‘It’s a Small World’ ride gets update to celebrate Disneyland’s 70th birthday

A classic Disneyland ride has been updated for the 70th anniversary of the iconic theme park’s opening, Disney officials announced.

A new verse to the “It’s a Small World” song will debut on the ride Thursday, July 17, the official Disney Parks blog announced in February.

The updated lyrics will also be included the same day in Florida’s Walt Disney World.

The new lyrics were written by original composer Richard Sherman for the song’s 60th anniversary, the blog said. Sherman died in 2024.

The new lyrics are, “Mother earth unites us in heart and mind, And the love we give makes us humankind, Through our vast wondrous land, When we stand hand in hand, It’s a small world after all.”

A film about the creation of the new lyrics also will play at the Main Street Cinema in Disneyland, the blog said.

The ride debuted at the 1964 World’s Fair in New York as a tribute to the United Nations Children’s Fund and can now be found at multiple Disney parks, according to Walt Disney World News Today.

It opened at Disneyland in 1966 as part of Fantasyland. Visitors ride slow-moving boats through a pavilion populated with audio-animatronic children from around the world singing “It’s a Small World” in a variety of languages.

A new audio-animatronic exhibit featuring Walt Disney himself also debuts at the Main Street Opera House as part of the anniversary of the park, which opened in 1955, Disney said.

This story was originally published July 16, 2025 at 7:36 AM with the headline "‘It’s a Small World’ ride gets update to celebrate Disneyland’s 70th birthday."