Credit: 20th Century Fox/Disney, edited by ITMIt’s official: Disney World is America’s favorite destination, handily beating out New York City’s Times Square, rival theme parks Sea World and Universal Studios Florida, the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, and even national landmarks like the White House.
According to an extensive consumer survey by Radical Storage, more Americans than ever are opting for domestic vacations (or “staycations”) than international travel, making the most popular U.S. destinations more important than ever. To no one’s surprise, the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando was revealed as the most visited destination, with 34.1% of respondents having visited the Disney Park.
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That means that Disney World beat out the White House, the iconic residence and workplace of the chief executive of the United States, in terms of popularity, along with the original Disneyland in Anaheim, Central Park in New York City, and numerous others.
Additionally, Radical Storage reports that “[o]ther surveys show that roughly 87% of Americans have been to a theme park, and of that subgroup, 74% had been to Disney, the true number of unique Disneygoers would be impossible to analyze, however, it’s clear many are using their paid time off to head to Disney theme parks.”
The popularity of Disney World should not be taken for granted, given that it has faced dwindling Guest attendance in the last several years, particularly in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic and increasingly frequent dangerous weather conditions. There are also the skyrocketing costs of visiting any Disney Resort, which have caused many families to second guess visits. If nothing else, the near-constant (and, to be fair, necessary) closures for repair and refurbishments can be off-putting to some potential Guests.
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However, it seems that the universal draw of Disney World is still holding strong for vacationers who want to stay in the continental United States. The numbers don’t lie.
Are you a regular Disney World visitor? Tell us about your last trip in the comments below!