Visit Walt Disney World: Magic Kingdom

If you are planning to visit Walt Disney World, I suggest that you go to Magic Kingdom first. To me and my family, it was the best way to start our tour of all four parks: Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios, and Epcot Center. I just thought it a perfect precursor to all four parks, as you feel welcome here--most notably on Main Street USA where you'll feel right at home with the people, architecture, and attractions--candy for your eyes and ears. It's not uncommon for everyone to point at all the scenery. But don't be embarrassed, just about everyone in Walt Disney World are visitors after all

The most difficult part about Magic Kingdom was deciding as a group on what we wanted to do first. Many of us visited the many shops and venues when first entering the park, picking up drinks and candy for our day. One of our favorite places we visited was Main Street Confectionary (please don't ask where this place is!). The Emporium is by far the largest gift shop on Main Street, as it covers 17,000 square feet taking up an entire block. There you'll find all sorts of hats and apparel, including the famous Mickey Mouse hat and balloons. For more information, you can visit the official Walt Disney World Magic Kingdom Website for more information including a list of all the venues that will be available to you.

Overall, we ended up just doing a little bit of everything and just our map and went in a full circle without a set game plan. I kept on having to stop to take as many pictures as possible while trying to capture all the magic Disney's Magic Kingdom had to offer. As you can imagine, walking all day long will cause members of your group or family to grow weary, grumpy and thirsty. If possible, bring lots of bottle water. I found that that freezing 16 or 20 oz. bottles of spring water and stuffing them into a backpack is a great way to not only save some money but also keep you hydrated and cool all day long. Make sure to take a breather too periodically. Please enjoy.

• Main Street, USA-Inspired by the small neighborhoods of Missouri and New England, Main Street, USA maintains a cozy feel.  The best representation of this is the “four corners” area as each of the four corners is representative of a unique architectural style.  Here, visitors can dine at one the many restaurants or peruse the many shops for souvenirs and even get a hair cut at its local barbershop!  Worth noting is the early 20^th Century décor that was inspired by Walt Disney’s childhood which in turn helped him to create movies such as Lady and the Tramp.  But the biggest attraction at Main Street , USA is Cinderella’s famous castle. It is by far THE Disney icon, second only to Mickey himself, of course.
• Adventureland-The designers of Adventureland focused primarily of bringing about the exploration of foreign lands to resemble the South Pacific, South America, the Middle East, Africa and Asia.  In addition to this, Adventureland also features the famous ride Pirates of the Caribbean with Captain Jack Sparrowwhich of course inspired the movie of the same name. Pirates of the Caribbean should by no means be missed.
• Frontierland-Frontierland is a blast to the past where visitors have the opportunity to relive the Wild West, featuring cowboys, Indians, and get to explore the Rivers of America much like Lewis and Clark.  Frontierland features such attractions as Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, TomSawyerIsland, SplashMountain, and the Country Bear Jamboree.
• Liberty Square-Visitors here will get a chance to travel back to the time of the American Revolution and our countries origins.  The MagicKingdom’s Rivers of America plays host to the Liberty Belle riverboat.  Liberty Square is square also features such attractions such as the HauntedMansion and the Hall of Presidents.
• Fantasyland-Fantasyland includes such attractions as It’s a Small World, Peter Pan’s Flight, Dumbo the Flying Elephant, The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, Mickey’s PhilharMagic, Snow White’s Scary Adventures, Cinderella’s Golden Carousel, and the Magic Tea Party.  Walt Disney himself believed that, Fantasyland is dedicated to the young at heart and to those who believe that when you wish upon a star, your dreams come true."
• Tomorrowland-In the words of Walt Disney: "Tomorrow can be a wonderful age. Our scientists today are opening the doors of the Space Age to achievements that will benefit our children and generations to come. The Tomorrowland attractions have been designed to give you an opportunity to participate in adventures that are a living blueprint of our future." Some of Tomorrowland’s attractions include “Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters,” “Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage,” and the famous “SpaceMountain.”
• Mickey’s Toontown Fair-Mickey’s Toontown Fair first started out as Mickey’s birthdayland which then evolved into Mickey’s Starland, which included Mickey’s  Country House, Minnie’s Country House, Goofy’s Barnstormer, and Donald’s Boat.  Both Mickey’s and Minnie’s Country Houses are walk thru attraction, by the way.  Scenes include Mickey’s bedroom, living room, kitchen, game room, garden and the garage. While walking through his garden you’ll be able to see Pluto’s Doghouse and you’ll meet Mickey himself in the judge’s tent.