Swiss Family
Treehouse
 

 
Father, Mother, Fritz,
Ernst, and Francis invite
you to visit their home.

Start by touring the kitchen and library on the ground floor. You don’t mind climbing stairs, do you? As you ascend and descend, you could imagine yourself living here. There might be an an extra bounce to your step as you hear the catchy theme tune, the “Swisskapolka.”

Take a look into the rooms of the shipwrecked family. The family managed to save furniture, supplies, and ship parts. So the Treehouse is an intriguing combination of European goods and primitive jungle products.

This Treehouse has a clever and functional plumbing system. A water wheel drives a continuous supply of scoops, lifting water high into the tree. The water dumps into a system of bamboo gutters that provide clean, running water to every room.

The Swiss Family Treehouse opened in Disneyland in November 1962, almost two years after the December 1960 release of Walt Disney’s hit adventure movie, Swiss Family Robinson.

In early 1999, Disneyland evicted the Swiss Family from their Treehouse to make room for Tarzan. The giant artificial tree received a massive makeover, including thousands of replacement vinyl leaves and a new suspension bridge entrance from a new neighboring tree. In June 1999, Tarzan’s Treehouse began welcoming park guests, just as Disney’s animated Tarzan premiered in movie theaters. Guests were delighted by the new attraction’s hands-on interactivity. And what tune do the guests hear playing on the old gramophone? Why, it’s the “Swisskapolka!”

Don’t feel bad for the evicted Swiss Family. They still have nice homes in Florida, Japan, and France. For example, you can visit the Swiss Family Treehouse at Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom, where the Treehouse was one of the park’s original attractions on opening day, October 1, 1971.

Tahitian Terrace One-of-a-Kind Shop Shop Home

Disclaimers, Copyrights, and Trademarks

Updated February 13, 2008.

Photograph of the ingenious water supply system: 1998 by Leslie N. Herschler
Photograph of the Swiss Family Treehouse: 1998 by Allen Huffman
Photograph of the elegant furnishings: 1998 by Allen Huffman
Photograph of the kitchen on the ground floor: 1998 by Allen Huffman
Photograph of the great view from the top: 1998 by Allen Huffman