Guests Who Visit From the Lone Star State (and a Few Other States) Are In For a Shock When They Arrive at Disney World

For guests of the Walt Disney World Resort who call the great state of Texas home, visiting the Central Florida Disney Parks can come with a bit of a challenge.

That’s because, for some Texans, an 82-year partnership initiated by Walt Disney himself means that one of some Texans’ most beloved pastimes simply cannot be offered inside the parks, making for a rather unmagical experience overall.

A busy Disney World theme park at sunset features a castle, a carousel, and numerous guests milling around. The sky glows with vibrant pink, orange, and purple hues. A large flag with a white star, blue vertical stripe, and red horizontal stripe is superimposed in the upper right corner. — Credit: Becky Burkett/Canva

Texans Like Certain Things (Just Like You Do in Your State)

Texans are known for their friendliness, and they’ve long been associated with their preferences.

Fall Friday nights are dedicated to high school football, and that’s even for people who have no affiliation with a high school because they have children in school. People in Texas love their Dallas Cowboys (and their Houston Texans), win or lose, and many families own one of a variety of “Texas Edition” trucks made by Ford Motor Company, Toyota, GMC, or Chevrolet.

A busy street in the Lone Star State features several parked vehicles, including a white truck towing a trailer with landscaping materials. The colorful buildings in the background host various stores, such as an ice cream shop and a business with a sign "Oopsie Daisey." An overcast sky looms above. — Trucks everywhere you look in Texas/Credit: Inside the Magic

Texans have varying degrees of passion about things like barbecue, sweet tea, Buc-ee’s, the Schlitterbahn, and even Dr. Pepper (though this writer parted ways with the sugary soda years ago).

Dr. Pepper, a beloved Texas tradition that often needs no explaining to Texans, strikes non-Texans as a bit strange. That’s ok, though, because if you stick around a Dr. Pepper-drinking Texan for long enough, he’ll probably offer to give you the whole history of the love affair between Texas and Dr. Pepper, which began in a little place called Waco, Texas, in 1885.

There’s a huge museum dedicated to Dr. Pepper, which was first introduced to the public in 1904 at the World’s Fair. It, too, is located in Waco, not too far from Chip and Joanna Gaines’s Magnolia location.

An outdoor area at the Dr Pepper Museum with a retro truck in the foreground and tables with green umbrellas on the right. The museum's entrance features a large Dr Pepper sign on a bright blue sky day with scattered clouds, welcoming guests to this charming slice of the Lone Star State. — Credit: Becky Burkett

Sorry Texas Disney Fans!

Texans love their Dr. Pepper, but it’s unavailable at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida, leading to some confusion among visitors who can’t fathom why Disney opts for Coca-Cola and not for Dr. Pepper. The reason is simple, however, and lies within the boundaries of a now more-than-80-year partnership between Coca-Cola and Disney, a relationship that began in 1942 with Walt Disney’s appearance on a Coca-Cola radio program.

Credit: Flickr/Mike Mozart

According to the Disney Parks Blog, the collaboration started when Walt Disney was featured on the Coca-Cola radio show titled The Pause That Refreshes on the Air in 1942. By 1950, Coca-Cola returned the favor, sponsoring Disney’s television special titled One Hour in Wonderland, and when Disneyland opened on July 17, 1955, it was Coca-Cola that sponsored the Refreshment Corner, located on Main Street, U.S.A.

A black and white photograph captures a bustling street scene with guests walking near a large brick building on a corner. The building is adorned with Coca-Cola signage and features ornate windows and awnings. Trees are visible on the sidewalk in the foreground, reminiscent of Disney World's charming atmosphere. — Credit: Disney

During the construction of Disneyland Resort in California, Walt Disney sought corporate sponsors for funding, with Coca-Cola sponsoring the Coca-Cola Refreshment Corner and Pepsi-Cola sponsoring the Golden Horseshoe.

Sadly, however, Dr. Pepper has yet to stake its claim in any part of Disney Parks’ history.

A man in a suit, smiling and pouring a bottle of Coca-Cola into a glass. Behind him, there is a large vintage Coca-Cola sign and a retro diner setting with counters, stools, and shelves. The image appears to be classic and nostalgic, evoking memories of the Lone Star State's charming past. — Credit: DisneyDining

Sorry, Texans. The hard truth is that you’ll have to love Disney World minus the Dr. Pepper. And as long as we’re on the subject, this writer might as well enlighten you to this hard truth as well: the nearest Whataburger is quite far away as well.