North America

CBS Studio Center is a working television and film studio in Hollywood. A few Disney films and TV shows were shot here including The Muppets (2011) and ABC’s The Last Man Standing. The studio is not open to the public and does not offer tours. You can gain access by participating as a studio audience member through a service such as Audiences Unlimited. Address: 4024 Radford Ave, Studio City, CA 91604 Visitor Information (Not Open to the Public): CBS Studio Center

Atlanta’s Center For Puppetry Arts is the United States’ largest non-profit organization dedicated to the art of puppetry. Inside the building lives a museum, research library, and theater which screens films and performs fully-staged puppet shows. The museum houses a massive collection of puppet artifacts including items from The Lion King on Broadway as well as a Jim Henson collection where a number of Muppets (an entity of Henson’s creations that has been owned by Disney since 2004) are on permanent display. For more information about the museum here, including tons of photos, check out our blog post: Highlights from the “Worlds of Puppetry” Museum in Atlanta’s Center for Puppetry Arts Address: 1404 Spring St NW, Atlanta, GA 30309 Visitor Information: Center for Puppetry Arts

Chichén Itzá is an archeological complex on the grounds of a former Mayan city established between 750 and 900 AD. Today, this UNESCO World Heritage Site is a popular tourist destination. Among the site’s Mesoamerican pyramids is its most well known, El Castillo (also known as Temple of Kukulcan), which is the main inspiration for the pyramid found in Epcot’s Mexico Pavilion. Address: Tinum, Yucatan, Mexico Visitor Information: Zona Arqueologica de Chichen Itza (Available only in Spanish)

This public square in the heart of Cleveland’s downtown district was a filming location for the epic film, The Avengers (2012). The scene where Loki hypnotizes the crowd before being taken away by Captain America and Iron Man is meant to resemble Germany’s real-life Schlossplatz Stuttgart but was actually filmed just outside the square’s Terminal Tower building in 2011. Address: 50 Public Square, Cleveland, OH 44113 Visitor Information: Cleveland Public Square

Coney Island’s Boardwalk (Riegelmann Boardwalk) is a nearly 3-mile stretch of a boardwalk on the south shore beaches of Brooklyn, New York. Along the pedestrian walkway, you can find amusement parks like Luna Park and Deno’s Wonder Wheel Amusement Park (both are WanderDisney locations!) along with shops and food stalls. This area, along with Atlantic City’s boardwalk served as the design inspiration for Disney’s BoardWalk Inn and Villas. Coney Island attractions like Lucy the Elephant and extinct attractions like Sonora Webster’s diving horse act and the Flip Flap Railway are honored in various ways around Disney’s BoardWalk. This location is mentioned in our blog post: A Photo Tour Of The BoardWalk’s Hidden Disney Castles Address: Riegelmann Boardwalk, Brooklyn, NY 11224 Visitor Information: Official Website of the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation

Crossroads of the World is an outdoor shopping area on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood. Built in 1936, The building’s iconic art deco tower and spinning globe have been replicated as a small shopping kiosk (topped with a 5’3” tall Mickey Mouse statue) at the entrance to Disney’s Hollywood Studios. The shop even shares the same name, Crossroads of the World. Address: 6671 Sunset Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90028 Visitor Information: Crossroads Hollywood

Deno’s Wonder Wheel Amusement Park is a small amusement park along Coney Island’s boardwalk. Its namesake Wonder Wheel attraction was built in 1920 and has been in operation ever since. The unique combination of both stationary and sliding gondolas inspired the design of Pixar Pal-A-Round. These two attractions are the only “wonder wheel” type Ferris Wheels of their kind still operating today. Address: 3059 W 12th St, Brooklyn, NY 11224 Visitor Information: Deno’s Wonder Wheel Amusement Park

Although the original barn on this site no longer exists, volunteers re-built an exact replica of it in September 2001 in honor of Walt’s 100th birthday. This barn in Walt’s hometown of Marceline, MO was where he first delved into the entertainment world. He would spend hours under his dreaming tree, teaching himself to draw and dream. He would dress up farm animals and charge local kids to see the “Disney Circus”. His audience left unimpressed and Walt’s mother taught him a valuable lesson: if you deliver more than your audience expects – they will never be disappointed. In 1948, Disney produced a movie called So Dear To My Heart about growing up on a small farm in the American Midwest in the early 20th century. A personal favorite of Walt’s, the film featured a barn which was based on Walt’s recollection of the one he grew up with here in Marceline. In the 1950s Walt built a barn in the backyard of his Hombly Hills home that was modeled after this one to house his “Carolwood Pacific Railroad” – this barn is currently on display at the Los Angeles Live Steamers Railroad Museum. Today, the barn here in Marceline is open to the […]

Wanting a simpler life, the Disney family moved from their house in Chicago to a forty-acre farm they had purchased in the rural town of Marceline, MO. This is where Walt spent his formative years: his days spent on the farm grew his love of animals and his time spent performing for local children in the barn sparked his interest in entertainment. Walt first learned to draw, write and dream underneath a nearby tree, known affectionately as his dreaming tree. After only about five years here, Walt’s father became ill and the family was forced to sell their farm. In 1911 the Disney family moved once again, this time to Kansas City. In 1948, Disney produced a movie called So Dear To My Heart about growing up on a small farm in the American Midwest in the early 20th century. A personal favorite of Walt’s, the film featured a farm and barn which was based on Walt’s recollection of the one he grew up with here in Marceline. Check out more of Walt’s homes in our blog posts: Living with Walt: Part I and Part II Address: 275 W Broadway St, Marceline, MO 64658 Visitor Information: Walt Disney Hometown Museum

After five years of living on a farm in Marceline, Walt’s father became ill and in 1911 the Disney family moved to a rented house in Kansas City. It was here that Walt and his brother Roy would wake up at 3:30 AM every day to help his father fold and deliver newspapers for two hours before school. The family lived here until they moved again in 1914, only a few blocks away, to 3028 Bellefontaine Ave. Today, no trace remains of the Disney family’s original Kansas City home. Check out more of Walt’s homes in our blog posts: Living with Walt: Part I and Part II Address: 2706 E 31st St, Kansas City, MO 64128 Visitor Information: Private residence, not open to the public

In 1914, the Disney family moved from their first Kansas City home to this one at 3028 Bellefontaine Avenue. On Saturday mornings, Walt would take classes at the Kansas City Art Institute. To earn extra money, he would sell snacks and newspapers on the Missouri Pacific, Kansas City Southern, and Missouri-Kansas-Texas railroads. This experience solidified his love of trains and with an interest in cartoons and animation. Walt would dream about taking a train out west, to Hollywood. I didn’t have enough money to get my ticket… I used to go down and stand there with tears in my eyes and look at those trains heading out to Union Station in Los Angeles. – Walt Disney In 1917, the Disneys moved back to Chicago, but this house would remain with the family (Walt’s older brothers Herbert and Roy continued living there, renting the house from their father, Elias) until 1921. Walt left home to volunteer with the Red Cross Ambulance Corps in 1918 and returned from overseas in 1919. After a brief stop in Chicago, Walt moved back to this home in Kansas City where he would sleep on a couch in the parlor as Herbert’s family now occupied the previously empty bedrooms – […]

Note: This is the second time the Disney family lived in Chicago. Click the following link if you’re looking for Walt Disney’s Birthplace. While living in Kansas City, Walt’s father Elias invested his life savings (and much of his children’s savings) in the O-Zell Company in Chicago. O-Zell made jelly and was developing a juice soft drink to rival Coca-Cola. In 1917, the company began facing financial difficulty and the Disney family moved from Kansas City back to Chicago so Elias could take a more prominent role in the company. While living in Chicago, they rented a small apartment at 1523 West Ogden Avenue. Walt worked for his father on the O-Zell factory floor, washing jars and packing cartons for the company. Walt would continue working at this factory, located on the 1300 block of West 15th Street, until 1918 when he left home to volunteer with the Red Cross Ambulance Corps in France. After almost a year abroad, Walt returned to Chicago in 1919 but didn’t stay long – rather than pursue a high school diploma, he was eager to start his career as an artist. Walt returned to Kansas City, where his older brother Roy was working as a bank teller. […]