Our series countdown to the 40th Anniversary of Walt Disney World continues with Diane of CanDoItMom and the year 2004. Just one week to go! Get your magical memory fix while you still can!!
Hi Disney Fans and thanks for joining me on my trip back to 2004. It was a great year at Walt Disney World, not only because there was so much going on but my family had briefly moved to Orlando for 4 months that year. My husband got at contract job at Universal Studios and it was a great opportunity to be near Disney. He worked and I took the kids to the Disney Parks. LOL
A really big happening was that another of the Disney Vacation Club Resorts opened in May 17, 2004. Disney’s Saratoga Springs Resort and Spa was themed after the 1880’s upstate New York resort area (horse racing). It would their biggest DVC resort yet, with 1,260 rooms it is almost double the size of its neighbor Old Key West Resort. It is on the original site of the Disney Institute.
Two really great attractions also opened in 2004, Stitch’s Great Escape opens in Tomorrowland at the former site of ExtraTERRORestrial.
And Turtle Talk with Crush! Opened in The Living Seas at Epcot.
In a March 30, 2004, article in The Orlando Sentinel, then-Walt Disney World president Al Weiss gave some insight into how the parks are maintained:
- More than 5,000 cast members are dedicated to maintenance and engineering, including 750 horticulturists and 600 painters.
- Disney spends more than $100 million every year on maintenance at the Magic Kingdom. In 2003, $6 million was spent on renovating its Crystal Palace restaurant. 90 percent of guests say that the upkeep and cleanliness of the Magic Kingdom are excellent or very good.
- The streets in the parks are steam cleaned every night.
- There are cast members permanently assigned to painting the antique carousel horses; they use genuine gold leaf.
- There is a tree farm on site so that when a mature tree needs to be replaced, a thirty-year-old tree will be available to replace it.
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| Crystal Palace Character Lun |
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| That’s the Magic way out there |
One Saturday we decided to head to the beach and the locals told us that the cruise ships would pass by this very spot. And sure enough the Magic passed right by us.
I want to thank Donna and Beth for coming up with this wonderful idea to celebrate the birthday of Walt Disney World, a place I love and cherish…
As you can tell, Diane is a true Disney fan (@MouseFanDiane)! She is mom to two children, ages 12 and 9, and, be still my heart, she is married to “the most wonderful guy in the world”. Be sure to stop by Picket Fence Blogs and Circle of Moms 25 and cast your vote of appreciation for Diane’s blog!
Tomorrow Beth (Pursuing the Magic) and I welcome writer Ashley of in God we still trust, as she takes us to Walt Disney World in 2005.
Great post, Diane! What a fun thing to do… go to the beach and do some Disney Cruise Ship-spotting!
Thank Kathy, It was a great moment..
Great post! What a lucky duck you were to live so close to the magic!! Love the pictures and all the terrific details, thanks!!
Wow. I'd love to be neighbors to Walt Disney World for four months ANY year! Love your photos, Diane. Wonderful post!
Thank for stopping by Debs, I know I would love to have stayed there. lol.
Thank You Lucinda, it was awesome!!
Diane, You let your husband work for Universal!? (Only kidding :D) I love your beautiful family photos (SO crisp), your story (we wait for the Disney cruise ships to pull into St. Maarten every year), and the info about WDW maintenance was spectacular! I think I want that job painting the carousel when I retire!! Thank you, thank you friend for such a magical post 😀
You are very welcome friend. It was an honor to be a part of this and your comments are very appreciated. And yes I have to agree with you about painting the carousel, Retirement Disney style.