In 1959, his company, the Walt Disney Company, began looking for sites for a second Disneyland. On a flight over Florida Orlando in 1963, Walt Disney fell in love with the site. His reason for choosing the site, when asked was: "the freeway roads, they bisect here."

However, Disney needed to keep the land acquisition secret, and so set up a series of dummy co-operations to purchase 27,000 acres in the area. This continued until about 1965, after most of the land had been brought, when the story was leaked to Orlando Sentinel.

On 15 November 1965, Disney held a press conference on the project. Here, their plans for Epcot were revealed, to tie in with the Disney theme.

Sadly, Walt Disney never saw the resort open, as he passed away in 1966. From here on, Roy Disney headed the project and saw to it that it was renamed from Disney World to Walt Disney World.

Further conferences were held in 1967, which again focused on the role of Epcot. Equally, it was emphasized that for the Walt Disney project to be carried out, a special district would need to be formed. This was known as The Reedy Creek Improvement District. This included two cities inside it, the City of Bay Lake and the City of Reedy Creek. This district would receive immunity from state and country land-use laws.

Drainage canals were soon built, along with the first roads and the Magic Kingdom itself. Disney's Contemporary, Polynesian and Wilderness resorts were completed in time for the grand opening.

That grand opening came on the 1 October 1971, when the Magic Kingdom opened to the public. On the opening, Walt's wife remarked, "I think Walt would have approved." Not long after the opening, Roy Disney also passed away.

Of course, the grand opening of the Magic Kingdom was only the beginning for the resort. Epcot would follow in 1982, thus realizing those 1960 conferences. In 1989, other popular attractions like Disney's MGM studios and a water park, Typhoon Lagoon, opened. The biggest new addition, Disney's Animal Park, opened in 1998. Along the way, numerous other additions to Disney World have been made.

Today, business figures put attendance of the Magic Kingdom at 15 million, Epcot at 9.4, AGM at 8.2 and Animal Park 7.82. The expansion of the Walt Disney resort, made possible by the expansive land purchases of the 1960s and the Reedy Creek Improvement District, has made it perhaps the most successful in the world. No doubt, Walt would have approved indeed.

Time Line:

1959: Disney starts looking for sites.

1963: Florida sites chosen.

1965: First press conference held, Epcot revealed.

1966: Walt Disney passes away and resort renamed.

1967: Further conferences, Reedy Creek district formed.

1971: Resort opened, with Magic Kingdom.

1982: Epcot opened.

New Attractions

I remember the days when Disney World never seemed to change. Those days are long over, and this year, as usual, there are some new attractions to draw you in. In Disney's Hollywood Studios (formerly known as MGM), there are a couple of new additions. Toy Story Mania is an arcade-like, 4D ride that draws off the popularity of the Buzz Lightyear ride in the Magic Kingdom. In the ride, you wear 3D glasses and take aim at the shooting gallery images projected on the screen. Special effects like gusts of wind give it that “4D” effect. Have good aim and a quick trigger finger because Disney is keeping score, pitting you against the other rider in your car.

Also in the Hollywood Studios park will be, later in the year, American Idol! This venue will allow you to compete in an American Idol like competition, complete with a live audience, judges (I wonder if they'll have a rude one given Disney's famous hospitability) and daily winners who will receive perks when trying out for the real American Idol.

Meanwhile at Epcot Park, Spaceship Earth has reopened after its makeover. Hosted within Epcot's iconic sphere, this ride has long been a park favorite. While some of the old scenes remain, a nod to all the fans of the original ride, a new, and yet familiar, theme takes over. The original ride told the story of how communication helped to pass on information and advance civilization. This new version of the ride concentrates on how one innovation leads to another.

Best Time to Go

For most of us, our vacation days have been selected long ago and, if we have children, correspond with school breaks. If you are wondering whether that odd week in October would be a good time to try out Disney, consider this: the last two weeks of October are some of the least expensive times to visit the resort this year. Attempting different reservation dates, you find that the least costly times to visit the resort in 2008 are the last two-thirds of August, most of September, the last two weeks of October and then the second week of both November and December. Visiting during these times will save you money and might even save you wait-time in the attraction lines.

These off-peak times of the year have other qualities going for them as well. For one thing, the Orlando weather tends to be less extreme beginning in October, but Disney also sweetens the pot by adding special events. For instance, September and October will feature Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party. Imagine staying late in the Magic Kingdom to ride the rides and trick-or-treat! Also, beginning in September and lasting the rest of the year is the Epcot International Food & Wine Festival. Then in November begins Disney's annual Christmas celebration with a variety of special events. From enormous light shows to Christmas musicals, it's almost an entirely different park during the holiday season.

Where to Stay

Within the Orlando area, nearly every type of accommodation imaginable is available, but you may be surprised to find the same situation within the park. From campgrounds and budget resorts to extravagant suites, Disney offers a bit of everything. The All-Star resorts are family friendly and offer great room-and-ticket packages that will fit just about everyone's budget, and getting around to the parks from the All-Star hotels is easy on Disney's extensive bus system. For the ultimate in convenience and comfort (at a price), stay in one of the older hotels like The Polynesian Resort or The Grand Floridian, both of which are serviced by the famous Disney monorail.

One thing is for certain, though. No matter when you go or where you stay, Walt Disney World Resort is a one-of-a-kind destination offering an unbelievable array of entertainment options for people of all ages. If you go, don't be surprised if you find yourself feeling like a kid again. After all, this is what “the happiest place on earth” is all about.

Florida was founded in 1513 by Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de León, who called it “Feast of Flowers”, also known as Florida.

Florida was later made part of the United Sates of America in 1845. Florida's climate is very warm, making it a great place to travel to from up north to get some of the warm weather. Florida is also a great place to travel to because of some of the great theme parks such as Disney World, Sea World, and Bush Gardens.

Another reason Florida is a great travel destination is because of its beautiful coastline stretching 1,197 miles on the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf coast. Because of the beaches there are tons more of recreational activities to do such as surfing, sailing, snorkeling, boogie-boarding, boating, and skim boarding.

Another great tourist spot is the Florida Keys because of the variety of wildlife and fish, the great weather, and the crystal clear water that surrounds the islands in the Caribbean Sea. Some of the large cities in Florida are Miami, Fort Lauderdale and Tampa; the largest of them all is the city of Miami witch is home to 3,876,380 people.

The capital of Florida is Tallahassee. The government of Florida consists of a Governor and a cabinet consisting of Attorney General, Chief Financial Officer, and Commissioner of Agriculture. The Governor of Florida is currently Jeb Bush, our president's brother. Because of the many tourist venues in Florida it is one of the most traveled to states in all of America. It is also ranked number four in the U.S. for population which was 16 million people in 2000.

Florida is well known for its colleges. Some of them are: The University of Miami, The University of South Florida, Florida State University, and University of Florida. The two biggest are Florida and Florida State.

Now to some of Florida's geography and resources - the geography of Florida is mostly flat land with occasional hills, lakes, rivers, and valleys. Florida's total land area is 58,560 square miles which puts Florida in 22nd rank for land in the United States. Florida's length north to south is 447 miles stretching from the St. Marys River to Key West. The width of Florida east to west is 361 miles stretching from the Atlantic Ocean to the Perdido River. The highest natural point of Florida is 345 feet. Florida also has a lot of coastline going 1,197 miles on the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf coast.

Although Florida is one of the most popular destinations for tourists in all of America, I think that is also one of the best states to live in.