Disney has just announced a new resort that will also fill the long-abandoned gap of what was once the biggest water park in Orlando!
Any guest of Walt Disney World knows the area is packed with some fantastic resorts. With more additions planned for the area in the next several years, Disney expects even more guests, which means having to build on the on-spot resorts.
There have been delays to some plans due to the COVID-19 pandemic and other issues. However, Disney has announced that 2027 will see the opening of a brand-new resort in the Magic Kingdom area. Originally titled Reflections: A Disney Lakeside Lodge, the new title will be the Lakeshore Lodge Resort.
As the title indicates, this is set in the Bay Lake area, in between Fort Wilderness Campgrounds and the Wilderness Lodge. It seems Disney is shifting away from the Reflections concept, yet keeping to the idea of a fun lodge celebrating artists.
It looks interesting, but most fascinating is that this will be taking the space once used by what was once an iconic part of Disney World: River Country. It’s a unique turn on the strange history of that park.
The rise and fall of River Country
When Disney World opened in 1971, water parks hadn’t quite become the mainstay we know today. It was Wet n Wild in 1977 that began the trend of water parks with pools and slides and soon became more popular around the world.
As with so many things, Disney was ahead of the curve as River Country opened in 1976 as the first major water park of its kind. Notably, while most parks would be pretty stark with the pipes and such showing, Disney Imagineers were genius at making this look like an “old watering hole” with slides sculpted out of the rocky area leading into the lake.
The variety of slides in the area was amazing. There were the standard slides but also “tube” ones as well as a unique “drop slide” where guests were plunged into the water from a big height. Throw in the “boom swing,” a cable line and the craft making them all look natural and it’s no wonder the place was so packed that often Disney would have to close it to newcomers by afternoon on hot days.
River Country was promoted heavily by Disney in WDW ads and was such a hit that it led to Disney adding Typhoon Lagoon in 1989, with Blizzard Beach following in 1994. Those took away attention from River Country even as it stuck around.
The reasons for its downfall are varied, with the long-standing talk of bacteria in the water overflowing from Bay Lake that contributed to illness and even at least one child death. There was also the simpler idea that the lower attendance played a part as folks flocked more to the two larger and flashier water parks.
River Country was closed in November of 2001 for what was expected to be the usual seasonal closure. However, in 2002, it was confirmed that Disney (smarting from a downturn in tourism following 9/11) had elected not to open it. They teased a possible return, but in 2005, River Country was officially closed for good.
For the next 17 years, the park lay open, slowly rotting away against the elements. It became a popular site for “urban explorers” with touches such as Disney never cutting the power to it, meaning every night, the lights would switch off and even the closing theme played.
Disney finally started clearing the place out in 2018 to prep for this new resort, although, as noted, there are some blocks to it. Further details are coming with the idea that the new place has 900 rooms and that the theme sounds unique. Still, for long-time WDW guests, seeing the last remnants of River Country swept away closes out a chapter in WDW history and a reminder of how important it was in water park development.