

Originally conceived as a walk through wax museum attraction, The Pirates Of The Caribbean has long been considered one of the most immersive dark rides in the world of Theme Parks.

When the attraction opened, Disney found the fake skeletons that the Imagineers had made to be missing “something”. It was then that they decided to use real human skeletons to represent the dead pirates. No one knows when these former cadaver skeletons from UCLA were swapped out with fake ones. But today, only one set of bones are the real thing (or so the legend goes.)

According to some longtime cast members, look for the skeleton in the big bed as you sail through the cavern. Behind his head is a skull and crossbones that is noticeably darker than the other bones in the attraction. This has never been acknowledged by Disney but one can only imagine.



Pirates of the Caribbean was the last attraction that Walt Disney worked on before he died in 1966. The cost to build it was over $8 million, coincidentally, this was the same amount the United States paid for acquiring New Orleans as part of the Louisiana Purchase.



Over the year’s the attraction has has several updates. Actor Johnny Depp starred as Captain Jack Sparrow appeared in The Pirates Of The Caribbean films. Captain Jack appears in the attraction several times.


The Pirates themselves became more politically correct over time. The infamous Wench Auction scene now features the townsfolk bringing their valuables to the auction master to be sold.

Helping sell off the town’s prized possessions is Red. You may remember her as one of the brides up for auction. Now, she has joined the pirate raiders and is helping with the proceedings.




If you’d like to join this band of marauding pirates, just take a visit to Disneyland.