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Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage is an attraction located in the Tomorrowland area of Disneyland Park in Anaheim, California, which opened on June 11, 2007. Based on the characters and settings of the 2003 Disney/Pixar film, Finding Nemo, the attraction is a re-theming of the classic Submarine Voyage attraction, which closed in 1998.

Main article: Submarine Voyage

Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage promotional wall around the lagoon.

The original Submarine Voyage attraction closed on September 9, 1998, Disneyland's then-President, Paul Pressler, promised the press and Disneyland fans that the attractions would reopen with a new theme by 2003. One of the first attempts to resurrect the subs banked on the success of the 2001 animated film, Atlantis: The Lost Empire. But when Atlantis failed at the box office, instead of creating a ride at the location based on the film, an "Atlantis" themed photo spot was put in front of the lagoon, and the attraction was put on hold. Later, the entire lagoon was forgotten and became a scenic viewpoint. The submarines were stored inside the showbuilding and left to rot. Pressler left, and the attraction's announced 2003 return date passed without action.

When Matt Ouimet became the President of Disneyland Resort in 2003, many noticed new activity in the Submarine Lagoon. Neptune, one of the eight submarines in the fleet, was moored in the old Submarine Voyage station dock for inspection by Walt Disney Imagineering in 2004. The submarines were being tested to see if the animated show scenes currently seen in the attraction would be visible from the portholes. Rumors spread quickly over the Internet about an attraction based on the Disney/Pixar animated film Finding Nemo. Finally, after months of speculation, on July 15, 2005, two days before the 50th Anniversary of Disneyland, the Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage was officially announced at the new Turtle Talk with Crush attraction at Disney's California Adventure by Walt Disney Parks and Resorts President Jay Rasulo.

The submarine pen

At the attractions entrance, guests enter the Nautical Exploration and Marine Observation (NEMO) research center. There are three seagulls perched on a nearby buoy, bellowing out the phrase "Mine! Mine! Mine!" every few seconds.

The guests board one of NEMO's eight research submarines and set out in search of an active underwater volcano. Through their portholes, guests view a spectacular underwater environment. One of the first things guests see is Darla, the evil fish-killing niece of the dentist in Finding Nemo, freediving amid the coral, holding a bag with a fish in it. As we continue on, we see a giant sea bass swimming through a forest of seaweed. The submarines later enter the ruins of the ancient civilization of Easter Island, being explored by the dentist scuba diver P. Sherman. Amongst the stone ruins lay a gigantic tiki head embedded in the ocean floor. The scene soon changes as the subs are immersed in the setting of a coral reef in bright colors of orange, aqua, green, crimson, maize, and more. Giant clams slowly open and close their mouths as the submarines pass.

The captain commands the sub to dive much deeper to avoid a surface storm ahead. Shortly after passing into the caverns, the guests can view moray eels snaking out of the coral at the sub as it passes, and lobsters pinching at the sub. The captain says due to amazing new marine technology called "sonar hydrophones", they can actually hear the fish talk (a homage to the original attraction). The subs then pass through a dark cavern where huge eels lunge towards the submarine and lobsters are fighting. The subs pass Marlin and Dory as they discover Nemo has become lost once again. Further along the reef, the guests come across Mr. Ray and his class swimming through the coral looking for Nemo as well.

The captain says they are approaching open water and the subs pass Crush, Squirt, and the other green turtles and enter the East Australian Current. The subs then exit the current and enter a spooky graveyard of sunken ships where Marlin and Dory continue their search for Nemo. Bruce, Anchor, and Chum swim inside a sunken submarine surrounded by World War 2 mines. The submarines hit one, shaking the sub and causing it to temporarily lose power. The sub goes dark and Marlin and Dory are suddenly surrounded by small glowing spots. Suddenly, a huge deep-sea anglerfish appears. After Marlin and Dory escape the monster, they encounter a go through a forest of jellyfish.

The submarine reaches the active deep-sea volcano. As lava flows down the edge of the volcano, the Tank Gang chant and Marlin finally finds Nemo. The volcano erupts just as the subs escape and enter the coral reef once again. The fish gather and celebrate finding Nemo once again.

Suddenly, a pod of humpback whales appear and one of them swallows both Dory and the submarine. As Dory swims about trying to speak whale, the whale shoots the submarine out through its blowhole. The sub captain tells the first mate and the passengers not to mention anything because "nobody would probably believe them anyway". He then says, "We better get out of here before we see a sea serpent or mermaid." (in reference to the prior attraction which featured four mermaids and a gigantic sea serpent.) Soon after he says this, we see a coral formation shaped like the sea monster's head. The submarine then enters the harbor and view a pair of king crabs snapping at air bubbles atop a sewage pipe. The a song "Beyond the Sea" (instrumental) plays as the captain thanks the passengers for riding.

Early promotional image for the ride, some features appear different from this early artwork.

The attraction uses the same submarines used in the former Submarine Voyage. The load/unload areas are themed as an Australian Harbour, just like the movie. The ride's submarines do not actually submerge; they are boats in which the passenger seating area is below the water level. The submarines have 40 seats each, but do allow lap sitting. There are however only 46 flotation devices on board, allowing a maximum of 45 guests and 1 driver. The subs have been repainted a new flashy yellow above the water, with a light blue strip dividing a dark blue/black hull below the water. The diesel engines that powered the original subs have been replaced with a cleaner alternative that uses a non-polluting technology called “Inductive Power Transfer.” This innovation uses contactless induction technology to transfer power to the submarines under water, providing power to the new electric motors within the subs.

Each submarine is painted with a wavy blue stripe across the ceiling. The interior also contains a dark blue color lining the portholes.

Additionally, a new version of the ride, the Marine Observation Outpost, or "MOO" for short, has been provided for guests with physical disabilities who cannot navigate the submarine spiral staircases or who are claustrophobic. The observation outpost allows guests to experience the entire ride in high definition on a plasma screen.^[1]

Picture of attraction entrance

• Ancient Ruins of Atlantis (Lagoon)
• Coral Reef
• Coral Reef (Mr. Ray's Class)
• EAC (East Australian Current)
• Graveyard of Ships (Shipwreck)
• Mine Field
• The Anglerfish
• The Abyss
• School of Jellyfish
• The Hot Tub
• The Erupting Volcano
• Coral Reef (Finale)
• The Whale's Mouth
• Blue Whale Encounter (Inside the Whale's Mouth)
• Hidden Sea Serpent and Mermaid
• Harbor Scene w/ Fighting Crabs (Rear Lagoon)

• Crush's Coaster
• The Seas with Nemo and Friends
• List of current Disneyland attractions

• Disneyland - Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage
• DisneySubmarines.com