The Walt Disney World Resort, also called Walt Disney World or Disney World, is an entertainment resort complex in Bay Lake and Lake Buena Vista, Florida, United States, near the cities of Orlando and Kissimmee. Opened on October 1, 1971, the resort is owned and operated by Disney Parks, Experiences and Products, a division of The Walt Disney Company. The property covers nearly 25,000 acres, of which half has been used. The resort comprises four theme parks, two water parks, 27 themed resort hotels, nine non-Disney hotels, several golf courses, a camping resort, and other entertainment venues, including the outdoor shopping center Disney Springs.
Bay Lake is a city in Orange County, Florida, United States. The population was 47 at the 2010 census. It is named after a lake that lies east of the Magic Kingdom. All four of the Walt Disney World Resort theme parks, and one of Walt Disney World's two water parks, are in Bay Lake, though all Disney parks in the region have mailing addresses in nearby Lake Buena Vista.
ESPN Zone was a theme restaurant and entertainment center chain in the United States that included arcades, TV studios, and radio studios, operated by the Disney Regional Entertainment subsidiary of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts using the Disney-owned ESPN brand. While the ESPN Zone name is no longer used, similar, still-operating restaurants include the ESPN Club at Disney's BoardWalk Resort and the ESPN Grill at ESPN Wide World of Sports, both located within the Walt Disney World complex in Bay Lake, Florida.
Disney Transport is a mass public transit system of the Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista and Bay Lake, Florida. The transportation system provides free service to guests of the resort and consists of buses, a monorail system, a gondola lift system, watercraft, and parking lot trams. Most of the routes operated by Disney Transport are buses that run along the resort's public roads maintained by the Reedy Creek Improvement District and private roads. None of these modes of transportation charge a fare, which makes the entire network free to use.
Disney Parks, Experiences and Products, Inc., formerly Walt Disney Parks and Resorts Worldwide, Inc. and informally known as Disney Parks, is one of The Walt Disney Company's six major business segments and a subsidiary. It was founded on April 1, 1971, exactly six months before the opening of Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida, just outside of Orlando.
Disney's Pop Century Resort is a resort located at the Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, opened on December 14, 2003. It is the fourth value-priced resort in the complex, following Disney's All-Star Movies, All-Star Music, and All-Star Sports Resorts in the 1990s. The resort is themed around 20th century American pop culture. Original plans anticipated the creation of both the "Legendary Years" and the "Classic Years" to divide the property by the first and second halves of the century, respectively. However, the former section was closed after reduced tourism in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks and redeveloped as a fifth value-priced resort, Disney's Art of Animation Resort, in 2012.
Disney's Beach Club Resort is a beach-themed deluxe AAA Four-Diamond Award–winning resort at the Walt Disney World Resort. It opened on November 19, 1990. The resort is owned and operated by Disney Parks, Experiences and Products.
Disney's Fort Wilderness Resort & Campground is a themed camping resort located in the Magic Kingdom Resort Area at the Walt Disney World Resort. It officially opened on November 19, 1971. The resort is adjacent to Bay Lake and the upcoming Reflections Vacation Club Resort. The resort is also located near Disney's Wilderness Lodge. It also formerly contained Disney's River Country, a water park.
Disney's Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa is a Disney Vacation Club (DVC) resort at the Walt Disney World Resort. The resort is the seventh Disney Vacation Club resort and is situated on the former site of the Disney Institute. It first opened May 17, 2004 and was built in three phases. It is now the largest Disney Vacation Club resort. The resort was inspired by the city of Saratoga Springs, New York. Like all other DVC properties, it is considered a deluxe resort.
Disney's BoardWalk Resort is a hotel and entertainment complex at the Walt Disney World resort, in Bay Lake, Florida, near Orlando, Florida. First opened in 1996, the BoardWalk Resort lies in the Epcot Resort Area, alongside Crescent Lake, and is situated between Epcot and Disney's Hollywood Studios. The resort is owned and operated by Disney Parks, Experiences and Products. The inn and the villas share a common lobby with the rest of the resort. The Inn, Atlantic Dance Hall, and other features of the boardwalk were designed by Robert A.M. Stern Architects.
The Epcot Resort Area is the area between Epcot and Disney's Hollywood Studios at the Walt Disney World Resort which consists of six individual resorts, five of which are interconnected via footpaths and waterways surrounding a large central lake known as Crescent Lake.
The ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex is a 220-acre (89 ha) multi-purpose sports complex located in the Walt Disney World Resort, in Bay Lake, Florida, United States, near Orlando. The complex includes nine venues and hosts numerous professional and amateur sporting events throughout the year.
Disney's Venetian Resort was to be a Disney-owned resort at Walt Disney World in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, that originally would have begun operation on October 1, 1971. It was going to be themed after Venice, Italy, located on Seven Seas Lagoon. Due to the 1973 Oil Embargo, the resort, along with Disney's Asian Resort and Disney's Persian Resort, were never built. In the late 1980s to early 1990s, Michael Eisner saw how well Disney's Grand Floridian Resort was doing and wanted an even better resort. The idea for the Venetian was scrapped in favor of Disney's Mediterranean Resort, which was also not built.
The Magic Kingdom Resort Area includes five resorts located along the shores of the Seven Seas Lagoon and Bay Lake, near the Magic Kingdom at the Walt Disney World Resort. The area began with the opening of Disney's Contemporary Resort, Disney's Polynesian Resort and Disney's Fort Wilderness Resort & Campground. The Walt Disney World Monorail System connects Disney's Contemporary Resort, Disney's Polynesian Village Resort and Disney's Grand Floridian Resort & Spa to the Transportation and Ticket Center and the Magic Kingdom.
The Disney Springs Resort Area includes ten resorts located around Disney Springs in the Walt Disney World Resort. Two of these are Disney Vacation Club resorts. Seven of these hotels are non-Disney owned.
The Animal Kingdom Resort Area includes five resorts located near Disney's Animal Kingdom in the Walt Disney World Resort.
Bay Lake Tower at Disney's Contemporary Resort, commonly known as Bay Lake Tower, is a Disney Vacation Club resort located at the Walt Disney World Resort, opened in 2009. It is located in the Magic Kingdom Resort Area, adjacent to Disney's Contemporary Resort, Bay Lake, and Magic Kingdom.
The 2013 Walt Disney World Pro Soccer Classic was the fourth edition of the Walt Disney World Pro Soccer Classic, a pre-season exhibition tournament held at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at the Walt Disney World in Bay Lake, Florida. A total of six Major League Soccer teams participated.
The 2014 Walt Disney World Pro Soccer Classic was the fifth edition of the Walt Disney World Pro Soccer Classic, a pre-season exhibition tournament held at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida. The 2014 edition was reportedly set to feature a field of eight teams including 5 MLS teams, two international teams, and USL Pro's Orlando City. However, the schedule was released with 6 MLS teams, one international team, and Orlando City.
Disney Skyliner is a gondola lift system at Walt Disney World in Bay Lake, Florida. It opened on September 29, 2019, with five stations located at resorts and theme parks. Each gondola cabin can hold up to 10 guests, or up to 6 if there is a wheelchair or stroller. Guests sit on twin, inward-facing, wooden benches. Strollers 30" x 48" and smaller are able to roll directly into the gondola and do not have to be folded.
