Imagination Skyway

Disney Parks are filled with thousands of hours of music. From area music loops to attraction soundtracks, Disney's Imagineers infuse a tremendous amount of work creating and selecting music and sounds that best fit every corner of the resort. Disney's Hollywood Studios (formerly Disney-MGM Studios) is no exception. Disney's Imagineers worked tireless to select the best music for each distinct are...

Journey Into Imagination opened at EPCOT in 1983 and has been a part of Walt Disney World ever since. As part of the Imagination Pavilion conceived by Walt Disney Imagineer Tony Baxter, Journey Into Imagination took guests aboard a whimsical flight into the imagination, with Dreamfinder and Figment reminding guests that "One Little Spark" (a song written by Richard and Robert Sherman) can lead to...

Frequent Walt Disney World guests will often ask me if Disneyland is worth a visit. Not surprisingly, the answer is a resounding yes! Disneyland is an especially magical place for Disney fans, and even for those who infrequently visit Disney, there's a good reason Disneyland is called the "happiest place on earth". With two incredible theme parks (Disneyland and Disney California Adventure), Downt...

Disney Cruise Line's newest ship, the Disney Wish sets sail this summer (2022), and I had the opportunity to chat with former Walt Disney Imagineer and Portfolio Creative Executive of Disney Cruise Line, Theron Skees about the design of this newest ship. In this episode, I chat with Theron about the Imagineers' approach to designing a cruise ship, attractions and amenities we can look forward to a...

Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind opened at EPCOT in Walt Disney World on May 27, 2022. Replacing the Universe of Energy pavilion (Ellen's Energy Adventure), this attraction became the first roller coaster at EPCOT, the first backwards launching coaster for the Disney Parks, the first E-ticket Marvel attraction at Walt Disney World, and one of the longest indoor roller coasters in the world....

Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser is an immersive 2-night adventure that opened at Walt Disney World in March 2022. Disney calls Galactic Starcruiser the most immersive Star Wars story ever created, and it's an accurate statement. This overnight experience combines elements of a cruise, a theme park, and an interactive stage show. Guests who board the Halcyon will truly feel as if they've stepped in...

Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser is an immersive 2-night adventure that opened at Walt Disney World in March 2022. Disney calls Galactic Starcruiser the most immersive Star Wars story ever created, and it's an accurate statement. This overnight experience combines elements of a cruise, a theme park, and an interactive stage show. Guests who board the Halcyon will truly feel as if they've stepped in...

The Seas with Nemo and Friends opened at Epcot in 1986 as The Living Seas Pavilion. The original version of this Walt Disney World attraction took guests to the depths of the ocean via hydrolators to an underwater research facility known as SeaBase Alpha. Up until 2005, the pavilion featured the world's largest saltwater tank, home to 3,000 oceanic creatures representing 200 species. Between 2003...

In hosting Imagineer Podcast, I receive many questions about how to best plan for and make the most of a Disney vacation, whether it's a trip to Walt Disney World, Disneyland, or any other Disney destination. To further complicate planning, Disney has created many new systems, procedures, and options in recent years. Despite these changes and additions, a trip to Disney can still be just as magica...

"How do I become an Imagineer?" Not surprisingly, it's one of the most common questions I'm asked on Imagineer Podcast. As I've continued to interview Walt Disney Imagineers, I've found there's no easy answer to this question, but there are a few pieces of wisdom that can help get you started, whether you want to work with this legendary Disney team as an engineer, artist, architect, programmer, p...

Jock Lindsey's Hangar Bar opened at Disney Springs in September 2015 just prior to the formal renaming of this part of Walt Disney World from Downtown Disney. This Indiana Jones themed bar is the only one of its kind in the world, and it's loaded with Easter eggs from Raiders of the Lost Ark, Temple of Doom, The Last Crusade, and even Indiana Jones Adventure. The backstory of this restaurant focus...

Brian Crosby is the current Creative Director of Marvel Themed Entertainment for Disney, and it's a role he was practically destined to hold. Growing up near Disneyland in Southern California, Brian developed both a Disney and Marvel fandom from an early age. After winning the Imaginations competition from Walt Disney Imagineering, Brian began as an Imagineering intern before making the jump to a...

Joe Lanzisero began working at Disney as a Feature Animator just a few days after graduating from CalArts in 1979, working on movies like the Fox & and the Hound and The Great Mouse Detective. Less than a decade later, Joe made the jump to Walt Disney Imagineering, where he eventually rose to the rank of a Creative Senior Vice President. Perhaps what’s most amazing about Joe is that his projects l...

Mornings at Disney are often my favorite time of day, and it's typically the time of day that I'm also enjoying a delicious cup of coffee. At Walt Disney World in particular, there are so many coffee options that even certain restaurants feature their own proprietary blend. Whether it's a large cup to jump start my day at a Disney Resort, an afternoon boost at the Disney Parks, or even an evening...

Avatar Flight of Passage might be the most thrilling and immersive attraction Disney's Imagineers have ever created. It also happens to be one of the highest rated Disney attractions in the world. Opening in 2017 at Disney's Animal Kingdom, Flight of Passage is the signature E-ticket attraction in Pandora—World of Avatar. The Imagineering details, story, and technology for this ride are so impress...

The New Year presents each of us with the opportunity to reflect, reset, and reimagine where we can go and what we can accomplish, and Disney's stories and quotes offer endless wisdom for ways that we can better approach life. As we reset to the New Year, I wanted to take a moment to share some New Year wishes, with a dose of Disney magic, to provide some inspiration for the year ahead. What are y...

Music at the Disney Parks is so iconic that several attraction themes have been popular for generations. From Sherman Brothers classics like it's a small world and The Tiki, Tiki, Tiki Room to modern favorites like Golden Dream and even Nothing Can Stop Us Now, Disney attraction themes and scores help convey the story of the attraction and leave Disney fans singing along as they exit the experienc...

Music at the Disney Parks is so iconic that several attraction themes have been popular for generations. From Sherman Brothers classics like it's a small world and The Tiki, Tiki, Tiki Room to modern favorites like Golden Dream and even Nothing Can Stop Us Now, Disney attraction themes and scores help convey the story of the attraction and leave Disney fans singing along as they exit the experienc...

Have you ever visited Walt Disney World and not visited the Disney Parks? While it's not a traditional Disney vacation, sometimes the most memorable trips to the most magical place on earth are focused around the resorts. Especially with Disney Vacation Club Resorts, there are so many amenities and activities to enjoy that you could easily fill a full vacation with enjoyable moments for the whole...

Disney Springs might be a shopping district at Walt Disney World, but it was designed like a Disney theme park. In fact, the detail and complexity of this themed environment is so impressive that it could almost be considered a fifth gate at the resort. The transformation of Downtown Disney to Disney Springs took years to develop, and it involved a lot more than a simple facelift. The Imagineers c...

Timmy Britt is a former Imagineer and Cast Member of the Walt Disney Company. Timmy's Disney career began at the Animation Academy at Disney's Hollywood Studios, where he taught thousands of Guests how to draw some of their favorite Disney characters. He later transitioned to working as a Scenic Artist, Art Director and Foreman on various projects for Walt Disney Imagineering, including Pandora -...

Visiting Walt Disney World, Disneyland, or any other Disney destination while pregnant can be an exciting way to celebrate your growing family. In fact, Disney might be the perfect place for any Disney fan to have a babymoon. While your vacation experience might feel a bit different while you're expecting or traveling with someone who's expecting, it is certainly just as magical. In this podcast e...

Tower of Terror opened at Walt Disney World in 1994, and its success prompted Disney to construct similar versions at Disneyland Paris, Disney California Adventure, and Tokyo Disney Sea. Part of the attraction's popularity has much to do with the level of detail the Imagineers infused into the experience, creating far more than a basic drop ride. The story is carefully woven throughout the full ex...

Tony Baxter's career as a Disney Imagineer defined the second generation of Disney Park experiences. Tony's legacy includes Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Indiana Jones Adventure, Star Tours, Journey Into Imagination, and Disneyland Paris. As a lifelong Disney fan who grew up down the street from Disneyland, Tony always dreamed of becoming an Imagineer. He started with the company at the earliest...

I grew up with a Disney family. We were lucky enough to travel to Walt Disney World just about every year, and we visited Disneyland a few times during my childhood. My family not only instilled in me a love for Disney but also encouraged me to pursue my dream of becoming a Cast Member. They also continue to support Imagineer Podcast. Growing up in the 1980's, 1990's, and 2000's going to Disney, m...