Project Future: The Inside Story Behind the Creation of Disney World

I really enjoyed this book. But be clear, this is more of a logistical, legal, and technical story of how they set up what we now know as Walt Disney World. It provides the deep insight into how the project came about. It is not how they designed the rides, or built the castle. If you know what you are getting into, I think you will really enjoy it.

Very interesting read! Very detailed account of what happened during pre-days of Walt Disney's development of WDW. Sometimes the details were too much, but at the same time, it appears they were necessary for the complete picture. I wouldn't call it a riveting read, but most interesting account. I loved it, and think anyone with a real interest in Walt Disney World's birth will love it also.

This book is a short and sweet history of Walt Disney's plans and first efforts to construct Disney World in the swampland of central Florida after his first theme park, Disneyland, was seen as only a moderate success. After its opening, Disneyland's shortcomings were quickly realized. The main disappointment was that the company had failed to secure enough land to expand the park after its initial success on a commercial level had become apparent, and Disney was also disappointed to find so-called 'leech' businesses (bars, strip malls, and motels) springing up close to the property and ruining the aesthetic experience Walt had initially envisioned. For his east coast sister theme park, Walt Disney was determined to avoid similar issues. This book details the clandestine nature and ingenious legal structures that the Disney company used to prevent a land grab in the years leading up to the groundbreaking on Disney World. The book also discussed other concept projects that never came to fruition.Unfortunately, where the book succeeds in documenting the business and legal sides of the history of Disney World, it fails in discussing the actual planning of the property itself (which for an avid fan of Disney World might be interesting). This book is not a "behind the scenes" or "behind the magic" history book. It is very much a lesson in strategic planning.

This is a good starting point for learning about the logistics that went into creating Disney World. It has many grammatical errors that slipped passed the editor. The forward was very good, so don't skip that. I wish there would have been more information on Reedy Creek and the two municipalities as they stand today. Who lives there? (All the book says is a handful of company employees.) What does it look like? (I was really hoping for a map of Project Future.) What are the names of the two municipalities? (I believe it said one was City of Bay Lake, but it wasn't very clear.)The book goes into detail a lot on other possible sites for Disney's East Coast project, which was fascinating. It also goes into detail on the political climate the Disney Company had to deal with to get what they needed, also really neat!You won't be disappointed with this book, but if you want details about this mysterious Improvement District, you won't even scratch the surface here.

The story about Walt Disney World is very deep and all-encompassing but too many books don't spend much time talking about how the project started. This book does that with a lot of information that is either glossed over or left out entirely.

The full background of how Disney World was assembled, the real estate part. Disney was driven not to repeat another Disneyland, which at 500 acres, was hemmed in and at the mercy of surrounding commercial developers. Disney's Project Florida, covering 43 square miles, was to be large enough to be well insulated from any outside distractions. A great read.

Excellent detail on the early site selection and acquisition of Dusney World. Glad I read it (but I do live in Orlando)!

What Disney did in Florida could not likely be pulled off again because of restrictions on corporate secrets put into place by congress following the Enron scandal. This account provided me with enough information to spark an interest into Disney history that still has not been satisfied.This book is a very interesting read and I imagine will create even further interest into Walt Disney and the history of the Walt Disney Company and is a fairly entertaining and quick read at the same time.

Starts off promisingly with disneyworld just an idea. discusses the alternative locations and the selection of Orlando. Then it dives down into the boring legal agreements with the state. The ideas for the design and construction are covered with n a single sentence. Only buy if legal agreements are your thing.

No issues. Great price & delivery

A very informative book about the business side of walt Disney world e.g. how locations, land acquisition and legal issues were dealt with

Great read a must for any Disney Fan

A fascinating look at Walt Disney's Empire and the strategies/ingenuity used to procure a MASSIVE swath of Florida swampland, turning it into a Dreamland for millions of children worldwide.