All aboard Disneyland Paris Nautilus ! High-res pictures and Videos

After yesterday's article about the bad condition of the Nautilus - the exterior part - i thought you might be pleased to have a look at the inside of the submarine with great high-res pictures. All the pictures are high-res wallpaper pictures, which mean they will do great wallpaper for your computer. Double-click on each of them to see and get them in high-res. However, please note that pictures of the inside may be a little bit less sharp than the one of the exterior, as no tripod was used. You will also find at the end of the article a walk-through video filmed inside the sub as well as three others videos showing amazing models replicas of the Nautilus including one going under water like the real one!

Opened in 1994 thanks to the beautiful work of Discoveryland show-producer Tim Delaney and Nautilus specialist Tom Scherman along with dozens of WDI artists and sculptors. The attraction is a delight for any Nautilus fan. Some of you, dear readers, never had the luck to visit DLP, and you should like today's visit of the Nautilus walk-through.

Here we go, and let's begin by some exterior views.






Before the entrance, guests can have a look to this Nautilus map.



Here is a picture of the entrance hallway where you can hear the voice of Captain Nemo welcoming you.



The entrance of the submarine, with the treasure room in the back.



The first room is Captain Nemo's bedroom. Here is different views of it.





The next one is the beautiful map room...




....where guests can also see a map of Vulcania Island.



Next room is the diving room - the diving suits were made by Tom Scherman himself.



We arrive then, in the famous Grand Salon of Captain Nemo where guests can watch a giant squid attack...





...and hear the sound of the organ...



...where Captain Nemo appear regularly.



Right behind is the Machine room...




And then the exit...



Guests go back to the surface by walking through this hallway.



Beautiful view of Discoveryland await them as soon as they go out.



Let's end with more pictures of the Nautilus outside.






I did recently a video showing you the whole Nautilus and you can watch it either below or also in larger size on my Tom Scherman site where you'll find also some panoramic pictures HERE.




Now, as we're talking about the Nautilus here is a video of what is probably the best Nautilus model i've ever seen, with mechanical parts, etc...done by a great modeler named Bob Martin, don't miss it!



Bob has already received the fantastic Nautilus replica released by EFX collectibles, and he's even doing some enhancements on it! Since two years i've let you know about this EFX Nautilus replica, the production took quite a while but it looks like a great collectible piece!




And guess what, he also did a Nautilus which is not only floating and moving in the water but also diving under water like the real one! Check this on this next video. Bob Martin also have a web site that you can check HERE.




Hope you've enjoyed this Nautilus visit and, by the way, there is dozens more of even more beautiful pictures of the Nautilus in the Disneyland Paris book that will be reprint for sure next month, and that's one more good reason to pre-order your collector copy right now, specially considering that during the pre-order period which will end in a few weeks you also have a 20% discount on what will be the final price of the book. I repost below the video showing you each page of the book and to know how to order and send your payment please go HERE. Paypal or bank wire transfer payments are accepted.








Photos: copyright Daniel

Giant squid attack picture: copyright Disney

Nautilus and DLP book Video: copyright Alain Littaye

DLP Update - Discoveryland Nautilus : " Vulcania, We Have a Problem... "

I hate to have to do this kind of article but sometime it's the right thing to do and for sure an alert is needed about the terrible condition of the Nautilus at DLP Discoveryland as the submarine is almost falling apart - no kidding, folks. If Captain Nemo was still - and for real - aboard the Nautilus he would probably send a message to his home base Vulcania Island and ask for some urgent help...

As you will see on the pictures below the Nautilus is in really bad condition, not as bad as was Captain Hook ship in Adventureland, but not far. I'm talking here only about the exterior part, the one in the middle of Discoveryland lagoon, as the inside of the Nautilus had regular maintenance and is in good condition if we except some light effects which are missing.

Now, for the defense of Disneyland Paris maintenance it's true that the maintenance of the exterior part of the submarine is not easy as it needs to empty the lagoon, etc... But as we're going to see on the pictures below now is the time to do it - not in one or two years, right now, before it'll be too late!

Let's have a look at all the problems. First, some parts of the hull and painting are no longer there, from the bow to the stern...





















Don't think that this is happening only on one side of the sub as it's the same on the other side...







Then there is also a huge problem of moss all along the ship...









And if all this was not enough there is also another problem which will be harder to resolve: seagulls! There is more and more seagulls who are coming from the sea at 200 km from Paris and it seems that these seagulls have found home on the Nautilus. After all, it looks like a ship, it's surrounded by water and no one can catch them as it is in the middle of a lagoon! Note that the seagulls could work fine with the theming....but the problem is not that they stand on the submarine and that they've obviously declared that the Nautilus is their own territory but also that they spend a big part of their time to defecate on it!





So, what can DLP maintenance do? To restore the Nautilus is perfectly technically possible, that's for the good news. But to do it they have to empty the lagoon, probably put fences all around it to avoid guests to "see the trick" as many DLP guests still think that they're really entering the submarine that they saw outside when they go inside. Then, they probably have no other choice than to strip all the painting, restore the missing parts, paint it all over again, refill the lagoon, etc... It's not a refurbishment, it's a full restoration that we're talking about here and they can't do it in two weeks.

And here comes the bad news. Because of the needed time and although i've heard that a maintenance is scheduled anytime soon - but this would be probably the usual maintenance of the inside of the submarine - DLP maintenance will probably not have the time to do it before DLP 20th Anniversary. Eventually they could have the time to do it before April 1st if they begin tomorrow but i'm afraid this is not going to happen. Which means that the Nautilus will stay in this condition - and probably getting worse - during all the 20th Anniversary as i don't see DLP putting fences all around the lagoon during two months during this anniversary year.

Is it a shame? For a DLP fan probably, but to take the defense of DLP maintenance they had a lot of work this year all around parks and hotels and they did a great job. They also had to do a new Captain Hook ship and this was even more urgent as guests can go on it and there was a real security problem. They probably had to make a choice and they did the right one by doing Captain Hook ship first. That said, the Nautilus must really be the next one to be restored, don't you think so?

Edited: Last news about the Nautilus: Apparently DLP maintenance has confirmed that the lagoon should be emptied in March, and we can suppose that this will be done for a rehab of the Nautilus exterior. Because why should they empty the
lagoon, if not for that? Let's cross the fingers that it's going to happen for real and that we'll have a fresh and new Nautilus for the 20th!


Tomorrow i'll be back with great shots of the inside of the sub, and these should put you in a better mood!

Pictures: copyright disney and more