Fun Facts: Disney World Parks
Disney’s Carousel of Progress, MK
The voice of the father, Jean Shepard, is the same voice as the narrator in A Christmas Story.
The dog in the carousel is the same one that is also in Living with the Land at EPCOT.
Main Street, MK
The only real American flag on Main Street is the one on the flag pole, which is taken down each evening with an official flag retreat ceremony. The other flags are false replicas, without 50 stars, so they are not subject to the same rules as the official US flag. There is speculation that they did this because Disney did not want to have to lower all the flags every day, or could be a nod to the fact that Main Street is set in an older time period.
Main Street hosts a barber shop, including “first haircut” packages that will gift your little one his first set of embroidered Mickey ears, along with a certificate and a preserved lock of hair. They also have an option to add pixie dust to your new hairstyle.
Cinderella’s Castle, MK
There is a suite built inside of Cinderella’s Castle. Originally built as a place for Walt Disney and his family to stay when they visited the park, he died two years before WDW opened, and it was never used. It is not for purchase; the only way to stay there now is to win a rare sweepstakes officially sanctioned by WDW.
Liberty Square, MK
In order to keep with the integrities of the time period, there are no public restrooms in Liberty Square. In addition to this fun “poop” fact, you’ll notice that the pavers in the center of the path are red, while the ones closer to the buildings are brown. This is a nod to the fact that chamber pots were routinely thrown out of second story windows, turning the streets a brown color. (gross!)
Hall of Presidents, MK
Inside the Hall of Presidents, there is an authentic Great Seal of the United States. It took an Act of Congress to approve it, and the seal is only displayed in two other places: The Oval Office and Philadelphia with the Liberty Bell.
Tomorrowland, MK
When you ride the Buzz Lightyear ride, look for the red robot near the beginning. If you can hit him, you’ll score 100,000 points.
Haunted Mansion, MK
This one had been bugging me for awhile, so I’m going to solve it for you: The voice of the woman with the floating head in the Haunted Mansion is the same voice actress for Maleficent and Madam Tremaine from Cinderella. You’re welcome.
Everywhere
There are trashcans located every 30 feet in every park. Walt Disney wanted to make sure that his parks were kept very clean, so he did extensive amounts of research to find out what the furthest distance people would walk to throw away trash. Hence: every 30 feet. He also went another step and invented his own trash cans, with a new design that would keep trash in place and block smells.
Disney requires 40 cast members to carry iPhones as they walk around the park. GPS is used to track their location, and if they are near a full trash can, they receive a text message letting them know it’s time to empty it. All of the trash at Magic Kingdom ends up in a system called AVAC, where it is hurled through pneumatic tubes at speeds up to 60 mph under the park. That’s a faster ride than Space Mountain.
Gum is not sold anywhere in Disney parks.
The second Disney park was almost built in St. Louis. It was to be an entirely indoor theme park, due to the weather. They got as far as making plans, but Orlando won out in the end.
There is a secret Disney club that has a 10+ year wait list, and charges a $25,000 initiation fee. Annual fees run around $12,00/year. You can read more about its rich history here.
I’m considering this an ongoing post, and will be adding more fun facts as I come across them. I’d love for you to share your own in the comments!