Looking at your ride photo

Image: DisneyWhen you board a Disney ride, you get swept up in the moment. You buy into this alternate reality that Imagineers have created. You’re a pirate in the Caribbean or a space traveler on a journey to star port. The theming is so precise that you briefly accept the illusion of the story that Disney is telling. Then, you exit the attraction area and reality smacks you in the face. Your ride video reveals the reality behind the illusion. You get to see the emotions on your face at a critical moment in the ride…and it’s certain to put a smile on your face. 

Receiving comments about your button

Image: DisneyWhenever you want attention or recognition at a Disney theme park, you can get it. Simply ask a cast member for a button. They have ones for Happy Birthday or Happy Anniversary or even Happy First Visit! They have them for virtually any other purpose, too. Cast members can write in your celebratory event on the button. After you’ve asked them to do it, you will walk around the parks, proudly displaying your achievement. Cast members are trained to offer you well wishes, and you will feel ten feet tall when you get them. Those aren’t the best ones, though. Frequent guests have learned over the years to look for buttons. They get into act by providing their own congratulations. And there’s nothing better than when a total stranger wishes you a happy birthday.

Sharing a laugh with a stranger

Well, maybe there’s one thing. Something magical that happens at Disney is that you tend to bond with strangers. Sometimes, you do it over the course of a few minutes of standing in line. In other instances, something happens in a split second that only the two of you notice. You exchange a laugh at the hilarious, unplanned event, that magical demonstration that you’re at Walt Disney World. Then, both of you move along to the next thing. I’m convinced that Disney is where we are all the best version of ourselves and where we are the most social.

Splashdown at Splash Mountain

Image: DisneySplash Mountain delivers 10 minutes of constant silliness. The music, the sight gags, and the characters all boost morale. It’s that seminal moment when your raft points down the mountain that matters most, though. It’s when you feel that overwhelming sensation of water washing over your body, baptizing you in sogginess for the rest of the hour. The next time you’re watching people on the ride, try to find a frowning face after the splashdown. It’s an impossibility.

Watching the fireworks display at Magic Kingdom

Image: DisneyDisney park planners think of everything. From the start of the day until the last guest departs, they’re in the business of entertainment. Perhaps the greatest demonstration of this passion for excellence was the introduction of nighttime fireworks. While the name of the show has changed a few times over the years, the end result is the same.

Theme park tourists stare up at the sky and watch with wonder. To tether the explosions to something concrete, Disney adds musical accompaniment to the exhibition. In that moment, thousands of Disney fanatics are united in their love for the classic stories of their youth. Happily Ever After, the latest offering, even projects digital images on the castle to bring these touching tales to life.