Disneyland fans are hoping a new Avatar boat ride coming to the Anaheim theme park resort will feature ground-breaking technology from a jaw-dropping attraction designed by Walt Disney Imagineering that’s been called the most immersive theme park ride ever built.
The Avatar boat ride pitched as part of the DisneylandForward expansion looks like it could be a close cousin to Shanghai Disneyland’s Pirates of the Caribbean: Battle of the Sunken Treasure.
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Disney California Adventure will transform a portion of the Hollywood Backlot area in Hollywood Land into an Avatar destination experience at the Anaheim theme park.
Work will begin on the Avatar themed land transformation in early 2026 when the Monsters Inc. Mike & Sulley to the Rescue dark ride closes to make way for construction.
Concept art of the Avatar experience coming to Disney California Adventure. (Courtesy of Disney)Concept art created for the Avatar themed land planned for the Disneyland resort shows jutting rocks and floating mountains amid gushing geysers and alien flora. A boat filled with riders passes through an aqua-green lagoon heading toward a cascading waterfall.
The Avatar land concept art created by Imagineering suggests the marquee attraction could feature a magnetic boat ride system, according to Theme Park Insider’s Robert Niles.
“The company’s concept art for a new Avatar attraction looks enticing as well, even more so if it is based on the magnetic boat ride system first used on Shanghai Disneyland’s Pirates of the Caribbean: Battle of the Sunken Treasure, as the concept image seems to suggest,” according to Niles.
Concept art of the Avatar experience coming to Disney California Adventure. (Courtesy of Disney)The state-of-the-art ride system features an advanced propulsion system that provides unprecedented control over the speed, position, orientation and rotation of the boats, according to a patent filed by Disney in 2012.
Coaster 101 calls the highly controlled ride system that allows boats to travel forward, backward, sideways and even spin a contender for the most immersive theme park ride ever built.
Arte conceptual de la experiencia Avatar que llegará a Disney California Adventure. (Cortesía de Disney)The pinpoint accuracy of the ride system allows Imagineering to synchronize each boat’s movements with massive curved video projection screens, audio-animatronic scenes and physical sets throughout the attraction.
Imagineering teamed up with Industrial Light & Magic on the advanced animation and newly developed special effects for Pirates of the Caribbean: Battle for the Sunken Treasure.
Pirates of the Caribbean: Battle of the Sunken Treasure at Shanghai Disneyland. (Courtesy of Walt Disney Imagineering)Your average boat ride is powered by the water flowing through the flume — which impacts the speed, spacing and orientation of the ride vehicles.
Shanghai’s Pirates ride can speed up or slow down, go up hills or down drops and maintain spacing with other boats.
The front and back of each boat is connected to a track under the water. Electromagnets along the track and mounted to each boat control the speed without having to rely on water flow.
Pirates of the Caribbean: Battle of the Sunken Treasure at Shanghai Disneyland. (Courtesy of Walt Disney Imagineering)Split tracks allow the front end of the boat to travel along one path while the back runs along another — enabling controlled rotation of each boat. The precise level of control allows Imagineering to sync up the on-board audio with video segments.
“Pirates of the Caribbean: Battle for the Sunken Treasure is more energy efficient than earlier systems that use pumps because they only have to apply energy to move the boat, not the entire body of water,” according to Coaster 101. “Another advantage is you can design the ride path to allow boats to flow through a lake, you don’t need a predictable channel to follow.”
The innovative ride has picked up industry awards from the Visual Effects Society, Themed Entertainment Association and Amusement Today.
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