13/10/2026
After nearly six months of renovation, the bridge leading to Sleeping Beauty Castle at Disneyland Paris is set to reopen to guests, looking brand new and boasting fresh decorative features.
This reopening coincides with a very special anniversary: 35 years ago, on 12 October 1991, Sleeping Beauty Castle was officially unveiled to the public during the ‘Rendez-Vous au Château’ event, attended by the press, Cast Members and their families.
Since then, this Disneyland Paris landmark has regularly undergone maintenance, renovation and enhancement work, enabling its appearance to be preserved whilst allowing certain details to evolve over the years.
To mark this 35th anniversary, let’s take a look back at the renovation of the bridge and at the new details that have been added to this iconic landmark of Disneyland Park.
More than just a simple refurbishment, this renovation has enabled the thorough restoration of this bridge, which is visited by thousands of people every day. The structure supporting the decorative elements has been completely rebuilt, as have the arches, corbels and decorative spandrels. The wooden posts of the balustrade has been replaced and the drawbridge now has a new deck made of tropical timber.
The bridge deck was completely redesigned: the old stamped concrete has been replaced by granite paving, which is easier to maintain and more attractive whilst also ensuring guest comfort. Laying the paving required a meticulous layout, much like a jigsaw puzzle, with 2,735 individual pieces fitted to follow the arched shape of the bridge. The natural stone balusters made from Champagny limestone were also completely rebuilt and treated with a waterproofing agent to protect them from water spray from the fountains below.
To recreate the appearance of the stones covering the bridge’s elevations and the undersides of its arches, synthetic stone in paste form was sprayed onto a metal framework, before being sculpted by hand to create its relief patterns. Each piece was then hand-painted, using five different shades and various light and dark tones, in order to recreate the natural variations found in the stones of Sleeping Beauty Castle.
A brand-new compass rose made with natural stone and brass inlays now adorns the centre of the bridge, echoing the colours of the three fairies who watch over Aurora. Merryweather’s blue branches and Flora’s red ones, both pointing in opposite directions, evoke their famous quarrel over the colour of Aurora’s dress, in the iconic scene where they argue over her outfit whilst she dances with Prince Philip.
Between them, a green arc – representing Fauna and her role as a mediator – creates a transition between the two branches. The compass rose is completed by a central brass medallion depicting Aurora’s crown surrounded by thorns, as well as a brass fleur-de-lis indicating north: this detail is a nod to the four brass letters that originally marked the four cardinal directions on the bridge when Disneyland Park opened, but were removed during a previous refurbishment in 2010.
The brass elements feature three different layers, with various finishes handcrafted by a specialist artisan to create subtle effects of depth and shine. Finally, patina and painting work, along with new landscaping, round off this transformation.
Stefano Servi, Stage Architect at Walt Disney Imagineering Paris, says: ‘This renovation was made possible thanks to the involvement of numerous trades and the wealth of their expertise. We called upon experts in the restoration of historic monuments to take care of Sleeping Beauty Castle, which is, in its own way, a landmark of Disneyland Paris.
Our aim was to restore the bridge to its former glory, whilst preserving the details that give it its character, so that it may continue to form an integral part of the Castle for many years to come.’
