The History of Walt Disney World & Land
Walt Disney Land
Walt Disney Land was a dream come true for Walter. He wanted to build a place where parents and their children could have fun together. The amusement park opened on July 17, 1955. It is located in Anaheim, California. Disney's first idea was to have the park on eight acres of land. Because of World War II his plans were put on hold and he had more time to plan his ideas. It was soon clear that eight acres wouldn't be enough. He needed space to build rivers, waterfalls, and mountains; he would have flying elephants and giant teacups, a fairy-tale castle, moon rockets, and a scenic railway, all inside a magic kingdom he called "Disneyland." The property would have to be in the Los Angeles metroplex area and that's when the location of Anaheim was decided. Construction for Disneyland began on July 21, 1954, a meager 12 months before the park was scheduled to open. From that day forward Walt Disney's life would never be the same. Walt Disney was 53 when he dedicated Disneyland Park. It was a memorable ceremony. By 1965, ten years after opening day, 50 Million visitors had come through the gates.
Walt Disney Land was a dream come true for Walter. He wanted to build a place where parents and their children could have fun together. The amusement park opened on July 17, 1955. It is located in Anaheim, California. Disney's first idea was to have the park on eight acres of land. Because of World War II his plans were put on hold and he had more time to plan his ideas. It was soon clear that eight acres wouldn't be enough. He needed space to build rivers, waterfalls, and mountains; he would have flying elephants and giant teacups, a fairy-tale castle, moon rockets, and a scenic railway, all inside a magic kingdom he called "Disneyland." The property would have to be in the Los Angeles metroplex area and that's when the location of Anaheim was decided. Construction for Disneyland began on July 21, 1954, a meager 12 months before the park was scheduled to open. From that day forward Walt Disney's life would never be the same. Walt Disney was 53 when he dedicated Disneyland Park. It was a memorable ceremony. By 1965, ten years after opening day, 50 Million visitors had come through the gates.
Disney World
After the success that Disney Land brought, Walter wanted to build a larger amusement and resort area. He wanted to create a "new world" of never ending happiness. Walter died during the construction of Disney World and his brother Roy took over. After 52 months of construction, Walt Disney World resort, including the Magic Kingdom, opened to the public as scheduled on October 1st, 1971. The park included many of the attractions from Disney Land in California, plus there were many new attractions. Walt Disney World was 43 square miles and located in central Florida. This amusement park has also had hundred millions of visitors and it is incredibly popular. People love it as much and ever more than Disney Land. It brings families so close together and gives them the experience of their lives.
After the success that Disney Land brought, Walter wanted to build a larger amusement and resort area. He wanted to create a "new world" of never ending happiness. Walter died during the construction of Disney World and his brother Roy took over. After 52 months of construction, Walt Disney World resort, including the Magic Kingdom, opened to the public as scheduled on October 1st, 1971. The park included many of the attractions from Disney Land in California, plus there were many new attractions. Walt Disney World was 43 square miles and located in central Florida. This amusement park has also had hundred millions of visitors and it is incredibly popular. People love it as much and ever more than Disney Land. It brings families so close together and gives them the experience of their lives.
"Whenever I go on a ride, I'm always thinking of what's wrong with the thing and how it can be improved." -Walter Disney
General Idea of Disney resorts..
Disney's first theme park was Disneyland, located in Anaheim California. Disneyland opened on July 17, 1955. In the 1970s, the Walt Disney Company developed its Walt Disney Parks and Resorts Division after the construction of the Magic Kingdom at the Walt Disney Resort in Orlando, Florida. Since its founding in 1971, the Walt Disney Parks and Resorts Division has been responsible for expanding its original Disney parks and building new parks all over the world. For example, Disney's original park, Disneyland, was expanded to include Disney's California Adventure Park in 2001.
The following is a list of the Disney parks located around the world and a short summary of what each park
includes:
• Disneyland Resort: This is the first Disney resort and is located in Anaheim, California. It opened in 1955 but has been expanded since and now includes Disney's California Adventure Park, Downtown Disney and luxury hotels such as the Disneyland Hotel, Disney's Grand Californian Hotel and Spa, and Disney's Paradise Pier Hotel.
• Walt Disney World Resort: This resort was Disney's second project in Orlando, Florida and is an expansion of the Magic Kingdom which opened in 1971. Today its theme parks include the original Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Disney's Hollywood Studios and Disney's Animal Kingdom. In addition, there are water parks, shopping centers, and a large variety of hotels and resorts at or near this Disney location.
• Tokyo Disney Resort: This was the first Disney resort to open
outside of the United States. It opened in Urayasu, Chiba, Japan in 1983 as Tokyo Disneyland. It was expanded in 2001 to include Tokyo DisneySea which features a nautical, underwater theme. Like the U.S. locations, Tokyo Disney has a large shoppingcenter and luxury resort hotels. In addition, the resort is said to have one of the largest parking structures in the world.
• Disney Paris: Disney Paris opened under the name Euro Disney
in 1992. It is located in the Paris suburb of Marne-la-Vallée and has two theme parks (Disneyland Park and Walt Disney Studios Park), a golf course and many different resort hotels. Disney Paris also has a large shopping center called Disney Village.
• Hong Kong Disneyland Resort: This 320 acre park is located in Penny's Bay on Lantau Island, Hong Kong and opened in 2005. It consists of one theme park and two hotels (Hong Kong Disneyland Hotel and Disney's Hollywood Hotel). The park has plans to expand in the future.
• Shanghai Disneyland Resort: The most recent Disney Park is in Shanghai. It was approved by the government of China in 2009 and is expected to open in 2014.
• Disney Cruise Line: The Disney Cruise Line was developed in 1995. It currently operates two ships- one of which is called Disney Magic and the other is Disney Wonder. They began operating in 1998 and 1999, respectively. Each of these ships travels to the Caribbean and have a port of call at Disney's Castaway Cay Island in the Bahamas. The Disney Cruise Line plans to add two more ships in 2011 and 2012.
In addition to the above mentioned theme parks and resorts, Walt Disney's Parks and Resorts Division has plans to open additional parks in Europe and Asia. It also has plans to expand several existing parks such as the Hong Kong and Paris locations.