Walt Disney World

Walt Disney World near Orlando Florida is the largest resort complex in the world and the most visited. It was the brainchild of Walt Disney and his team back in 1959 only five years after the opening of Disneyland in California. Disney wanted a larger park and surrounding land so that he could control more; he disliked the businesses that had sprung up around land-locked Disneyland. He intended that the same would not happen at Disney World.

In November 1965 Disney revealed his plans for Disney World after he had secretly bought 27,000 acres (40 square miles) near Orlando. At that time the park cost was estimated at $100 million but by 1967 it had grown to $800 million. By early 1968 three-hundred acres (size of Disneyland) of the Cypress tree filled swamps had been cleared.

Meanwhile, the state of Florida began improving its highways and airports. Businesses started to rise around Orlando in anticipation of cashing in on some of the Disney World tourists. So too the Apollo Space program was in full swing and bringing people to nearby Cape Canaveral on the eastern Florida coast.

Everyone predicted a flood of tourists for Disney World's October 1, 1971 opening for the first park, the Magic Kingdom. As it turned out it was a less than spectacular opening day, the crowd was "paper-thin." Still, it was a success.

Despite the disappointing opening, the Disney Company pushed ahead with its grand plan for Disney World. That worried some Orlando officials. Annual tourism had already reached one million people and was rising. They weren't sure if the city could keep up. By 1981 the park was attracting 13 million visitors per year.

Nevertheless, construction had begun on Epcot in 1979 and was completed in 1982 at a cost of $1 billion. It opened on October 1, 1982-11 years after the opening of Disney World. Hollywood studios opened in 1989 and Animal Kingdom in 1998. Today Disney World attracts about 45 million visitors each year.

Walt Disney died in 1966 and never saw his vision come true. His brother, Roy, died in December 1971 just two months after Disney World opened. Walt's wife, Lillian died in 1997 at the age of 98.

Perhaps no other men in history have contributed more to entertaining the world than Roy and Walt Disney.

In a later article we'll take a closer look at Walt Disney World and the many ways you can enjoy a Disney World Vacation.

Sources:

New York Times

November 21, 1965
December 6, 1966
February 19, 1967
February 18, 1968
October 2, 1971
December 22, 1971
October 2, 1979
September 19, 1981
October 2, 1982
December 18, 1997
November 4, 2009