There are tons of fun little-known facts and secrets from Disneyland and Walt Disney World. Here are some of my favorites - enjoy!
In Disney World, no trash can will ever be more than 30 steps away from you. It seems that Walt went to other parks when he was designing the park and counted how long a person would hold onto a piece of trash before dropping it on the ground. He came up with 30 steps.
Small pipes shoot the trash through the utilidors under the Magic Kingdom at 60 mph.
He's widely known for being the voice of Tony the Tiger, but Thurl Ravencroft provided many other voices - the drunken pirate, the singing dog, and one of the minstrels in Pirates; Fritz in the Tiki Birds; Buff the buffalo head in Country Bear Jamboree; and you can hear -- and SEE -- Thurl as busted bust singing Grim Grinning Ghosts in The Haunted Mansion.
Sleeping Beauty castle at Disneyland has a working drawbridge. It has only ever been lifted twice in its existence. The first time was on the park's opening day, and the second time was in the 1980s, when Fantasyland was being refurbished.
Check out the phones at Disney World - one in Tomorrowland under the Tomorrowland Transit Authority and one under the Astro Orbiter. There's also one in the candy shop on Main Street. Pick them up and listen to the interesting conversations.
Inside the Matterhorn at Disneyland, there is a quarter of a basketball court. Walt Disney did not like to waste any space, so he asked the Matterhorn climbers what they would like inside, and they voted for a basketball court! Later on, a ping pong table was added as well. Employees are allowed to take their breaks there and have some fun!
Noseeum green is a very specific color that Disney Imagineers created. All of the buildings and unattractive things such as trash cans are painted in this color so that they're less noticeable. Noseeum is supposed to be the most unobtrusive shade of the spectrum and is meant to disappear into the background.
The creepy organ music you hear in the stretching room of the Haunted Mansion is just “Grimm Grinning Ghosts” slowed way down. You are hearing one song on the whole ride starting very slow and getting faster as the ride goes on.
While at Disney World before the nighttime castle fireworks, find the wire that goes from the top of the castle down to the restaurant rooftop on the right. Sit under it during the show and TinkerBell will fly down that wire and right over the top of your heads!
Steve Martin started out selling guidebooks at Disneyland on the weekend. During his free time there, he would visit the Magic Shop. By August 1960, he was working in the Magic Shop showing off all of the tricks he had learned over the years.
At Hollywood Studio’s Muppet attraction if you go to the “ticket office” it says closed, but there’s a sign that says “Key Under the Mat.” If you lift the mat, there’s a key! Great photo op!
The large bell in Liberty Square at Disney World was made from the same mold as the actual Liberty Bell.
There is only one horse on Cinderella’s Carousel at Disney World that has a gold ribbon on its tail. The Fairy Godmother claims that’s because it’s Cinderella’s favorite horse.
Disneyland allows feral cats to roam the park at night to keep the mouse population under control. There’s even feeding stations set up throughout the park to keep the kitties fed. The cats are all spayed/neutered, given regular shots, and taken well care of.
Disney World is huge. It covers 43 square miles. To put that into perspective, its about the size of the City of San Francisco. Or for those on the East Coast, its about the size of Manhattan – times two. All 43 square miles were purchased for just $5 million dollars.
All Disneyland and Disney World attractions created since 1965 have been designed so that the human body cannot reach out and touch anything. To make sure of this, they use a special vehicle as a test. This is called the "Envelope of Protection" and ensures that even if you simply MUST throw your hands up with excitement on Thunder Mountain Railroad, you won't find your hand, moving up to 45 miles per hour, coming into contact with any part of the ride. This played a role in the banning of Selfie Sticks in the parks, as they would extend beyond this safe and cozy envelope.
Gum isn’t sold anywhere on Disney World property. This saves Disney employees countless hours scraping it off of pathways, railings and tables.
There are often long lines to enter Animal Kingdom, especially at opening. To avoid them, head into the Rainforest Cafe entrance to the far left. From there, go through the gift shop and enter the park through this secret entrance.
The core of the Tree of Life at Animal Kingdom is actually an off-shore oil rig, turned upside down. It was just the right shape and strength needed to support the tree.
One of the dramatic experiences of Kilimanjaro Safari at Animal Kingdom is driving past Pride Rock. There it’s common to see a lion or two perched on a picturesque ledge. To make this a recurring reality, the imagineers have piped chilled air through tiny holes on the ledge in order to entice the lions to hang around that perfect spot for a photo.
Likewise, food is hidden in trees, and behind hallowed out logs and rocks all along the path the safari vehicle takes. This encourages the otherwise shy animals to get up close and personal.
If the sign for Tower of Terror says there is a 13 minute wait – there is no wait.
The rear entrance of Epcot is located between France and United Kingdom. From there beautiful walkways take you to the Beach Club, Boardwalk and Swan and Dolphin resorts and then onto Hollywood Studios.
The Magic Carpets of Aladdin features a camel that spits water at passing park-goers. Many are fooled into thinking this electronic machine just has great aim. But there is actually someone paid to sit nearby the camel and operate it. When the operator thinks they can hit passing guests they command the camel to spit.
When you venture to Tom Sawyer’s Island take a careful look through the attraction - if you see a paintbrush you want to grab it! Then, find the nearest park employee and hand over the paintbrush in order to receive free fast passes for one ride.
Strategically placed devices called “smellitizers” are dispersed throughout the parks and emit certain scents like the smell of cookies and vanilla on Main Street.
When walking through the line for Star Tours, listen for a robot paging “Egroeg Sacul“. Spell it backwards and you have George Lucas.
Walt Disney World’s original name was going to be Disneyworld, following after Disneyland. But after Walt died, his brother Roy decided it needed to be named after his brother. It’s been Walt Disney World ever since.