ANOTHER DCA Easter Egg Rises again! And even more awesome references and mysteries appear...

Shocking as it might be (I know I was surprised!), it’s time for another Tower of Terror update—with yet ANOTHER returning California Adventure Easter Egg, and two more mysteries!

Once again, news of these updates comes from @chunkecheeks.  The first round of updates was as of January 29^th, 2026, just after the first ones I posted about this year.

First of all, there is a new/updated display on the extended bit of desk behind the photo purchase counter.  It’s the far right side of the desk, in the corner that you first see when you walk out of the photo viewing area in the exit.  A display has shown up with a new Halloween sign and a bunch of luggage marked 10/20/39.  There is also a 1020 key, next to some glasses in this same area.  

 

The 1020 key.  You can see one side of the glasses at the right. Photo by @chunkecheeks, 2026

The 10/20 luggage, with the labeled Most Unusual Camera above it.  Photo by @chunkecheeks, 2026

And yes, as you can see, on top of the luggage is another prominent returning DCA Easter Egg: The Most Unusual Camera, from the episode "A Most Unusual Camera."  It's even labeled on its tag!

The date seems intentional and significant, given its prominent placement and repetition, but as of yet neither @chunkecheeks nor I has any idea what it means.  The original air date of the first Twilight Zone episode was 10/02/59, so I do wonder if 02 got typo’d to 20… but that would have been easy to catch and fix.  Indeed that date is referenced elsewhere, with a 1002 key atop some envelopes on one of the library desks.

This photo was also in the last post.  We now know the meaning of the key number, but it's unclear if the dates/places on the envelopes have any meaning. @chunkecheeks, 2026

 

There was exactly ONE original Twilight Zone episode aired on an October 20^th, episode 71 “The Mirror,” but it doesn’t seem to have any connection to the luggage display.  Likewise, it doesn’t seem to be any of the Tower of Terror rides’ opening dates, or Rod Serling’s birthday, or any other obvious date to make a prominent display about.  Does anyone have any ideas?

From what @chunkecheeks and I can tell looking back on photos from different years, this whole display is very new, being at OLDEST from 2024.

Also in this area, above the photo counter, is a small monkey statue that is apparently an official nod to Mystic Manor the Society of Explorers and Adventurers (SEA) multi-park mega-theme.  This furthers my pet theory that both the Hollywood Tower Hotel and Hotel Hightower exist in the same continuity.  Let’s face it, Hightower’s downfall would go PERFECTLY in a Twilight Zone episode.  I can practically hear the Rod Serling narration.

Mystic Manor monkey, above the photo purchase counter. @chunkecheeks, 2026

 There are also two new references to the episode “Eye of the Beholder” in the gift shop, in the form of faux-advertisements for a fictional beauty product line.  These are apparently behind the gift shop counter.

@chunkecheeks, 2026

@chunkecheeks, 2026

 On the ride itself, the lightning flashes in the drop shaft have been completely repaired, and are now working properly.

An even more shocking (heh) update to the drop shaft, though, is a major update to the “mannequin scene.”  No longer appearing as the obscured mannequins with billowing cloth I remembered, the ghosts now clearly light up with lightning effects and are more recognizable as the characters.  Futhermore, there is an entirely new effect—or, at least, one that I have not seen nor heard of functioning since I first rode the ride in 2002—where the riders are BLASTED WITH SCENTED AIR during this scene!  Finally, Tower has (or once again has?) an official scent!  According to @chunkecheeks, the scent is sharp, musky, and tinged with mahogany and dust.  I’m rather amused by this, since on multiple occasions I’ve noted that “Tower of Terror” scented candles never smelled like the actual ride to me (the ride always just smelled like the air in the environment…hot humid for Florida, hot dry for California, icy sea for Tokyo…), and now it has one that does indeed match the marketing of those scented candles.

As I added in an edit to the previous post, but feel I should mention again here, @laffiteslanding solved the mystery of the “porcelains of Europe” note in the right-side library—per a backstage tour, it was an in-joke among imagineers about props arriving broken.  However, there is still no explanation for the desk display in the OTHER library, which has a similarly deliberate note on a different subject.

@chunkecheeks, 2026

 In case you can't read it clearly in the photo above, it says, "Warm climate of California should accept introduction of many subtropical plants unknown in this area.  Most varieties should eventually naturalize with proper soil amendments and irrigation."

The note isn't the only plant reference around; the whole desk scene is plant themed.  The opened book is a botany book with plant illustrations.  Even the desk itself has a face on it that apparently resembles a “green man” nature spirit character. 

 

The book is in pretty poor shape, but you can just about tell it has illustrations of plants. @chunkecheeks, 2026

Wider view of the left-side library's desk, with the plant book and plant spirit desk carving.  You can also see some mail, which also may or may not include a reference. @chunkecheeks, 2026

@laffiteslanding’s tour did not mention anything about plants or explain this display the way it did the porcelain one.  Anyone have any ideas about what this references?  Is there a prominent botanist character in a Twilight Zone episode that I just can’t recall?   

Given that the other library desk was a real-world reference to Tower's development, explaining cracked props, I wonder if this is also a real-world reference.  It mentions subtropical plants adapting to California.  Florida has a subtropical climate, thus necessitating the park being landscaped with plants from there, despite the story of Tower of Terror taking place in California.  I wonder if this is to over-explain the landscaping (as if most people would even notice the difference in plants...) the same way the other note over-explains the cracked porcelain (why WOULDN'T porcelain be cracked in a building that had half of it blasted off by magic lightning?).

What do you think?  Development gag, or show reference I haven't gotten yet? 

There are also some further details on this desk where we are unsure if they have deeper meaning.  The first is this key, which I think is for room 908 (upside down in the picture), but may also be 806 (if the picture has the key oriented correctly).  Obviously neither could be an episode of the 5-season original run, so perhaps it is a date?

@chunkecheeks, 2026

 

There is also another pair of mailed letters, one stacked atop the other. 

@chunkecheeks, 2026

 The bottom letter is from Irwin, Pennsylvania and dated June 11, 1939, with the address obscured by the letter above it.  The top letter is from Gettysburg, Pennsylvania and dated May 14, 1939.  It is addressed to:

Frank J. Resch, M.D.

3750 S. Spaulding Ave.

Chicago, Ill., USA

I don't personally recall a Dr. Frank Resch from The Twilight Zone and a quick search of the name + the show doesn't seem to turn up anything relevant... is this random?  The name/hometown of an imagineer? 

@chunkecheeks also transcribed the ALL OF THE bulletin boards from the exit, but that DEFINITELY deserves its whole own post!

So, that was already a lot, but then as of February 8, 2026, THERE’S EVEN MORE!!

At long last, the broken glasses from “Time Enough at Last” have returned to the library, albeit in a new spot next to a statue of Beatrice from Dante’s Inferno instead of on a stack of books.  According to @chunkecheeks, the glasses were initially removed for safety concerns, as they were real broken glass that guests could potentially reach.  They were resin-stabilized by a Tower cast member who was a dedicated fan, and thus finally able to return to their rightful place in the ride.  Apparently, a lot of these restored Easter Eggs are a result of the efforts of CMs who are dedicated fans, taking it upon themselves to keep the ride in shape!  While the new placement might not be as spot-on to the episode as the old placement atop the books, I can’t help but feel it’s still thematically appropriate.  A character from Dante’s Inferno makes a lot of sense for an episode where the main character ends up in his own personal hell.

The Beatrice statue; you can see the broken glasses behind her. @chunkecheeks, 2026

 

A better look at the glasses themselves. @chunkecheeks, 2026

An even stranger Easter Egg, or perhaps a previously unknown aspect of an Easter Egg, has also appeared in the library.  The Rod Serling and Victoria West envelopes now have something hanging out of them.  To me it looks like reel-to-reel audio recording tape, although it’s possibly some other kind of film.  Once again, according to @chunkecheeks this tape/film was in the envelopes all along, just tucked inside never shown to guests.  This is an insane detail to me, as it never occurred to me that the envelopes would be anything but empty props.  If it is audio tape, that’s a nice reference to Rod Serling’s voice (well, an impression of his voice) being used as the voice of the Tower.

The Rod Serling envelope with the tape/film hanging out of it. @chunkecheeks, 2026

 

On less exciting and concrete grounds, in part of my recent Twilight Zone rewatch I may have found some inspiration for certain scenes in Tower.

In S1E20 “Elegy,” the main characters come across a frozen-in-time party scene, with the camera initially focusing prominently on a champagne bottle in a bucket next to a table, as seen here:

Screenshot from S1E20 "Elegy"

 I think this may be the inspiration behind the similar lobby scene.   

Here's an up-close look at the scene from when I got to boundary-break and explore the lobby in June 2023!

 The fact that (SPOILER ALERT) all the people in the episode's party scene are dead and it’s part of an elaborate cemetery may or may not hint at a grim fate for the hotel guests that weren’t in the elevator during the fateful lightning storm.

The very next episode, S1E21 “Mirror Image,” likewise opens with some really familiar-sounding lightning and rain effects.  It’s possible they’re drawn from a basic stock library, but given the obsessive levels of detail Tower’s designers sometimes displayed, I wouldn’t be too surprised if these were the exact same sounds sampled for the ride.

So, barely a month and a half into 2026 and there’s so many great updates and new mysteries already!  Let me know if any of you have any explanations, or have spotted anything else!

DCA Easter Eggs Rise Again! The Tower in 2026

It’s early in the year for an update, but @chunkecheeks just sent me some really cool new developments at Florida Tower!

First of all: DCA’S EASTER EGGS ARE BACK!  That’s right, this is not a drill, pieces of the dearly departed California Tower have shown up at the original Florida one.  Specifically, two Easter Eggs prominently shown in the DCA/Paris rides, the thimble from “The After Hours” and the stopwatch from “A Kind of Stopwatch” are now on display!  Both are now in the display case in the lobby, across from the crashed elevators/on the back of the check-in desk. 

I wish I could confirm if these were the exact props from California Tower, but alas my photos from back then are too poor quality to see if things like cracks/dents match.  Without that proof, I’m caught between “they’re probably the exact same props, after all they probably sent all of California’s spare parts off to the other Towers,” and “it’s easy to source a dented thimble and broken watch anywhere, they’re probably ‘new’ ones the prop department picked up at a local antique store.”

Photo by @chunkecheeks, January 2026

 

One detail I find particularly amusing is the new card they’ve printed for the thimble.  The text is identical to its California version: “Looking for a gift for mother?  It’s the very thing you need.  Available in our gift shop.”  However, the FONT is very different, and shows a surprising yet pleasant commitment to the two versions of the ride having different art styles and identities.  The original sign used California Tower’s omnipresent art deco Banhof Regular font, while this features a more gothic font style that aligns with Florida’s unusually gothic interpretation of the Tower’s architecture.

 

A closer look at the card. @chunkecheeks, January 2026

@chunkecheeks also provided some clearer details from the libraries.   Here’s a much clearer and more readable shot of the note on the desk, which now obviously says:

“Porcelains of Europe, although susceptible to earthquake damage, are an important element of films and attractions of Hollywood.”

The "porcelains of Europe" memo. @chunkecheeks, January 2026

 Now I’m just left to wonder… what does this mean?  It seems oddly specific to be so visibly placed, and, according to @chunkecheeks, the notes were even recently replaced/refreshed to be readable again after wear and tear.  The designers WANT us to see this note.  But why porcelains of Europe, and their connection to Hollywood?  I can’t think of any Twilight Zone episodes really having to do with European porcelain, at least after a cursory search.

A second mysterious detail she sent was a better photo of the Mystic Seer card and the art print it is placed under.   

 

Mystic Seer card and art card. @chunkecheeks, January 2026

We know the fortune card goes with the fortune teller from elsewhere in the library, and its origin episode “Nick of Time,” but the artwork it’s paired with intrigues me.  The art print, possibly a tarot card, seems to show a marble statue, but the print is deliberately obscured by fade and dust even in the clearer photo.  To me, it looks like a statue showing at least three human figures entwined by a giant snake.  My first instinct was that it depicted Laocoön and His Sons, since that’s the famous statue of three people entwined with a giant snake, but a look at that link shows that it’s not.  Or, at least, it isn’t depicting that particular statue of the myth.  Maybe there’s another depiction of the same myth, but it’s very difficult to find search results for statues of that story that aren’t the famous one.  Anyone here recognize the statue? 

Wait, a statue...that's European... could this be connected to the "porcelains of Europe" note?  But statues are usually marble, not porcelain... 

The Laocoön and His Sons statue/myth is about misery and suffering at the hands of higher forces.  Perhaps combined with the “it is quite possible” fortune, it’s a hint at our “unfortunate fates” if we set foot on the cursed elevator?

UPDATE: @laffiteslanding has provided an explanation for the porcelain!  Apparently, on a backstage tour they took last year, the guide explained that this is NOT a Twilight Zone reference but instead a developer's in-joke among Tower's designers.  Porcelain they'd ordered as props arrived broken, so they created an earthquake backstory to explain this for "nosy guests who look for continuity errors."  Funny, this whole time I'd just assumed any broken pottery around the Tower would just be due to the disaster or years of abandonment, no extra backstory needed!

Third, she sent a photo showing the envelope/letters on the desk.   

Letters and key. @chunkecheeks, January 2026

 It’s sent from Burlington, Vermont—a town I couldn’t find a Twilight Zone reference to, although I suppose it might be one of the imagineers’ hometowns or something.  I cannot fully read the address even in this closer photo, but what I can read is:

[Letter][Letter] [Lastname]

Veteran’s Hospital

Castle Point

 

Once again, this seems like a specific reference, but I can’t locate an episode.  Of course, it’s been a while since I cycled through all 156 of them (and that’s the original series alone).  Anyone know what a Veteran’s Hospital or Castle Point might have to do with anything?

UPDATE: While it's still unclear if the envelopes have any meaning, the key is number 1002, and the airdate of S1E1 of The Twilight Zone was October 2, 1959. 

Beyond what can be shown in photos, @chunkecheeks informed me that one of my favorite effects in the library is back!  At the end of the pre-show, the audio for the final line shifts so that it no longer sounds like it’s coming from the TV, but instead that Rod Serling’s voice is now in the room with you.  I LOVE this effect, but it’s gone in and out of usage over the years.  It’s great news that it’s back.

The lightning in the drop shafts is apparently also in the process of being repaired or adjusted.  She reported some runs where it was just… on the entire drop sequence (not flashing, just lit up), sometimes with a rainbow effect indicative of broken LED lights.  Then there were other runs where it only did a quick flash at the start of the sequence.  At least this is an improvement over when the shaft lightning was completely off!

Both the new references and the ongoing maintenance/adjustment of effects in the ride feels like a MASSIVE relief to me.  It shows Disney is, so far, interested in keeping this ride, and keeping it in good shape.  Furthermore, Disneyland Paris’s Tower of Terror is getting a queue expansion, that will FINALLY show the Hollywood Tower’s long-promised, but never shown pool.  Once again, this hopefully indicates that there aren’t immediate plans to ditch that Tower either, even though they have an Avengers Campus in that park right next to it.

So, do any of you have answers as to the unsolved mysteries of these new details?  Or maybe, can anyone tell me what that new font is on that thimble sign? (I love collecting and using ride fonts…you’ll notice Banhof Regular all over my diagrams on this blog.)  Please let me know if you do!

Tokyo DisneySea Tower of Terror Part 5: Artifact Storage ("Boiler Room" queue and loading zone)

 After the pre-show, guests leave Hightower’s office and go into what I call “Artifact Storage,” or “the boiler room.”  Technically, this version is not at all a boiler room the way it is in the other Towers, I just have a tendency to slip and call it such because of its equivalent function.  Instead, this is the dusty, disorganized back storage room where Harrison Hightower leaves all his loot.  It’s rather striking, that he’s stolen so much that he can leave all this stuff back here, presumably after already outfitting the rest of the hotel.

Like the California Adventure and Paris versions of the Tower of Terror, this room is two-storied, albeit with a unique floor layout and a very unique presentation of the loading zones.  It is extremely visually dense, and some photos I have are difficult to place.  There are, inevitably, details I didn’t note.  If you know more, please let me know!  By my best guess, the approximate layout is thus:

You might really benefit from clicking this one to enlarge it

In sharp contrast to the elaborate wallpaper of the office, guests funnel from the pre-show into a hallway with gray textured concrete walls.  These are lined with even more photos of Hightower and his artifacts.  Alas, I seem to only have one example here in my collection, but its implications are pretty significant.  It’s labeled “EUROPEAN COLLECTION ROOM—Rm. 17A Level 2b.”  Given how full the room looks, and the numbering system, what we see in the hotel and artifact storage barely scratches the surface of what Hightower has stolen!

@idreamofthemeparks, 2025

 

After leaving this hallway, depending on which pre-show room the guests entered, their queue divider funnels their line into either the downstairs or upstairs level of artifact storage.  My notes indicate I rode the lower level elevators more often, suggesting that was the floor that funneled from the right-side pre-show room.  I’ll attempt to tour both levels as best as I can.

In the crook of the stairs is a large Mayan/Aztec looking statue.  Next to it is a pair of crates, stacked atop each other.  The lower one warns, “Danger!  Sharp objects, handle with care”—a questionable warning, given that the box appears to be on its side.  The upper one appears to say:

Louis St. Croix

Island of St. Domingue

Contents:

Voodoo [unreadable]

Great, nothing like something related to voodoo, on top of improperly stored sharp objects!

Improperly stored voodoo/sharps crates, with large Mayan-style statue behind them. @idreamofthemeparks, 2025

 

More artifacts in this section encased by the stairs.  In this and the previous photo, you can also see past into the doorway into the Lower Floor Tour A cubicle. @idreamofthemeparks, 2025

Both sides of the artifact storage room are divided into alcoves.  While the front alcoves house the ride loading areas, the back alcoves house the queue and more displays.  Guests move past what seems to be a setup of an old camera taking a photo of an Indiana Jones-style idol as they go into these back alcoves.  Here a clear-fronted display case houses various items.  I believe this is where guests can see a crystal skull in Hightower’s collection.  This is a further tie to Lost River Delta, as the Indiana Jones Adventure there is the Temple of the Crystal Skull.  This is not the most significant connection to DisneySea Indiana Jones we’ll see in this room, however.

View looking down from the stairs towards the area in question.  Note the idol set up in front of a white backdrop, and the display case behind it. @idreamofthemeparks, 2025

 

Another view into this area, taken from the stairs. @idreamofthemeparks, 2025

A blurry look at some of the items in that cabinet.  My photo, 2019

Crystal skull in the cabinet.  My photo, 2019

Another photo from this area.  In this picture, my back was facing the cabinet, and that's the rear of the idol's photo backdrop in the foreground.  You can see the stairs beyond the columns.  My photo, 2019

Another angle from the previous location.  You can see the camera that was set to photograph the idol in this one.  Obviously, this was before I had a camera with low-light capability.  My photo, 2019

After this cabinet, I believe there is a scene depicting an old photography dark room/development area.

My photo, 2019

 

Another look back at the stairs artifacts and old camera, this time from the other side of the display, having looped around it.  I think my back was to the end corner of the photography studio/dark room display.  My photo, 2019

More lower floor artifacts, location unknown.  I know they're lower floor due to their location in my camera roll, but I can't place exactly where.  My best guess is between the photography displays and the next main display, the Egyptian scene.  My photo, 2019

Moving further into the room, in what might be considered the main central display of the Artifact Storage, is the Egyptian display.  It basically spans two floors, with how huge the main statue is.  The larger cutout of the upper floor also gives a perfect view into this scene from above—the designers definitely wanted you to notice this.  Below the main statue are mummies, likely the ones we saw Hightower stealing in the mural above the check-in desk.  One has their coffin lid open, the body slumping over.  In a nearby crate, which I believe is just before the mummies as you walk through the room, there are canopic jars (that is, sacred containers intended to hold a mummy’s internal organs after the mummification process), one of which is knocked over.  There’s no overt spilled-organ gore (unlike Mission Breakout…how did that get past the censors?), just spilled sand.  However, it’s still clear that Hightower has no respect, not just for other cultures, but also for dead individuals.  It doesn’t matter that these mummies were people, or were likely royalty that’d outrank Hightower himself; he’ll just toss them in his storage room!

Spilled canopic jar.  My photo, 2019

 

Heading into the Egyptian scene in a crowded queue.  My photo, 2019

A much clearer look into the Egyptian scene, showing the mummy with the open casket.  Photo angle is from about halfway up the stairs to the upper floor. @idreamofthemeparks, 2025

At the end of the room is the other significant multi-floor display.  On this ground floor is a pile of crates.  Above them, suspended from the ceiling, is the giant stone dragon head that the lore newspapers dubbed “The Beast of Tamas.”  I thought at least some of the crates were marked as coming from Lost River Delta, but none of the photos I have available can confirm this.  What is definitely real, however, is that a noticeable rippling blue light shines from the crates onto the dragon above.  It is an identical effect to that used for the Fountain of Youth water in the DisneySea version of Indiana Jones Adventure.  Yes, Harrison Hightower has water from the Fountain of Youth just in his storage room!

There’s more to the Beast of Tamas display, but I feel like I should get to the tour of the upper floor first, where we’ll end at the upper half with the dragon head.  The only clear photos of it that I have access to are from the upper floor anyways...

When you first go up the stairs, you’ll encounter an “endcap” display of sorts on this wall, showcasing various “exotic” statues.  An emergency exit is apparently in the corner up there too.

@idreamofthemeparks, 2025

 

Going right into the alcoves, guests pass a display of loot featuring rugs (draped over the railing that looks down into the Egyptian display), a statue of a royal-looking Asian man (a Chinese emperor?), and a fallen…body-shaped bundle of some sort.  I think it’s supposed to be a statue, but given that Hightower already has bodies in the open on the lower level, there’s a nonzero chance this could be a corpse too.  Crates in this area are marked “Purple Mountain Expedition, Mount Baigong, Qingahi, China.”

@idreamofthemeparks, 2025

 

Marked crate.  Note that the contents are marked as "?".  @idreamofthemeparks, 2025

A better look at the wrapped statue. @idreamofthemeparks, 2025

 

More crates next to the statues.  One is marked "Hotel Hightower, New York, USA." @idreamofthemeparks, 2025

Another view. @idreamofthemeparks, 2025

 

Guests wind around this display, going into the alcove, where the wall is covered in Hightower’s filing cabinets.  Each drawer is labeled, and there are certainly some… interesting things he keeps organized.  Known labels include: Diseases of the South Seas, Black Magic Rituals, Head Shrinking Procedures, Cups & Chalices, Diseases of the Nile Basin, Shipping Agents—Africa, Bribes and Gratuities, Techniques of Mummification, and Dragon Eggs.  Yeah, this guy just straight up has a bribes file.

Overall look at the filing cabinets.  @idreamofthemeparks, 2025

 

"Diseases of the South Seas." @idreamofthemeparks, 2025

"Black Magic Rituals." @idreamofthemeparks, 2025

"Head Shrinking Procedures." @idreamofthemeparks, 2025

"Cups and Chalices." @idreamofthemeparks, 2025

"Diseases of the Nile Basin." @idreamofthemeparks, 2025

"Shipping Agents--Africa," and "Bribes and Gratuities." @idreamofthemeparks, 2025

"Techniques of Mummification." @idreamofthemeparks, 2025

"Dragon Eggs." @idreamofthemeparks, 2025

On the end wall of this alcove is a display that prominently features a winged statue.  I can’t quite tell, but I think this might be the one he stole from the ziggurat in the lobby painting.  It’s not exact, but it would fit with other lobby painting artifacts showing up prominently in this room.

Winged statue. @idreamofthemeparks, 2025

 

Beyond this is essentially a wall of crates, with some of them open.  There's a good view over into the Egyptian scene on the lower floor on your left.

 

View into the Egyptian scene from the upper floor. @idreamofthemeparks, 2025

Detail photo of open mummy casket from upper floor. @idreamofthemeparks, 2025

One of the wall crates.  Its inscription reads, "Seitro[?] Trading Co.  Kathmandu, Nepal, Contents: Copper Goddess Statue, assorted artifacts and paintings, Gilt[?]-Bronze Monastery [unreadable], 3 of 3." @idreamofthemeparks, 2025

Among the wall of crates is an open box that has three fancy end tables in it.  One has a dragon motif, fitting with Hightower’s office indicating his love of dragon-themed décor.  (Dragons are known for hoarding things…)  However, it was the other two smaller tables that initially caught my eye.  They look VERY similar to tables that have shown up as part of the set dressing of Leota’s séance circle in the Haunted Mansion.  At first I thought they might be identical, as an intentional reference, but this old post about Leota’s tables by LongForgotten seemingly debunks that.  I guess Hightower couldn’t quite steal from The Haunted Mansion.

Dragon table and not-quite Madam Leota tables. @idreamofthemeparks, 2025

 

Looking backwards at an empty upper queue while standing next to this particular crate.  My photo, 2019

Beyond this, in another opened crate, is a pair of skulls.  Yeah, more corpse parts.  It’s a wonder this hotel isn’t more haunted.  There’s also what looks to be a horse statue, vase, and some sort of rolled up and wrapped item.  Perhaps it’s a carpet or tapestry.

@idreamofthemeparks, 2025

 BUT WAIT, there’s even more!  Marked on another crate in this area (based on location in the camera roll), is:

Contains mummified human remains

Store in a cool, dry, place

Kindly report all vaporous or fluid emissions immediately

Human remains crate inscription. @idreamofthemeparks, 2025

 

How many human remains can one guy collect!?  Maybe that bundle earlier really wasn't a statue...

Finally, we reach the second large floor cutout at the end of the room.  Here hangs the Beast of Tamas, with the blue light of the Fountain of Youth shining up upon it.

 

The Beast of Tamas.  In this photo, you can just barely see the blue tint on it, from the implied Fountain of Youth crates below it.  @idreamofthemeparks, 2025

Another look at the Beast.  Note the presumed emergency exits behind it.  @idreamofthemeparks, 2025

 

One very special detail lies hidden in the dragon’s mouth.  If you watch it for a while, Shiriki Utundu’s eyes appear in the darkness!

Shiriki Utundu's eyes appearing in the mouth of the Beast of Tamas.  View is from the lower floor.  My photo, 2019

 

The next photo in the camera roll, showing the same view but with the idol's eyes having disappeared.  My photo, 2019

I actually recall this effect happening elsewhere in the room too, with those lit eyes popping up in dark spots among many artifacts.  This definitely thematically matches Hightower’s exclamations about the idol’s eyes, and the idea that it’s watching and judging us guests as we make our way through (and perhaps are tempted by?) Hightower’s collection.  However, I only have photographic evidence of the eyes appearing in the dragon’s mouth, and this “hidden eyes” detail generally doesn’t seem to be mentioned/noted elsewhere.  The only other video I found that mentioned this detail (alas, I no longer have the exact link) likewise only provided footage of the eyes appearing in the dragon.  It’s entirely possible that I’m misremembering the eyes also appearing elsewhere.

On the far wall behind this last display cutout are what I believe are two emergency exits.  The lower floor one looks like a metal sliding door, while the upper one is a regular door with bricks and cracked plaster that bring to mind DCA Tower’s lobby.  The upper floor one definitely has an exit sign that I can see in photos; I’m not as sure about the lower one.

A look back at the upper queue from the "bridge" between the cutout to the Egyptian display and the cutout with the Beast of Tamas. I believe you walk across this bridge as cast members direct you to your assigned tour on the upper floor. @idreamofthemeparks, 2025

 

You may have noticed that, by this point, I have not made any mention of seeing the elevators yet.  This is in sharp contrast to DCA and Paris, where that iconic elevator loading zone is one of the first things you see after leaving the pre-show hallway.  Instead, the loading areas are walled off, as you can see in the previous photo, creating distinct cubicles marked as “Tour A,” “Tour B,” and “Tour C.”

Since each tour is supposed to be taking us on Hightower’s secret elevator to his penthouse, the designers have made a point to disguise the elevators from each other, so there’s no question of “why does he have SIX secret elevators to his room?”

 

I believe these cast members are standing between Tour B and C on the upper floor, directing guests from the incoming queue to the various tour groups.  This gives a nice look at the "historical tour guide" uniform. @idreamofthemeparks, 2025

 

Interestingly, given that this setup would suggest that there is only one canonical elevator, and thus one canonical loading zone, each of these loading areas has its own unique, elaborate themeing of artifact display cases housing a collection of a specific type.  According to @laffite’slanding, there is apparently a Hightower pastiche worked into the artwork/artifacts hidden in each area, but I don’t have direct photos of those.  I've decided to name the themes as follows:

 

Lower floor, Tour A: Paintings

Lower floor, Tour B: Armor

Lower floor, Tour C: Tapestries

Upper floor, Tour A: Swords/weaponry

Upper floor, Tour B: Stone tablets with skull painting (confirmed by this YouTube video)

Upper floor, Tour C: Mayan masks/artwork (theme confirmed by @laffite’slanding, location confirmed by process of elimination)

 

I personally went through the Paintings, Armor, Tapestries, and Swords elevators on various ride-throughs.  It was frustrating trying to see all the different themes, only to end up sent to one I’d already been through!  At least I did get to try each drop shaft, which led to some interesting observations for the upcoming post about the drop sequence.

 

 

Lower floor, Tour B, "Armor." My photo, 2019

Lower Floor, Tour B. "Armor." My photo, 2019

 

Upper Floor, Tour A. "Swords." @idreamofthemeparks, 2025

Upper Floor, Tour A. "Swords." @idreamofthemeparks, 2025

Upper Floor, Tour A. "Swords." @idreamofthemeparks, 2025

A cannon, in what I also believe is the "swords" room. @idreamofthemeparks, 2025

 

Upper Floor, Tour C. "Mayan masks." @laffite'slanding, date unknown

 

Upper Floor, Tour C. "Mayan masks."  Is that the Raging Spirits temple again?  @laffite'slanding, date unknown

I prefer to use photos I have explicit permission to use, but I did take a few YouTube screenshots in the process of confirming the location of every theme.  Alas, footage of Lower Floor Tour C/Tapestries still eludes my search.  If anyone has pictures they're willing to lend to the cause, let me know!  Videos are credited in the screenshot caption.

Lower Floor, Tour A. "Paintings."  I think that giant painting of the "knight" might be one of the Hightower pastiches that @laffite'slanding mentioned?  Still from video by Marcus Cheng

 

Upper Floor, Tour B. "Stone Tablets."  Helpfully, this same video explicitly showed that this was Upper Floor Tour B.  I also wonder if the giant skull painting is another tie-in to Indiana Jones Adventure.  Still from video by YamatoStyle

Once a cast member has directed you to your respective tour room, you’ll stand on a bronze number plaque corresponding to the seating chart for the elevator.  These have a unique design compared to other Towers, using a font that is very bold and swirly in that late 1800s/early 1900s way.  I have no photos of them, but did do a sketch back in 2019:

The seating numbering manages to be different from both California and Florida’s Towers.  Like California, rows 1 and 6 are in the front, with 3 and 4 forming the bench in the back.  However, the 4-row seats are on the left when entering, like in Florida’s, rather than the opposite in California.  It’s funny that essentially the same ride car has been arranged at least three different ways!  Such an odd thing to keep changing!  The seating arrangement is explained on a banner suspended from the ceiling of the loading area, not a plaque on the wall like on other Towers.

The seating chart in Upper Floor Tour A. @idreamofthemeparks, 2025

 

Fitting with the idea that this is a hidden, private elevator to Hightower’s suite, the door to the ride entry is initially hidden as something like an especially large painting or display case that eventually slides out of the way to allow access to the ride vehicle.  Therefore, unlike other Towers, there are no visible elevator doors or dial from the loading zone.  In the preceding photos and screenshots, I believe that the "hidden" doors are:

1. The display case with the red armor in it

2. The glass-fronted sword case

3. The Raging Spirits [?] temple painting

4. The giant painting of the "knight" (confirmed by video)

5. The giant skull painting (confirmed by video)

I recall that, after everyone took their assigned place in the waiting area, a cast member would once again deliver a specific live spiel.  So far, I have found ONE video that seems to include what MIGHT have been the contents of this spiel [here] and it translates it as follows:

“What happened the night Hightower III disappeared?  The truth is hidden in the dark.  But it is certain that he took the elevator to the top floor that day.  We will take you to the top floor through the service elevator soon.”

After the cast member finished their spiel and left (...assuming I'm remembering correctly and it was a live spiel...), a more traditional recorded safety spiel would play in both Japanese and English.  In most footage I could find, the Japanese narrator sounds female, while the English one sounds male (and also different from any other Tower narrators).  The English safety spiel states:

“In a few moments, we will be taking you to Mr. Hightower’s private penthouse on the top floor.  Once on board the elevator, for your safety, remain seated with your seatbelt fastened, keeping your hands, arms, feet, and legs inside, and take special care to supervise your children.  Lastly, please secure hats, glasses, and other loose items in the elevator.  Thank you.”

Note that, based on what sparse YouTube footage there is of the boarding process, it seems like the announcements may have changed slightly over the years.  Some seem to have a male Japanese narrator and female English narrator, or have what I noted as a live spiel as part of the recorded spiel (but only in Japanese, not repeated in the English portion).  This video (the same one that seems to be the only record of the extra spiel I remember) provides an example of this switch.  Yet others (like this one, the same one I cited for the stone tablet room) do show a cast member delivering a live spiel, but it does not appear to translate to anything thematic, and is instead just a basic reminder for guests to take off backpacks, secure loose items, and so on.  Yet other footage indicates the safety spiel is also delivered in a third language (Chinese?) after the English translation.

Given these discrepancies, take what I’ve said about the pre-boarding spiels with a grain of salt.  I’m doing my best with notes from 2019 and a sparse scattering of YouTube footage from over the years, with the majority of footage in a foreign language.  If anyone has any clarifications, please let me know!

At some point during all of these spiels and announcements and waiting, the lights very pointedly and dramatically dim in your tour group’s cubicle.  It’s so deliberate that I suspect it is some sort of timing signal to cast members and observant guests, similar to the elevator dial’s function at DCA and presumably Paris.  Since there is no dial to indicate whether the vehicle is loading, unloading, or in the ride cycle, perhaps the light dimming indicates that the CMs should prepare to cycle this round of guests.

After the spiels (whatever they may actually be) conclude, the hidden door will slide away, allowing guests into the "service hallway".  

 

Knight painting slides away to reveal the doorway to the ride vehicle. Still from video by Marcus Cheng

 Unlike DCA/Paris, the exit hallway is never hidden as guests board.  Rather than trying to make it seem like the two elevator doors are the same (and you should just conveniently ignore that dark hallway you’re crossing…), here the hidden door leads to a fully lit “backstage”-looking hallway.  The upper parts of the walls are cream colored, with a sort of turquoise/mint/greenish lower half.  The words “Service Elevator” are on a sign over the actual open elevator doors to the ride vehicle.  There’s still no dial, meaning that the only elevator dial in this version of the ride was on the crashed lobby elevator!

Still from video by Marcus Cheng

 

There’s a bucket outside the elevator where guests are instructed to place their umbrellas before entering the ride vehicle.

The bucket even appears to have an HH logo on it in this footage! Still from video by Marcus Cheng 

 There's some metal plate flooring in the hallway right in front of the elevator, same as there was/is at DCA Tower/Mission Breakout and presumably Paris.  Given this consistency, I suspect it's some kind of actual maintenance hatch.

Just like at other iterations of the ride, cast members call groups row by row, directing them into the ride vehicle…and eventually, their fateful encounter with the curse of Shiriki Utundu.