The other day I came across this book from my childhood, Walt Disney World: A Pictorial Souvenir. The book is from 1986 and has some fantastic pictures from the Disney parks. At that time, the World was much smaller. We only had two theme parks, one water park, four resorts, and not much more. This is a far cry from the four parks, two water parks, 29 resorts and so much more that we have today. So, I thought I’d take a few moments to share some of the pictures and reflect back on how the World used to be.
The book starts with an introduction to Walt Disney World and then breaks it down into subsections. Starting with the Magic Kingdom, the six different lands (this was before Mickey’s Birthdayland/Starland/Toontown) each get their own focus. Several pages with pictures and a brief overview of each land are featured. Walt Disney World has changed quite a bit in the past almost 30 years since the book was released, but it is still cool to see how some attractions are almost exactly the same.
After the Magic Kingdom came EPCOT CENTER. Instead of being broken down into Future World and World Showcase, most all Future World attractions/pavilions get their own section. Likewise, each of the ten countries (prior to Norway’s arrival in 1988) gets their own spread. Most definitely, Future World is where the most notable changes are visible. Attractions of the past like Horizons, World of Motion, Communicore and the Living Seas are neat to see. I didn’t have my first trip to Epcot until April of 1993, so I enjoy that I can look back on some of those things I didn’t get to experience.
Next up is the resort and recreation section of the book, which shows the original and now renamed Polynesian Village, the Contemporary Resort, Discovery Island, River Country, Fort Wilderness, the Disney Inn (now Shades of Green), Walt Disney World Lake Buena Vista, and Walt Disney World Village. The Polynesian, Contemporary and Fort Wilderness each get a two page spread, with the others getting a single page of combined pictures and text.
If you want a copy of the Walt Disney World: A Pictorial Souvenir, I’ve seen a few for sale on Amazon and eBay, but just make sure to pay attention to the year of publication. The pictures and information are great to see for anyone who is nostalgic or someone who wants to see what they weren’t able to themselves.
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