Imagination Skyway

The Hall of Presidents was an opening day attraction at the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World (opening day was October 1, 1971), but its history goes all the way back to Walt Disney and his team of WED Enterprise Imagineers in 1957. In addition to some incredible history, the Hall of Presidents is also perhaps the most authentic Magic Kingdom attraction. Disney even went so far as to affect a cha...

Bob Gurr's career is one many Disney fans know well. After being hired by Walt Disney to join WED Enterprises in 1954, Bob went on to build vehicles, ride systems, and other designs for a wide range of classic Disneyland and Walt Disney World attractions. For example, Bob created the vehicles for Autopia, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, the Haunted Mansion, and the Ford Magic Skyway. He also designe...

"Execute order 66!" For Emperor Palpatine that might mean one thing, but for Imagineer Podcast it means it's time to discuss Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance. This innovative attraction opened in Star Wars Galaxy's Edge at Disney's Hollywood Studios in Walt Disney World on December 5, 2019 and at Disneyland California on January 17, 2020. This attraction might very well be the best theme park att...

Disney Plus launched this November and has already delighted millions of fans with countless on-demand movies and shows from Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, National Geographic, and Fox. With so much to choose from, I gathered together a few members of the Imagineer Society to discuss our favorites and share our recommendations for what to watch next. What are your favorite movies and shows so f...

At least once every month, I open up Instagram and engage in a live Q&A discussion with some of the Instagrammers who follow Imagineer Podcast. Because not everybody has Instagram, I decided to record one of these events as a bonus episode for the show. Since the discussions cover a wide range of tips and ideas for Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney+ (Disney Plus), and more, my hope is that you...

The Candlelight Processional has been a part of Disney history since Disneyland's opening year, 1955, when Walt Disney invited 12 Dickens Carolers from the University of South Carolina to sing Christmas carols throughout the park. Since that day, the Candlelight has been an annual tradition at Disneyland, and an annual tradition at Walt Disney World since its opening year, 1971. Since 1994, Candle...

Test Track has been a fan favorite at Walt Disney World since it opened at Epcot in 1999, but its history with Walt Disney Imagineering dates back as far as 1976 when Bob Gurr met with Bill Mitchell (then General Motors Head of Design) to discuss a potential partnership between Disney and GM. When it replaced World of Motion, Test Track became the fastest attraction not only at Walt Disney World b...

It's time for another exciting episode of Disney This or That! While Volume 1 compared Disney animated heroes and Volume 2 compared Disney animated villains, in Volume 3 we will pick our favorite Disney Duo from the world of Walt Disney Animation and Pixar. In particular, we'll begin with a preselected group of 16 famous Disney Duos and utilize a bracket-style tournament to narrow the list down to...

One of the many pleasures of visiting the Walt Disney World Resort is turning on your in-room TV to Must Do Disney (formerly known as the Top 7 Must Sees at Walt Disney World), and if you've turned on this station at any point since May 5, 2005, Stacey J. Aswad has been your host. For the last 15 years, Stacey has guided us through Walt Disney World, telling us the must-do attractions at the four...

With Thanksgiving officially kicking off the winter holiday season here in the United States, I wanted to formally close out the fall season at Disney by sharing some binaural audio of Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party (offered as a ticketed event on select nights between August and November at the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World). In particular, this episode will include a recording of Mic...

The Land Pavilion has been a staple at Epcot since it opened on the park's official dedication, October 1, 1982. While many guests now visit this pavilion because of the signature attraction, Soarin' (something we'll be sure to cover in a future episode), the other attractions here, especially Living with the Land, have a long, rich history at Walt Disney World. In this episode, we'll discuss how...

Jim Sarno was a Walt Disney Imagineer working on the opening team for Epcot. He worked in the model shop with Harriet Burns, Joe Rohde, and many more classic Imagineers. Working on many of the pavilions we know and love at Epcot - including The Land Pavilion, Imagination Pavilion, Communicore, and Spaceship Earth - Jim was responsible for creating SMRT-1, the fountain that once lived in the center...

Bret Iwan has been the official voice of Mickey Mouse for the last 10 years and is only the fourth voice actor in Mickey's lifetime to officially play the role (first was Walt Disney, then Jimmy MacDonald, then Wayne Allwine). Whether it's Disney on Ice, a new attraction in the Disney Parks, a video game, TV show or animated short, Bret is the one who gets to bring Mickey's voice to life. In this...

This episode is my love letter to IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth. On September 30, 2019, I was lucky enough to be in attendance of this Epcot nighttime spectacular's final curtain call. In the spirit of nostalgia, I turned on the mics and stood in the back of the crowd to record the best audio I possibly could for YOU, the Imagineer Podcast listener, so you could be with me at the final showi...

McNair Wilson is a retired Walt Disney Imagineer who coined the term "Streetmosphere" (now commonly used in the theme park industry) and created street theater performances across the Disney Parks, especially at Epcot and Disney's Hollywood Studios (at the time it was still called Disney-MGM Studios). McNair is also responsible for creating the name "Downtown Disney" and for creating the Adventure...

Harriet Burns was known as Walt Disney's First Lady of Imagineering, not only because of her contributions to the organization but also because she truly was the first woman hired at WDI in a creative capacity. Harriet is a Disney Legend and even has a window on Main Street U.S.A. at Disneyland. Working directly with Walt Disney, Harriet helped to create many of the classic attractions we know and...

This year, The Walt Disney Company made hundreds of announcements at the D23 Expo in Anaheim, California. Even as I was preparing this list of major announcements, I was amazed at how much Disney news was revealed between Disney Plus, Marvel, Star Wars, Pixar, Walt Disney Animation, Disney Studios, Disney Legends, and the Disney Parks and Resorts. Some of the biggest highlights include updates abo...

The American Adventure was an opening day attraction at Epcot on October 1, 1982, and has been a part of the park's history ever since. Whenever I take a trip to Walt Disney World, I always enjoy experiencing this attraction, so in today's episode, we'll talk about the history of the show, share some fun facts and details you might not have known about this attraction and pavilion, and share a bin...

The Haunted Mansion at Disneyland Park just celebrated its 50th anniversary, so now more than ever seems the perfect time to discuss this classic attraction. Of all the attractions at Disney Parks around the world, there are few that can beat The Haunted Mansion's popularity. Although there have been a few incremental updates to the original versions at Disneyland Park in California and Magic King...

Some of the biggest events of the year at Walt Disney World are the RunDisney races. There are so many aspects of RunDisney that make it special: it turns runners into Disney fans and Disney fans into runners, it encourages people to be their very best, and it creates a positive community of goal-setting go-getters, just to mention a few! In this two-part series, our group discusses everything you...

Some of the biggest events of the year at Walt Disney World are the RunDisney races. There are so many aspects of RunDisney that make it special: it turns runners into Disney fans and Disney fans into runners, it encourages people to be their very best, and it creates a positive community of goal-setting go-getters, just to mention a few! In this two-part series, our group discusses everything you...

There's no denying Disney's cultural impact on the world. Ever since Walt Disney created Mickey Mouse in 1928, countless cultures around the globe have come to recognize the three-circled Disney icon. A smaller facet of Disney's cultural impact that not many know about is an international program known as Disney English, a division of Disney Publishing through which Cast Members teach English lang...

Spaceship Earth is an icon not just at Walt Disney World but anywhere. The architecture of the geodesic sphere is one recognized around the world, and the attraction you can find inside it is a Disney classic. Spaceship Earth is the signature attraction at Epcot and in many ways pays tribute to Walt Disney himself. In our golden podcast episode, we'll explore the history of Spaceship Earth and dis...

They call Disneyland "the happiest place on Earth", and one of the aspects of Disneyland that makes it a happy place to be is the food. Whether you're looking for a snack, a quick-service meal, or a fine dining experience, the Disneyland Resort has so much to offer with an array of choices at Disneyland Park, Disney California Adventure Park, the Disneyland Hotel, Disney's Grand Californian Resort...

Walt Disney World is "the most magical place on Earth", and that tagline takes on greater meaning when you're visiting this destination with the person you love. While Walt Disney World is the family vacation capital of the world, it also provides a romantic escape for couples of all ages. In today's episode, I chat with my wife, Joanna, along with Brendan and Katherine Wright of the Detour to Nev...