Disneyland's popular ride, Pirates of the Caribbean, to close for upgrading

ANAHEIM, Calif. — In a case of life imitating art imitating life, Disneyland's popular ride "Pirates of the Caribbean" will add several characters from the 2003 hit film it inspired. The ride will be closed for several months starting in March for the update.

The ride features lifelike figures that gesture and speak, called "animatronics." Several new figures, including Capt. Jack Sparrow, the character portrayed by actor Johnny Depp, will be added to the rides at Disneyland in California and Walt Disney World in Florida, the company said.

In Disneyland, Pirates of the Caribbean will close March 6 (Florida's Magic Kingdom version also will closed in March). Disneyland's will reopen in June, and Florida's Magic Kingdom version will reopen in July, in time for the July 7 release of the movie's sequel, "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest."

Information

Disneyland closures : To see what rides will be closed for maintenance or upgrades during a Disneyland visit, go to www.disneyland.com and click on the link "See the calendar" on the bottom right of the page. Enter the planned dates of your visit, and park hours and scheduled ride/attraction closures will be listed for each day,

Seattle Times travel staff

Disney will also update some special effects on the boat ride, which takes guests through a singing and brawling world of robotic pirates.

"Pirates" was the last Disney theme park attraction to be personally supervised by Walt Disney and opened at Disneyland in 1967, the year after Disney's death