Disneyland opened its gates to the world in 1955, and has been fascinating tourists ever since then. More than half a billion guests have been awed at the fantastic splendor of its sprawling compound, including presidents, royalty, and heads of state. Anyone who has taken a trip to Disneyland has gone back unable to stop talking about it.

Disneyland or Disneyland Park is located in Anaheim, California. It features rides, themed mini compounds, and attractions against a fantasy backdrop of magical experience for the entire family. Disneyland’s massive 84 acres of park land is currently divided into eight sections, or ‘realms’.

Disneyland was originally built according to a plan where these eight ‘realms’ resembled the eight points of a compass. In order to possibly grasp the scope of the experience which you are in for as soon as you enter the main gate, you will be walked through the park virtually at the entrance of what is known as Main Street.

The America of the early 20th century will greet you the moment that you walk into Main Street. This is complete with double-deck buses, arcades, and full scale steam powered pump engines. The design of this realm is striking since the buildings are built to stand out from the backdrop by simulating a sense of height, through a surreal method known as force perspective. To go from one realm to the other, you will have to go through this area.

Exotic tropical themes are mixed with fantastic elements in the realm called Adventure Land. The entry point to this area, Walt Disney’s Enchanted Tiki Room, takes the visitor to familiar scenes from the Indiana Jones and Tarzan movies, with sprawling vegetation and jungles suggestive of the remoteness of the setting.

Get a taste of the historic by walking over to one of the park’s oldest realms — New Orleans Square. It has been made contemporary with the inclusion of attractions inspired by the movies Pirates of the Caribbean and The Haunted Mansion. Take a glance at the realm called Frontierland which has been built as a tribute to the founding fathers of America.

Themed attractions such as the more popular Mark Twain Riverboat and Pirate’s Lair at Tom Sawyer Island, imitate scenes of early America, as well as themes such Golden Horseshoe Saloon which imitate the atmosphere of the Old West.

Critter Country invokes the feel of the prairie and the hills, with attractions such as Splash Mountain and a particularly familiar ride called The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. Of most of the sections of Disneyland, Fantasyland is the most popular.

It features rides and attractions inspired from famous children stories which tykes have grown up with, such as Peter Pan and Alice in Wonderland. Mickey’s Toontown features cartoon based attractions based on the 1988 film Who Framed Roger Rabbit, and includes rides such as Roger Rabbit’s Car Toon Spin.

Find out what the park was intended to be like by visiting Tomorrowland. Its retro-futuristic attractions which suggests of the old Jules Verne theoretical designs.

Even a conceptual walk through of Disneyland is enough to leave a person breathless. One cannot, however, experience this magic of the park without actually having been there.