Have you ever been to Disneyland? What about Disney World?
Did you know that Disneyland has the most visitors of any theme park in the entire world?
Over 600 Million people have walked through the turnstiles at the “Happiest Place On Earth” since opening day on July 17th, 1955!
In fact, Disneyland was second only to Magic Kingdom in Disney World with 16,140,000 people making that magical ride from the parking lot on the tram or the monorail from the hotel properties to enjoy a day in the land of wonder.
How Does Disneyland Stack Up Around The World?
Another cool tidbit; of the top 10 amusement parks based on attendance in the world in 2011, the top 8 were all Disney properties.
That total includes numbers 3 and 4 in Tokyo, Japan and at number 5, Disneyland Park in Marne-la-Valee, France.
The park was so popular after it opened that Nikita Kruschev, the Premier of the Soviet Union during the Cold War, asked to visite Disneyland as one of the two things he wanted to do on his first trip to America.
What was the second, you ask? Well, to meet the Duke, John Wayne, of course!
Unfortunately, due to security concerns related to Cold War Tensions, Mr. Kruschev was denied entry into the park.
And to think, it all started with Walt Disney, a guy who everybody said was a little crazy, making drawings of a mouse!
Isn’t that just how life is?
Sometimes the people who take on the most ridicule and finger-pointing from others are on the verge of ideas that can and will change the face of the entire world forever.
Here’s to Walt Disney and the “Happiest Place On Earth!” and their continued commitment to excellence.
“To all who come to this happy place: Welcome. Disneyland is your land. Here age relives fond memories of the past, and here youth may savor the challenge and promise of the future. Disneyland is dedicated to the ideals, the dreams, and the hard facts that have created America, with the hope that it will be a source of joy and inspiration to all the world.”
—Walter E. Disney, July 17, 1955