Want to Spend the Night in Cinderella’s Castle?

 You don’t have to be a 13-year-old princess to wonder about the prospect of staying in Cinderella’s Castle on Main Street at Walt Disney World Resort. Almost anyone or everyone might ponder the possibility. And why not?

After all, this fairytale place is the very symbol of the Magic Kingdom Park.

It’s best described as having soaring spires, gloriously ornate turrets and regal royal-blue rooftops. The Castle is listed at almost 190 feet tall (hardly a high-rise by today’s standards but the same height as the 14-story Praetorian Building in Dallas which is said to be the state’s first skyscraper).

The castle “invokes both the magic and mystery of real-world castles,” says one web site. And it evokes romantic fiction like the one seen in the latest version of Disney’s new film version of Cinderella.

Maybe you have wondered: Just what are your chances of renting a room there? If you were a member of the royal Disney family, your chances were better, though there is no record of any of them actually spending a night at the suite designed for their use.

The answer to the question really is zero. You can’t book it. Not today, but maybe someday (you can always dream)? You can’t stay there overnight but there are things you can do there.

People have stayed there. During what Disney called “The Year of a Million Dreams” in 2007, a guest at the resort or at a Downtown Disney was selected to bring his family (up to five members) for a stay at the Cinderella suite which holds six people. The family found a salon, bedchamber and bathroom off of a private marble-floored lobby some four stories above the surrounding Magic Kingdom. They must have relished the rich details befitting the 17th century fairytale and the French chateaus that inspired the design of Cinderella’s Castle. 

From this stay (and the public’s natural curiosity), various details of the suite were made public. Details emerged that included the fact that despite all the careful attention to centuries-old features, the amenities of the Cinderella Castle Suite are definitely 21st century. There’s a lavish garden tub plus a shower. There are also wheelchair accessible bathroom and bedroom facilities. An elevator offers access to the suite. As for a 17th-century-style painting above a regal fireplace: it frames a modern 21st-century flat-screen television. 

Other details via the Internet: Within the main castle corridor, 5 handcrafted mosaic murals—containing 14-karat gold and silver plus over one million pieces of glass in 500 different colors…Fluffy feather comforters beneath the regal canopy draping of two queen beds… A cut-stone bedchamber floor inspired by the mosaic art masterpiece that adorns the castle’s breezeway entrance to Fantasyland …A parlor sofa that beneath a vaulted ceiling of the salon … Rich, wood-paneled walls, stained-glass windows, and glimpses of the familiar gray castle stone. 

Adding to the enchanted environment, the castle is surrounded by a tranquil moat, lush green grass, rose bushes and a wishing well, providing perfect picture-taking opportunities from nearly every angle.

So what can you do at the castle? It’s a nice backdrop for photos.

It also provides a spectacular backdrop for the fireworks extravaganzas that occurs in Magic Kingdom on select nights. Over 16 million colored lights illuminate the castle when the sun sets; and during fireworks shows, lights and music come together to create what Disney terms a “magical setting.”

Inside the castle, families can dine at Cinderella’s Royal Table, where it’s food fit for royalty, of course, at prices ranging up to $60 a person for such kid-familiar dishes as chicken nuggets.

There’s also the option of the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique, a beauty salon where girls and boys are magically transformed into little princesses and knights. Appointments available at a price of $59.95 to $194. 95.

But as far as spending the night, not right now, but in the future? Who knows?

Disney may again bring back the million options. Dreams can come true. ###