Pixar’s latest exhibition hit London last month, and I had the pleasure of visiting just a few days after it opened to the general public. Mundo Pixar is an interactive, walk-through experience that transports you to various worlds from the Pixar Universe.
London is actually the 7th stop on the Pixar Mundo ‘world tour,’ with it having already wowed audiences in Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Madrid, Barcelona, Brussels, and Mexico City. It has now set up camp in a purpose-built venue in Wembley Park, and being a big fan, I had to see it for myself.
We visited as two adults without children during the school holidays, so we got a first-hand look at what the experience is like at full capacity. Albeit we are big kids ourselves, I was a little concerned that we might feel out of place, but there were plenty of other Pixar-crazed adults enjoying the exhibit too.
Read my thoughts below on the good, the bad, and the ugly of our experience at the Pixar Mundo London exhibition.
The Good
Firstly, let me start by saying that the exhibition is actually a really fun experience and brilliantly put together! There are 14 rooms in total, which explore scenes from Toy Story, Up, Monsters Inc, Cars, Coco, Elemental, Finding Nemo, Inside Out, Ratatouille, and Luca. Walking into each room, it felt like you were instantly transported into the movie.
The exhibits look high quality and there are a ton of smaller touches that Pixar fans of all ages can appreciate, such as the swinging monkeys from Toy Story or the Paradise Falls adventure fund jar from Up. The attention to detail here is really impressive; I was a little hesitant that it might feel like a ‘knock-off,’ but I’m pleased to report that the experience wouldn’t feel out of place at Disneyland.
My favourite room had to be Andy’s bedroom from Toy Story – the room does a fantastic job of putting you at the scale of a toy and seeing things from Buzz and Woody’s perspective! Other standouts are definitely the Finding Nemo room, which depicts a scene from the deep blue, as well as Carl and Ellie’s house from Up. As an added bonus, they even have a small Hoppers photo opportunity featuring beaver Mabel at the entrance, which was a nice touch!
One of my big concerns about going during the school holidays was how busy it would be, but thankfully the whole exhibition is actually very well managed. Entry is staggered by designated time slots, which prevents major bottlenecking. Even in the smaller rooms, the flow felt smooth, and despite it being at capacity, the only queue we spent too much time in was at the coat check!
Speaking of photo opportunities, these are in plentiful supply! In each room, there is at least one designated photo shoot location, be it with Mike and Sulley in the Scare Factory or with Lightning McQueen and Mater in Flo’s V8 Café. I’d also recommend getting creative; pretending Andy has just walked into his room in the Toy Story section makes for some brilliant memories to look back and laugh at! There are staff on hand in every room to help take photos, and they were incredibly friendly and helpful, especially given the constant flow of guests.
Another really positive thing I saw was how accessible the exhibition is. There are no steps throughout, meaning it’s fully accessible for wheelchair users. Additionally, at the entrance to each room, there were QR codes for visually impaired users, which I thought was a really nice touch. It’s great to see an exhibit putting accessibility at the forefront of its design rather than feeling like an afterthought.
The Bad
Whilst the rooms are well designed, not all of them quite live up to the standard of the Toy Story areas. The Elemental room felt really poorly executed – crammed into a small space, it’s essentially just Wade and Ember sat together on a metro carriage. There is only one photo opportunity in this room, and it feels like a waste given how awesome an “Element City” scene could have been. As someone who loves Elemental, this was a big disappointment. Likewise, the Ratatouille room felt, pardon the pun, a little half-baked.
Similarly, I think there could have been more variety. With 14 rooms in total, six of those come from the same three franchises (Up, Toy Story, and Coco). Did we really need two rooms dedicated to Coco? I’d have loved to see a scene from Brave or The Incredibles instead. That’s not to say those rooms weren’t great, I’d just have liked a little more variety given Pixar’s catalogue of fan favourites.
I’d also have liked to see a bit more signage or memorabilia. Other than a small sign briefly outlining the room, there was very little to engage with other than the sets themselves. Granted, this is an interactive exhibition and not a museum, but a bit more signage with fun facts about the movies or maybe framed scripts and posters certainly wouldn’t have gone amiss.
My biggest issue with the experience is the cost. For two adults, it cost us £35 each, and if you factor in travel, it quickly amounts to an expensive day out. The experience lasts approximately an hour, which is probably the perfect length for children, but frankly, it works out as an expensive hour! For context, a single undated adult ticket to Disneyland Paris costs £115, which works out at £9.67 an hour if you stayed from open to close!
I was really looking forward to the gift shop and was hoping to pick up some merchandise, but again, everything felt so expensive. It’s well-stocked and has some great items, but the pricing felt out of touch. I fell in love with a Finding Nemo water bottle but sadly couldn’t justify the eye-watering £30 price tag. Perhaps if the tickets had been a little cheaper, I would have had more pocket money to spend!
The Ugly
To enjoy the exhibit, you really need to be as free as possible to take photos, which means not carrying coats or bags around. The organisers acknowledge that and offer a coat check, but sadly, this comes at a cost of £3. Honestly, given the ticket prices, the coat check should be free on principle! I appreciate £3 isn’t a crazy sum, but for me, it’s the principle of it.
There is an area to leave buggies and prams next to the coat check which I’m hoping was at no extra cost, so if you are travelling with one of those, it may be an idea to leave your jackets in the pram to avoid the extra fee.
One minor nitpick I had was an interaction in the Elemental room. A guest asked who the characters (Ember and Wade) were, and the staff member responded by saying he thought they were just ‘Fire Girl and Water Guy.’ Maybe I’m being extremely pedantic (I am!), but it did ruin the magic a little that some staff weren’t more knowledgeable – I suppose I’m just a bit used to the Cast Members at Disneyland!
It’s a bit of a weird disconnect; while the sets are designed by Pixar (and they look incredible!), the actual event is run by an outside production company. It shows that while the ‘production’ is top-tier, the ‘service’ doesn’t quite have that Disney training where everyone knows the world inside out.
The Verdict
Despite the ‘Disney tax’ applied to nearly everything, Pixar Mundo London is a fun day out that calls to your inner child. It gives you that rare joy of actually entering the world of Pixar, making it a great way to spend an hour for kids young and old!
3.5/5
Steamboat Charlie 