25 Real Life Places That Inspired The Makers Of Disney Movies

In Cars, Ramone’s House of Body Art is based on this real-life hotel along Route 66.

Sitting on the shores of Lake Geneva, this quaint little fortress is believed to be the inspiration for Prince Eric’s castle in the Little Mermaid.

The design of the emperor’s home in Mulan is based on the design of the Forbidden City in Beijing although the Forbidden City wouldn’t be built until over 1,000 years later (Mulan is set during the Han Dynasty which lasted from 200BC to 200AD).

Although you probably already knew that the Pixar movie Brave was set in the Scottish Highlands, this castle in particular was a big inspiration.

This ice hotel in Quebec was the inspiration behind Elsa’s Palace in Frozen.

The small villages of this region in France provided the inspiration for Belle’s home of Little Town in Beauty and the Beast.

This is the real-life inspiration for the beast’s castle in The Beauty And The Beast.

Cars is based largely on the scenery that you would find along this classic American road.

This California restaurant is consistently rated as one of the best in the world and was the inspiration for the Paris based Ratatouille.

Famous for its massive migrations, the Serengeti was a huge inspiration behind the Lion King.

Remember in Tangled when the parents released balloons to commemorate their daughter’s death? Well it’s based on the real life Yi Peng festival in Thailand.

In Finding Nemo, the movie starts off in and around the Great Barrier Reef and ends up in Sydney Harbor.

This fortress provided the inspiration for Anna and Elsa’s home in Frozen.

Spain’s most famous castle is the real-life version of the Queen’s Castle in Snow White.

This famous landmark was the inspiration for Sultan’s Palace in Aladdin.

The home of Rapunzel’s parents in Tangled is based on this French commune.

The Princess and the Frog isn’t just based on New Orleans, it’s actually set in New Orleans.

The tallest mountain in Africa had several cameo appearances in the Lion King.

If you have ever seen a Disney Movie then you know the Disney Castle that appears before the start of every film. This is it.

This was the inspiration for Paradise Falls in the movie Up.

This English forest provided the setting for Sleeping Beauty.

It may be obvious but this famous cathedral in the heart of Paris was used as the backdrop for the Hunchback of Notre Dame. Even the gargoyles were featured as characters!

You already knew that Lilo And Stitch took place in Hawaii, but did you know which island? If you guessed Kauai then you were right!

In this forest in southern England is Five Hundred Acres of Wood. It is the inspiration for the Hundred Acre Wood in Winnie the Pooh.

Pacha’s village in the Emperor’s New Groove is set on a very similar mountainside.