What Is Disney World?

The iconic entrance onto Walt Disney World property

Perhaps your family has been begging to go to Disney World. Your kids are throwing around the phrase “most magical place on earth” and your spouse has been throwing around the phrase “most expensive place on earth.” And maybe you know a little bit, but perhaps you want to know a lot more.

For the purposes of this blog and for Disney beginners everywhere, I’m going to start at the very beginning. What is Disney World? How many parks does Disney World have? What city in Florida is Disney World in? Why do they call it Space Mountain? Is it a mountain or is it in space? What else should I know? In this article, I will give a brief overview of Walt Disney World, an explanation of the 4 theme parks, 2 water parks, and Disney Springs.

Jump to Section:

Overview

Magic Kingdom

Epcot

Hollywood Studios

Animal Kingdom

Water Parks

Disney Springs

Conclusion

Overview

Walt Disney World Resort is a complex of resorts and entertainment in Bay Lake and Lake Buena Vista, Florida (just outside of Orlando, Florida). It consists of 4 theme parks, 31 Disney-owned resorts, 9 non-Disney resorts, 2 water parks, golf courses, camping grounds, putt-putt courses, a competition sports complex, and Disney Springs, a shopping district.

Bizarre side note: The number of Disney owned hotels is an oddly disputed number. Many websites have various numbers ranging from 21 to 36. Disney themselves say they have “over 25,” but go on to list 31 resorts, which is the same number Wikipedia gives. The confusion could be caused by Disney Vacation Club (Disney’s timeshare) properties being on the same property as regular resorts but managed separately. With this math, Wilderness Lodge and Animal Kingdom both count as three different resorts.

Opened on October 1, 1971, Disney World originally consisted of the Magic Kingdom (and only a fraction of what we know today), several of the deluxe resorts, and two golf courses, among other things. Over the next 51 years, it has continued to add attractions, theme parks, hotels, water parks, and Disney Springs. It has also allowed for many non-Disney restaurants, stores, and resorts to plant themselves there and reap the rewards of the magic.

Me with two of the three on Dumbo, one of the original rides at Magic Kingdom.

The last two years before Covid, Walt Disney World topped 58 million annual visitors (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walt_Disney_World ). 35-40% found themselves at Magic Kingdom (over 20 million). The other three theme parks got roughly 20% of the traffic (between 11-13 million). Since Covid, it seems that Disney World has recovered. Its attendance again peaked at 58 Million visitors in 2021 (https://magicguides.com/disney-world-statistics/).

A few more stats to round it out. Walt Disney World has 300 restaurants, 77,000 employees, and 1.8 million different costumes.

Now on to the parks.

How many parks are there at Disney World?

There are 4 theme parks and 2 water parks.

Magic Kingdom

As mentioned above, Magic Kingdom was the original Walt Disney World Park. It opened on October 1st, 1971 with an attendance of 10,422. Tickets cost only $3.50 at the most. Now Magic Kingdom sees roughly 57,000 people a day, and tickets cost over $100 on average.

The iconic Ciderella’s Castle is the focal point for Magic Kingdom. It stands 189 feet tall, the tallest allowed without an airplane navigation light.

Magic Kingdom is the best park for little kids and nostalgia. It has tons of rides that children of almost any height can ride. The theming has been maintained for decades (but continually updated and refurbished), giving it a classic Disney feel. Each are of the park has it’s own theming, for instance Main Street has a hometown mixed with Coney Island feel. Tomorrowland has an 80’s style sci-fi theme. And Fantasyland has a Medieval—princesses, kings, and knights in shining armor— feel. All of it, of course,  surrounds the uber-iconic, instantly recognizable Cinderella’s Castle that dazzles the mind of little kids everywhere. The castle towers over the park, catches your eye even before you enter, and acts as hub for the rest of the park to revolve.

One of the most iconic and popular rides is Space Mountain, which was the first roller coaster. Originally opened in 1975, it is a space themed, indoor roller coaster that launches my children into space. It is the oldest operating roller coaster in Florida. Fair warning, most adults find Space Mountain jarring, and the seats are not exactly designed for a full-grown human. My daughters love it, though, so I’ll go see a chiropractor. Since it takes you through our solar system and galaxy, and never approaches or climbs a mountain, I maintain that it is misnamed.

The outside of Space Mountain, Magic Kingdom’s original roller coaster

Magic Kingdom has several other roller coasters as well, including the nostalgic Big Thunder Railroad, the unbelievably smooth and well-themed Seven Dwarves Mine Train, the kid friendly (but parental spine unfriendly) Barnstormer, and the brand-new Tron Lightcycle. Cast member friends got my wife and daughters on for a preview of Tron, and I’m still bitter.

Tron Lightcycle: One of my daughters with Carlos from Connections Cafe, trying to eat cyber bugs

Magic Kingdom has several iconic restaurants. Two of the most famous (and hard to get into) are Cinderella’s Royal Table (inside the castle!) and Be Our Guest (inside Belle and Beast’s castle). The food is decent, but they exist solely to stamp permanent joy on your little girl’s faces with the decorations and character interactions. If you want good food, though, head over to the hidden but amazing Skipper Canteen.

The wilting rose in the west wing of the Be Our Guest restaurant

Finally, the shows. Magic Kingdom has several smaller shows running throughout the day. My personal favorite is Monsters, Inc. Laugh Floor, but more nostalgic people will direct you to the Tiki Room or maybe even the Hall of Presidents. They also have several character shows on the stage in front of the castle throughout the day.

But Magic Kingdom is really known for two shows. First, the iconic parades (complete with floats, marching characters, and always culminating with Mickey and Minnie) happen at scheduled times throughout the day. They basically shut down all park traffic and mesmerize children for a half hour, all while adults in scooters yell in vain for everyone to get out of their way.

And second, the fireworks show that happens just after dark. You’ve probably never seen a crowd like 57,000 people cramming onto Main Street and in the Hub (in front of the castle) to watch the fireworks and a projection/music show with quality second to none. This is my wife’s non-negotiable experience for every trip, and I usually end up with at least one delighted child on my Space Mountain-injured shoulders.

Incredible fireworks and projection effects transform Cinderella’s Castle

Pro Tip: If you are ride obsessed and don’t care about the shows, the ride lines will be shorter at Magic Kingdom during parades and fireworks. The only better times to get on a ride fast are at park opening (rope drop) and park close (getting in line just before close guarantees you can stay until you ride).

Side Note: Walt Disney World purchases more explosives than anyone else on Earth besides the US military.

Here’s my daughter’s favorite Magic Kingdom rides for kids.

The next of the 4 theme parks at Disney World is EPCOT

EPCOT

EPCOT is the culmination of a long, strange dream of Walt Disney himself. EPCOT stands for Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow. Walt wanted a community to demonstrate the free enterprise of America, technological and cultural advancements, and to express a dream of all humanity in all nations progressing and prospering—across the world and into Space! It was originally going to be one part world’s fair (success) and one part planned community (fail). The planned community utopia dream died with Walt, and his successors couldn’t wrap their heads around a project that big.

Spaceship Earth, otherwise known as the EPCOT ball, is the focal point of the EPCOT entrance

What we ended up with is a theme park that combines a celebration technological innovation, creativity, space travel, efficient living, concern for the environment, and a concern for understanding the best of many different cultures. Basically, the idea is to celebrate the possibilities of humanity in America, the world, and into space. As an intellectual, it’s interesting to see the combination of modern ideas that are usually not simultaneously held in our current culture: patriotism, globalism, transhumanism, environmentalism, free enterprise, and fun. I don’t necessarily agree with Walt on every solution for the world, but I certainly commend them for putting their money where their mouth is. Disney has been at the forefront of creative innovations for entertainment, crowd control, sustainability, and even trash collection. It really feels like a small world after all in Epcot. The park opened on October 1st, 1982.

Epcot has historically been seen as two different sections: a futuristic park near the entrance called Future World dedicated to edutainment about innovation and conservation, and the World Showcase, which is a trip around the lake where you can visit 11 different countries (originally 9).

Future World has been broken into three parts now: World Celebration (shopping district and giant golf ball, among other things), World Nature (aquarium and Land), and World Discovery (technology and space travel). Oh and don’t call it the giant golf ball. People don’t like that. That’s clearly what it is, but don’t say it. It’s Spaceship Earth, a dark ride incased inside the iconic 16 story tall geodesic sphere. The recent edition of lighting effects to the sphere create an amazing nighttime spectacle.

2023 Map of Epcot

The nine original countries are China, Japan, Germany, France, Italy, Great Britain, Canada, Mexico and the United States. Norway and Morocco were added a few years later. I would also argue that they have a catch-all Africa section next to Germany called Outpost. In each country, you can typically experience the landmarks (like the Eiffel tower), the cuisine (like the Moroccan Spice Road Table), the architecture (like the Japanese pagodas), and various shows derived from the culture. Prior to covid most of the cast members (staff) in every store, restaurant, etc. were from the actual country, which was a unique experience. In the American Adventure Pavilion, you’ll also find a amphitheater that hosts many concerts including some top name artists.

Since EPCOT has been dedicated to edutainment, and most people go to Walt Disney World to avoid education, EPCOT has worked hard to incorporate more and more Disney characters, thrill rides, and unique experiences to lure people into learning. Now, the Sea area is Finding Nemo themed with an amazing character interaction at Turtle talk with Crush. The Land is supplemented by the unbelievably immersive Soarin’. Most of the educational technology exhibits have been replaced by thrill rides such as Test Track and Guardians of the Galaxy Cosmic Rewind. Test Track is at least sort of educational when it comes to aerodynamics and gas mileage, but we’re really there to go 60mph.

The entrance to Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind

Photo courtesy of: elisfkc2 - Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind-Cast Preview, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=117412826

The World Showcase still has the original international experiences, but it is also supplemented by character interactions from Disney Animation franchises, and it’s own theme park rides such as Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure in France and Frozen Ever After in Norway. You can meet various princesses in their fictional home countries, as well as Alice and Mary Poppins in England. Another added feature are seasonal festivals such as Flower and Garden, Food and Wine, Festival of the Arts, and festival of the Holidays, which add new and different experiences year round.

The end result is a nod the original idea of creativity (go on Figment, it’s ridiculous but a cult classic), international culture, technology, space, and sustainability, but it also has amazing attractions for people of all ages and attention spans. But I would be absolutely remiss if I failed to mention the amazing food and drinks. This is the main reason adults come here. Every country has kiosks and sit down restaurants full of amazing food and drinks that draw locals and people from around world to experience.

Like Magic Kingdom, EPCOT also has a night show in the lake of the World Showcase. It has had different iterations over the years, but it generally incorporates projector effects, water effects, fireworks, and synchronized lights throughout the park’s 11 country pavilions.

Lastly, even though it doesn’t seem to fit the educational or realistic futurist vision of EPCOT, Guardians of the Galaxy Cosmic Rewind is by far, in my family’s opinion, the best ride at Walt Disney World. It’s inside, fast, has a soundtrack, a plot line with hysterical actors, and the seats individually spin 360 degrees. I get chills of excitement every time I ride. As far as theming, I’ll argue that the plotline of stopping a space deity trying to erase human history fits the theme that there’s good in humanity, and we should make the most of it (even if the “good” in humanity is 80s music and humor).

My son, contemplating his role in humanity’s future because of EPCOT and Star Lord

Next is the far less cerebral Hollywood Studios.

Hollywood Studios

Hollywood Studios opened on May 1, 1989 as Disney-MGM Studios. In a partnership with MGM, they created a park that was themed after the Golden Age of Hollywood with an emphasis on the creativity of movies, animation, and television. Thanks to the partnership with MGM, they were able to incorporate more movie properties than just those produced by Disney in the theming. The original park also hosted a variety of working studios and animation facilities. After legal battles with MGM and other changes to the park, Disney rebranded the park Disney’s Hollywood Studios in 2008.

The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror is the most recognizable ride at Hollywood Studios

Since then, and even before the name change, Hollywood Studios somewhat deemphasized the “making movies and television” aspect and began to retheme along the lines of movies and immersive creativity. Over the years, they lost the studios and back lot tours, added immersive lands such as Toy Story Land and Galaxy Edge (Star Wars).

Now, Hollywood Studios is a mix of immersive worlds, incredible shows, and a large percentage of the real thrill rides of Walt Disney World. It still holds a lot of the Golden Age Hollywood Magic, especially in the opening parts of Hollywood Boulevard, Echo Lake, Grand Avenue, and Sunset Boulevard, with the centerpiece being the Chinese Theater of iconic Hollywood fame.

Hollywood Studio’s Chinese theater, that now houses Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway

Photo courtesy of: Jedi94 at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=87727325

If you like thrill rides, check out Tower of Terror, Slinky Dog Dash, and Aerosmith’s Rockin’ Roller Coaster. If you like immersive, well-themed rides, check out Star Wars’ Smuggler’s Run and Rise of the Resistance. And if you want a good show, take it from a Dad of two little girls and laugh your head off at the Frozen Sing-Along Celebration.

Photo I took after losing my voice singing Let it Go at the Frozen Sing-Along Celebration

Again, like Magic Kingdom and EPCOT, the night usually ends at Hollywood Studios with Fantasmic. Fantasmic! is a show where basically Mickey from the Sorceror’s Apprentice interacts with major characters and defeats villains in the midst of incredible water features and pyrotechnics.

Now on to the newest theme park of the four parks at Walt Disney World, Animal Kingdom

Animal Kingdom

Disney’s Animal Kingdom Park opened on Earth Day, April 22, 1998. The theme for this park is, you guessed it, animals—specifically wild animals. The focus is on the natural environment and animal appreciation and conservation. Disney went all out on their efforts for authenticity in this park (well, except for living things made out of concrete and…ahem…floating islands, but I’ll get to that). To create this park, Imagineers spent time in Africa and Asia studying the landscape, flora, fauna, and rural architecture. They imported tons of seeds from 37 countries and planted 40,000 mature, exotic trees, which, now that I think about it, makes me mad that Disney Cruise Line and customs won’t let me bring seashells home. They also employed native (to Asia and Africa) workers to create a lot of the architecture and decorations.

The Tree of Life stands at the center of Disney’s Animal Kingdom

Then, they filled the park with wild animals, working extra hard to create an immersive environment that keeps the animals safe, without it feeling like a zoo. That, of course, is what sets Animal Kingdom apart from the other parts—interaction with wild animals in attractions like the safari (which originally had a terrifying, high stakes poacher chase) and other exhibits and live animal shows.

The critically endangered white rhinoceros can be viewed during Animal Kingdom’s Kilimanjaro Safari.

The park also has a section dedicated to dinosaurs and learning about fossils. And it has several thrill rides including one of the best coasters at Walt Disney World, Expedition Everest, which tricks guests into…well, I don’t want to spoil it. That would be backwards of me. It’s yeti themed.

Second Dad to the Right trying to scare the yeti on Expedition Everest at Animal Kingdom

Animal Kingdom is also known for its incredible shows, such as the immersive cirque-style Lion King show and the amazing Winged Adventures, a show featuring live, incredibly trained birds.

But of course, the most popular part of Animal Kingdom is its most bizarre, off-theme part (yet still the most awesome). In 2017, Animal Kingdom opened Pandora, the land named after the world in the movie Avatar. It has beautiful floating islands, bizarre plants, and one of the best rides in all of Walt Disney World, Flight of Passage (and probably the 8th best river ride at Walt Disney World, Na’vi River Ride. Seriously, it’s not even the best river ride at Animal Kingdom. Sorry, not sorry. We’d go on Tres Caballeros before this). What was I saying? Oh yes, Flight of Passage is an unbelievable 3D flight simulator where you fly through Pandora (and really feel like it), smell the smells, and get sprayed with water (one time the sprayer was malfunctioning and completely soaked me, but I didn’t care because this ride is awesome). If you get motion sickness, this is not for you. But if not, get on Flight of Passage.

The first time we went, it was a three hour wait, so my wife Audrey and I downloaded the movie Avatar and watched the whole thing in line.

I did mention that Pandora was off theme, so let’s come back to that. All of Animal Kingdom is about Earth and real plants and animals. Real plants except for the fake ones like the centerpiece Tree of Life (that’s really cool by the way). But Pandora is a fake world, with fake flora and fauna, on a fake planet, that is not Earth. However, I see the logic that the Avatar franchise is about preserving the environment in the face of corporate greed, so in that sense it is a view into the warring psyche within Disney as a company….but I don’t care. It’s awesome, and I’m going to ride Flight of Passage whenever I have a lightning lane.

The alien architecture of Pandora at Animal Kingdom

Animal Kingdom also has some interesting restaurants if you’re adventurous. I confess that I’ve never eaten at any of the fine dining establishments, but that is because Flame Tree Barbecue is so good. Mobile Order that, and you’ll be just fine.

Now on to the two water parks. They are nothing compared to the theme parks but pretty impressive in their own rights.

Disney World Water Parks

Typhoon Lagoon and Blizzard Beach

Typhoon Lagoon, Photo Courtesty of: JZ85 - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=6970330

Typhoon Lagoon and Blizzard Beach are the two water parks of Walt Disney World. Both feature creative theming, thrill slides, a wave pool, a lazy river, and areas for smaller kids. Typhoon Lagoon has a shipwreck theme with a marooned boat atop a mountain geyser as the centerpiece. Blizzard Beach has a ski resort theme, the storyline being that a freak snowstorm led Florida to build a ski resort, but when Florida weather melted the snow, they turned it into a waterpark.

If you want thrills, check out Typhoon Lagoon’s Crush ‘N’ Gusher, which is basically a water roller coaster with jet propulsion pushing your raft around turns and into drops. At Blizzard Beach, check out Summit Plummet, a 120 foot drop that can send you up to 60mph. My seven-year-old daughter did it. You can do it.

Summit Plummet at Blizzard Beach

While the waterparks are less talked about (and less invested in) than the major theme parks, they serve an important purpose for Walt Disney World. During the summer months, they provide an interesting option to those not wanting to bake in the sun. Since they are far cheaper admission than the theme parks, they also serve as a place to go for a few hours on days when guests aren’t going to the parks.

Pro Tip: If you are crazy enough to go to Disney World in the summer, go to the water parks during the day and look for special ticketed events at night at the theme parks. The parks won’t be as hot, and special events typically have lower crowds.

Another Pro Tip: Disney offers three theme park ticket options (single park, park hopper, and park hopper plus). The park hopper plus option (not significantly more than park hopper, though park hopper is expensive) allows guests to go to the waterparks for free as many days as they have tickets. So if you go to Disney for 8 days, you could go to the theme parks for 4 days, and the waterparks for 4 days. This is a great option if the theme parks wear you out.

Finally the shopping district of Disney Springs

Disney Springs

Originally opened in 1977 as Lake Buena Vista Shopping Village, Disney Springs (renamed for the fourth time in 2015) is a dining, shopping, and entertainment complex designed to keep resort guests on property instead of seeking entertainment outside of the Disney Bubble. With amazing restaurants, engaging shows, and far larger shopping options than in the theme parks or resorts, Disney Springs has succeeded in drawing large crowds not interested in going to the parks on a particular day. In short, Disney Springs is where you go for a walk when you’re tired of walking and where you go to spend money when you don’t want to spend money (parking is free, admission is free, but you will spend money).

There are family-friendly restaurants like Blaze Pizza and more heavily themed Rainforest and T-Rex café, and the World of Disney is an absolutely enormous retail store with seemingly every item from the parks souvenir shops put together. If that wasn’t enough, Disney Springs also has a dedicated toy store, Once Upon a Toy, a Lego Store, and several other themed stores for franchises such as Star Wars and Marvel that will have your kids and teens bouncing in and out begging for lightsabers. Finally there is a movie theater, bowling lanes, and even a Cirque tent. Our favorite thing to do with the kids is to go to Raglan Road. They have amazing Irish food and beverages all while watching Irish folk singing and dancing. It’s an incredible experience.

Second Dad to the Right Story: On one trip, one of my daughters was sick, so I took the older one to Raglan Road while my wife stayed at the hotel with the sick child. A couple paid for our meal because they thought that I was a single dad.

The buddy and I watching the show at Raglan Road in Disney Springs

But where Disney Springs really shines is with upscale dining geared more towards adults. Many of the restaurants are owned and operated by celebrity chefs such as Art Smith, Jose Andres, Masaharu Morimoto, and Wolfgang Puck. For us, and many others, Boathouse stands higher than the rest of them. Situated directly on the dock of the lake, it has amazing views over the water and even has a launching spot for private boat rides. Many of the seafood items are flown in fresh every day, and the steaks are amazing. Definitely check it out if you want an upscale date night. But it might cost more than a theme park entry.

Paddlefish and Boathouse at Disney Springs

So What is Disney World?

It’s a collection of resorts, theme parks, waterparks, dining, shopping, and I didn’t even mention golf, putt putt, ESPN Wide World of Sports, and the fanciest MacDonald’s you’ve ever seen. If you’re about to head out on your first trip or just wanted a little more comprehensive knowledge, hopefully this was helpful.

What’s your favorite part of Disney World that I left out? Leave your answer in the comments section.