The "flaming town" is one of the most startling effects in the entire POTC attraction. Red-hot lighting effects, dancing shadows, and flickering flames (created safely with illuminated strips of celephane blowing through the air) give the viewer pause. Pictured at right is a "maquette," or production model, of the scene.

As the town burns brighter, the pirates grow dimmer as the alcohol takes its toll. Pirates stand around with their lit torches burning in their hands, unaware of their surroundings. Others wallow in the mud with pigs and stray cats. The guests' boat drifts directly under a stone archway under the glazed gaze of a stupified pirate (pictured at right).

The Audio-Animatronic pirates were created with exagerated features and facial expressions, but they are still amazingly lifelike. The following excerpt from "Walt Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean" souvenir guide explains:

In [the WED sculptors'] clay modeling, they were first confronted with the problem of composing heads which were typical of real persons, and not merely cartoon characters. Features were exagerated to provide characteristics recognizable instantly, and to facilitate three-dimensional animation.... Just as actors are chosen for roles in motion pictures, so also were the heads "cast" to the figures. Dialogue, body size, and part in the show dictated which heads were to be used.

Guests find themselves floating past an array of minstrels, sailors, and thieves as they continue floating onward. Meanwhile, it is difficult to avoid humming along with "X" Atencio's famous theme song:

Yo Ho, Yo Ho, A Pirate's Life for Me!
We pillage, plunder, we rifle and loot,
Drink up, me 'arties, yo ho!
We kidnap and ravage and don't give a hoot,
Drink up, me 'arties, yo ho!

We extort and pilfer, we filch and sack,
Drink up, me 'arties, yo ho!
Maraud and embezzle and even highjack,
Drink up, me 'arties, yo ho!

We kindle and char and enflame and ignite,
Drink up, me 'arties, yo ho!
We burn up the city, we're really a fright,
Drink up, me 'arties, yo ho!

We're rascals and scoundrels, we're villains and knaves,
Drink up, me 'arties, yo ho!
We're devils and black sheep, really bad eggs,
Drink up, me 'arties, yo ho!

We're beggars and blighters and ne'er do well cads,
Drink up, me 'arties, yo ho!
Aye, but we're loved by our mommies and dads,
Drink up, me 'arties, yo ho!

YO HO (A Pirate's Life for Me)
© Walt Disney Music Co.

The boats then enter the town's underground arsenal and armory, which contains stockpiles of weapons, cannonballs, and barrels and barrels of explosive gunpowder. The drunken pirates are completely oblivious to the imminent threat, as they take potshots at guests in the boats, the casks of gunpowder, and each other while their shots ricochet off of the walls and armor stored in the room.

With this final scene, guests' tour of the world of the pirates comes to an end. Before the inebriated salts can blow the arsenal into pieces, our boats make their escape by heading "up" a waterfall, reversing fortune and sending the visitors back to the safety of the placid Blue Bayou, from where they will return to the magical sights and sounds of the Disney theme park, ready to set sail for another adventure!