I only remember getting to ride the swan boat once when I was little and even then, I really enjoyed it. It made me feel like a princess. I had some really old, old film developed and one of the few images that came out was a picture of me, sitting on that swan boat.
We were really disappointed when this attraction closed in the early 80's...The Plaza Swan Boats took you on a very informative and liesurely ride thru the inland waterways around Cinderella's Castle ...I seem to recall that it actually circled the Swiss Family Robinson's Treehouse...there was a CM acting as a guide pointing out points of interest along the route...a very interesting and tranquil ride that lasted about 20 minutes...it was really a nice ride. ...The Swan Boats were named after Disney characters...I remember TinkerBell and the three fairies from Sleeping Beauty. I'm pretty sure you can still see the loading area for the Swan Boat in front of the Plaza Restaurant if you look toward the Castle. It was probably very expensive to run and maintain the boats...this coupled with a limited capacity for guests may have led to it's demise...but we have some really pleasant, albeit vague, memories of the boats some 20 years later and wonder whatever happened to them...it would be nice to see one on display docked near the Castle. This is one attraction that I can say I truly miss.