Disney World lands on monopoly board
Amy L. Edwards | Sentinel Staff Writer
Posted September 13, 2006
If you've ever dreamed of calling Cinderella Castle home, you may be in luck -- Walt Disney World is for sale.
At a bargain price of $2.4 million, you could own Metro Orlando's best-known landmark.
That is, if you roll your dice right and pay with Monopoly money.
Hasbro, maker of Monopoly, unveiled its new "Here & Now" edition Tuesday, which replaces Atlantic City's streets with 22 American cities and their most notable landmarks.
In terms of its market value, Orlando landed in the upper middle, edging out cities such as Miami, Atlanta and Philadelphia. Orlando's landmark, which online voters decided was Disney World, occupies the Illinois Avenue square on the board, between Honolulu's Waikiki Beach and New Orleans' French Quarter right around the corner.
"We have about 49 million visitors that come here a year. Certainly for us to land that high . . . we're really thrilled about it," said Danielle Courtenay, spokeswoman for the Orlando/Orange County Convention & Visitors Bureau.
The Here & Now board was designed based on the results of more than 3 million votes cast in an Internet poll Hasbro conducted in the spring.
The city that received the most votes -- New York -- took the priciest spot on the Monopoly block, Boardwalk in the original game. The asking price for its landmark, Times Square: $4 million.
The cities that got the fewest votes -- Cleveland and Dallas -- are the least expensive, Mediterranean and Baltic avenues, respectively, in the original. Their asking prices: $600,000.
Orlando's spot, ranked ninth among the 22 squares, costs $2.4 million if a player lands on it and wants to buy. Another player landing on "your" property would pay you $200,000 in rent. Houses cost $1.5 million apiece. A hotel is the equivalent of five houses.
The game maker chose the 22 cities based on today's top U.S. travel destinations. Monopoly is based on Atlantic City, N.J., which was a popular tourist attraction in the 1930s when the game was created.
Hasbro gave voters three landmarks per city to vote on. Orlando's options were Disney World, International Drive or Church Street Station.
City Commissioner Patty Sheehan said she would like to have seen Lake Eola as an Orlando landmark.
"I think it was unfortunate that they didn't include that," Sheehan said. "We are more than Disney."
Still, Sheehan said she's glad Orlando landed on the updated Monopoly game.
"I think it's exciting," she said. "Obviously, being on the Monopoly board puts us on the map, so to speak."
In the game's new edition, railroads are passe; they've been replaced by American airports.
Hasbro also introduced modern game tokens such as a laptop and McDonald's french fries. The classic race car has been replaced by a hybrid Toyota Prius, and the Scottish terrier was swapped with a trendy Labradoodle. For those who can't live without their cell phones, Hasbro also brought in a Motorola Razr game piece.
Other modern twists have players going directly to jail for committing insider trading or identity theft. The Chance and Community Chest cards have been updated to include winnings such as $100,000 in a reality TV show. Another card wins your family a vacation to Disney World, said Monopoly spokesman Mark Newman.
Even though Orlando didn't take the top spot, Newman said its location statistically has been proven to be the most landed-upon property space on the board during a game.
"We are honored to be the Monopoly voters' choice to represent Orlando," Disney spokesman Rick Sylvain said. "And when you think about it, it's a perfect fit: The world's most visited vacation destination on statistically the most visited spot from the original board game, Illinois Avenue. Of course, we already have hotels -- 22, in fact."
"I think anyone who would create a game of any kind that involves the naming of places . . . should include Orlando, because lets face it, everyone has a piece of their heart in Orlando," said lawyer Dennis Salvagio, better known as The Fat Guy for his enthusiasm at Orlando Magic games.
"Everybody from all these other cities eventually ends up in Orlando."
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