Disneyland Resort has welcomed its 1 billionth guest, and Disney marked the milestone this morning with a ceremony at the entrance of Disneyland Park. The honor went to Andres Robles, an 8-year-old from Arizona who arrived with his parents to celebrate his birthday, not knowing he was about to become part of park history. The milestone counts guests across both Disneyland park and Disney California Adventure park over seven decades. It arrives just days before the resort’s 71st anniversary on July 17th.
Disneyland Resort Celebrates Its 1 Billionth Guest
IN THIS ARTICLE:
- Who the 1 billionth guest is and how Disney surprised the family
- What the updated Disneyland Railroad population sign now reads
- The VIP day the Robles family received
1 Billion Guests: Meet The Robles Family
Andres Robles arrived at Disneyland this morning with his parents, Alejandra and Jose Robles, expecting a fun day out for his eighth birthday. What they did not expect was to be part of Disney history. Disney selected the family as the honorary 1 billionth guest to visit Disneyland and California Adventure.
The family took part in a brief ceremony with the Disney Ambassadors of Disneyland Resort at the Main Street USA train station platform. There, they helped unveil an updated sign listing the population of Disneyland as 1,000,000,000. Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse made a special appearance on the platform, and Donald Duck and Daisy Duck later joined Andres and his family for a photo. Jill Estorino, President of Disneyland Resort, greeted Andres and his parents during the ceremony.
That population sign is the fun detail here. It sits on the Main Street USA railroad station, and it has read 650 million since 2013, so today’s jump to a round billion is the first update in more than a decade. A 900 million figure surfaced earlier this year in the Disneyland Handcrafted documentary, but the sign itself wasn’t updated until now.
What The Family Received
The surprise came with a full day of perks. Andres and his parents received a VIP tour guide for the day, and Disney folded in experiences that are otherwise hard to get to. That itinerary includes a tour of Walt Disney’s private apartment above the Main Street USA fire station and other experiences Disney describes as the kind that define a memorable Disneyland visit.
Seven Decades Of Guests
Disney is framing this as a legacy moment, and the numbers back that up. When Disneyland park opened in 1955, it introduced a new concept in family entertainment and launched the theme park industry as we know it.
The resort has grown a lot since then. It now includes two theme parks, three hotels, and the Downtown Disney District, and it served as the inspiration for Disney theme parks and experiences around the world. Reaching a billion guests days before the 71st anniversary is Disney’s way of making the point that Walt Disney’s original idea, a family park where parents and children could have fun together, still holds up. Disney closed its announcement with Walt’s line that Disneyland “will never be complete as long as there is imagination left in the world.”
As always, keep checking back with us here at BlogMickey.com as we continue to bring you the latest news, photos, and info from around the Disney Parks!