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Ariana Grande recently revealed that her mom, Joan, has one fairly peculiar dying request: She wants her ashes scattered at Cinderella’s Castle at Disney World. That iconic castle is hallowed ground for most die-hard Disney fans, a space that somehow epitomizes the very middle of the ”happiest place on earth.” There’s just one problem: Disney doesn’t allow that sort of thing, strictly enforcing a code of conduct designed to keep the entire experience as clean and family-friendly as possible.
It’s not an uncommon request on the part of Grande’s mother. Disney World has evolved over the years into a very unlikely scattering ground, it seems, for those who desire to give their loved ones eternal memorials. For some overzealous fans and bereaved families, it’s a great final resting place to such an extent that ash-scattering incidents at the parks purportedly occur nearly every month. Disney custodians are trained for such incidents, which they discreetly handle by removing the remains via a “HEPA cleanup.” The cleanup would involve a special high-efficiency particulate air, or HEPA, vacuum, according to reports from former employees and multiple media outlets, including The Wall Street Journal and Mental Floss.
Cinderella Castle is not the only place such ashes have been discovered. Other common places, of course, are the very popular rides: Haunted Mansion, Pirates of the Caribbean, and It’s a Small World. Haunted Mansion has become so infamous that workers claim it might be harboring so much ash that it has actually become a kind of grim sort of resting place unto itself. Visitors have resorted to secretly bringing the ashes into the park by hiding them in a pill bottle, makeup container, or small Ziploc bag, facing the very real threat of losing their access to the park in order to fulfill a loved one’s last wish.
Despite efforts by guests to do otherwise, Disney refuses to budge on their no-ashes policy. Those who get caught spreading ashes are escorted from the park, with Disney claiming it as a banned and criminal act. For the families in grief, though, many consider it worth the risk because to them, Disney is such a personal place-one which captures the sense of happiness and joy their loved ones enjoyed in life.
For many fans, Disney is not merely an amusement or theme park but a cultural landmark where cherished memories are brought to life-poignant it is. However, for Disney, a means of keeping the experience for all guests and providing a litter-free and unclean environment entails that even when some fans consider Disney the end in this life, the corporation holds fast by keeping the parks ash-free.
