Walt Disney World, a pictorial souvenir from 1977
Few souvenirs capture the spirit of a Disney vacation quite like the Disney World Pictorial Souvenir books from the early years of Walt Disney World. Long before smartphones, Instagram, or YouTube trip reports, guests brought home small guidebooks filled with colorful photos and simple descriptions of the parks, resorts, and attractions. These pocket-sized books were inexpensive, easy to pack, and perfect for sharing the magic of Walt Disney World with friends and family after returning home. Today, they serve as fascinating time capsules that show what the Vacation Kingdom of the World looked like during its earliest decades.
Walt Disney World, a pictorial souvenir is a series of small-form guide books that Disney released during the 1970s, 1980s, and early 1990s. They were souvenir books geared towards having an inexpensive memento of your family vacation. They were also a quick way to share the concept for Walt Disney World with friends and family. The books covered the Magic Kingdom, the resort hotels, the dining, the shopping, and all of the recreation. All in about 36–38 pages.
Not really enough space to cover the Vacation Kingdom of the World. Or is it?
Check out my WDW Pictorial Souvenir Video
The books evolved over the years, with each version becoming a little glossier. The photos improved, as did the presentation. But the coverage shrank as Walt Disney World continued to grow. The earliest editions focused primarily on the Magic Kingdom, the original resort hotels, Fort Wilderness, and recreation around Bay Lake and the Seven Seas Lagoon. Interestingly, the Golf Resort was often highlighted separately, reflecting Disney’s early push to promote Walt Disney World as a complete vacation destination, not just a theme park.
As new destinations were added to Walt Disney World, the books had to stretch their limited page count even further. EPCOT Center opened in 1982, followed later by Disney-MGM Studios in 1989. New resorts appeared across property, and the once-simple Vacation Kingdom became a much larger and more complex destination. Ironically, as Walt Disney World expanded, the Disney World Pictorial Souvenir books became slightly smaller in scope, trying to capture more experiences within the same compact format.
A handful of pictorial souvenir guide books from the first three decades of Walt Disney World. They really like purple.
Do You Own Any of the Disney World Pictorial Souvenir Books?
If you enjoy vintage Disney history, these little books are wonderful collectibles. They offer a quick snapshot of what Walt Disney World looked like in different eras and show how the resort evolved over time. Be sure to watch my video where I take a closer look at the Disney World Pictorial Souvenir and flip through the pages of this nostalgic piece of Disney history. And I would love to hear from you in the comments. Do you own one of these books, or did your family bring one home from an early Walt Disney World vacation?
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