4. The bugs

If you don’t do bugs, you may want to prepare yourself for your trip to Florida.

Disney does a spectacular job controlling bugs (especially mosquitos), but there’s only so much they can do with Florida’s wetlands interwoven with the parks. You will undoubtedly see a lot of bugs on any given Walt Disney World visit. Most of these fall into the innocuous variety like butterflies, beetles, and flies, but some can be quite obnoxious, from swarming gnats to surprisingly huge beasties.

Lovebugs are probably the biggest pain to experience if you happen to visit in May or September. For those who have never experienced Florida’s Biannual Lovebug Parade, basically millions of lanky black flies emerge from the ether for a few weeks of impassioned mating. If you ever had to explain a “two-headed bug” at Walt Disney World, you’ve probably met a lovebug. Depending on when you visit, you might see males and females struggling awkwardly to walk opposite directions as they remain attached, or even more charmingly, watched females dragging the corpses of the dead lovers while waiting to lay eggs (the males die shortly after mating—theirs is a brief, Shakespearian life). Lovebugs don’t bite, but they are annoying and create a huge mess. Their acrid innards have a nasty way of eating away the paint on cars and simultaneously make them unpalatable to every bug-eating bird and reptile in the state.

As for other bugs in Florida, they definitely tend to err on the large side. I once saw a wasp sitting on a bench at Disney Springs that had to be four inches long. On another occasion at the Maharajah Jungle Trek, we saw a brightly colored locust of equal length. Florida is also home to some seriously huge spiders—you may spy a few on your visit in foliage around walking paths or your resort. The most dramatic of these are golden orb weavers (sometimes erroneously called “banana spiders”). These guys can span about 4-6 inches across and weave massive golden webs like something straight out of The Hobbit. Fortunately, they are hilariously docile—like, you could probably walk straight through their webs and only earn a passive shrug from little Charlotte.

Unless you suffer from allergies, the only dangerous bugs you might encounter in Florida are actually mosquitos. As mentioned, Disney’s mosquito control program is serious business. To help guests prevent bites, Disney offers mosquito repellant lotion (usually with picaridin) for free at stations at all of their resorts and parks (ask a cast member for the specific location). First Aid locations within the parks also offer free mosquito repellant wipes, which can prove invaluable once dusk sets in.

5. The Orlando area itself

Walt Disney World and Disneyland do share one thing in common—the arrival of the parks had an insane effect on the surrounding areas of Anaheim and Orlando. Both areas quickly became densely packed tourist magnets. There are a few ways that the Orlando area (which includes Lake Buena Vista and Kissimmee) stands out as a little different from Disneyland though.

While Anaheim shares some of these traits, Orlando is a unique city of extremes if you step outside of “The Disney Bubble”. One minute, you might be driving through an area known for high affluence and fancy resorts like Celebration or Winter Park—the next you’re in an area struggling with intense poverty. On one hand, tourism covers many statewide costs in Florida—for example, toll roads and tourist taxes provide enough revenue that Florida doesn’t have a state income tax. On the flip side, the tourism industry (even Disney, sadly) often pays workers poorly, and this has had some brutal effects on economy in the area.  

Another point of extremes is that while some parts of the Orlando area are gorgeous, other areas are undeniably, painfully touristy. You might feel like you’re suffering from déjà vu after you pass the fifth set of outlet malls, and it’s hard to ignore row after row of stores selling bizarre tourist tchotchkes and secondhand Disney merch. Like Anaheim, the town is a bizarre landscape of both popular and b-level tourist attractions, major resorts, and tourist traps ranging from massive malls to mega-sketchy buffets and steakhouses.

 One of the biggest benefits to staying at a Walt Disney World resort as opposed to Disneyland is that the Walt Disney World property sort of insulates you from some of the Orlando craziness if you prefer to just enjoy your Disney vacation—that luxury isn’t necessarily available at all of Disneyland’s resorts due to the city’s close proximity. Orlando is a great city with tons to offer for those willing to explore, but if you’re looking for a quieter vacation, Walt Disney World definitely wins on that account.

What are some other ways Florida makes Walt Disney World WAY different from Disneyland?