The entrance to Disneyland’s Adventureland still bears a strong resemblance to how it looked in the 1950s, but there have, of course, been changes. Here are some of them:

• The crossed bull elephant tusks (which were probably never real) no longer look like ivory.
• There’s large mask where the tusks cross
• Walt Disney’s Enchanted Tiki Room and the Dole Whip booth and are now on the left side of the entrance.
• Thatch replaced the roof tiles on the building in the background.

The two photos above both show native jungle dwellers in the Jungle Cruise, but it wasn’t possible to identify the exact location of the original scene.

• The original natives, with their face paint and colorful, feathered headdresses look like something out a movie from the 1940s or 1950s.
• The current natives, with their warrior masks, look more authentic—although they’re probably also just from the imagination of an Imagineer.

“it’s a small world,” which premiered at the 1964-65 New York Worlds Fair, came to Disneyland in 1966. Today, the large, playful façade still looks much as it did in 1966. But there are some obvious changes:

• The blue “it’s a small world“ presented by Bank of America sign gone.
• The current “it’s a small world” sign is off to the side.
• The trees behind the façade are now mostly gone
• The current gold and white color scheme is close to original, unlike pastel color scheme of the 1990s.

The Submarine Voyage and Matterhorn Bobsleds were both part of the birth of the “E” Ticket in 1959. The original Submarine Voyage closed in September 1998. The attraction finally reopened in June 2007 as the Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage, with characters from Disney/Pixar’s 2003 feature, Finding Nemo.

• The first, most obvious difference is that the gray, military submarines are now a cheerful yellow.
• The Matterhorn of 1959 had tiny evergreens, which made the mountain look larger.
• Large trees other plants at the base of the Matterhorn today have their own beauty, but change the scale of the mountain.

Monorail Red travels above the Submarine Lagoon on a slender “highway in the sky.” The same description applies to both photos, but the second photo was taken 50 years after the first.

• The original Mark I Monorails had three cars per train; the current Mark VII Monorails have five cars.
• The Submarine Lagoon now has a backdrop of large trees.
• The show building was enlarged and the entry waterfall was relocated for the Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage
• The unused PeopleMover track passes through the 2009 photo but is largely hidden by the Monorail train.

Now, please take a look at other “Then & Now” photo essays at Yesterland:

• Subtle Changes at Disneyland
• Disneyland Then and Now: Main Street and the Castle
• Disneyland Then and Now: Frontierland

Click here to discuss this page on the Yesterland Discussion Forum at MiceChat!

Tahitian Terrace Menu Then & Now: Frontierland Home

© 2009 Werner Weiss — Disclaimers, Copyright, and Trademarks

Updated November 13, 2009.

Vintage photos of Disneyland: Charles R. Lympany and Frank T. Taylor, courtesy of Chris Taylor.
Similar photos from 2009: Werner Weiss.
Photo of Jungle Cruise attack from 2007: Allen Huffman.