The snowcapped Matterhorn, the centerpiece of the Magic Kingdom, punctuates the skyline of Anaheim. Since 1955, when Walt Disney chose this once-quiet farming community for the site of his first amusement park, Disneyland has attracted more than 635 million visitors and tens of thousands of workers, and Anaheim has been their host.
To understand the symbiotic relationship between Disneyland and Anaheim, you need only look at the $4.2 billion spent in a combined effort to revitalize Anaheim’s tourist center and run-down areas, and to expand and renovate the Disney properties into what is known now as Disneyland Resort.
The resort is a sprawling complex that includes Disney’s two amusement parks; three hotels; and Downtown Disney, a shopping, dining, and entertainment promenade. Anaheim’s tourist center includes Angel Stadium of Anaheim, home of baseball’s 2002 World Series Champion, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim; the Honda Center (formerly the Arrowhead Pond), which hosts concerts and the Anaheim Ducks hockey team; and the enormous Anaheim Convention Center.
