8 Disney World “Facts” That Are Totally False

In the Internet age, you’d think we’d all know pretty much everything there is to know about Disney World — we can Google just about anything and everything.

But that hasn’t stopped some of the more persistent stories, tall tales, myths, and “facts” from making the rounds, even in this day and age. So we’re looking at some of the most common things that a lot of people believe as facts about Disney World and debunking them! So welcome to this edition of Disney Mythbusters!

Haunted Mansion’s stretching room is an elevator

Okay, we can understand where folks get confused about this one. In Disneyland, the stretching room in the Haunted Mansion actually IS an elevator that descends slowly over two stories. So the room is moving down revealing the portraits that seem to be stretching. That’s because the ride had to be built under the existing Walt Disney World railroad. Disneyland uses a lot of sneaky tricks like this to utilize its limited space more efficiently.

However, in Disney World, Imagineers had a lot more room to work with and didn’t really need the ride to go underground. But the effect had to remain, so it does seem like the stretching room in Florida is also an elevator. But it’s not! What’s happening here is that the ceiling of the room is going up to reveal the portraits and you’re still on the same floor where you began your journey when the doors of the room reopen. It’s kind of wild that both versions of the stretching room feel EXACTLY the same.

Walt Disney is cryogenically frozen under Cinderella Castle

There is a long-running rumor that Walt Disney was cryogenically frozen after his death and that his body is currently under Cinderella Castle. Likewise, in Disneyland, many believe the body is in Pirates of the Caribbean. But how did this wild story start?

According to PBS, a reporter for a tabloid newspaper claimed he had snuck into St. Joseph’s Hospital in Burbank, which is across the street from Walt Disney Studios, and broke into a storage room where he saw Walt Disney in a cryogenic metal cylinder. Walt did love science fiction, so people assumed that he would consider something like cryogenics. Even 56 years after his death, the rumor remains.

However, he was cremated two days after his death, with his urn being interred in Forrest Lawn Cemetery in Glendale, California, in a family mausoleum. Almost every iteration of the rumor has been debunked and denied by the Disney family.

Disney World and Magic Kingdom are the same thing

So this one sort of makes sense for those who aren’t familiar with Disney World. Cinderella Castle, after all, is almost always used in marketing for Disney World, so a lot of folks believe that Disney World is Magic Kingdom. Granted, Magic Kingdom is what many people think of first when thinking about Disney World, so this confusion is understandable.

Once you’ve been to Disney World, though, you realize that there is a LOT more going on than just Magic Kingdom and that there are FOUR theme parks in Disney World, as well as two water parks, and a shopping and dining complex.

The food isn’t good

If you think that Disney World just has standard theme park food, you don’t know Disney World. Sure, you can get hamburgers and hot dogs in Disney World, but you can also get imaginative food inspired by Star Wars and Avatar. You can also dine on cuisine from all around the world. Don’t even get us started on the EPCOT festivals, which feature food booths with a variety of delicious fare.

Disney World even has several restaurants owned by celebrity chefs and a wine bar owned by a Master Sommelier. Theme park food? Oh, no, Disney World is a foodie’s dream.

Toy Story characters have to drop to the ground if you say “Andy’s coming”

Okay, so this is one of those Internet rumors that ended up running wild. Assuming that a character in a bulky costume could even drop to the ground easily is wildly inaccurate. Even if characters did this just once, imagine having to drop to the ground any time a Toy Story fan approached you.

BUT…Disney did include the “Andy’s coming” thing in its Roundup Rodeo BBQ restaurant in Toy Story Land in Disney’s Hollywood Studios. But YOU are the one who has to freeze when you hear that “Andy’s coming.” So Disney did figure out a way to make it work but without the characters.

Disney World’s turkey legs are made from emus

So there’s been a rumor for a long time that the turkey legs you get at Disney World are made from emus. That rumor got some traction after it was joked about on an episode of TBS’ Conan show.

Well, this one is also untrue and has been addressed multiple times, according to Snopes. Those turkey legs are made from…turkeys. If they weren’t, Disney would be violating a law that prohibits sales of mislabeled meat.

No one has ever died at Disney World

There are a lot of rumors about how no one dies at Disney World because Disney has the injured taken off-property before they can die or are declared dead. Again, this one is completely false. In 2023, a man accidentally fell from a balcony at Disney’s Contemporary Resort and was pronounced dead on the scene, according to People. This was also not an isolated incident.

According to The New York Times, three people died in 1984 when a plane crashed into the EPCOT parking lot. Now it makes sense that in the event of some accidents there would be people not declared dead until they reached a hospital or were taken off-property, but saying that no one has ever died in Disney World is simply not fact.

Cinderella Castle can be taken apart before a hurricane

There’s a legend that Cinderella Castle was built in a modular way that would allow it to be partially taken apart in the event of a hurricane. That might sound pretty cool, but it’s just not true. Instead, as Florida is no stranger to hurricanes, Cinderella Castle was built to withstand hurricane-force winds up to 90 miles per hour.

The inside of the castle is steel covered with fiberglass which is secured to a concrete foundation. That would make it pretty hard to take apart.

So you may have heard some of these things cited as facts, but now you know better!

Check back with AllEars again soon!

You may not know everything about Disney World, but Mouse Fan Travel does. They’re experts in the field with over 20 years of vacation planning experience, and they can help take a bunch of the stress out of the entire booking process for you!

10 Walt Disney World Facts You May Not Know

Is there a Disney World rumor or myth that you believed for a long time? Let us know in the comments (we promise no judgment!).

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