Disney weenies draw you deep into the park. The castle pulled you down Main St USA and as you turned to the left and started into Adventureland you would see the tall Tiki structure in the distance pulling you deeper and deeper into the jungle. Past the Swiss Family Treehouse and the backside of water. But what’s that you hear off in the distance, someone calling to you, a mermaid perhaps….
One of the ways that Disney got people interested in an attraction was the use of barker birds. Both Pirates of the Caribbean and the Enchanted Tiki Room had these barker birds enticing you to come inside and see what it was all about. “Avast there, ya lubbers! This be the place, if ya be seekin’ adventure and salty old pirates! (squawk) Salty old pirates, salty old pirates … (whistle) We pillage and plunder, rifle and loot, yo ho, me hearties, yo ho! (squawk). “Stop walking while I’m squawking! Aloha! It is time for me to tell you all about The Tiki Room.” These birds were such a hit in some cases they would draw their own crowds causing traffic jams and unfortunately their removal.
At the Magic Kingdom, the barker bird stood outside the Pirates of the Caribbean until the rehab in 2006 when it was removed and moved to Downtown Disney (Disney Springs) in the pirates section of The World of Disney.
Here is a look at the Pirates barker….
I always just thought the barker birds were just there for added entertainment, but you’re right. They do draw you into the attraction! I love the barker birds, especially the one at Pirates. It’s sad to see him not there anymore.
I agree the Pirates one is the one I remember the most. I was trying to tell my son about it on our last trip. Someone said that it used to be at the end of the attraction but it kept people from getting on the belt to come back up as they wanted to listen to him.