Disney Springs

It was originally known as Lake Buena Vista Shopping Village in 1975, Walt Disney World Village in 1977, Disney Village Marketplace in 1989, and Downtown Disney in 1997, but it has since been renamed to Disney Springs. It is located at the Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, near Orlando, and is home to a variety of outdoor shopping, dining, and entertainment options.

The facility first opened its doors on March 22, 1975, and it has since been enlarged and renamed several times. It was reported in 2013 that the complex would undergo a three-year refurbishment and expansion, and on September 29, 2015, the name of the complex was formally changed to Disney Springs.

The 120-acre (49-hectare) complex is divided into four distinct districts: Marketplace, The Landing, Town Center, and West Side. Marketplace is the largest of the four areas. Disney Carry operates buses and water taxis that transport guests between Disney Springs and other regions of Walt Disney World. For more information, visit their website.

Disneyland Resort’s Disney Springs is separated into four distinct areas: The Marketplace, The Landing, Town Center, and West Side. A lake to the north, parking structures to the south, and surface parking spaces on either side of the complex define the boundaries of the complex. Several real coastal villages in Florida, such as St. Augustine and Coral Gables, served as inspiration for Walt Disney Imagineering while creating Disney Springs in Orlando, Florida.

“Each neighborhood reflects its role as well as [the imaginary] time period when it was established,” said Dave Hoffman, the area’s creative director. According to the town’s fictional history, Disney Springs was founded in the mid-1800s by a cattle rancher who discovered the town’s namesake springs, after which the town grew as a result of the springs’ popularity.

Several businesses and restaurants in the Marketplace are evocative of the American Craftsman-style architecture popular in the 1930s.

The Landing is a representation of the imaginary town’s transit center as well as its marina. Several nautical-themed restaurants and shops can be found on the grounds of The Landing, including Jock Lindsey’s Hangar Bar—an aviation-themed dive bar named after a character from the Indiana Jones films—and The Boathouse, which serves as a port for the amphibious automobiles that take visitors on cruises around Lake Buena Vista.

The fictional town’s major commercial district is depicted in Town Center, which is characterized by Spanish Revival architecture from the 1920s. The artificial “springs” that give the region its name may also be found in the Town Center area.

West Side depicts the town’s exposition center, which was built in the 1950s, according to the town’s fictional history. West Side was designed by architect Frank Gehry.