Disney announced today that Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway will be coming to Disneyland’s Toontown in 2022. The attraction will be a clone of the soon-to-open Hollywood Studios flagship attraction and will feature Mickey and Minnie with a style that will invoke the iconic Mickey shorts. For Disney’s full post, click here.

Today’s news is hardly a surprise, as this move has been rumored for several months. Runaway Railway makes even more sense in Toontown compared to Disney’s Hollywood Studios and will tie the park together nicely. The attraction is a dark ride that will utilize screens and animatronics, taking guests on a wild adventure with Mickey and Minnie. The ride will also include an original song and plot.

We are bullish on this addition to Disneyland. Neither Melissa and I are fans of Toontown and have wanted a change for years. While this isn’t a change to the land, it does significantly improve the Toontown, giving it two interesting attractions that both fit in the area. I still don’t love the land’s aesthetic but the attractions fit there and Roger Rabbit’s CarToon Spin is underrated. With another excellent attraction coming to the land, Toontown will be revitalized and worthy of your time.

It is somewhat unprecedented to have an attraction that has not yet opened on one coast being cloned on the other coast. Hopefully, this means Disney is very excited about what will debut in Hollywood Studios. Unfortunately, this announcement came with the news that Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway’s debut has officially been pushed back to the spring of 2020 in Walt Disney World. I have no idea why this is the case and won’t speculate, but that news is unfortunate. We had hoped that the ride would open alongside Star Wars – Galaxy’s Edge to help increase Hollywood Studios capacity.

As for cloning it before it opens, I think this has more to do with fit than anything. Having the only ride inspired by Mickey Mouse in the original Disneyland is a no-brainer. Along with that, adding the attraction will only bolster Disneyland’s excellent roster and push the park to nearly 40 attractions. Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway being in Toontown keeps the expansion pad in Fantasyland available for the often rumored Frozen-land or any other project that they could take on. Disneyland Resort is in the midst of unprecedented expansion (at least in the last few decades) and I don’t see that slowing down anytime soon.

The one negative about the clone from Walt Disney World is how the east coast is losing much of its originality. In the coming years, Hollywood Studios will have four of its attractions at Disneyland Resort with another two having been replaced. Meanwhile, all of Magic Kingdom’s marquee attractions are copied at Disneyland along with Epcot’s best attraction, Soarin’ being at California Adventure. Yes, the Walt Disney World is still unique and undergoing even more expansion than Disneyland but the approach of copying attractions on both coasts is one to keep an eye on.

Overall, we think Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway will be an excellent addition to Disneyland, revitalizing Toontown in the process. Adding a Mickey Mouse ride to Disney’s original park is an obvious, but needed, move. The downside of the announcement came for the other coast, with the attraction’s opening date delayed. That will hurt Hollywood Studios in the short-term and we are personally bummed since we’ll be there in November. In the long-term though, delaying the opening is not a big deal. We’re excited about this announcement and eager to see what comes next to the resort.

What are your thoughts on the Disneyland adding Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway? Let us know, along with any questions you have, in the comments below. Planning a trip to a Disney resort? Check out our trip planning guides to help you get started! If you enjoy what you’re reading, please subscribe to the blog via email or WordPress along with liking our social media pages. You can find all of those options on the right side of this page. Thank you for reading, we really appreciate it!