Unofficial Map: Transportation of Walt Disney World Resort, Florida

Here’s a seriously impressive piece of work by Arthur de Wolf that I came across while trawling Flickr. This map shows transportation options at the Walt Disney World Resort in Florida - monorail, bus, water transportation, parking lot trams, even walking routes between transportation hubs. Walt Disney World Resort is the size of a small city and has a transportation system that puts many of them to shame. Bringing order and sense to this system is no easy feat, and I think that Arthur has done a fantastic-looking job (although I can’t vouch for the accuracy of the map’s contents).

Have we been there? No. Maybe when my son is old enough to appreciate it.

What we like: Beautifully executed map that obviously has a lot of research and thought behind it (despite Arthur’s statements regarding potential errors). Takes a system that’s as complex as many large cities, and creates order and simplicity out of it. The Mickey Mouse/London Underground Roundel mashup in the top right corner is hilarious.

What we don’t like: Could use a little more visual differentiation between the monorail and bus services. The “M” at stations is a little hard to find when you’re first scanning the map. Map is maybe a little too sterile for what is an enormous theme park.

Our rating: Fantastic work that shows a complex system with remarkable clarity. Four-and-a-half-stars! Be sure to click through to the image on Flickr where you can view it large!

(Source: wolfstad/Flickr)

Metro Light Rail Network Map, Sydney

Can you call it a network map when it consists of one line and a soon-to-be defunct (and despised) monorail? A north pointer would really help here as well… West is at the bottom of the map.

(Source: Michael “Comeng301M” Coley/Flickr)