The original iteration of the attraction, known as Soarin Over California""', was an opening day attraction at Disney California Adventure on February 8, 2001. The initial version took guests over several locations in California and included a pre-show tribute to the history of California's aviation industry. Due to its consistent popularity, "Soarin Over California" was duplicated at Epcot in Walt Disney World as "Soarin" in 2005. The original "Soarin' Over California" returned to Disney California Adventure for a limited engagement for June 2019. Its popularity led Disney to extend the run through the end of August of that year. Another limited run began on February 28, 2020, as part of that park's Food & Wine Festival, but was cut short when the resort closed on March 13 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.