Tour a virtual Disney World!

wolverine68 · 06-05-2008, 10:07 AM

Allright, I have to confess that I am a card carrying Disney World geek, and I go there whenever I can (I once went for sixteen days with my family). Anyway, Google Earth now allows you to tour all of the theme parks and the resorts in 3D!
Just open Google Earth, search for "Disney World" and you should see a gold Mickey head in the middle of the screen. Click on that and you can du a virtual walkthrough of the entire property. The level of detail is amazing, including a bowl of fruit on a table in the Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse!!!

Okay, sorry... I know... I'll be handing in my man card now...

wartknight · 06-05-2008, 10:42 AM

I confess, I did it.

superman_101680 · 06-05-2008, 11:01 AM

I've been to Disney World twice in the last five years. It's a great experience...even for a man.

aeroclone · 06-05-2008, 11:04 AM

*stands up*

Hello, I'm aeroclone, and I'm a Disney World-holic.

Wx4Cy · 06-05-2008, 11:25 AM

going back next week for the 2nd time in 3 years...Great fun

cloneu · 06-05-2008, 11:25 AM

I think I have been there 3 separate times and I enjoyed it every time. I will probably even check this virtual tour out.

wolverine68 · 06-05-2008, 11:40 AM

One of my favorite views so far...

BryceC · 06-05-2008, 11:41 AM

I've never been there and I don't know a thing about it. What do you even do there? Is it like an amusement park?

superman_101680 · 06-05-2008, 11:50 AM

Originally Posted by BryceC

I've never been there and I don't know a thing about it. What do you even do there? Is it like an amusement park?

Walt Disney World Resort - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

It's like an amusement park (think Adventureland) only about 1000 times bigger with better rides, shows, food, and attractions.

wolverine68 · 06-05-2008, 11:58 AM

Originally Posted by BryceC

I've never been there and I don't know a thing about it. What do you even do there? Is it like an amusement park?

What!?! An amusment park?

Walt Disney World has Four major theme parks (Magic Kingdom, Disney Hollywood Studios, Epcot, and Animal Kingdon). They all have thrill rides, dark rides, entertainment, restaurants, and they are all amazingly themed (you have got to see the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror). The resort also has themed hotels, golf courses, a shopping district with restaurants and nightclubs, two themed water parks, tennis courts, lakes for swimming and boating, a campground, a sports complex, and the Richard Petty Driving Experience where you can ride in or drive a stock car.
Literally, there is something for everyone in the family there. One word of caution for any first time visitor- come prepared. Read guidebooks (the best is the Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World) and figure out what you want to do. There is no way that you will be able to see everything in a single trip (I was there for sixteen days once and still didn't do everything). Use the guidebooks to help you figure out when you should go. There are times that everywhere is packed, lines for rides have a wait time of over an hour, you can't find a table to eat at. It can get bad. That being said, it is my absolute favorite place in the world. I've been there eight times and I can't wait to go back again.

Wx4Cy · 06-05-2008, 12:03 PM

Originally Posted by wolverine68

What!?! An amusment park?

Walt Disney World has Four major theme parks (Magic Kingdom, Disney Hollywood Studios, Epcot, and Animal Kingdon). They all have thrill rides, dark rides, entertainment, restaurants, and they are all amazingly themed (you have got to see the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror). The resort also has themed hotels, golf courses, a shopping district with restaurants and nightclubs, two themed water parks, tennis courts, lakes for swimming and boating, a campground, a sports complex, and the Richard Petty Driving Experience where you can ride in or drive a stock car.
Literally, there is something for everyone in the family there. One word of caution for any first time visitor- come prepared. Read guidebooks (the best is the Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World) and figure out what you want to do. There is no way that you will be able to see everything in a single trip (I was there for sixteen days once and still didn't do everything). Use the guidebooks to help you figure out when you should go. There are times that everywhere is packed, lines for rides have a wait time of over an hour, you can't find a table to eat at. It can get bad. That being said, it is my absolute favorite place in the world. I've been there eight times and I can't wait to go back again.

The scary part is that they have room to build twice what they already have. We were there during Hurricane Ernesto and they are actually a hurricane evacuation place. It can't flood and they have all of their own power, etc. This place is a fortress, not just an entertainment mecca...

If you haven't seen it, the History Channel has a neat documentary that shows the planning, building, behind the scenes stuff, etc.

wolverine68 · 06-05-2008, 12:12 PM

Originally Posted by Wx4Cy

The scary part is that they have room to build twice what they already have. We were there during Hurricane Ernesto and they are actually a hurricane evacuation place. It can't flood and they have all of their own power, etc. This place is a fortress, not just an entertainment mecca...

If you haven't seen it, the History Channel has a neat documentary that shows the planning, building, behind the scenes stuff, etc.

Yeah, Modern Marvels has a great show about WDW. I have a ton of books about the Disney Parks. DId you know that Cast Members refer to where the rides are in the Magic Kingdom as "the second floor"? When they built the park, the Florida soil was too wet to dig a basement for utility corridors, so they built them on the ground, covered them with dirt dredged up from the lakes that flank that park, ant then built everything else on top of that.
It was always my dream to be an imagineer (the people who design and theme the rides). I got close once. I helped design a ride for Sea World of Florida!

BryceC · 06-05-2008, 05:13 PM

What are they like for Roller Coasters? I've been to Cedar Point twice now and everything I've read has them the #1 place in the country for roller coasters but I've ridden them all several times and I think it would be fun to try some new ones. I honestly just haven't gotten around to it because I'm kind of afraid that the rides wouldn't be as tall or fast and then I'd be disappointed. I don't really like any other rides except for coasters.

wolverine68 · 06-05-2008, 10:07 PM

Originally Posted by BryceC

What are they like for Roller Coasters? I've been to Cedar Point twice now and everything I've read has them the #1 place in the country for roller coasters but I've ridden them all several times and I think it would be fun to try some new ones. I honestly just haven't gotten around to it because I'm kind of afraid that the rides wouldn't be as tall or fast and then I'd be disappointed. I don't really like any other rides except for coasters.

WDW has plenty of roller coasters, but they are not the kind that you would find at Cedar Point. Space Mountain is basically a wild mouse coaster, but it is totally in the dark. While it doesn't have the height or speed of other coasters, the fact that you can't see what is coming next adds to the thrills. Like Space Mountian, Rock'n Roller Coaster is also in the dark (but still themed) and it uses a magnetic induction system to launch you from 0-60 in about 3 seconds, and then into several inversions. The other roller coasters are all about theming. Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is a pretty tame coaster, but it has a fun theme. Expedition Everest is a great coaster (you spend a fair amount of the ride going backwords) but I would not consider it an extreme roller coaster.

LindenCy · 06-05-2008, 10:10 PM

Originally Posted by wolverine68

Rock'n Roller Coaster is also in the dark (but still themed) and it uses a magnetic induction system to launch you from 0-60 in about 3 seconds, and then into several inversions.

That beginning part is crazy fast. The rest of the ride is nice.