CHAPTER 10
After-the-Park Fun

In 1971, when Magic Kingdom opened at Disney World, two hotels opened along with it: Disney’s Polynesian Resort and Disney’s Contemporary Resort. Today there are more than twenty-five hotels at the Walt Disney World Resort, where the fun doesn’t have to stop when the park closes.

Many of the hotels are built around a special theme. The outside of the four main buildings at Disney’s Art of Animation Resort are covered with colorful murals of characters from The Lion King, The Little Mermaid, Finding Nemo, and Cars. The themes are continued inside, with ideas like giant shell-shaped headboards for beds in the Little Mermaid rooms. There are animation sketches on display in this hotel’s lobby. There are drawing classes to learn how to draw Disney characters, too!

Some Disney World hotels are extra fancy, and a little or a lot more expensive than others. Disney’s Polynesian Resort along the Seven Seas Lagoon is set up like a South Seas island with palm trees, a sandy beach, and tiki torches.

At night, the Magic Kingdom fireworks light up the sky across the lagoon. The brightly lit Electrical Water Pageant with King Neptune, a sea serpent, and other mythical and real sea creatures parade across the lagoon at night as well!

The Animal Kingdom Lodge is one of the lower-priced hotels. It has an African theme with a huge mud fireplace and hand-carved furniture. Best of all, its lobby and some of the hotel rooms overlook the Kingdom’s wildlife preserve, so guests can spot animals or birds.

Families can also camp out at Disney’s Fort Wilderness in an RV, tent, or cabin. It’s not fancy, but offers fun outdoor things to do such as basketball, canoeing, biking, tennis, and horseback riding.

There’s a bigger-than-life bronze statue of Walt holding hands with Mickey Mouse near the center of Disney World. It’s called Partners. On the statue’s base, there’s a quote from Walt that reads, “We believe in our idea: a family park where parents and children could have fun—together.”

Walt would probably be amazed at how great Disney World worked out. And it was his dream that started it all!