The main focus of Walt Disney World,
from its conception, was that which would lie beyond the borders of the
Magic Kingdom. The original five year plan did not include or even forecast
for the distant future a second theme park, but it did call for a variety of
resort hotels and recreational activities geared toward commanding up to a week
of vacation time.
Starting with just two hotels (The Contemporary and
Polynesian)
and a campground (Fort Wilderness) for the October 1, 1971 opening,
accommodation options remained sparse until the opening of the Golf Resort Hotel
and the Motor Inn Plaza hotels at Lake Buena Vista in 1973. Additions came
gradually and were placed in relative accordance with the master plan that had
been in place before even the
WDW Preview Center
opened in 1970.
Likewise, activities ranging from boat rentals and
horseback rides to golfing and tennis were introduced at the offset, and were
further enhanced in measured paces with additions such as
Treasure Island (later Discovery Island)
in 1974, the Walt Disney World Village in 1975 and River Country in 1976.
No one closely involved in the original plans for WDW
could have predicted the direction that the resort would take after the Eisner &
Wells management team arrived in 1984. After a quick glance at the
property's usage up to that time, they set about to aggressively capitalize on
opportunities for more profitable development. By 1987, planning and
construction were underway for a dizzying mix of new hotels, entertainment
complexes and water parks. Nineteen years later, the company has yet to
stop and catch its breath. Compare a property road map from the early
1980s with a map printed since 1994 - the original planned scope of WDW appears
an exercise in understatement.
|
|
Walt Disney World
Altered Vacation Kingdom
Located:
Lake Buena Vista, Florida
Opened: October 1, 1971
Contributing
Disney Personnel:
Walt Disney,
Roy Disney,
Richard F. Irvine,
Gen. Joe Fowler,
Gen. Joe Potter,
Claude Coats,
Marc Davis,
Marvin Davis,
Bill Martin,
George McGinnis,
John Zovich,
hundreds of others
Descendant of:
Disneyland
Related Internal Sites:
WYW's WDW Index
Extinctions:
Treasure Island/
Discovery Island
The Walt Disney World
Preview Center
The
Wonderful World
of Water
Ski Show
Altered States:
Polynesian
Village Resort
Topiary Sculptures
Lost Worlds:
The Asian Resort
EPCOT -
the City
Miscellaneous:
Walt Disney World Publications
All photos copyright
The Walt Disney Company.
Text copyright 2007
Mike Lee
|
