Storybook is What They Aim For, By Michael Mauro

Just when someone thinks that the neighborhood of ABC’s Desperate Housewives, although beautiful, is just a set, there is a place in the world where you may come across just that. Driving down Interstate 4 in central Florida, one can easily come across Magic Kingdom (a sector of Disney), as well as the town of Celebration.

The town, developed in 1994, is a product of one of the most recognizable company names in the world- The Walt Disney Corporation. Although since its construction Disney has given up many control rights to the town, when one drives through the region you get a sense of the storybook perfection Disney has always aimed for. Being a planned community, the streets are broken up into villages, and almost seem to transform before your eyes as you pass, giving you a sense that you are driving through different parts of America. The styles of housing range from Southern to Traditional to Mediterranean to Classical.

Being just a stones throw away from our hotel in Disney, my friend (a Connecticut real estate agent) was curious to see just how a company who deals so well with “imagination” and “characters” could do in the real world. We left Disney around 4pm, and had arranged to meet an Orlando based real estate agent to give us a limited tour. Downtown Celebration reminds me very much of Main Street USA, located at the heart of Disney. The agent told us that it is very common for tourists to stroll through, or even vacation in Celebration. Two LARGE events, the “Falling of the Leaves” & the “Now Snowing” event bring in many tourists each year. The Falling of the Leaves event occurs through September and October and is meant to resemble a typical New England fall. The town fixes a box to the top of the lampposts, and literally sprays confetti leaves all over the townspeople (just like a true New England town, I know). The Now Snowing event features the same whimsical boxes lovingly attached to the same handy lampposts. These boxes, rather than confetti leaves, emit a foam-soap concoction that resembles a winter snowfall. The locals, as well as tourists, immerse themselves in the sudsy swoon of soap, creating snow angels and foam-men with two eyes made of coal. Disclaimer: I was not present for either of these ‘lifelike’ events, although with enough searching, one could view both on Youtube.

Visiting Celebration made me feel that Disney was just aiming to create another tourist attraction, and another aspect of their park to wow the world. Nothing like it has ever been created. The town is outfitted completely with WiFi, they have community wide yard sales, and the sense of community is through the roof. The garages of homes are put out of sight to emphasize the main living spaces of the home.

And aside the fact that it is built by vacation conglomerate Walt Disney, what is it that defines Celebration as a tourism draw? It’s the same thing that draws people to Charleston, SC; Savannah GA; Mystic, CT; and Cape Cod, MA. The town is a super planned, ultra perfected version of what many imagine suburbia to be, thus it gives people something to see and something to inspire, similar to many of the previous listed places. Is Celebration too planned? Probably. But it definitely is something to see!

< A Photo of the "SNOWFALL" event >