Magic Kingdom

Magic Kingdom Park

Disney theme park
Cinderella Castle is the icon of the Magic Kingdom
Resort	Walt Disney World Resort
Opened	October 1, 1971
Theme	Magic kingdom
Operator	The Walt Disney Company
Website	Magic Kingdom Homepage

Magic Kingdom is one of four theme parks at the Walt Disney World Resort. The first park built at the resort, it opened October 1, 1971. Designed and built by WED Enterprises, the park's layout and attractions are similar to Disneyland in Anaheim, California. In 2009, the park saw an estimated 17.2 million visitors, making it the most visited theme park in the world.^[1]

History

Construction

Although Walt Disney himself had been highly involved in planning The Florida Project, the Walt Disney Company began construction on Magic Kingdom and the entire resort in 1967 after his death. The Magic Kingdom park was built similarly to the existing Disneyland in California. The Florida park, however, was built in a larger area and improved upon Disneyland's design.

There are several anecdotes relating to reasons for some of the features of Walt Disney World, and Magic Kingdom specifically. According to one story, Walt Disney once saw a Frontierland cowboy walking through Tomorrowland at Disneyland. He felt that the cowboy intruded on the futuristic setting of Tomorrowland and wanted to avoid situations like this in the new park.^[2] Therefore, Magic Kingdom was built over a series of tunnels called utilidors, a blend of utility and corridor. These tunnels allow employees (aka cast members) to move through the park out of sight from guests, maintaining the illusion of the show.

Because of Florida's high water table, the tunnels could not be put underground, so they were built at the existing grade. This means that the park is actually built on the second story, giving Magic Kingdom an elevation of 107 feet. The area around the utilidors was filled in with dirt removed from the Seven Seas Lagoon, which was being constructed at the same time.

The utilidors were built in the initial construction and were not extended as the park expanded. The tunnels were only used in Magic Kingdom because of financial constraints, but they were meant to be employed in all subsequent Walt Disney World parks. Epcot's Future World and Pleasure Island each have a smaller network of utilidors.

Opening

Magic Kingdom opened as the first part of Walt Disney's planned Florida Project on October 1, 1971. It was the only theme park on the resort at the time and opened concurrently with two hotels on the property: Disney's Contemporary Resort and Disney's Polynesian Resort. The park opened with 23 attractions, three unique to the park and 20 copies of attractions at Disneyland. The Walt Disney Company promised to increase this number with more attractions like those in Disneyland as well as more unique ones. The attractions were split into six themed lands, five copies of those at Disneyland and the unique Liberty Square.

While there is no individual dedication to Magic Kingdom Park, the dedication by Roy O. Disney for the entire Walt Disney World Resort was placed within its gates.

Since opening day, Magic Kingdom has only been closed for five incidents: Hurricane Floyd, the September 11 attacks, Hurricane Frances, Hurricane Charley, and Hurricane Wilma.^[3]

Naming confusions

Magic Kingdom has often been used as an unofficial nickname for Disneyland Park before the Walt Disney World Resort was built. The official tagline for Disneyland is The Happiest Place On Earth, while the tagline for Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom is, The Most Magical Place On Earth. Despite the similarities, the Florida park's tickets have always borne the official name of Magic Kingdom. In 1994, in order to differentiate it from Disneyland, the park was officially renamed to Magic Kingdom Park but is most often simply called Magic Kingdom. A common mistake is to add the article the in front of the name.

Transportation and Ticket Center

TTC logo

The layout of the resort places Magic Kingdom more than a mile away from its parking lot, on the opposite side of the manmade Seven Seas Lagoon. Upon arrival, guests are taken by the parking lot trams to the Transportation and Ticket Center (TTC). This facility sells tickets to the parks and provides transportation connections throughout the resort complex. It also has a small gift shop, the Magic Kingdom's pet-boarding kennel and the central lost-and-found facility for all four theme parks.

To reach Magic Kingdom, guests either use the Walt Disney World Monorail System, the Staten Island-style ferryboats, or Buses depending on the location of their hotel. The three hotels closest to Magic Kingdom, Disney's Contemporary Resort, Disney's Polynesian Resort, and Disney's Grand Floridian Resort and Spa use either the ferry or monorail system to travel to Magic Kingdom. The other hotels take the buses to travel to this specific park. The three ferries are clad in different trim colors and are named for past Disney executives: the General Joe Potter (blue), the Richard F. Irvine (red) and the Admiral Joe Fowler (green). (Another ferry system exists in the park, in which the Disney Boardwalk hotels, Disney's Boardwalk Resort, Disney's Yacht and Beach Club Resorts, and Disney's Swan and Dolphin Resorts also use to travel to the other major destinations within the park, including Disney's Hollywood Studios and Epcot.)

The main monorail loop has two lanes. The outer lane is a direct nonstop loop between the TTC and Magic Kingdom. The inner loop has additional stops at Disney's Contemporary Resort, Disney's Polynesian Resort and Disney's Grand Floridian Resort & Spa. Epcot is accessible by a spur monorail line that was added upon that park's opening in 1982.

Lands of the Magic Kingdom

The park map lists 46 attractions in seven themed "lands." Designed like a wheel with the hub in front of Cinderella Castle, pathways spoke out across the 107 acres of the park and lead to these seven lands. The Walt Disney World Railroad runs along the perimeter of the park and makes stops at Main Street, U.S.A., Frontierland, and Mickey's Toontown Fair.

Main Street, U.S.A.

Main Street, U.S.A.

Instead of being a replica of a small Midwestern American town, Main Street at Magic Kingdom features some stylistic influences from around the country. Taking its inspiration from New England to Missouri, this design is most noticeable in the four corners area in the middle of Main Street, where each of the four corner buildings represents a different architectural style. There is also no Opera House on Magic Kingdom's Main Street as there is at Disneyland; instead, there is the Exposition Hall.

Main Street is lined with shops selling merchandise and food. The decor is early-20th century small-town America, inspired by Walt Disney's childhood and the film Lady and the Tramp. City Hall contains the Guest Relations lobby, where cast members provide information and assistance. A working barber shop gives haircuts for a fee. The Emporium carries a wide variety of Disney souvenirs such as plush toys, collectible pins and Mickey-ear hats. Tony’s Town Square and the Plaza Restaurant are table service restaurants. Casey's Corner is at the end of Main Street and sells traditional American ballpark fare including hot dogs and fries. The Main Street Confectionary sells sweets priced by their weight, such as candied apples, crisped rice treats, chocolates, cookies and fudge.^[4]

Most windows on Main Street bear the name of people who were influential at Walt Disney World or other Disney parks. An example of a classic Main Street, U.S.A. attraction is the Walt Disney World Railroad, which transports guest throughout the park, making stops at Frontierland and Mickey's Toontown Fair.

Cinderella Castle at night

Wishes: A Magical Gathering of Disney Dreams is the largest fireworks show ever presented at the Magic Kingdom

In the distance beyond the end of Main Street stands Cinderella Castle. Though only 189 feet (55m) tall, it benefits from a technique known as forced perspective. The (fake) second stories of all the buildings along Main Street are shorter than the first stories, and the third stories are even shorter than the second, and the top windows of the castle are much smaller than they appear. The resulting visual effect is that the buildings appear to be larger and taller than they really are.

Symbolically, Main Street, U.S.A. represents the park's "opening credits". Guests pass under the train station (the opening curtain), then view the names of key personnel along the windows of the buildings' upper floors. Many windows bear the name of a fictional business, such as "Seven Summits Expeditions, Frank G. Wells President", with each representing a tribute to significant people connected to the Disney company and the development of Walt Disney World Resort.

The park contains two additional tributes: the Partners statue of Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse in front of Cinderella Castle and the Sharing the Magic statue of Roy O. Disney sitting with Minnie Mouse in the Town Square section of Main Street, U.S.A. Both were sculpted by veteran Imagineer Blaine Gibson.

Adventureland

Adventureland represents the mystery of exploring foreign lands. It is themed to resemble the remote jungles in Africa, Asia, the Middle East, South America and the South Pacific, with an extension resembling a Caribbean town square. It contains classic rides such as Pirates of the Caribbean and Jungle Cruise.

Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse

Frontierland

Frontierland is where guests can relive the Wild West – from cowboys and Indians, to exploring the mysteries of the Rivers of America. Frontierland contains classic attractions such as Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, , Splash Mountain, and the Country Bear Jamboree.

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad

Liberty Square

This area of the park is based on an American Revolutionary town. The Magic Kingdom's Rivers of America hosts the Liberty Belle riverboat. Liberty Square is home to the Haunted Mansion and the Hall of Presidents.

Fantasyland

In the words of Walt Disney: "Fantasyland is dedicated to the young at heart and to those who believe that when you wish upon a star, your dreams come true." Fantasyland is themed in a medieval-faire/carnival style. The section will undergo an expansion over the coming years, with completion scheduled for 2013. Phase one of this project will be finished around 2011, and phase two in 2013. It will feature a ride featuring Ariel, which will also be at Disney's California Adventure Park, the Beasts Castle, Aurora's cottage, and much more. One of the main changes will be the Dumbo ride will have a circus themed waiting area filled with circus games to play while you wait. Toon Town Fair will close because it will be replaced with Pixie Hollow. However there is a rumor that Disney is considering changing some things for the Fantasyland expansion project.

Attractions include "it's a small world", Peter Pan's Flight, Dumbo the Flying Elephant, The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, Mickey's PhilharMagic, Snow White's Scary Adventures, Cinderella's Golden Carrousel, and Mad Tea Party.

Tomorrowland

In the words of Walt Disney: "Tomorrow can be a wonderful age. Our scientists today are opening the doors of the Space Age to achievements that will benefit our children and generations to come. The Tomorrowland attractions have been designed to give you an opportunity to participate in adventures that are a living blueprint of our future."

Tomorrowland is themed to be an intergalactic city. Classic attractions include Space Mountain and the Tomorrowland Speedway.

Mickey's Toontown Fair

Mickey's Toontown Fair.

An expansion of the land created as Mickey's Birthdayland, and later Mickey's Starland, this area is home to attractions such as Mickey's Country House, Minnie's Country House, Goofy's Barnstormer, and Donald's Boat. This area is soon to be demolished to make way for the Fantasyland Expansion to be completed in 2013.

See also

Similar parks

• Disneyland Park (Anaheim, California)
• Tokyo Disneyland
• Disneyland Park (Paris)
• Hong Kong Disneyland

Fiction set in the Magic Kingdom:

• Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom - A 2003 science fiction novel set in and around the Magic Kingdom
• The Kingdom Keepers - A 2005 novel set in the Magic Kingdom
• Pixar's The Incredibles in a Magic Kingdom Adventure - A play formerly set in the Magic Kingdom
• Adventures in the Magic Kingdom- A 1990 Video Game for the Nintendo Entertainment System. Although the cover art and title suggest that the game is intended to depict the Magic Kingdom in Walt Disney World, the location of attractions within the in-game overworld map suggests a layout more akin to Disneyland in Anaheim, California.

Albums:

• Walt Disney Takes You to Disneyland: A Musical Tour of the Magic Kingdom

References

External links

• Official Magic Kingdom section within disneyworld.com