"Disney World" Orlando by nicolaitan

Orlando Travel Guide: 3,079 reviews and 5,774 photos

Overview

Disney World in Orlando ( actually Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista and Bay Lake in two counties - Osceola and Orlando ) lives up to all the expectations both for we 60+ adults and for our young grandchildren. Attractions, rides, shows, store, campy architecture, landscaping all neatly and seamlessly welded together - - no rough edges, no glitches: we were amazed by the smooth operation of the the Magic Kingdom and Epcot. And eerily immaculate, never a sighting of litter, disrepair, or heaven forfend, nasty insects. Every inch pays tribute to the Disney empire, as in the topiary above. All designed to ensure uninterruped fantasy and equally uninterrupted spending. The most lasting memory of Disney World remains the Disney organization itself, cultivated to never be a millimeter off line.

Our Trip

Epcot Topiary

Putting together timing for four working grandparents and two grandchildren was a monumental task. We ended with arriving late one evening, two full days, and departure early the next day. No time for the many parks included within the resort including the Animal Kingdom, two water-themed attractions, Hollywood Studios, golf courses, lakes, steamboat rides, whatnot. We opted for one day each at the Magic Kingdom and Epcot, the two oldest and arguably most famous and visited parks within the complex. Time and convenience was of the most import, and our travel agent booked us into the Contemporary Hotel, unchanged since our 1982 visit, and the aid of an outside agency. These people procured for us fast track tickets for every ride and a guide to get us there so that we never had to wait on line for anything and got to most all the important rides - cost us an arm and a leg but worth it in the long run. We could never have covered as much ground or as many rides in as little time without their services. For some rides, like Splash Mountain, there were lines with estimated wait times exceeding an hour - we walked up and were placed in the next available seats, wait measured in seconds. Even if we had acquired Fast Track on our own, some of the entrances were well enough hidden that we may never have found them ( for example Fast Track in Epcot ).
As for the Contemporary and the other deluxe hotels - the Grand Floridian and the Polynesian - monorail service right at the hotel was amongst the greatest luxuries.

On the advice of VT members, we did not take the dining plan - just as well. A recurring theme on this page will be the dismal quality of the food and the exorbitant prices demanded for suffering it.

The Ultimate Well-Oiled Machine

We were fascinated by all the little touches that make Disney World the ultimate glitch-free resort. Covering 47 sq mi, it encompasses four theme parks, over 30 hotels, two water parks, two spas, and five golf courses. Over 47 million visitors flock here annually, the world's most visited entertainment resort and the fifth most popular tourist attraction in the United States, trailing only the likes of Times Square and the Las Vegas Strip. The Magic Kingdom is #1, with 17 million visitors a year, followed by Epcot with 11 million, with the Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios each close to 10 million.

Disney World is the largest single-site employer in the United States with over with over 66000 cast members and payroll exceeding $1.2 billion. Maintenance staff exceeds 5000 with an annual budget of $100 million. Most are never seen by visitors - the ground under the parks is a warren of tunnels and passageways so the employees in Frontierland are never seen in their costumes in another area. The staff keeping Disney World spotless function in obscurity overnight - the streets are steam cleaned between closing and opening hours nightly. Housekeepers, horticulturists, painters - if not working, invisible. Asking a restaurant server about parking, we learned there are massive parking lots hidden from view on the far reaches with the omnipresent Disney Transport busses ferrying cast members to the underground approaches to their work sites. Disney World is not number one for nothing.

Last visit to Orlando: Apr 2012
Intro Updated Jul 21, 2012
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Reviews (22)

Monorail entering the Contemporary Hotel - Orlando

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Comments (6)

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nicolaitan Dec 28, 2012 at 4:29 PM

great place to visit, but very costly. amazed by how much we dropped in three nights and two days. love the attractions, hate the food.
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Yaqui Dec 28, 2012 at 7:34 AM

Excellent page Lew! I would love for Nate to experience this place. He loves Disneyland and this place would make him bounce like Tigger;) He bounces when he is excited..lol!
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Yaqui Nov 4, 2012 at 12:33 PM

EPCOT is on the tops of the things to see. I remember in the old days when the disney channel would talk about the building of Disneyworld and how I wanted to visit it since I was kid. I enjoyed your page!
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mindcrime Sep 4, 2012 at 4:34 AM

66000!!! big business!
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Nemorino Sep 3, 2012 at 2:27 PM

We also took our grandchildren to see Cinderella this summer – but in the form of a marionette show in Steinau, the childhood home of the Grimm Brothers (the ones who collected the Grimms’ Fairy Tales). This was very pleasant but not as spectacular as Orlando, I’m sure.
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Stine620 Aug 5, 2012 at 10:29 AM

Nice page and awesome pictures!