Walt Disney World Designing Float for Tivoli Parade

Nov 08, 2017 Joe Kleiman Europe & Middle East, News, Theme Parks, World markets 0

Walt Disney World Resort will contribute designs for a custom float, “Friendship Garden,” to Tivoli’s 175-year Jubilee Parade scheduled to premiere in summer 2018. Walt Disney World Resort is part of the company known worldwide for family entertainment and vacation destinations, and Tivoli in Copenhagen is one of the world’s oldest amusement gardens.

These two iconic places have a long-standing tradition of collaboration and mutual admiration, dating back to Walt Disney’s early visits to Tivoli, a place where he found much to inspire him.He was touched by the beautiful gardens, attractions and experiences, and returned to Tivoli several times before opening Disneyland in the USA in 1955.

The parade will be based on the theme, “The world comes together in Tivoli.” The procession will be more than 100 metres long, featuring floats, performers, well-known figures and Tivoli characters. The theme of the Disney-designed float is based on “it’s a small world,” an iconic attraction found at Disney destinations across the globe.

George A. Kalogridis, President, Walt Disney World Resort in Florida said: “Walt Disney loved Tivoli, and so do we. Out of long friendship and deep mutual respect, Tivoli and Disney Parks have maintained a very cordial dialogue over the years, ranging from employee exchange visits to discussions of best practices amongst our leadership. We at Walt Disney World Resort hold the Tivoli organization in the highest esteem, and we are pleased to express that through our participation in the Tivoli 175-year Jubilee Parade.”

Lars Liebst, Chief Executive Officer, Tivoli said: “One of Tivoli’s visions is to be a leading international experience brand. With this in mind, Tivoli’s long and amicable relationship with Disney is now expressed through a beautiful float to be part of our 175-year Jubilee Parade. We are both proud and honoured they are going to be part of our jubilee celebration in this way.”

Tivoli’s 2018 Jubilee Parade

“The world comes together in Tivoli” is the theme of Tivoli’s 175-year Jubilee Parade.

The procession will be more than 100 metres long, featuring 30 performers, well-known figures and Tivoli characters. The route starts in the Castle Square by the Lake, and parades around Tivoli before ending at the Open-Air Stage.

The music for the parade will be composed by Bent Fabricius-Bjerre, known internationally as Bent Fabric.

Walt Disney World Resort is designing a float with the theme, “it’s a small world,” one of Disney’s most iconic attractions.

The Jubilee Parade will also present the story of Tivoli and its four “pillars”: gardens, culture, rides and food.

The Jubilee Parade will premiere on 1 May, and can be enjoyed every weekday (except Friday) at 17:00, or 18:00 at weekends.

This close friendship between Disney and Tivoli is not new. When developing Disneyland in the 1950s, Walt Disney traveled to many places for inspiration. At Tivoli, Disney was particularly taken by the special atmosphere, with flowers, lighting, nostalgia and romance, which he was keen to recreate in his own park.

Walt Disney and his wife Lillian visited Tivoli many times. At the beginning of the 1960s, a process was established by Tivoli and Disneyland to exchange employees working in visitor services. This tradition continued through the years, and several of Tivoli’s employees have trained at Disney, a company that exemplifies the benchmark in the hospitality industry.

Photo: Walt Disney and Tivoli Youth Guard member Sven Hansen during a visit to Tivoli in 1964. From the Disney archives.