Hidden Secrets of Magic Kingdom

Magic Kingdom is full of secrets.

We even bet there’s some that you don’t know. But we’re going to break down some of these secrets and share them with you. So the next time you’re there, you can share these details with your friends and family and wow them with your Disney World knowledge.

We know you’re probably pretty savvy on Magic Kingdom trivia — you probably already know that most of the flags on Main Street, U.S.A. aren’t real. You probably know about how the park is on the second floor.  You may even know that there isn’t a single brick on Cinderella Castle. So let’s dive into some other facts you may not know.

Forced Perspective on Main Street, U.S.A.

Disney uses forced perspective at its parks all over the world to make buildings look bigger or smaller than they actually are. For example, the Main Street Confectionery looks like a three-story building…

…but it’s only a two-story building. The first floor is full-size because that’s the actual shop. Looking up at it, the second story is made to look a little smaller, with the third story smaller than that — this is a trick Disney uses a lot to trick our brains into thinking that things are smaller or bigger than they are.

Every building on Main Street, U.S.A. uses forced perspective — and none are as tall as they might seem — except for Town Square Theater.

But why is that? Well, Town Square Theater looks the size that it actually is because it’s hiding the view of Disney’s Contemporary Resort from guests. Main Street, U.S.A. is set in the turn of the century and that view would just spoil the whole theme, so Disney did what it had to to keep that view hidden.

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Social distancing protocols are still active in the park when it comes to meeting characters (although more are now available to meet with what Disney World calls “sightings“). One of the best places to see a variety of characters, though, is at the Main Street Railroad Train Station — the characters will come out and meet guests often throughout the day.

Here’s our secret — when the characters have to leave, they do so on the right side (from your point of view) of the train station. They have to walk right past that area and down the ramp to get to the backstage area by the Chamber of Commerce. So if you go that way when they’re leaving, you’ll get an additional moment with the characters, as well as another opportunity for a photo or video of them.

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The Partners Statue

One of the most iconic (and most photographed) spots in Magic Kingdom is the Partners statue of Walt Disney with Mickey Mouse in front of Cinderella Castle. If you look closely at the statue, Walt is wearing a tie with “STR” on it. This stands for “Smoke Tree Ranch,” which was one of Walt’s vacation homes in California — and he was often seen wearing this tie, which is why the sculptor, Blaine  Gibson, included it.

Now let’s talk more about Blaine Gibson, who started as an animator for Disney, but Walt brought him over to Wedway Enterprises (which was what Imagineering was called before it was Imagineering). Blaine enjoyed carving and always had sculptures he’d created around his office space, so he ended up becoming the main sculptor for Disney. 

Blaine went on to sculpt every pirate in Pirates of the Caribbean, every ghost in Haunted Mansion, every president up to George W. Bush in the Hall of Presidents, and more.

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Cinderella Castle Mosaic

We’re sure you’ve noticed the gorgeous mosaic that lines the interior breezeway of Cinderella Castle — but if you haven’t seen it, be sure to check it out. It lays out the story of Cinderella in five beautiful panels, and it’s full of wonderful details.

First, take note of how color is used in the mosaic. For example, there are panels with Anastasia and Drizella where one of the stepsisters is red with anger and the other is green with envy — literally! Disney often uses color in this way to tell stories. The mosaic also features 14-karat gold and sterling silver throughout the mosaic’s tiles.

Also, pay attention to the columns in front of the mosaic that features some of Cinderella’s best friends like Gus Gus and Jaq.

The footman and royal duke in one of the panels are modeled after two Imagineers: the footman is modeled after Herbert Ryman, who drew the initial concept art for Cinderella Castle, and the royal duke is modeled after John Hench, who was the architect who helped build the Castle.

The mosaic is also one of the few pieces of art at Disney World that is credited to specific Imagineers — you’ll see both Dorothea Redmond and Han Scharf credited on the mosaic itself.

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Pirates of the Caribbean

One of the most iconic attractions at Magic Kingdom is Pirates of the Caribbean. One of its secrets is in the Lightning Lane part of the queue — in one scene, you’ll see two pirates playing chess. The chess game, though, is in a stalemate, which was a little joke thrown in by Imagineer Marc Davis. Those poor pirates will be playing this game forever.

Marc Davis was so intent on keeping this game of chess going on for eternity that he made sure the layout of the board was sketched on the bottom of the table in case future Imagineers had to move the scene for any reason.

On the ride itself, there’s a scene with two pirates indulging in a little water torture of another man. The main pirate is tall with dark features and has a hook for a hand, and the shorter man — who is playing a flute — has a red cap and a blue and white striped shirt. Now. where have we seen that before? Yes, that’s Captain Hook and Smee!

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Repeating Animatronics

You may not have noticed, but pay attention to the animatronics the next time you visit Magic Kingdom. What you’re wanting to look at are the animatronics’ faces because you might notice that many look very similar.

For example, the ghost Grandma in Haunted Mansion looks identical to the Grandma in Carousel of Progress. Both figures have the same face. But these aren’t the only rides with faces in common, so be sure to look the next time you ride them to spot similar faces!

There’s a reason for this. Once a mold is made for the face of an animatronic, Imagineers will use that face for more than one animatronic — it’s a lot easier to do this and just change up their clothes and wigs than make a new animatronic for every single character.

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Hidden Mickey on Splash Mountain

If you’re a fan of spotting Hidden Mickeys, we’ve got one you might not have seen yet. You’ll find this Hidden Mickey on Splash Mountain — if you look at the top of Chickapin Hill, right before where the big drop happens, you’ll see a Hidden Mickey on the left-hand side.

You’ll see a rock that juts out just before you drop straight into the water — it forms the nose of a rock version of Mickey’s face.

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Memento Mori

Of course, Haunted Mansion has a ton of secrets, Easter Eggs, and hidden details, but did you know its store Memento Mori has secrets of its own? There’s a portrait hanging inside the shop of a woman, but do you know who that is? The portrait is Madame Leota — this is what she looked like before she died and became a head inside a crystal ball.

There’s also a mirror inside the shop with ravens carved on it that will occasionally show her head to you when you’re looking into it. No, that’s not creepy at all! Be sure to look around next time you go shopping because Memento Mori is full of these surprises and more.

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Weather Vanes

Have you noticed the Weather Vanes in Fantasyland? Have you also noticed that each weather vane matches what it’s sitting upon? It does! If you look at the vane on top of Pinocchio’s Village Haus, you’ll see jesters on the vanes because the theme of this area is that of a royal faire. If you look at the weather vane on top of Peter Pan’s Flight, you’ll see the Croc!

So be sure to look up the next time you’re in Fantasyland.

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The Many Adventures of Winnie The Pooh Secrets

There are several nods to Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride inside Winnie The Pooh — that’s because Pooh’s attraction is what replaced Mr. Toad’s at Disney World. But there’s another nod to a different Disney attraction inside Pooh’s queue. The big tree that you walk into to enter the queue didn’t always sit where it does now — it used to be where 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea was.

You’ll find a nod to the Nautilus from 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea in the queue — you’ll find a small version of the Nautilus carved into the tree.

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Carousel of Progress

Sure, many of us might just go into Carousel of Progress for 20 minutes of glorious air conditioning, but it’s also a good opportunity to spot some great details. The first scene has robins outside the window — but did you know these robins are the same animatronics used in the Mary Poppins movie during “A Spoonful of Sugar?”

You’ll also want to look out the window in the second scene where there’s a street scene — here, there’s a nod to Imagineer Herbert Ryman, who we previously mentioned as the man who came up with the concept art of Cinderella Castle. You’ll see “H. Ryman” on a sign outside that window.

If you look at the bulletin board in the final scene, you’ll see “Marty called — wants changes” on a post-it note. That’s a nod to Marty Sklar, an Imagineer that oversaw EPCOT. He was known for being very picky and would often ask for changes after seeing designs, concepts, etc. So the note is a fun nod to him.

So there you have it — some fun secrets you probably didn’t know about Magic Kingdom. You can get a closer look at ALL these secrets in as we bring you through Magic Kingdom!

Be sure to stay tuned because we’ll share even more details about Disney World that we’ve seen!

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What’s your favorite hidden detail or secret at Magic Kingdom? Let us know in the comments.

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