Critter Country is one of the "themed lands" at
Disneyland Park and
Tokyo Disneyland
(local nickname ''TDL'') is a theme park at the Tokyo Disney Resort in Urayasu, Chiba Prefecture, Japan, near Tokyo. Its main gate is directly adjacent to both Maihama Station and Tokyo Disneyland Station. It was the first Disney park to ...
run by
The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on Octobe ...
and
The Oriental Land Company
is a Japanese leisure and tourism corporation headquartered in Urayasu, Chiba, Japan where it also owns and operates the Tokyo Disney Resort. The company operates in three segments, divided as theme parks, hotels, and other business.
Oriental ...
. It was originally designed as Bear Country at Disneyland Park in 1972, with the
Country Bear Jamboree as its centerpiece. It was later renamed Critter Country when
Splash Mountain opened in 1989.
Disneyland
History
Critter Country was originally named Indian Village.
[
] From 1956–1971, this section of
Frontierland featured
Native American shows and attractions, including the Indian War Canoes.
The area was rebuilt as Disneyland's seventh themed land, Bear Country, which opened on March 4, 1972.
The new four-acre land, Disneyland's first major expansion since the 1969 opening of
The Haunted Mansion
The Haunted Mansion is a dark ride attraction located at Disneyland, Magic Kingdom, and Tokyo Disneyland. The haunted house attraction features a ride-through tour in Omnimover vehicles called "Doom Buggies", and a walk-through show is displa ...
, cost $8 million to build.
Located in the northwest quadrant of the park, Bear Country was themed to the forests of the
Pacific Northwest
The Pacific Northwest (sometimes Cascadia, or simply abbreviated as PNW) is a geographic region in western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Thou ...
.
Country Bear Jamboree, which opened three weeks later, was the new land's centerpiece attraction.
Bear Country was also home to the Golden Bear Lodge, an eatery which was renamed Hungry Bear Restaurant in 1977,
the Mile Long Bar refreshment center, Teddi Barra's Swingin' Arcade, and
Davy Crockett's Explorer Canoes
Davy Crockett Explorer Canoes is a free-floating canoe experience at several Disney theme parks. The oldest of the rides is located at the Disneyland park in Anaheim, California. Boarding from the park's Critter Country section, up to twenty vi ...
.
Bear Country was renamed Critter Country in 1988 in anticipation of
Splash Mountain's January 1989 opening.
Critter Country was inspired by a quote from the 1946 film ''
Song of the South
''Song of the South'' is a 1946 American live-action/animated musical drama film directed by Harve Foster and Wilfred Jackson; produced by Walt Disney and released by RKO Radio Pictures. It is based on the Uncle Remus stories as adapted b ...
'': "Where the folks are closer to the critters and the critters are closer to the folks."
The land maintained some of its bear themes while incorporating other critters with their huts, nests, and burrows scattered throughout.
Some of the land's shops were renamed to de-emphasize the bear presence; for example, Ursus H. Bear's Wilderness Outpost became Crocodile Mercantile (which itself became Pooh Corner in 1996).
The
Country Bear Jamboree closed in 2001 and was replaced two years later by
The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh.
On roofs of buildings, such as the Briar Patch Store, there are small-scale critter houses of
Winnie the Pooh
Winnie-the-Pooh, also called Pooh Bear and Pooh, is a fictional Anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic teddy bear created by English author A. A. Milne and English illustrator E. H. Shepard.
The first collection of stories about the character w ...
and Piglet. Various types of trees have been planted to create a forestry atmosphere. Critter Country is somewhat small when compared to
Disneyland
Disneyland is a theme park in Anaheim, California. Opened in 1955, it was the first theme park opened by The Walt Disney Company and the only one designed and constructed under the direct supervision of Walt Disney. Disney initially envisio ...
's larger lands. This westernmost area features a single pathway that wraps around the footprint of
Splash Mountain, starting near the
Haunted Mansion
The Haunted Mansion is a dark ride attraction located at Disneyland, Magic Kingdom, and Tokyo Disneyland. The haunted house attraction features a ride-through tour in Omnimover vehicles called "Doom Buggies", and a walk-through show is displa ...
and terminating in a series of shops nestled against the Splash Mountain show building.
In October 2016, the area closed temporarily. Critter Country reopened on November 4, 2016.
On June 25, 2020, Disney announced that they will be reworking Splash Mountain to a new ride based on the 2009 animated film ''
The Princess and the Frog
''The Princess and the Frog'' is a 2009 American animated musical fantasy romantic comedy film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures. The 49th Disney animated feature film, it is loosely based on th ...
.'' The project had been in discussion since 2019 and is being overseen by Walt Disney Imagineer Senior Creative Producer Charita Carter with Splash Mountain's original creator
Tony Baxter serving as a creative adviser.
Attractions and entertainment
*
Davy Crockett Explorer Canoes
Davy Crockett Explorer Canoes is a free-floating canoe experience at several Disney theme parks. The oldest of the rides is located at the Disneyland park in Anaheim, California. Boarding from the park's Critter Country section, up to twenty vis ...
(1956-present)
*
The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (2003-present)
*
Splash Mountain (1989-present)
Upcoming attractions and entertainment
*
Tiana's Bayou Adventure
Tiana's Bayou Adventure is an upcoming log flume attraction at Disneyland and Magic Kingdom in the United States. It is based on Disney's 2009 film ''The Princess and the Frog''. The attraction is scheduled to open in 2024, and will be a redesign ...
(Opening in 2024)
Former attractions and entertainment
*
Country Bear Playhouse (1972–2001)
* Teddi Barra's Swingin' Arcade (1972–2003)
Restaurants and refreshments
*
Hungry Bear Restaurant
Hungry Bear Restaurant (also called the Golden Bear Lodge) is an American-style restaurant in the Critter Country land at Disneyland Park in Anaheim, California in the United States. There is also a location at Tokyo Disneyland. The restaurant is ...
* Critter Country Fruit Cart
* Harbour Galley
* The Snackin' Place
Former restaurants
* Golden Bear Lodge (1972–1977)
* Mile Long Bar (1972–1989)
* Brer Bar (1989–2003)
Shops
* Pooh Corner
* The Briar Patch
Former shops
* Indian Trading Post (1962–1988)
* Ursus H. Bear's Wilderness Outpost (1972–1988)
* Crocodile Mercantile (1988–2003)
* Critter Country Plush (1996–2003)
* Professor Barnaby Owl’s Photographic Art Studio (1992–2020)
Tokyo Disneyland
When
Splash Mountain opened at
Tokyo Disneyland
(local nickname ''TDL'') is a theme park at the Tokyo Disney Resort in Urayasu, Chiba Prefecture, Japan, near Tokyo. Its main gate is directly adjacent to both Maihama Station and Tokyo Disneyland Station. It was the first Disney park to ...
, Critter Country was specifically created for it. The only other attraction in this area is
Beaver Brothers Explorer Canoes
Davy Crockett Explorer Canoes is a free-floating canoe experience at several Disney theme parks. The oldest of the rides is located at the Disneyland park in Anaheim, California. Boarding from the park's Critter Country section, up to twenty vis ...
(formerly
Davy Crockett's Explorer Canoes
Davy Crockett Explorer Canoes is a free-floating canoe experience at several Disney theme parks. The oldest of the rides is located at the Disneyland park in Anaheim, California. Boarding from the park's Critter Country section, up to twenty vi ...
in
Westernland
Frontierland is one of the "themed lands" at the many Disneyland-style parks run by Disney around the world. Themed to the American Frontier of the 19th century, Frontierlands are home to cowboys and pioneers, saloons, red rock buttes and g ...
). Because of the land's small size and the popularity of
Splash Mountain, Critter Country is extremely crowded throughout the day. The
Country Bear Jamboree is located in
Westernland
Frontierland is one of the "themed lands" at the many Disneyland-style parks run by Disney around the world. Themed to the American Frontier of the 19th century, Frontierlands are home to cowboys and pioneers, saloons, red rock buttes and g ...
. Characters from backstory material written for the American versions of Splash Mountain to explain how Chickapin Hill came to be flooded are visualized within Tokyo's Critter Country, with the Beaver Brothers having built a dam that was destroyed by an exploding
moonshine
Moonshine is high-proof liquor that is usually produced illegally. The name was derived from a tradition of creating the alcohol during the nighttime, thereby avoiding detection. In the first decades of the 21st century, commercial dist ...
still owned by saloon owner Rackety Raccoon.
Attractions and entertainment
*
Splash Mountain (1992-present)
*
Beaver Brothers Explorer Canoes
Davy Crockett Explorer Canoes is a free-floating canoe experience at several Disney theme parks. The oldest of the rides is located at the Disneyland park in Anaheim, California. Boarding from the park's Critter Country section, up to twenty vis ...
(1983-present)
Restaurants and refreshments
* Grandma Sara's Kitchen
* Rackety's Raccoon Saloon
Shops
* Hoot & Holler Hideout
* Splashdown Photos
* Critter Country Plush
See also
*
References
{{Tokyo Disneyland
Themed areas in Walt Disney Parks and Resorts
Disneyland
Tokyo Disneyland
1988 establishments in California
1992 establishments in Japan