This page contains some of the historical data that can be found on the site. Here you can find the opening and closing dates of the major Disney properties. This information is very helpful in determining park openings, anniversaries and other events that would generate license plates to commemorate those dates and events. The first section deals with current properties and their opening and closing dates. The second section lists those properties that have gone through name changes, listing them by their former names.
|
DISNEY THEME PARK and PROPERTY OPENING DATES
| ||
|
July 17, 1955 | ||
|
| ||
| The Original Magic Kingdom. | ||
|
| ||
| Formerly owned by the Wrather Corporation, purchased by Disney - January 21, 1988. | ||
| (1) Formerly the Pan Pacific Hotel, built in 1984, was purchased by Disney in 1995 and renamed Disneyland Pacific Hotel. (2) Name changed to Paradise Pier Hotel - October 2000. | ||
| (1) First Disney Resort to be located inside a theme park. (2) Grand Opening was on February 8, 2001. | ||
| (1) Announced in September 2007 that the Grand Californian Hotel will get a 2.5-acre expansion for the first DVC property at the Disneyland Resort. (2) 200 rooms and 50 two-bedroom villas will be added on south side of the hotel. | ||
|
| ||
| Hosts the second World of Disney Store that opened on January 12, 2001, which is operated by the Merchandise Division of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts. | ||
|
October 1, 1971 | ||
|
| ||
| Formerly known as EPCOT Center. "Center" was dropped from the "EPCOT" name, and letters were lowercased in December 1993. | ||
| (1) Formerly known as Disney MGM Studios. (2) Renamed Disney's Hollywood Studios on January 7, 2008. | ||
|
| ||
| (1) Demolition of Northern Garden Wing at Contemporary Resort was completed in Spring of 2007 for construction of the "Bay Lake Tower", a DVC resort. | ||
| (1) Opened as the Polynesian Village Resort. (2) "Village" was dropped from the name in 1985. | ||
| (1) Built as the Golf Resort December 1973. (2) Became the Disney Inn February 1, 1986. (3) Became Shades of Green February 1, 1994 for military and DOD personnel only. | ||
| (1) Formerly known as the Grand Floridian Beach Resort. (2) In 1997 the name was changed to Grand Floridian Resort & Spa. | ||
| Operated by Westin Hotels. | ||
| Operated by Sheraton Hotels. | ||
| (1) Merged with Dixie Landings Resort April 1, 2001. (2) Dixie Landings Resort opened February 2, 1992 and was adjacent to Port Orleans. (3) The combined resort will be known as the Port Orleans Resort, with the Port Orleans section to be known as the French Quarter and the Dixie Landings section will be known as Riverside. | ||
| (1) First Disney Vacation Club Resort Property at WDW. (2) Originally the Vacation Club Resort. (3) Disney Vacation Club started December 20, 1991. (4) Renamed Old Key West Resort January 1996. | ||
| (1) Three distinct themed sections: (a) All-Star Sports opened April 29, 1994; (b) All-Star Music Resort opened November 1, 1994; (c) All-Star Movies Resort opened January 15, 1999. (2) Previously operated as three individual resorts, but now operates as a single resort. | ||
| 2nd Disney Vacation Club Resort Property at WDW. | ||
| 3rd Disney Vacation Club Resort Property at WDW. | ||
| 4th Disney Vacation Club Resort Property at WDW. | ||
| (1) Originally scheduled to open December 15, 2001. (2) Low park attendance and a weak economy caused the opening to be delayed. | ||
| (1) 5th Disney Vacation Club Resort Property at WDW. (2) Built on the former Disney Institute property. (3) In 2002 the Townhouses were torn down to make way for the first phase of the resort. (4) Completed in 2007. | ||
| (1) 6th Disney Vacation Club Resort Property at WDW. (2) 134 remodeled accommodations on the 5th and 6th floors of the existing Animal Kingdom Lodge opened in 2007. (3) 324 vacation homes will be built in the new Kidani Village and is scheduled to be completed in May 2009. (4) 204 of 340 Kidani Village units opened on May 1, 2009 for guests. The remainder of the units will open in September 2009. | ||
| (1) Rebuild of the former Treehouse Villas built back in 1975. (2) The 60 elevated homes comprising the Treehouse Villas became the latest phase of the Saratoga Springs resort. | ||
| (1) Demolition of Northern Garden Wing at Contemporary Resort was completed in Spring of 2007. (2) 281 unit resort that will be completed in the fall of 2009. (3) The 7th DVC resort at WDW. (4) Name changed from "The Kingdom Tower" to "Bay Lake Tower." | ||
2010 |
(1) On March 1, 2007, Disney announced plans to convert its Eagle Pines and Osprey Ridge golf courses into a new 900-acre luxury resort that will include a Four Seasons hotel, an 18-hole championship golf course, plus single-family and multi-family vacation homes and vacation timeshare properties. | |
|
| ||
| Ceased operation on September 1, 2001 and was closed on January 20, 2005. | ||
|
| ||
| (1) Located in Bay Lake, east of the Magic Kingdom. (2) Originally Treasure Island opening April 7, 1974. (3) Became Discovery Island April 1, 1977. (4) Closed April 8, 1999. | ||
| (1) Shopping, dining and entertainment complex with three distinct areas: (a) Downtown Disney Marketplace opened March 22, 1975; (b) Pleasure Island opening May 1, 1989; (c) West Side opening September 15, 1997. (2) Downtown Disney began in 1996. (3) Hosts the first World of Disney Store that opened on October 2, 1996, which is operated by the Merchandise Division of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts. | ||
1994 |
First residents moved in June 18, 1996. | |
| Home of the Richard Petty Driving Experience. | ||
WDW |
Located in West Side at Downtown Disney. Had been scheduled to close December 31, 2007, but as of 2009, the attraction remains open. | |
Chicago, IL |
Due to poor profits the attraction closed Sept. 4, 2001. | |
| (1) The third World of Disney Store to open. (2) Operated by the Merchandise Division of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts. (3) Disney has announced that the Manhattan store will close after its lease expires in 2010. | ||
|
April 15, 1983 | ||
|
| ||
| Located adjacent to Tokyo Disneyland, overlooking Tokyo Bay. | ||
|
| ||
|
| ||
| Shopping, dining and entertainment complex. | ||
| Official Disney merchandise shop located outside of the theme parks. (Similar to the U.S. World of Disney Stores.) | ||
|
(Formerly known as Euro Disney) April 12, 1992 | ||
|
| ||
| (1) Formerly known as Euro Disneyland. (2) Name changed to Disneyland Paris - October 1, 1994. | ||
| Located adjacent to Disneyland Paris. | ||
|
| ||
| (1) Campground located several miles away from the main resort area. (2) Formerly known as Camp Davy Crockett. (3) Name changed to Davy Crockett Ranch May 1993. | ||
| Operated by Envergure Group. | ||
| Operated by Airtours UK Leisure Group. | ||
| Operated by Six Continents. | ||
| Built in Val de France, near Disneyland Paris. | ||
|
| ||
| (1) Shopping, dining and entertainment complex. (2) Formerly known as Festival Disney. (3) Renamed Disney Village in 1996. | ||
|
September 12, 2005 | ||
|
| ||
| Constructed on Lantau Island | ||
|
| ||
|
| ||
| Artificial lake located in Penny’s Bay on Lantau Island for water and other outdoor recreation activities. | ||
|
| ||
|
| ||
| Disney Vacation Club Resort Property. | ||
| Disney Vacation Club Resort Property. | ||
| Mixed use family resort with hotel and DVC lodging. | ||
| Disney plans to build a 500-room hotel resort on 15 acres at the National Harbor development site that is about eight miles south of Washington D.C. in Maryland. Details on the project were not being discussed by Disney; however, Disney was quick to point out that the property will not be a theme park. | ||
|
| ||
| (1) Ships' registry is The Bahamas. (2) Magic has 877 staterooms and weighs 83,000 tons. | ||
| (1) Ships' registry is The Bahamas. (2) Wonder has 877 staterooms and weighs 83,000 tons. (3) To be based at the Port of Los Angeles in San Pedro, California starting in 2011. | ||
| (1) Construction began in March 2009. (2) Being built by the Meyer Werft shipyard in Papenburg, Germany. (3) Dream will have 1,250 staterooms and will weigh 128,000 tons. | ||
| (1) Construction began in March 2009. (2) Being built by the Meyer Werft shipyard in Papenburg, Germany. (3) Fantasy will have 1,250 staterooms and will weigh 128,000 tons. | ||
| (1) Island in the Bahamas purchased by Disney to use as a stopover for Cruise Line ships. (2) Formerly known as Gorda Cay prior to the purchase by Disney. | ||
|
FORMER DISNEY THEME PARK and PROPERTY NAMES
| ||
|
| ||
| Name changed to Paradise Pier Hotel - October 2000. | ||
|
| ||
| (1) 1970's planned resort but was canceled. (2) The land developed for this project is now occupied by the Grand Floridian Resort & Spa. | ||
| (1) Also known as the Fort Wilderness Junction. (2) 1990's planned resort but was canceled. (3) Was to have been built between Fort Wilderness and Disney’s Wilderness Lodge. (4) It was to have an “Old West” theme and was based upon the Wild West Show from Disneyland Paris. | ||
| (1) Part of the Disney Village Resorts and the Vacation Villas. (2) Became Club Suites in 1989. (3) Demolished 2005/2006. | ||
| (1) Part of the Disney Village Resorts and the Vacation Villas. (2) Became the Bungalows when integrated into the Disney Institute Villas in 1996. (3) Demolished 2005/2006. | ||
| Became Shades of Green February 1, 1994 for military and DOD personnel only. | ||
| Officially closed on July 25, 2003. | ||
| Renamed Disney's Hollywood Studios on January 7, 2008. | ||
| Became Downtown Disney Marketplace in 1996. | ||
| (1) Opened with 27 townhouses and later expanded to 133 units. (2) Became Vacation Villas (also known as the Townhouses) in 1977. (3) Added later to the complex was: Treehouse Villas in 1975, Fairway Villas in 1978, Club Lake Villas in 1980 (later known as Club Suites and the Bungalows), and Grand Vista Homes. (4) Became Villas at the Disney Institute February 9, 1996. (5) In 2002 the Townhouses were torn down to make way for the first phase of the Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa DVC resort. (6) Demolished 2005/2006, except for the Treehouse Villas. | ||
| (1) Merged with the Port Orleans Resort April 1, 2001. (2) The combined resort will be known as the Port Orleans Resort. | ||
| (1) Golf themed Disney Vacation Club Resort Property to have been built near the Eagle Pines golf course, but project never came to fruition. | ||
| Now known as Epcot. "Center" was dropped from the "EPCOT" name, and letters were lowercased in December 1993. | ||
| (1) Part of the Disney Village Resorts and the Vacation Villas. (2) Integrated into the Disney Institute Villas in 1996. (3) Demolished 2005/2006. | ||
| (1) Also known as the Buffalo Junction Resort. (2) 1990's planned resort but was canceled. (3) Was to have been built between Fort Wilderness and Disney’s Wilderness Lodge. (4) It was to have an “Old West” theme and was based upon the Wild West Show from Disneyland Paris. | ||
| Became the Disney Inn February 1, 1986. | ||
| In 1997 the name was changed to Grand Floridian Resort & Spa. | ||
| (1) Four houses originally built as model homes and designed for a development project that was later abandoned. (2) Became part of the Disney Village Resorts and the Vacation Villas. (3) Integrated into the Disney Institute Villas in 1996. (4) Demolished 2005/2006. | ||
| Former pre-construction name of Bay Lake Tower at the Contemporary Resort. | ||
| Became Walt Disney World Village in 1977. | ||
| (1) 1990's planned Greek-themed resort but was canceled. (2) Was to have been built on Seven Seas Lagoon between the Contemporary Resort and The Ticket and Transportation Center. (3) Due to poor ground conditions the resort was unable to be built. | ||
| (1) 1970's planned resort but was canceled. (2) Was to have been built on Bay Lake. | ||
| Became the Polynesian Resort as "Village" was dropped from the name in 1985. | ||
| Ceased operation on September 1, 2001 and was closed on January 20, 2005. | ||
| Became Discovery Island April 1, 1977. | ||
| (1) Part of the Disney Village Resorts and the Vacation Villas. (2) Integrated into the Disney Institute Villas in 1996. (3) As of September 2006, these units are the only portion of the Disney Village Resorts still in existence. They are no longer available for public use. (4) In February 2008, it was announced that the Villas will be torn down and replaced with smaller units. It is not known if they will become part of Saratoga Springs or become another DVC resort. (5) In September of 2008, it was announced that the DVC will sell time shares at the rebuilt villas. | ||
| Renamed Old Key West Resort January 1996. | ||
| (1) Originally known as the Disney Village Resort that opened in December 1971. (2) Became the Townhouses when integrated into the Disney Institute Villas in 1996. (3) In 2002 the Townhouses were torn down to make way for the first phase of the Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa DVC resort. (4) Demolished 2005/2006. | ||
| (1) 1970's planned resort but was canceled. (2) Was to have been built between the Contemporary Resort and The Ticket and Transportation Center. | ||
| (1) Formerly known as the Disney Village Resorts and the Vacation Villas that opened in December 1971. (2) Became Villas at the Disney Institute February 9, 1996, which included: the Bungalows, the Townhouses, Treehouse Villas, Fairway Villas and Grand Vista Homes. (3) In 2002 the Townhouses were torn down to make way for the first phase of the Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa DVC resort. (4) Officially closed on July 25, 2003. (5) All demolished 2005/2006, except for the Treehouse Villas. | ||
| Became Disney Village Marketplace in 1989. | ||
|
| ||
| No Entries | ||
|
(Formerly known as Euro Disney) | ||
| Name changed to Davy Crockett Ranch May 1993. | ||
| Name changed to Disneyland Paris - October 1, 1994. | ||
| Renamed Disney Village in 1996. | ||
|
| ||
| No Entries | ||
|
| ||
|
| ||
| Renamed Castaway Cay after it was purchased by Disney. | ||