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What Is Disney World-yet
We may be biased, but we think Walt Disney World (WDW), in Orlando, Florida, is the best collection of theme parks on Earth. Its combined size, quality, and ambition go far beyond that of any other amusement park or theme park you may have seen.
If this is your first visit, you’re probably familiar with Disney World through Disney’s theme park advertising. It’s great at showing families enjoying exciting rides and meeting its famous characters. But 30-second ads don’t convey where to find those rides and characters, how long you’ll stand in line, or how much money the visit will cost.
Walt Disney World has four theme parks. If you’re familiar with any of them, it’s probably the Magic Kingdom—the first one built and the one most people think of when they hear the words Disney World. The other three theme parks are EPCOT, Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and Disney’s Animal Kingdom.
Walt Disney World also contains two water parks, Blizzard Beach and Typhoon Lagoon. But there’s more: over three dozen hotels and a campground; more than 100 restaurants; a massive year-round sports center; an outdoor mall/entertainment/hotel complex called Disney Springs; six convention centers; four golf courses; and an array of spas, recreation options, and other activities.
How Big Is Walt Disney World-yet
Walt Disney World is huge—around 43 square miles, about double the size of Manhattan and slightly smaller than Miami.
For easy reference, we (and Disney) use the theme parks as rough guides to locations within Walt Disney World. For example, the Magic Kingdom Resort Area is about 7 square miles and contains the Magic Kingdom theme park and nearby hotels, restaurants, golf courses, and entertainment. The EPCOT Resort Area is roughly 1.5 square miles and contains EPCOT and nearby hotels, restaurants, and so on. Most of these areas are separated by miles of barely developed Central Florida swampland.
The areas are so far apart that it’s not possible to walk between them. Instead, you’ll usually get around via the Walt Disney World transportation system’s fleet of buses, boats, vans, monorail trains (monorails), and aerial trams. Disney World’s bus system is the third largest in Florida, behind Jacksonville’s and Miami’s. Its transportation system is so large that Part 9 of this book is dedicated to it.
Because of Walt Disney World’s size, it would probably take around two weeks to explore most of it. Most families don’t have two weeks to spare, so we’ll tell you the best things to see in the time you have.
The Major Theme Parks
The Magic Kingdom
When most people think of Walt Disney World, they think of the Magic Kingdom, opened in 1971. It consists of Cinderella Castle and adventures, rides, and shows featuring the Disney cartoon characters. It’s only one element of Disney World, but it remains the heart.
The Magic Kingdom is divided into six “lands” arranged around a central hub. First you come to Main Street, U.S.A., which connects the Magic Kingdom entrance with the hub. Arranged clockwise around the hub are Adventureland, Frontierland, Liberty Square, Fantasyland, and Tomorrowland. The Magic Kingdom has more rides, shows, and entertainment than any other WDW theme park. A comprehensive tour takes two days; a tour of the highlights can be done in one full day.
Six hotels—Bay Lake Tower, the Contemporary and Grand Floridian Resorts, Polynesian Village (and an upcoming, separate tower wing), and The Villas at the Grand Floridian—are connected to the Magic Kingdom by monorail and boat. Three other hotels—Shades of Green (for the US military and their families), Wilderness Lodge (incorporating the Boulder Ridge Villas and Copper Creek time-share units), and Fort Wilderness Resort & Campground—are located nearby but are served by boat and bus instead of monorail.
EPCOT
Opened in October 1982, EPCOT is twice as big as the Magic Kingdom and comparable in scope. The “front” (southern) part consists of three areas (World Discovery, World Celebration, and World Nature) holding giant pavilions concerning human creativity, technological advancement, the natural world, and—increasingly—cartoon characters; World Showcase, the “back” (northern) part, is arranged around a 40-acre lagoon and presents the architectural, social, and cultural heritages of almost a dozen nations, each country represented by replicas of famous landmarks and settings familiar to world travelers.
The EPCOT resorts—the BoardWalk Inn & Villas, Dolphin, Swan, Swan Reserve, Yacht & Beach Club Resorts, and Beach Club Villas—are within a 5- to 15-minute walk of the International Gateway, the World Showcase entrance to the theme park. The hotels are also linked to EPCOT and Disney’s Hollywood Studios by boat and walkway. EPCOT is connected to the Magic Kingdom and its hotels by monorail. An elevated ski lift–like gondola system called the Skyliner links EPCOT and Disney’s Hollywood Studios to Disney’s Pop Century, Art of Animation, Caribbean Beach, and Riviera Resorts.
Disney’s Hollywood Studios
Opened in 1989 in an area a little larger than the Magic Kingdom, Disney’s Hollywood Studios (DHS) has two main sections. One area, occupying about 50% of the Studios, is a theme park focused on the motion picture, music, and television industries. Park highlights include a recreation of Hollywood and Sunset Boulevards from Hollywood’s Golden Age, several rides and musical shows, and a movie stunt show.
The other half of DHS is two immersive lands based on popular Disney film franchises: Toy Story Land opened in 2018 with three highly themed rides for children. Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, opened in 2019, has two state-of-the-art, large rides for older children, teens, and adults.
DHS is connected to other Walt Disney World areas by highway, boat, and Skyliner but not by monorail. Guests can park in DHS’s pay parking lot or commute by bus; guests at EPCOT resort hotels can reach DHS by boat, on foot, or by Skyliner.
Disney’s Animal Kingdom
About five times the size of the Magic Kingdom, Disney’s Animal Kingdom combines zoological exhibits with rides, shows, and live entertainment. The park is arranged in a hub-and-spoke configuration somewhat like the Magic Kingdom. A lush tropical rainforest serves as Main Street, funneling visitors to Discovery Island, the park’s hub. Dominated by the park’s central icon, the 14-story-tall, hand-carved Tree of Life, Discovery Island offers services, shopping, and dining. From there, guests can access the themed areas: Africa, Asia, DinoLand U.S.A., and Pandora. Discovery Island, Africa, and DinoLand U.S.A. opened in 1998, followed by Asia in 1999. Africa, the largest themed area at 100 acres, is home to free-roaming herds in a recreation of the Serengeti Plain.
Pandora—The World of Avatar, based on James Cameron’s Avatar film franchise, is the most significant recent expansion. Its biggest draws may be the animals and scenery—including “floating mountains” and glow-in-the-dark plants—which Disney has replicated from the movie. See Part 13 for full details.
Disney’s Animal Kingdom has its own parking lot and is connected to other Walt Disney World destinations by the Disney bus system. Although no hotels lie within Animal Kingdom proper, the All-Star Resorts, Animal Kingdom Lodge & Villas, and Coronado Springs Resort are all nearby.
