Disney Tips Your Guide To A Great Disney Vacation
There are attractions at Disneyland that function as landmarks in the truest sense of the word. Structures so iconic and so permanently woven into the visual and emotional identity of the park that their presence on the skyline is part of what makes Disneyland feel like itself. The Matterhorn is one of those ride structures, and it has been since it opened on June 14, 1959, 67 years ago this weekend. The 147-foot artificial mountain that Walt Disney built after falling in love with the real Swiss peak while filming Third Man on the Mountain stands as one of the most recognizable silhouettes in theme park history, visible from points across Disneyland and photographed by more guests than almost any other structure in the park.
It was also the world’s first tubular-steel roller coaster and the first roller coaster-style attraction at Disneyland, a distinction that places it in the broader history of amusement parks, well beyond its significance as a Disney icon. Sixty-seven years of operation, two bobsled tracks running simultaneously through the interior of the mountain, one on the Fantasyland side and one on the Tomorrowland side, and the Abominable Snowman lurking in the icy darkness waiting to terrify guests who forgot he was coming. The Matterhorn Bobsleds is genuinely irreplaceable, which is why its upcoming refurbishment closure has been generating significant attention from Disneyland guests who have summer trips on the calendar.
The good news, and it is genuinely good news, is that the closure is short and the reopening date for the ride has now been confirmed.
The Closure and Reopening Timeline for the Ride
According to the Disneyland park calendar, the Matterhorn Bobsleds will close for refurbishment on July 20, 2026. Guests visiting on July 19 will have their last opportunity to ride before the closure begins. The reopening date is confirmed for July 24, just four days after the closure begins, making this one of the shorter refurbishment windows an attraction of this significance has ever been given.
For guests with Disneyland trips planned during the July 20 to July 23 window, the closure should be factored into their itinerary. For guests arriving on or after July 24, the Matterhorn will be operational again. The brevity of the ride closure is notable given the age and complexity of the attraction, suggesting the refurbishment is targeted maintenance rather than a comprehensive overhaul.
Guests who have the Matterhorn as a non-negotiable priority and whose travel dates are flexible should aim for July 19 as the last confirmed operating day before the ride closure, or July 24 as the first confirmed day of the reopening.
Why the Ride Turning 67 Makes This Moment Significant
The Matterhorn Bobsleds officially turns 67 years old on June 14, 2026, this weekend, which makes the timing of this refurbishment announcement a genuinely interesting piece of the attraction’s ongoing story. The ride has been operating continuously since 1959, with periodic closures for maintenance and updates, and the commitment Disney makes to keeping it running reflects how central the attraction remains to the Disneyland experience even in an era of far more technologically advanced rides.
Walt Disney’s connection to the original Matterhorn began during the filming of Third Man on the Mountain in Switzerland. He returned to Disneyland so taken with the peak that he decided to build his own version, starting with a forested 20-foot mound called Holiday Hill that he covered with artificial snow and gradually reimagined into the 147-foot structure that guests encounter today. The attraction opened as part of a significant expansion of the park’s ride offerings and established Disneyland’s reputation for engineering ambition, a reputation that has defined the park’s development ever since.
The Broader Disneyland Ride Closure Picture This Summer
The Matterhorn refurbishment lands in the context of a summer 2026 closure schedule at Disneyland that is heavier than average across both parks. Several major attractions are currently offline with open-ended timelines. Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters closed on April 13 and reopened on June 12. Pirates of the Caribbean closed May 4, also with no confirmed return. At Disney California Adventure, Inside Out Emotional Whirlwind went offline in January 2026 and has not reopened yet. Silly Symphony Swings closed April 27, and Soarin’ Over California transitions to Soarin’ Across America on July 2 as part of the America 250 celebration.
The Avengers Campus expansion has also rerouted guest navigation between Avengers Campus and Cars Land, with both areas still accessible via the Performance Corridor. Guests planning Disney California Adventure days should factor the altered walking routes into their park navigation.
The Matterhorn closure adds another major attraction to the summer unavailable column, but the confirmed four-day window separating the July 20 closure from the July 24 reopening means the impact on summer guests is significantly more limited than it might have been with a longer or open-ended timeline. For a 67-year-old attraction that remains one of Disneyland’s most visited and most loved experiences, four days offline is a remarkably small ask.
The mountain will be back before most guests have time to miss it.
