.

Even after being reduced to a 30-minute-long show in its later years, the Studio Backlot Tour still gave visitors a taste of what it's like to make action movies. For example, four volunteers would be chosen from the audience at the start of the tour to take part in a live special-effects demonstration, according to Disney blog Yesterland.

During the ride's heyday, park visitors were able to see everything from working movie sets to the working Disney costume department as part of the Studio Backlot Tour.

Still, some movie props and Disney memorabilia could be seen throughout the attraction. An authentic Herbie the Lovebug was on display, as well as Walt Disney's personal airplane called "The Mouse."

At the movie set, visitors would sit in tram cars and view an imitation movie scene play out.

During the demonstration, a fake earthquake would shake the tram car, a tanker would explode and soak the audience, fake power lines fell, and a fake flash flood would drench the set.

Despite wishes from fans, the ride closed permanently in September 2014.

According to AllEars, the structure was first built in 2001 as part of Disney World's 100 Years of Magic Celebration. It was inspired by the celestial blue hat worn by Sorcerer Mickey in the 1940 film "Fantasia."

Mickey's giant sorcerer's hat was originally home to interactive kiosks that taught park goers about Walt Disney's life, but was taken over by pin-trading stands and merchandise booths by 2003.

Disney World began to deconstruct the hat in January 2015, and completed the job by February 2015. Like other attractions in the park, it was removed to match the changing image of Hollywood Studios.

It was located in Epcot's Norway pavilion, and had a loyal fan base. During the dark ride, park goers were taken on a whimsical journey filled with trolls and Norse mythology, which helped visitors to "seek the spirit of Norway," according to the Orlando Sentinel.

On October 5, 2014, the ride was closed permanently, and has since been replaced with Frozen Ever After, an animatronics ride based on the film "Frozen."

To participate in the show, visitors would audition with park producers early in the morning, according to WDW Info. Chosen park goers would then undergo hair and makeup transformations before spending time with a vocal coach.

Later on in the day, participants would compete during a live show for other park attendees, and winners were awarded passes to cut the lines during auditions for the actual "American Idol" television show.

But on August 30, 2014, the American Idol Experience was permanently shut down to make room for new attractions in Hollywood Studios.

While many of the park's attractions were fast-paced and full of energy, the art studio provided a relaxing escape for visitors of all ages, according to WDW Info.

The tour began in a theater filled with Mickey-shaped drawing stations. There, a Disney animator worked alongside Mushu from "Mulan" to teach visitors how to draw popular characters.

Depending on which Pixar movie had recently been released, Disney World displayed original drawings and story boards from film productions like "Monsters University."

But the fun didn't stop there. The art studio also held meet and greets with characters like Baymax from "Big Hero 6."

The attraction closed for good on July 12, 2015.

The playground was inspired by the 1989 film, and was beloved by park visitors of all ages. Like many other retired attractions, the fake movie set was located within Disney World's Hollywood Studios.

According to WDW Info, the attraction once featured 30-foot tall grass, 40-foot-tall bumblebees, and a 52-foot-tall garden hose that sprayed visitors with water.

There were also larger-than-life cans of Play Doh and giant rolls of film in the playground, which doubled as climbing walls and slides.

To make room for the upcoming Star Wars Galaxy's Edge, the playground was closed on April 2, 2016.

According to Fandom, Mickey Mouse Revue was an animatronic attraction found in Magic Kingdom's Fantasyland section starting in 1971.

Twenty-three characters were included in the show — such as Winnie the Pooh, Dumbo, the Mad Hatter, and Baloo — who "performed" classic Disney songs like "Whistle While You Work," "Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo," "So This is Love," and "Zipp-a-Dee-Do-Dah."

Unfortunately for fans, the attraction was shuttered on September 14, 1980, according to Fandom. It was eventually transferred to Japan for the opening of Tokyo Disneyland in 1983, but was eventually replaced by Mickey's Philharmagic on May 25, 2009.

According to Yesterland, the buses were driven slowly through crowds of visitors, and brought parkgoers to each pavilion in the World Showcase.

It's unclear as to when Disney stopped offering the bus service, but those who have recently visited the area will know that it now requires a lot of walking.

The tunnel was located in Epcot's Imagination Pavilion, specifically in the ImageWorks play area above the original Journey Into Imagination ride, according to WDW News Today.

Each person who entered the tunnel was assigned a color, which would follow them as they walked through. WDW News Today also reported that the spot became especially well-known after Michael Jackson was photographed there.

Despite its popularity, the tunnel was closed in 1998 when ImageWorks was moved to a lower level of the building, according to WDW News Today.

The tunnel will soon be coming back to Disney World, though it might look a little different. Today, parkgoers can visit Journey Into Imagination with Figment, an updated version of the classic Epcot ride. And soon, it appears that Disney may reintroduce its famous rainbow tunnel in a nearby section.

According to sources close to the project cited by WDW News Today, the walkway will be included in the upcoming Epcot Experience Center in The Odyssey, a new section that will be built in an abandoned pavilion. More details are expected to come in August, WDW News Today reports.

According to Fandom, The Barnstormer roller coaster opened on October 1, 1996 in Goofy's Wiseacre Farm, a section of Mickey's Toontown Fair.

The ride was themed like an airplane class taught by Goofy, and riders were brought on a journey full of twists and turns straight through a barn.

To make room for a renovation of Fantasyland, The Barnstormer was shut down on February 12, 2011, according to Fandom. However, that wasn't the end of the classic roller coaster.

The ride was renovated throughout 2011, and reopened as The Barnstormer featuring the Great Goofini in 2012. Still, The Barnstormer looks a lot different than it once did. Goofy also no longer acts as a flight instructor, but stars as a circus performer riding a stunt airplane.

According to Yesterland, a blog about retired Disney attractions, the Skyway was one of the first rides built in Disney World in 1971. It could transport travelers from Fantasyland to Tomorrowland, and each car could hold four passengers.

But, like many other classic attractions, the original Skyway shut down in November 1999 "to keep the park exciting and fresh," Yesterland reported.

A new cable-car attraction — the Disney World Skyliner — opened in the Orlando, Florida theme park on September 29, 2019.

However, it isn't exactly the same as the original ride. Rather than transporting parkgoers between Fantasyland and Tomorrowland, the new version brings visitors from Epcot, to the Riviera Resort, the Caribbean Beach Resort, Hollywood Studios, the Pop Century Resort, and the Art of Animation Resort.

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