Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse

Explore the ultimate treehouse—and behold breathtaking views—in this attraction inspired by the classic Disney film.

“For many days we had been tempest-tossed.”

Following an 1805 shipwreck, the Swiss Family Robinson found themselves on a desert island somewhere in the Pacific. After dreams of being rescued were vanquished, the family raised up their sleeves and went to work constructing a beautiful home in one of the largest trees available, both for comfort and safety from the island’s predators. This attraction affords guests the opportunity to explore the family’s handiwork, complete with wooden bridges, cannon outposts, and private-ish living quarters high in the canopies overlooking Adventureland. The accoutrements are well designed and the first half of the journey contains its own “wienie” with a waterwheel propelling a rope-and-pulley system containing bamboo “buckets” that refill themselves and carry water to an unknown area high in the structure, subtly inviting guests to move onward and upward to discover where and how that water is being used. It is a pleasant journey, though guests with a fear of heights might want to double-think their commitment before proceeding too far into the adventure.

Behind the Schemes:

Swiss writer Johann David Wyss first published The Swiss Family Robinson or, Adventures on a Desert Island in 1812 and the work was met with positive reviews. An old-style adventure story, the book didn’t worry about important scientific details such as flora and fauna that doesn’t co-exist. (Disney’s 1960 live-action film based on the book stayed true to this formula by throwing a lone tiger onto the deserted island.) Lessons in hard work and determination were the focus of the work as the four Robinson children (three in the film) grow into stronger individuals as they face the uncertainties that fill their future in an uncaring wilderness.

Imagineers constructed the roughly 70-foot-tall tree, dubbing it Disneyodendron semperflorens grandis, aka the “large everblooming Disney tree. Full of steel, concrete, stucco, and an assortment of other materials, the structure is deftly camouflaged and is almost easy to miss as it makes its cozy home on the edge of Adventureland’s walkway. Confused guests can often be seen scanning the area to try and locate the treehouse that they see on their park maps.

Adding the attraction to Disneyland made all the sense in the world as the film was a major box office success and the relatively new theme park would greatly benefit from audience recognition and provide the park with a nice freshening up from something new and well recognized.

The film is available on Disney+ and was one of the first on the streaming service to be slapped with a warning that the movie contains racial stereotypes (the Chinese pirates) and the portrayal of female characters as troublesome when seen through a modern lens.

“Lenses?” you say? Swiss Family Robinson was the first Walt Disney film to be shot with Panavision lenses. The transfers are breathtaking, much like to view afforded to guests once they ascend into the treetops of the attraction itself.

Reality Check:

The Swiss Family Treehouse may be one of the only Disney attractions that prominently displays a Bible. (This can be found in the room containing the organ.)

The real tree used in the feature film can still be found on the island of Tobago behind an auto parts store.

The family was shipwrecked somewhere in the East Indies while trying to reach their new home in Australia. The movie states their reason for relocating was to escape the Napoleonic Wars that were raging through Europe at the time.