As a child, each of us had favorite cartoons that we watched, imagining ourselves in the shoes of the main characters, dreaming of going to a magical land, a fairy-tale castle and an enchanted forest. And today we propose to go on a journey through real fortresses, palaces and abandoned cities that inspired the creators of Disney cartoons. To see Sleeping Beauty’s castle, visit the tower where Rapunzel languished, explore the castle of Atlantis and walk the streets of the village where Belle lived from Beauty and the Beast, you should visit these places.
1. Abbey of Mont Saint-Michel in France – a castle with a tower where Rapunzel is imprisoned
Photo: © Disney
The prototype of the castle from the three-dimensional cartoon “Tangled” was the island-fortress of Mont Saint-Michel (Le Mont-Saint-Michel) in Normandy, northern France. The abbey and the town around it have existed on the island since the 8th century, and today they are listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and are considered one of the most popular attractions in France. From the 14th century fortress walls you can observe the ebb and flow of the tides, which cut the island off from the mainland every day. At the top of the cliff is the Abbey of Mont Saint-Michel – a unique place with a huge cathedral, knights’ halls, covered galleries and crypts built in the 10th-15th centuries.
2. Taj Mahal in India – the palace of the Sultan in “Aladdin”
Photo: © Disney
The creators of the cartoon “Aladdin” were inspired to create the magical city of Agrabah by the Indian city of Agra, where on the banks of the Jumna River is one of the wonders of the world – the mausoleum-mosque of the Taj Mahal. It was built in 1653 by Padishah Shah Jahan in memory of his beloved wife Mumtaz Mahal, who died in childbirth. The tombs of the Shah and his wife rest in the main hall of the mosque. The Taj Mahal combines elements of Indian, Persian and Arabic architectural styles. And its walls are made of white translucent marble, inlaid with gems, changing color depending on the lighting.
3. Angkor Wat temple complex in Cambodia – “Atlantis: The Lost World”
Photo: © Disney
Atlantis in the cartoon “Atlantis: The Lost World” has a real-life prototype – the world’s largest religious complex, Angkor Wat, located in the northeast of Cambodia, 5 kilometers from the city of Siem Reap. The huge Hindu temple dedicated to the god Vishnu and the buildings around it were built by King Suryavarman II in the 12th century. Already in the 15th century, the temple ceased to be used and was abandoned. It was rediscovered by European travelers in the 19th century and has since become so popular that it is featured on the Cambodian flag and coat of arms. Angkor Wat is a unique temple complex with huge bas-reliefs on the theme of Hindu mythology and Khmer history and hundreds of sculptures of gods and celestial maidens.
4. Alcazar Palace in Segovia, Spain – the palace of the king in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
Photo: © Disney
The creators of the cartoon were inspired by the Alcázar de Segovia, the palace-fortress of the Spanish kings in the city of Segovia, in the center of Spain, to create the castle where Snow White’s father and evil stepmother lived. This palace, built in the 12th century, perches on a cliff at the confluence of two rivers. It was built by the Moors as a fortress, then captured by the Spaniards, was a royal residence, and is now a museum. The palace was built in the Spanish-Moorish style; the oldest buildings are just under a thousand years old. There are portraits, furniture and a collection of weapons of the Spanish kings. The throne room, like many others, has been preserved as it was created in the 15th century for the coronation of royalty.
5. Angel Falls in Venezuela – Paradise Falls from the cartoon “Up”
Photo: © Disney
In the 2009 Oscar-winning animated feature film Up, the main characters dream of going to South America and seeing Paradise Falls all their lives. To create it, the studio’s animators spent several weeks at the Salto Ángel, the world’s largest waterfall at 979 meters high. It is located in Venezuela, in the Canaima National Park,
where it falls down from Mount Auyan-tepui. The waterfall is so high that most of the water breaks up into small drops and becomes fog before it reaches the ground. Thanks to this, several kilometers of forest around the waterfall are constantly shrouded in thick fog.
6. The Incan city of Machu Picchu – the Cuzco Empire in The Emperor’s New Groove
Photo: © Disney
The creators of the cartoon “The Emperor’s New Groove” were inspired to create the village where Pacha lives by the abandoned Inca city of Machu Picchu, located in Peru, 6 kilometers from the settlement of Aguas Calientes. This amazing city was built on the top of a mountain range at an altitude of 2450 meters in 1440. Abandoned by residents in 1532 for an unknown reason, it was abandoned for 400 years. It was discovered in perfect condition by American researchers in 1911. The city has a palace and houses of nobles, a temple where human sacrifices were made, residential buildings and towers for astronomy. Neither the real name of the city, nor the number of inhabitants, nor why it was abandoned is still unknown.
7. Neuschwanstein Castle in Germany – the king’s castle in Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella
Photo: © Disney
Schloss Neuschwanstein,
one of the most beautiful castles in Europe, has appeared in cartoons more than once. It became Walt Disney’s inspiration for the palaces in Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty, and is also featured on the Disney studio’s splash screen and logo. The castle stands on a cliff surrounded by forest, near the city of Füssen in Germany, near the Austrian border. What distinguishes Neuschwanstein from all the other castles that have inspired cartoonists is that it is not a real medieval castle, but a romantic fantasy of King Ludwig II, realized in 1886. The monarch, who loved fairy tales and adored Wagner’s operas, decided to build himself a real knight’s castle in the medieval style, with halls decorated with paintings and tapestries based on his favorite sagas. Unfortunately, Ludwig II did not have time to see his dream come true – he died when the castle was not yet completed. During World War II, the Reichsbank gold was stored in it, and now it houses a museum.
8. Dunnottar Castle in Scotland – Dunbroch Castle in Brave
Photo: © Disney
Dunbroch Castle from the cartoon was created in the image of the medieval Dunnottar Castle,
standing on an inaccessible cliff surrounded by the sea on the east coast of Scotland. The first fortress was built on this site already in the 7th century. Over the past centuries, the castle was besieged by the Vikings, the Scots and the troops of the English king; it was the headquarters of the resistance and the royal residence. In Dunnotara, 11 buildings from the 13th century, several secret passages and caves have been preserved. The castle is also famous for its ghosts – most often tourists encounter a girl in a green dress, a Viking and a huge greyhound.
9. Villages of the Alsace region in France – the village from “Beauty and the Beast”
Photo: © Disney
The prototype of Belle’s native village was the French region of Alsace on the border with Germany, known for its white wine and fachwerk-style architecture. It is not known exactly which town or village inspired the creators of the cartoon, so we advise you to visit Riquewihr,
Bergheim,
Mittelbergheim and Eguisheim,
which are included in the list of “The most beautiful villages in France”. In each of them you will find colorful medieval houses, a mill on a river, a central square with a fountain, wine cellars and endless grape fields.
10. St. Olav’s Church in Balestrand, Norway – the church in Frozen
Photo: © Disney
The church from the cartoon, where Elsa’s coronation takes place, almost in detail repeats the wooden church of St. Olafs kirke,
built in 1897 in the city of Balestrand in Norway. The church imitates the style of medieval frame Scandinavian churches. The outside is decorated with spiers, a turret and carved dragon heads, and the inside is decorated with wood carvings and dozens of stained glass windows. After the release of the cartoon, St. Olaf’s Church became very popular among tourists, especially among couples from all over the world who seek to get married here.
11. Manchac Swamps in Louisiana, USA – swamps in The Princess and the Frog
Photo: © Disney
The cartoon “The Princess and the Frog” takes place in New Orleans, where key locations replicate real-life streets and houses, as well as in the swamps, where the main characters meet new friends. Cartoon swamps with huge moss-covered trees and alligators hiding in the murky water exist in the real world – there are hundreds of them in the state of Louisiana. The gloomy Manchac Swamp is especially popular among tourists,
lying near New Orleans. Exploring these places alone is dangerous, but for tourists there are night and day boat tours, during which the guide tells the history of the city, surrounding area and creepy tales about swamps, ghosts and sorcerers.
12. The Chateau de Chambord in France is the castle of the beast in Beauty and the Beast
Photo: © Disney
The creators of the cartoon were inspired by different regions of France. The Beast’s castle was based on Chateau de Chambord, one of the most beautiful castles in the Loire Valley. It was built by order of King Francis I in the 16th century in the French Renaissance style, and is now listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The roof of the castle is unique – there, among dozens of carved turrets, decorated chimneys and medallions, there is a large terrace. The central spiral staircase was designed by Leonardo da Vinci, and all 426 rooms of the castle are luxuriously decorated with an abundance of gold, carvings and stucco.
13. Kauai Island, Hawaiian Islands – Hawaii in “Lilo and Stitch”
Photo: © Disney
In the cartoon, the girl Lilo lives in Hawaii; on which island is not specified in the cartoon. The real prototype of the cartoon island was Kauai, the oldest of the Hawaiian islands, in the center of which rises an extinct volcano. This place is considered one of the rainiest in the world. Most of the island’s coastline consists of sandy beaches surrounded by palm groves. And the creators of the cartoon were inspired to create Lilo’s hometown, Cokaua, by the city of Hanapepe,
lying in a valley with waterfalls.
14. Chillon Castle in Switzerland – Prince Eric’s castle in The Little Mermaid
Photo: © Disney
The prototype of the castle of Prince Eric, with whom the Little Mermaid fell in love, was the medieval castle of Chillon (Chateau de Chillon),
standing on the shore of Lake Geneva, 3 kilometers from the city of Montreux in Switzerland. The castle was very popular in the 18th and 19th centuries – Victor Hugo, Alexandra Dumas and George Byron wrote about it. Chillon stands on a cliff overlooking the lake, and is connected to the shore by a stone bridge. Most of the castle buildings were erected in the 12th century, some towers were completed in the 13th and 14th centuries. We recommend visiting inside the castle – there you will find perfectly preserved medieval halls and a chapel, as well as a magnificent view of Lake Geneva from the windows.
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Text: Olga Perepelitsa
