While most would argue miracles such as penicillin or television are the greatest achievements in human history, they would be wrong. The high point of human ingenuity was built in the mid-1950s in an orange grove in Anaheim, California by a cartoon maker and a lot of no doubt underpaid construction workers.
Disneyland is just pure awesome.
Theme parks are the greatest form of entertainment, combining all art forms into a unique and shared experience, that can be had for a low price of a day's wages. Per person. Plus food. Plus parking. Plus souvenirs.
Disneyland isn't the first theme park, but it was the first that became a worldwide destination and while other Disney-owned parks - as well as the Universal parks, particularly Islands of Adventure - are as much fun as you can find anywhere, the influence of Walt Disney's direction can still be felt some 55 years later. The purity of this vision is sadly lacking in all of Disney's subsequent parks, as less time, effort and money has been put into guest enjoyment and value since Walt's untimely passing in the late 1960s. The Florida Project, known today as Walt Disney World, is the most obvious case, as that resort's Magic Kingdom park compares most directly with Disneyland. When comparing most common factors, it's easy to see where corners were cut - Pirates of the Caribbean, It's a Small World and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad are approximately half as long as their California Counterparts and while the park is bigger, more of that space seems to be dedicated to gift shops and restaurants than attractions.
It's no secret that theme parks are a business, but the difference Walt Disney's impression made was that it never seemed like such. In this down economy, one notices more than ever the opportunities of what can be perceived as theme parks fleecing their customers. To park in the structure at the Disneyland resort now costs $20, up from $15 just a few years ago. In the last decade, single day park tickets have increased by 100%. For a family of four to spend one day at one of the major Disney or Universal parks, it's an easy $500 between tickets, parking, food and souvenirs. With the average weekly salary of American workers around $750, theme parks, once considered entertainment for all, have been pushed into the domain of extravagances for most and affordable by few.
Furthermore, parks have found ways to monetize the elimination of the most common guest complaint, that of long lines for attractions. While Disney parks are to be commended for not capitalizing on this money-making opportunity, Universal and other smaller parks, Six Flags included, provide a line-skipping option for additional fees. A friend of mine once made a poignant comment about this exact thing: "Theme parks used to be the great equalizer - everyone had to stand in line, rich or poor. Now that you can pay for this luxury, it introduces classes into a place that was built with the intention of eliminating them."
Expensive though they may be, theme parks have a unique way of bringing joy to people. It's a Small World, simple and repetitive as it is, completely justifies standing in line to get on. The magic of theme parks is in the experience, and these experiences cannot be duplicated anywhere. The Captain EO show is still as exciting, fun and entertaining as any movie I've seen in the last year, despite being 25 years old and laughably cheesy in parts. And no movie will ever reach the pinnacle of theme park achievement, The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man at Universal's Islands of Adventure in Orlando. It's the closest we can come to creating realities out of fantasy yet, and when a park is done right, and you are completely immersed in the environment, there is no place more happy and more magical you can be.
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