It’s time to buckle up for a ride through McDonald’s history, because nostalgic McDonaldland Meals are landing at the fast food chain.
As McDonald’s revealed via email, this blast from the past references the company’s vintage McDonaldland marketing campaigns of the early ‘70s, which included a cast of characters frolicking in a colorful fantasy world. And the fast food chain is hoping to impart the same sense of nostalgia that these ads evoke with its new meal.
Each meal comes with fries, your choice of a Quarter Pounder with Cheese or 10-piece McNuggets, and a pastel blue and pink Mt. McDonaldland Shake. In the spirit of imagination, McDonald’s isn’t revealing the flavor of this shake and says it’s a “secret concoction as enchanting as the world itself.”
Every McDonaldland meal includes a collectible tin — one of six designs inspired by different characters — with postcards, stickers, and other souvenirs inside. If you’re searching for a trip back in time, these collectibles are sure to take you down memory lane.
McDonaldland was used in commercials and restaurant decorations from roughly 1971 through 2003, according to the McDonald’s Wiki. Within the McDonald’s-verse, this fantasy land houses all the quirky characters under the Golden Arches’ brand, including Grimace, Mayor McCheese, Birdie, Hamburglar, Fry Friends, and, of course, Ronald McDonald. The concept was slowly phased out of the chain’s marketing efforts in the early 2000s in favor of a more streamlined cast of characters.
Now, McDonald’s is taking another trip to McDonaldland, and in the brand’s announcement and new campaign, it’s diving deeper into this imaginative landscape. Mt. McDonaldland, a key landmark and playful interpretation of a volcano, spews sweet blue “lava,” while light pink clouds float leisurely above, creating a color combo that’s referenced in the new shake.
A train carts visitors through the mountainous region, and it’s all presented in an animated video that conjures the aesthetic style of ‘70s-era stop motion.
To take things one step further, the Chicago-based chain is partnering with brands Away and Pacsun on two separate collaborations. Luggage brand Away will offer free McDonaldland luggage tags and bag charms starting on August 18, while folks can shop colorful sweat sets and graphic tees at Pacsun beginning on August 12.
The McDonaldland Meal is available now and as long as supplies last, so you might want to make sure you snag this nostalgic set while you can. If you’d like to try the Mt. McDonaldland shake on its own, the chain recommends that you simply talk to a member of the crew at your McDonald’s location, and they’ll be able to accommodate the request.
Whether you’re discovering McDonaldland for the first time or associate it with Happy Meal runs of your youth, it sounds like this meal is sure to spark joy for everyone.
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