Little known secrets...

[fabfundisney]

I've been to Disney a few times and I've found that they're always something new to look for. I read in a previous thread the paperboy in an Epcot attraction has been turned around....what are some other neat things I should look for?

[MarkC]

Not sure how familiar you are with everything, but if you haven't heard of "Hidden Mickeys" they are everywhere, including a guidebook that helps you find them. That's always fun. I'm not sure how much you've explored the parks, waterparks, etc. You can get a great sandwich at "The Earl of Sandwich" at Downtown Disney, there are tours, etc. The list is endless.

[kemps@wdw]

"Talking" water fountains in Epcot, talking trash cans in MK, talking palm trees in AK, and hidden keys in DHS. :thumbsup:

[mook3y]

There are sooo many of these kinds of things.

Our family (kids are 8,6 & 1) love to find Hidden Mickey's and have been working on collecting photo's every time we go.

They ask castmembers if they know of any "hidden mickeys" all throughout the park.

Well this past May, one castmember clued us in that we should go to the shop "merchants of venus" in Tomorrowland and ask to become certified hidden mickey hunters.

Sure enough, a cast member when asked, took the kids through a tour of finding a specific number of hidden mickeys throughout the shop. They only told them how many were in a specific mural or area. When the kids completed it, they were given certificates proclaming them to be certified hidden mickey hunters.

Another thing I love that shows the detail of all that Disney does.

After you walk through the castle into Fantasyland, to the left is a statue of Cinderella. You can align her in front of the mosaic mural that is behind her so that the crown in the mural lines up to look like the crown is on her head. It makes for a great photo.

Go on the jungle cruise and take a good look at the man on the bottom of the tree with the rhino. You will see him along your journey through the graveyard inside of the haunted mansion.

There are so many things like this.

I would highly recommend taking a tour as castmembers point these kinds of things out.

We loved the Disney Family Magic Tour. It was a blast for our family. But we can't wait until they are old enough to take the keys to the kingdom tour.

[hauntedmansiongirl]

One of the fun things that a cast member pointed out on the "Keys to the Kingdom" tour was on the Jungle Cruise when the natives are dancing around, the music hides one of them saying "I love disco." We've tried hard to hear it on subsequent rides but with the other sounds it's almost impossible to hear.

Another thing that they pointed out was all of the names on the upper windows on Main Street in the MK are all of people that helped bring the park to life.

We also love lifting the lids on the boxes in the line to the Indiana Jones show at DHS- fun little surprises. Oh, and the old fashioned phone on the wall in one of the MK Main St shops (I forget which shop) has a conversation with 2 ladies gossiping.

And our trip isn't complete without going to Whispering Canyon Cafe in the Wilderness Lodge. There are tons of fun antics and jokes going on in there (all very family friendly of course!). :mickey:

[forever a child]

DHS - back where the city streets are (streets of america?) there is an umbrella molded onto a lamp post. If you pull the handle down on the umbrella a little....it will start raining. DD discovered this on our first (or second visit) by mistake...it is fun and we try to find it each visit now. :rain:

[paragon]

'HIDDEN MAGIC OF DISNEY WORLD" by Susan Veness.
This is a nice little book, easy to follow, and it will give you a totally different way to enjoy the park!

My favorite "secret" is the Cinderella crown at the fountain. It is always visible to small children, but adults have to bow down to see it.

The names on the main street windows, designed as "credits" to those who worked on the project.

The transitions from one land to another, where you just suddenly are hearing completely different music, and how each land entrance is designed as if it were a new scene in a movie.

The "river" on the street in Frontierland.

The progression of the street lamps, from gas fired to electric as well as the pregression of the architecture.

There a so many , the book will definitely make your next trip magical!

[Frog]

i would second this book.
it is fun to read in between waiting for your next trip. it will give you new stuff to look for the next time you go!

[Mogie]

Talk about detail in Disney... The wooden shutters on the windows of the buildings in Liberty Square all seem to be crooked and falling off. It wasn't done to make them look old. Instead during the revolutionary war, metal was in high demand for the war effort, so the hinges were taken off shutters to be made into weapons. They were replaced with leather straps which eventually stretched out causing the shutters to be lopsided. Pretty cool if you ask me.

The narrow yellow path going through the square isnt the yellow brick road...its supposed to represent the open air sewer ditches that used the flow through the streets in colonial times.

Oh...one other cool thing. There is a marble step outside of the Hall of Presidents. This marble step was actually taken from Thomas Jefferson's home in Monticello.

After completely planning a Disney trip and there are no more discounts to investigate or reservations to make...investigating hidden mickeys and disney secrets sometimes becomes a little obsession for me and really gets me excited to go. Last time we printed out a list of secrets to investigate and pulled it out to see which secrets we needed to locate every time we entered a new land or park :)

[Daisy'sMom]

If you stand in the courtyard in Morocco, you can hear families talking in the upstair apartments.

[crltkcagle]

There are sooo many of these kinds of things.

Our family (kids are 8,6 & 1) love to find Hidden Mickey's and have been working on collecting photo's every time we go.

They ask castmembers if they know of any "hidden mickeys" all throughout the park.

Well this past May, one castmember clued us in that we should go to the shop "merchants of venus" in Tomorrowland and ask to become certified hidden mickey hunters.

Sure enough, a cast member when asked, took the kids through a tour of finding a specific number of hidden mickeys throughout the shop. They only told them how many were in a specific mural or area. When the kids completed it, they were given certificates proclaming them to be certified hidden mickey hunters.
.
Definitely going to do that on our next trip! Thanks~

[natedog24]

There is a Disney Legend named Marc Davis. The man was an animator of many Disney movies and a chief Imagineer for DisneyLand and Walt Disney World. He had a hand in many different Classic Disney rides, to name a few: The Jungle Cruise, Haunted Mansion, Small World, Enchanted Tiki Room, Carousel of Progress, and Pirates of the Caribbean. The guy was the man.

There is a tribute to him in Treasure Room the Pirates of Caribbean. High on the wall, there is a crest painted with the "Latin Phrase", Marci Daviso. Well, Marci Daviso is not a latin phrase, or even latin! It was added in almost like the credits to a movie- crediting Marc Davis for his role in creating the ride and since it sounded Latin, Disney Execs left it in. To my knowledge, it's the only place in all of the Disney Parks that has the name of an Imagineer on the ride!
Pretty cool stuff...

[JabberJaws]

As many have said, WDW is absolutely loaded with these types of "easter eggs." Some of my favorites:

Ride the MK train the full route. Of course there are the obvious scenes along the way, but scattered throughout are little surprises like an animatronic gator along the banks of the river nipping at a bullfrog on a stump.
Check out the walkways in DAK. The ground was themed to the section you are in. For example, in Asia, you will see bicycle tire tracks embedded in the ground (as if the ground were mud). On the exploration trails, you will see animal footprints in the ground.
Speaking of the ground, the fiber optic tiles on the ground near Mouse Gears in Epcot are always fun.
At Muppet 3D (which is full of fun surprises) there is a sign at the entrance that says "key under mat" and if you look under the mat just after you enter the queue, sure enough there is a key!


Those are just some of the many fun surprises throughout WDW. I just always try and look around where most people don't look, like the ground, or higher up, or in little alleyways and stuff. WDI likes to add things off the beaten path to reward those w/ an eye for detail!

[paragon]

Those are just some of the many fun surprises throughout WDW. I just always try and look around where most people don't look, like the ground, or higher up, or in little alleyways and stuff. WDI likes to add things off the beaten path to reward those w/ an eye for detail!

That's ME TOO! I am constantly looking everywhere, up, down, in the trees and anywhere I can. I have done this, from the very first time I ever set foot in MK. The details are amazing!

[Altair]

As you enter Mickey's Philharmagic theater, the signs above the doors read: Caution: Doors Open Automagically.:mickey:

[Mogie]

On Main Street in the cul de sac by the bakery if you listen closely there is a music lesson going on in the Music School on the second floor.

On the Pirates queue you will see 2 pirates playing chess...they both have check mate.

Outside of Indiana Jones there is a well with a rope. Pull the rope for a surprise.

In epcot there are a few spots you can see the tower of terror from DHS over Morocco. The tower of terror was specifically painted the color it is so it would blend in with the buildings in Morocco. Most guest see it and mistake it for part of Morocco.

[JabberJaws]

In epcot there are a few spots you can see the tower of terror from DHS over Morocco. The tower of terror was specifically painted the color it is so it would blend in with the buildings in Morocco. Most guest see it and mistake it for part of Morocco.

MK is full of great "transition" theming like that.

For example the animal figurines on top of (can't remember which building, it is either the tiki room or the sunshine tree terrace) in AL are an animal vaguely resembling both a traditional american deer and an african antelope. This is done since they can be seen from both AL and Frontier land, so they fit into the theming of both.

Also, when you are coming from FL past IASW towards Liberty Square. The bridge room is done in a tutor english style that fits both into the European look of FL and the architecture of LS.

These transition zones were designed by WDI to not create harsh areas of starkly contrasted theming, like you see in IOA for example.

[Zawadi]

The Magic Kingdom is constructed on a man made hill. The earth is what was excavated in order to make the Seven Seas Lagoon.

Inside the hill are the famous Utilidors (utility corridors). Walt wanted the magic to hold in each land an wanted a method for cast members to move around invisible to guests so that a cast member in costume style of one land was not seen in the other lands.