Disneyland in Anaheim, California, officially opened on July 17, 1955.

Quick Scoop

  • The park’s grand opening was held on Sunday, July 17, 1955, as a special, invitation-only “International Press Preview” event hosted for media and select guests.
  • Disneyland then opened to the general public the next day, Monday, July 18, 1955, at 10 a.m., but July 17 is celebrated as its official birthday.

A bit of opening-day drama

  • Opening day was famously overcrowded, with around 28,000 people attending instead of the roughly 11,000 invited, due in part to counterfeit tickets.
  • The event was broadcast live on ABC, hosted by Art Linkletter, Bob Cummings, and Ronald Reagan, reaching tens of millions of viewers and cementing the park’s place in pop culture from day one.

Today’s perspective

  • Disneyland is now widely known as the “Happiest Place on Earth” and remains the only theme park personally designed and completed under Walt Disney’s direct supervision.
  • Each year, the resort marks July 17 as Disneyland’s “birthday,” often with special entertainment, limited-time merchandise, and nostalgic tributes to its 1955 origins.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.