Mickey and Minnie's Runaway Railway Is Open at Disney World — and We Went for a Test Ride

Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway opens March 4 at Disney’s Hollywood Studios at Walt Disney World in Florida, inviting guests to experience the world of Mickey and friends in the first-ever ride themed to Disney’s most iconic characters. Step into a Mickey short and take a ride on the Runamuck Railroad with Goofy as your conductor as you’re immersed in the world of the mouse that started it all. With a catchy theme song, inventive visual effects, and more hidden Mickeys than any other attraction, this ride is a new classic, perfect for all ages. Travel + Leisure had the opportunity to try it out before it opens to the public — here’s what you need to know about this vibrant ride.

The experience starts when you enter the Chinese Theater for the premiere of Perfect Picnic, the newest Mickey short from Walt Disney Imagineering and Disney Television Animation. The queue has been refreshed since The Great Movie Ride (which previously occupied this space) closed in 2017, but it retains its Old Hollywood glamour — with a few new Mickey details, of course.

Guests enter a small theater for the pre-show — the premiere of the short film — watching as Mickey and Minnie set off for their picnic, singing, “absolutely nothing will go wrong.” In true Disney fashion, things go predictably awry as Goofy’s train explodes, effectively blowing a hole in the movie screen that reveals a pathway to the ride loading area. Guests literally enter the world of Disney animation as they cross through the movie screen, and the ride takes them through various scenes as Mickey and Minnie attempt to find the perfect spot for a picnic, running into tornadoes, a waterfall, and other wacky obstacles along the way.

The ride combines iconic Disney characters with new ride technologies (like a trackless ride system) to create an attraction that’s sure to be a modern classic among the ranks of Splash Mountain and Pirates of the Caribbean. The song composed for the attraction similarly capitalizes on Disney nostalgia while also providing guests with something new to hum as they walk through the parks. Expectations were high for Disney’s first-ever Mickey-themed ride, and executive creative director Kevin Rafferty, composer Christopher Willis, and the rest of the Disney team certainly created an attraction that delivers — it’s sure to delight guests for years to come.

This opening marks the end of a multi-year project transforming Disney’s Hollywood Studios. While the park’s focus on blockbuster films and movie magic remains, the additions of Toy Story Land, Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, and finally, Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway put the emphasis on immersive experiences based on beloved stories. This opening comes just a few months after the opening of Rise of the Resistance, largely regarded as one of the best Disney rides to date.

The West Coast iteration of this ride is set to open in Mickey’s Toontown in Disneyland in 2022.