River Country: Disney's Abandoned Water Park

Out of Disney's many theme parks around the world, only one has ever permanently closed. River Country was Disney's first water park, built on the shore of Bay Lake at Walt Disney World. While the park achieved moderate success during its lifespan, the real story only began after the park closed its doors. Let's take a look at River Country's life, closure, and 2 decades it sat abandoned, an icon of Disney's abandoned attractions, and a symbol of Disney's urban exploring history.

Thumbnail photo from Yesterland: https://yesterland.com/
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Ok, I know some people regard Discovery Island as being a closed Disney park, but I don't really count it. It wasn't really a park, more of an attraction. The lines of what is and isn't a theme park start to get kinda blurry.

But the story of Disney's River Country is so interesting to me, I thought I'd take a crack at it. From the abandoned Discovery Island, to Wonders of Life, DisneyQuest and beyond, River Country is by far Disney's most iconic abandoned location. Such an interesting story of being forgotten and slowly rediscovered. And with recent developments such as Reflections: A Disney Lakeside Lodge, it seems the history of Disney's River Country hasn't yet reached its final chapter.

The background music for this video comes from Epidemic Sound (referral link): https://share.epidemicsound.com/imrsqv

CHAPTERS
0:00 Intro
0:42 Walt Disney World's Early Years
2:27 The Life of River Country
8:34 The Closure of River Country
10:00 The Abandonment of River Country
11:11 The Urban Explorers of River Country
14:30 The Replacement of River Country
17:24 Why Did River Country Close?