Disney World's Welcome Center Located in Ocala Florida
Closed in the summer of 2006 Disney World's Welcome Center in Ocala, FL is now just a memory for those who used to enjoy stopping there.
Once an integral part of Disney World's Florida outdoor advertising campaign geared towards motorists traveling down the Interstate 75 and the Florida Turnpike towards Orlando. The AAA sponsored Welcome Center was a great place for visitors traveling by car to Disney World to get their first taste of the famous Disney Magic on their journey towards Orlando.
Back in the day, as you were driving south on Interstate 75 nearing Ocala you would have been seeing Disney World billboards for the preceding half-hour and the kids had been asking When are we getting to Disney for about twenty-nine minutes. The Welcome Center presented a great opportunity to stop stretch your legs and use some of the cleanest bathrooms on the interstate as well as shop for Disney souvenirs, get Disney info, and make Disney dining or hotel reservations.
After Disney closed the welcome center it went through several different tenants over the years. Most recently the tenant didn't even put up a sign. There were just a few cars parked in the lot.
UPDATE: April 2012
The welcome center is finally no more. It's been torn down to build a Hampton Inns and Suites. See my post with pics.
Click on the images for larger versions.
The sign at the entrance to the Welcome center
The front entrance view of the Welcome Center from the parking lot.
The view towards the AAA counter where you could obtain Disney World information and park maps or schedules as well as make Disney dining or hotel reservations
Another view of the AAA counter
They had lots of souvenirs from the theme parks
They carried various items from all four parks
There was even a short film showing all the latest things going on at Disney World
Here's my blog post on Disney World's outdoor advertising including the Ocala Welcome Center