Chearffel Tower

1989 was a banner year for Walt Disney World. It opened whole new worlds of entertainment through a new park (Disney-MGM Studios), a new water park (Typhoon Lagoon), and a new nighttime entertainment district (Pleasure Island), to name just a few of their accomplishments that year. And yet, through it all, the folks at Disney didn’t forget the little details that would seasonally change the environment and spirit of their parks and resorts. To prove this point, we need look no further than Disney-MGM Studios’ iconic water tower, the Earffel Tower.

Even during the park’s first holiday season, the Earffel Tower had its yuletide spirit on display! In fact, during that time of year it even changed its name to the Chearffel Tower. And in case you think that simply adding a hat isn’t that big of an undertaking, notice how many individuals it took to get the Santa hat properly placed atop the water tower.  And is it any wonder with a hat size of 342 3/8, with a diameter of 28.5, and a weight of 500 pounds?

The Earffel Tower would don many disguises over the years, but none were as iconic as the Santa hat. This tradition continued from 1989 until early into the new century, but it was eventually retired. With the removal of the Earffel Tower in 2016, so to was the idea of the return of the Santa-clad water tower. Still, we keep the season in our hearts and not in our décor, but it was fun while it lasted and definitely showed that park’s dedication to the season.