We previously shared the exciting news that Walt Disney World announced details surrounding their 50th Anniversary celebration. One of the most exciting parts of the announcement is that the celebration is going to last a full 18 MONTHS!
Walt Disney World first opened their gates to guests on October 1, 1971, so it’s only appropriate that the celebration begins on the official date of the 50th Anniversary, October 1, 2021. If you aren’t able to make it on October 1, the rest of 2021, or even 2022… you’ll still have a chance to celebrate in 2023. With an 18-month celebration, you can expect the party to keep on rolling through April 2023!
This 18-month celebratory event will feature new experiences at the resort’s four theme parks and beyond, where shimmering EARidescent décor will appear as if by magic. Shining at the center of it all will be Cinderella Castle at Magic Kingdom Park, which will add to its royal makeover from 2020 with new gold bunting, sparkling golden embellishments and other new enhancements, including a 50th anniversary crest warmly welcoming guests to the join the festivities.
With the full reveal on Good Morning America today, Walt Disney World has showcased the glimmering nighttime looks of both the Tower of Terror and the Tree of Life for the 50th anniversary celebration beginning October 1st, 2021 as part of “The World’s Most Magical Celebration”.
At Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park, a warm light will emanate from the Tree of Life as magical fireflies gather to usher in the magic of nature.
The Hollywood Tower Hotel at Disney’s Hollywood Studios will be awash in a brilliance evoking the golden age of imagination and adventure.
Also revealed today, we know that Spaceship Earth will debut a permanent new nighttime look with the adornment of lights all around it, while Cinderella Castle with be decorated with physical adornments.
Are you excited for Walt Disney World’s 50th anniversary?
It’s almost here. The 50th Anniversary celebration at Walt Disney World will begin on October 1, 2021, and we are so excited. Disney has released details on what we can expect during the celebration.
From a Disney Cast Member;
It’s an event five decades in the making!
Beginning Oct. 1, Walt Disney World Resort will throw “The World’s Most Magical Celebration” in honor of our 50th anniversary, bringing new experiences to our four theme parks and beyond. This milestone is such a big deal, we’ve even coined a new word – “EARidescence” – to describe what you’ll see when you visit. Our Disney teams are creating all sorts of new decorations that will shimmer and sparkle all day and into the night.
As part of the celebration, Cinderella Castle at Magic Kingdom Park will add to its royal makeover from last year. As you can see in this new artist rendering, the castle will feature golden bunting and a 50th anniversary crest as part of its festive new look.
The castle will add even more magic at night, joined by icons at each of the other three theme parks as they transform into Beacons of Magic. With pixie dust on Cinderella Castle, magical fireflies inhabiting the Tree of Life at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park, and special new touches coming to life on the Hollywood Tower Hotel at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
And at EPCOT, new lights will shine across the reflective panels of Spaceship Earth, connecting to one another and resembling stars in a nighttime sky. This permanent new lighting will continue beyond “The World’s Most Magical Celebration” as a defining feature of the park.
You’ll also want to keep an eye out for Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse, who will have sparkling new looks for the celebration. As hosts of the event, they’ll be dressed for the occasion in custom-made fashions of EARidescent fabric with gold highlights.
In anticipation of this exciting time, we recently went out across Walt Disney World to talk with guests and Disney cast members about what a magical celebration would mean to them and why they love being here so much.
Speaking for my fellow Walt Disney World cast members, we’re looking forward to welcoming you during this special time in our history. We’ll have more to share about our plans for “The World’s Most Magical Celebration” in the future as we ramp up to the big day on Oct. 1, and then will be chronicling all the magic to be found during the 18-month-long event. So keep checking back here on the Disney Parks Blog for the latest updates on what promises to be something to remember for the next 50 years.
In 2020, Florida tourism has fallen to its lowest number of visitors in ten years due to the COVID-19 pandemic with only about 86.714 million tourists.
Visitation had been growing steadily in the past decade from the 80.879 million tourists who visited Florida in 2009 and 82.315 million tourists in 2010. Florida has had at least 100 million visitors per year since 2015. In 2019, there were 131.42 million visitors, putting 2020 at a 34% drop from the previous year.
In their posting of the visitor estimates, Visit Florida did note that “due to the unprecedented nature of the COVID-19 pandemic and the impact it has had on data used to produce visitor estimates, the numbers provided below are likely to face larger-than-normal revisions as new data become available.”
Visit Florida President and CEO Dana Young said the estimated 20.625 million travelers in the fourth quarter exceeded expectations.
“Many of Florida’s top origin markets were under stricter travel restrictions in Q4 than the previous quarter, but thanks to our advertising in the Southeast, visitation from those states remains strong,” Young said in a statement. “Visit Florida’s marketing has been integral to Florida’s economic recovery and will continue to propel our tourism industry forward in 2021.”
Theme parks and resorts such as Walt Disney World and Universal Orlando Resort are a huge draw for Florida tourists, especially to Central Florida.
Introduced with the reopening of Walt Disney World theme parks in July, the Disney Park Pass reservation system requires guests to book a specific park per day ahead of their trip, based on availability—which varies depending on whether you’re a ticket holder, Annual Passholder, or Disney Resort hotel guests. Previously, the Disney Park Pass availability calendar extended through September 2021, but was then extended until January 2022. With 2022 resort and vacation bookings now open, it seems Disney has updated the calendar to cover that period of time.
The Disney Park Pass calendar now extends through January 2023, meaning that the theme park reservation system is here to stay for quite some time.
A valid Annual Pass or theme park ticket is required to make a Disney Park Pass reservation. As a reminder, Annual Passholders are limited to three rolling Park Pass reservations at a time, in addition to any acquired via a Disney Resort hotel stay.
