A thoughtful look back at Walt Disney World's Year Long Celebrations (1997-2017) Pt 1

A Year of a Million Dreams, Millennium Celebration, 100 Years of Magic, Walt Disney World 25th Anniversary. What do they all have in common? You guessed it, they were all year-long celebration. These celebrations were iconic, some for not the right reasons, but each made lasting changes at Disney Park and I wanted to take a look back at some of them. For this list I will be focusing on 1997-2017!

Walt Disney World's 25th Anniversary

Do you "Remember the Magic"? I sure do. Whether you loved or hated the cake castle you still remember it. Even if you weren't there I'm sure you've seen pictures or at least heard about it.

Not gonna lie though, I thought the Castle looked hideous. And on top of the paint job it received, only the front part was decorated.

 

ExtraTERRORestrial Alien Encounter was one of the attractions that opened in preparation for the 25th anniversary, which is now legendary as the only attraction "too scary" for audiences at the Magic Kingdom, which led to it's unfortunate early departure and hideous refurbishment into Stitch's Great Escape.

Also, the Remember the Magic Parade debuted, featuring new guest interaction segments. This parade lasted until 2001. Interestingly enough, most of these floats have survived since 1996, with most of them reappearing in various Disney parades since being retired.

Millennium Celebration (1999-2001)

I won't lie, some of these celebrations definitely feel like they were just celebrated so Disney would have something new for guests that year, and seem a bit insincere, this however was not one of them. My personal favorite of the celebrations, Millennium Celebration was designed as a once in a lifetime event. Some of the celebrations had theme songs like the 25th celebration (Remember the Magic) and the Millennium Celebration had "Celebrate the Future, Hand in Hand".

I will probably make a whole post of just this Celebration, so I'll keep it short.

The newly redesigned Epcot was the center of the celebration. Both the Entrance and the "Hub" were changed to incorporate the new millennium.

The beautiful entrance fountain (above) was changed to... well just a fountain, and ugly fake marble slabs were painted on Spaceship Earth (below), they have since reverted back to the original color.

And the entrance area added huge marble slabs where you could "Leave a Legacy" by putting your picture (which etched a metal picture) on the marble for the rest of time (below).

And of course the Mickey wand! I really thought the Mickey 2000 wand was really cool, however the post 2000 "Epcot" sign was really out of place.

Journey into Imagination was also replaced by Journey into YOUR Imagination. Sadly this got rid of the Dreamfinder and the wonderful nuances that made the original so unique. 

Also the color scheme was changed on the exterior of the building to an odd orange, red and turquoise mixture.

But enough of the negatives, this celebration introduced some awesome additions such as:

Tapestry of Nations: Tapestry of Nations was a wonderful parade around World Showcase Lagoon which included life sized puppets and guest interactions. the amazing score was written by Gavin Greenaway.

IllumiNations 2000: Reflections of Earth: The most notable and lasting addition is IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth. This show which is still running nightly, is a true magnificent sight to behold and really embodies the meaning of World Showcase which is togetherness. If you haven't been to Epcot in the past 18 years, you should head on over to watch it.

Check out my review of IllumiNations on my blog as well!

Stay tuned for Pt.2 and also Epcot 35th Anniversary coverage!