Walking into 'downtown' Radiator Springs

The ‘largest piece’ of a five-year expansion at Disney California Adventure Park, Cars Land looks set to drive a whole new legion of fans to Disneyland Resort.

A re-creation of Radiator Springs, the setting for the Pixar film ‘Cars’, Cars Land attempts to capture the authentic feel of Route 66 with three-dimensional versions of familiar landmarks from the hit movie.

Aiming to make visitors feel like they are stepping right into one of the animated Cars pictures, the ‘cutest little town in Carburetor County’ features well-known ‘car-acters’ from the film as well as an impressive neon-lit nightscape.

Along with new attractions Buena Vista Street and the Carthay Circle Theatre, the 12-acre Cars Land will officially open its doors to the public on June 15.  

Walt Disney Imagineering executive producer and vice president said the “magic” of the parks was that it took visitors “to places you can't otherwise go to”.

“As you walk down the street and you walk towards the mountain the real world goes away, and Cars Land reaches out and hugs you,” she explained.

“You are surrounded by Radiator Springs and you are in the middle of a movie.”

To stay true to the integrity behind the creation, Pixar and Walt Disney Animation Studios chief creative officer John Lasseter asked his ‘Imagineers’ to actually travel Route 66.

“It’s feeling it, seeing the light and hearing the stories of the people on the road,” he said.

“We were all focused on the storytelling to create the home of Lighting McQueen, of Mater, Doc Hudson, all of the residents of Radiator Springs, and to make it as authentic as we can.”

Walt Disney Company chairman and chief executive, Bob Iger, called the latest offering from Disney the “crown jewel” of the theme park’s expansion.

“It’s also a spectacular example of our ability to take our characters and stories and bring them to life in new and unexpected ways,” Mr Iger said prior to the attraction’s red carpet launch earlier in the week.

Stay tuned for more from Disneyland Resort as e-Travel Blackboard takes a walk down the park’s other new offering, Buena Vista Street.