Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway Review (The Hollywood Studios Version)
Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway is a trackless dark ride at Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Orlando, Florida. This new attraction replaced The Great Movie Ride, which closed in August 2017. Runaway Railway is inside the theme park’s iconic replica of the TCL Chinese Theater.
In this review of Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway, we’ll discuss attraction specifics, what to expect, whether or not you should get a Lightning Lane, and the best times to ride via the standby queue. I’ll also take you through a photo walk-through of the entire experience.
We think that Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway is an excellent ride that most guests will want to experience at least once during their Walt Disney World vacation. So join us as we go off track on this fun adventure. You’ll see what I mean soon!
Below is a quick reference chart with essential details for the Runaway Railway.
Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway | Hollywood Studios Attractions |
---|---|
Location: | Hollywood Boulevard |
Height Requirement: | None |
Lightning Lane: | Yes, with Genie+ |
Ride Type: | Slow Moving, Screen-Based, Dark Ride |
Seats Per Vehicle: | 4 per row |
Rider Switch: | None |
Early Theme Park Benefits: | Yes |
Extended Evening Hours: | Yes* |
Good For: | Everyone |
Scare Factor: | Mild |
Must-Do List: | High Priority |
Perfect For: | Fans of Classic Characters |
Special Mention: | Newest Attraction at Hollywood Studios |
Additional Information:
- Guests must transfer from a wheelchair or ECV to the ride vehicle. Audio description and handheld captioning are available for this attraction. Details for those with mobility issues (i.e., wheelchair, ECVs) can be found on Disney’s site.
*It is rare to see the extended evening hours benefit offered at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway
Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway is a popular attraction at Disney’s Hollywood Studios that often boasts waits of up to an hour. Since the ride is fast-loading with a decent capacity, the line tends to move along efficiently.
However, the attraction goes down from time to time. So, it’s not uncommon to find yourself at a complete standstill while waiting. If the ride were to go down, guests are usually offered a multi-experience pass to use elsewhere or return later when the ride is operating.
Often, the queue for Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway extends outside the attraction’s entrance. The more guests waiting, the more the queue snakes around the side of the Chinese Theatre.
When the extended queue reaches outside, you’ll find someone holding an end-of-the-line sign like the one in the picture below. On this day, we got in line, and the estimated wait time was one hour. We only waited approximately 25 minutes. However, it’s not standard to see that much gap between a projected wait time and actual wait time.
Here’s a look at a portion of the outdoor queue which is in direct sunlight most of the day. These umbrellas help some, but they aren’t perfect.
As you enter the interior portion of the queue, you might notice a few familiar things from the attraction’s predecessor. This portion of the attraction remains untouched, except for a few movie posters advertising new Mickey Mouse Shorts.
Eventually, you’ll make your way to the pre-show. Here, you’ll watch a short cartoon where Mickey and Minnie are headed to a picnic. They run into Goofy, and as you can imagine, things quickly get out of hand. After a small explosion, fake smoke fills the air, and you realize the projection screen is damaged.
You’ll then continue through the screen as though you’ve stepped into the cartoon. The next room is a significant change. It’s Goofy’s barn, where he stores his train. Each train has four cars with two rows each. So, each train carries up to 32 passengers.
Here is a preview of the ride vehicle.
Each row comfortably seats about four guests.
If you look around, you can tell you’re in a barn.
After everyone is seated, you’re off on the cartoon world train ride of a lifetime. Now it’s time to take a sneak peek at the actual ride experience.
At first, everything is calm and pleasant. Mickey and Minnie Mouse make an appearance early on in the ride. They are on their way to a perfect picnic until things begin to unhinge. Disney used projection mapping on these audio animatronics to create their unique looks. This attraction is considered 2D, so 3D glasses are not required.
Before you know it, the train cars detach themselves, and Mickey is determined to rescue you. You are now in a trackless ride vehicle, and the other cars are scattered all around.
Hence, the Runaway Railway. Remember how I mentioned that this was Goofy’s train? The attraction then proceeds through various rooms that change scenes.
Notice how the cars have separated in the photo below. You can see the vehicles’ markings on the concrete floor.
Trackless ride systems have become popular at Walt Disney World’s theme parks. Guests can expect to encounter trackless rides at Rise of the Resistance in Disney’s Hollywood Studios and Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure at Epcot.
As for Mickey and Minnies Runaway Railway, you’ll encounter a variety of rooms. Each room goes from either a heightened dramatic tone to a calm, relaxing mood or vice versa.
There are a few elements where you feel a bit of movement with the screen ahead of you. For example, you’ll experience some feeling when Mickey and Minnie are about to go over the waterfall.
The next room offers a bit of a jolt due to construction work in the area. Your train car will feel the vibration as Pete puts the jackhammer to use on the concrete.
You’ll quickly hop off the street and wind up in Daisy’s dance studio! Inside, Daisy Duck chants, “One, two, three,” and calmly instructs her students. Within seconds, you’ll go from simple dance moves to the Conga! It’s another one of those instances where the mood goes from calm to intense in a matter of seconds.
At this point, I felt like the whole Runaway Railway was modeled after my life. Unfortunately, the next scene gets even more chaotic as your train car is about to get obliterated in a giant machine press. It chomps away as you slowly edge toward its doom. Thankfully, Mickey and Minnie save the day, and the surrounding screens reveal you’ve made it to a moonlight picnic at Runnamuck Park.
You probably won’t even be sure of what you witnessed. But as you can see in the photo below, everything works out in the end. Mickey, Minnie, and Pluto are enjoying a picnic as they sing the endearing tune, Nothing Can Stop Us Now.
Goofy soon reappears and gets everyone back on the track. Whatever position your car was in at the beginning will be completely different by this time. You’ll head along back into the barn to exit the ride.
Oh, and by the way, I forgot to mention that Perfect Picnic is the name of the cartoon you visited. The poster for it is just outside the theater’s entrance.
Other Versions of Runaway Railway
- Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway (El Capitoon Theater, Disneyland Park) Disneyland’s version of the attraction is said to have a bonus room that’s not included at Hollywood Studios.
Final Thoughts on Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway
Overall, Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway is a fun attraction that’s perfect for all ages. We enjoy experiencing this attraction and think it’s a must do for first-time visitors.
It’s hard to express how much I love Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway. This surprise attraction ultimately left me speechless. This attraction is part of Genie+. Additionally, you might try to ride it later in the evening when wait times drop.
You might also enjoy some of these other attractions at Hollywood Studios.
- Frozen Sing-Along Celebration
- Beauty and the Beast Live on Stage
- Lightning McQueen’s Racing Academy Review
- Muppet*Vision 3D
- Smugglers Run Ride Review
Resorts Gal specializes in providing Disney World Hotel Reviews. Here are a few favorites only a Skyliner ride away from Hollywood Studios:
- Disney’s Riviera Resort Review
- Caribbean Beach Resort Review
- Disney’s Pop Century Resort Review
- Disney’s Art of Animation Resort Review
Or you can browse the entire list of Walt Disney World Resorts.
What Do You Think?
Have you experiencced Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway at Disney’s Hollywood Studios? Did you enjoy this attraction? Feel free to leave your thoughts or questions below in the comments.