Think about it, the entire world can only afford ONE Disney World! Sure there are smaller versions of it outside of Orlando, but there is only one World. Amazing to the visitor, it is also a feat of organization and purpose. Consider these facts:
- WDW is almost twice the size of Manhattan Island in New York City. It has it’s own municipal government…something that was very important to Disney before they agreed to build.
- More people work at WDW than any other single employer in Florida. The number varies of course, but usually there are at least 45,000 “cast members” waiting to serve you. Those college-age workers are also most likely in college! Many of them are working at WDW as part of their school curriculum.
- Space Mountain roller-coaster ride is the tallest “mountain” in very-flat Florida.
- The amount of items bought and consumed at WDW is breath-taking. About 50 million sodas are sold every year, to go with 12 million hot dogs and hamburgers, 5 million pounds of French fries (chips) and 265,000 pounds of popcorn. At WDW prices, that’s a lot of pounds of money too!
- Did you ever notice that things don’t quite add up at the Tower of Terror? 199 feet but only 13 stories, it should be just 104 feet high. You have entered the Twilight Zone!
- The cars at Test Track are electrically operated, making them some of the fastest all-electric cars in regular use.
- Mission Space is reportedly WDW’s most expensive attraction, costing almost $100,000,000!!! The motion-sickness bags were added after the ride was opened.
- The newest theme park at WDW is Animal Kingdom, also the largest in terms of area…but a lot of that goes to the animals.
- The Carousel of Progress in Tomorrowland is unchanged since it first opened at the 1964 New York World’s Fair…except for a few new appliances in the last scene. The talking “grandparents” in the exhibit would have to be around 120 years old now if the timeline is taken literally, the dog would be pushing 90…in human years.
- Unlike the cars at Test Track the Tomorrowland race cars have real gas (lawn tractor) engines. And contrary to the signs at the finish line, over 40% of racers bump the car in front of them.
- Those sprinkler heads in the sidewalk clean the walkway every night for a fresh and clean appearance. Walt Disney wanted everyone to feel as if they were WDW’s first visitor.