Don’t forget! Tonight, March 23, 2017, the Disney Parks Blog is going to live stream Wishes at 8:55pm Eastern. With this night spectactular being replaced in May, it might be one of, if not the, last time that Disney will live stream the event.
As always, that easiest way to get the informatin on the live stream is to go to the Disney Parks Blog at about 8:45pm and find the post about the upcoming live stream. I’ll also try to update this post with the information if I’m able.
First Look at Disney’s Yacht Club’s To-Go Cafe – For a lot of guests, this is probably all that they need in the morning. (Hopefully, they get this open before the Captain’s Grill closes.)
Disney reveals “Tangled” Robot for Disney Parks at SXSW Panel – Since everyone just says “Artificial Intelligence” and “Machine Learning” about everything these days, this is kind of a nothing story. That said, an autonomous Pascal lose in Fantasyland would be awesome.
Despite how much I’m sure y’all enjoy getting double and triple sized orders of News Nuggets, sometimes, I’m able to actually get these out on a regular schedule. This is one of those times!
There isn’t much about the Flower and Garden Festival in this posting, since I’m looking to do one of my “best of” coverage posts to cover that event fairly soon.
Hey! Look! The site still works! This latest batch of (breakfast?) News Nuggets is a long time coming. I had grand desigins of posting it when I was down in Florida IN DECEMBER, but that slipped. Then, life got in the way, and an iOS beta broke my custom Workflows, and…well..its (still) February.
To try make this post (of over 8 weeks worth of Disney news) a little more timely, I’ve culled some of the original stories I was going to publish, as well modified some of commentary to reflect my experiences and other news I’ve heard about these items.
Of course, the biggest news item that hasn’t already been written about on the site is:
New Choza Tequila Coming to Epcot in 2017 at Walt Disney World Resort – Does “hand-crafted margaritas” mean they’ll be made when you order them or does “hand-crated” mean they’ll be made by hand and then put into huge jugs for days on end? (Of course, Elyssa will still want one when she walks by.)
2 month Rehab for Walt Disney World Railroad in early 2017. – The train is scheduled to be down from January 9 through March 2nd. That is a bummer during the day, but it makes that area kind of a ghost town for certain parades and evening shows.
Bus Stop Pizza Kiosks Now Have Breakfast – I don’t use the term “game changer” lightly…(I kid, I kid. “Game changer” means nothing with respect to theme park news these days.)
Crossroads plaza faces demolition for Disney-area road project – Interesting story, but it’s a long, long way from happening. The state will have to get right of way access to the area first, and I can’t imagine Crossroads and its tenants will go quietly.
Upcoming changes to Epcot entertainment acts – Kenny the Pirate runs down some of the upcoming (and now made) changes to Epcot entertainment. Disney seems to have decided to change these various acts a little more frequently over the past few years.
Entry bridge to Pandora – The World of Avatar now visible to guests – It’s probably just me, but it feels like they’re going to be able to open this place in time for the summer. (I’m also pretty sure I’m going to regret this post when it’s not open in September.) — I swear I wrote this in December, BEFORE the date was announced!
Star Wars: Galatic Nights Special Event starts April 14 at The Studios – Nicely timing to coincide with Star Wars Celebration (which is taking place that weekend). Personally, it sounds like the Magic Kingdom After Hours event would have more value than this $129 event will, but I’ll hold off final judgment until we get some more details.
Express Fresh Pilot to Being Feb. 7 at Contemporary and Yacht Club. – Interesting. A new “quick and casual” option for in-room dining. My fear, of course, is it’s going to be like those sandwiches that you see in the case at an airport (more “express”, than really “fresh”.)
Drinks coming to Paddlefish – I wonder what the craft beer from North Carolina is. Of course, it’s kind of silly for me to go to Disney World and have beer that I can get just as easily at home.
Okay, time for another break. This time, let’s look at this tribute to the late, great Carrie Fisher from The Studios:
Ms. Fisher will be missed, and (shockingly?) I was unable to come up with a way to segway back into the nuggets:
Braves Spring Training to Conclude at Walt Disney World – This is a bummer for me. I liked being able to see some spring training baseball when I was visiting Disney World. I guess I understand the Braves’ point that they are too far away from other spring training teams, but that doesn’t make it less of a bummer for me.
New Menu Items at Jiko – Since Elyssa and I have never been here, we really don’t have any favorites that might get pulled of the menu. That said, I figure Elyssa will still try to get a filet on top of a bed of mac-and-cheese if we do go.
My favorite of the festivals at Disney Festival Adventure (i.e., Epcot)–Flower & Garden– starts on March 1 this year and the Disney Parks Blog has posted all the menus for the “outdoor kitchens”. My general fear when reading these menus is that the items are going to be fairly “expensive” what you’re getting from Epcot booth food. I’ll wait and see what’s actually being offered, however, before making an final judgments.
‘Happily Ever After’ to replace ‘Wishes’ at the Magic Kingdom starting May 12
Ever since the Main Street Electrical Parade ventured out (along the Oregon Trail, I presume?) back to California, people have been wondering when Disney would announce the Magic Kingdom’s new nighttime parade. Interestingly (surprisingly?), Disney has announced a replacement for Wishes instead. Disney describes the new show, entilted Happily Ever After, as follows:
The show will feature the latest fireworks and pyrotechnics and original animation, plus a heart-tugging original score. And thanks to the inclusion of state-of-the-art projection mapping technology, more Disney characters than ever before will be featured in the show, including moments from “Moana,” “Brave,” “Big Hero 6,” “Zootopia,” “The Princess & The Frog,” “Aladdin” and many others.
Disney has announced May 12 as the official opening date for the new show, but if you really want to make sure that you see Wishes one more time before is relegated to the Youtube archives, you might want not want to wait until the last day / week before Happily Ever After debuts (just in case Disney gets too aggressive with “soft opens” of the new show.)
In terms of our bias, we are generally frugal travelers who are willing to splurge on luxury experiences that ostensibly offer value commensurate with cost. Still, we are pretty conservative when it comes to spending, so our threshold for ‘appropriate’ value for money is likely higher than most.
This, on its face, seems to align with Elyssa’s and my point of few on those items, but–despite that apparent similarity–we evaluate some of the items quite differently. For example, Tom evaluates Early Morning Magic as follows:
Early Morning Magic – No – I’ve seen a lot of people do logical contortions trying to justify the value in these, but it just isn’t there unless you approach the parks as being E-Ticket checklists, with each ride on Toy Story Mania being worth $X. In which case, you should probably just buy a used Wii and a copy of [Toy Story Mania for Wii]. What? Not the same experience as being at Walt Disney World? Exactly. There are easy ways to enjoy these attractions during a normal, leisurely day in the parks without paying a surcharge.
I can see someone not seeing a high level of value from getting to ride Seven Dwarf’s Mine Train a few times before part opening, but to just dismiss this off hand by only citing 1 attraction from the Hollywood Studios version of this experience seems disingenuous. (Also, it would be a stretch to say it is “easy” to get multiple rides on Mine Train on a given day outside of an event like this.) As friends of the site, Wes and Howie will tell you, Early Morning Magic can be a great time to ride high demand attractions with the people you love.
Tom was similarily low on Disney After Hours:
Disney After Hours – No – After an initial flop that no doubt lost Disney money, this is returning for 2017 with a lower price tag. It’s still not worth it. What makes the seasonal hard ticket parties worth the money is the ambiance and special entertainment, Disney going the extra mile for a special event. There’s nothing special about this–it’s the same thing as a normal day just with a harder cap on attendance.
“[I]t’s the same thing as a normal day just with a harder cap on attendance.” Ah, yeah? That’s exactly the point. With the caveat that maybe Disney raises that cap for this year’s version, the cap makes the experience entirely different from the experience you have in a normal day. You can walk from attraction to attraction (frequently without seeing anyone else), and walk on pretty much any attraction as well. The longest wait we had was about 5 minutes to see Mickey at Town Square just as the event was ending. The whole experience was fantastic. (And that’s not even considering the complimentary ice cream sandwiches and drinks.)
Looking back at those two events, it seems like big difference between Tom’s position and mine, is that I feel there is a lot of value in getting to ride attractions without waiting (especially high demand ones.) It also seems like I enjoy the experience of being in an “empty” (partially empty? not as heavily populated?) park more than Tom does. Yes, Disney After Hours doesn’t have the special entertainment that a holiday party might, but being able to stroll through an empty Magic Kingdom does have a distinct ambiance that I really enjoy.
I don’t always disagree with Tom’s ratings, however. For example:
Wild Africa Trek – Yes – I’ve heard nothing but unanimous praise about Wild Africa Trek from those who have done it. While the price tag has kept us from doing it, when I think about how much an experience like this would cost elsewhere (even at the the San Diego Zoo Safari Park, special experiences are pricey) it seems fair. I wouldn’t hesitate to splurge on this if it’s something that appeals to your family.
Elyssa and I have done the Wild Africa Trek, and it’s fantastic. (Here’s my old TouringPlans article on it.) I agree with Tom, and say that it’s worth trying (if you and your family are interested in at all, obviously.)
I also agree with Tom’s take on Backstage Tours:
Backstage Tours – Maybe – I think these will appeal most to those who have ‘been there, done that’ and are looking for a new perspective from which to enjoy Walt Disney World. While being backstage could ruin the illusion for some, I think seeing how the sausage is made, so to speak, can give others a greater appreciation for what takes place on stage. We’ve done a number of backstage events over the years, and have found them to be hit or miss in terms of value, but the totality of those experiences has been a deeper interest in how the parks and attractions operate.
If you’re interested in digging deeper into the history and operations of Disney World, these can be fantastic options. Of course, if someone is going on his or her first trip to Disney World (or is someone who doesn’t care about history of the parks, etc…), then these might not make as much sense.
Ultimately, the main thing to keep in mind when evaluating these types of offerings is what you value in your vacation. If you don’t particularly care about riding attractions multiple times as a result of lower crowds, maybe those “enhancements” aren’t for you. If you are more of a “foodie” and want to experience (and learn about) higher end cuisine, maybe take a look at that category of offernings. Depending on what you feel is important, you might end up with a wholly different result from Tom or me.
Even the holidys don’t slow down the amount of news that comes out about Disney World, so it’s time for another edition of the Rope Drop [dot] News Nuggets!
Obviously, the biggest item of news is the upcoming transformation of Spaceship Earth into the frakin’ Death Star at the upcoming Rogue One premiere event (which, of course, is already at capacity.) I’m probably in the minority on this, but I wish they’d do this more than just the one night.
The other big items are related to various festivals that occur at Epcot over the course of the year:
Date Night at STK Orlando + Save $25 – Ignore the (slightly?) over the top language in the post, but–if you’re going to go to STK–you can take advantage of the $25 off promo that they list at the end.
$30 off Discount for Club Villain for AP Holders & DVC Members – I think this is still just a little pricier than I value this experience, but it’s getting closer. If the discount had been $50 off the $129 price instead of just $30, I would have really thought about going.
We’ll close this edition of the News Nuggets with this video walkthrough of the famous Royal Asanta Presdiental Suite at Animal Kingdom Lodge. This might be the closest I’ll ever get to actually being in that:
It’s that time again, time to clear out the (way too long) lisitng of Rope Drop [dot] Net News Nuggets! LIke some of the last couple of updates, Disney trips and day job stuff has meant that this list is a little bit longer than previous updates.
Images of AVATAR Theme Park Merchandise Leak; New Details of Animal Kingdom Land Emerge – WDW News Today reads the tea leaves on some of the new developments coming to Pandora. The main takeaway for me is it seems this will be a more immersive land (i.e., not Disney branded as heavily, focusing more on Avatar itself) than compared to other places in Disney World.
Gasparilla Island Grill at Grand Floridian To Undergo Lengthy Refurbishment Once Again – I’ve been to a bunch of quick service restaurants at a variety of different resorts, but I’ve never eaten here (and it looks like I won’t get a chance this year.) That said, Disney better get this finished before Christmas or things are going to get crazy.
Rumored Moana meet at Disney World – Kenny the Pirate seems to think she’ll meet in that area of One Man’s Dream that WDW News Today thought was for Doctor Strange.
Our latest trip to Disney World focused around a few major Disney World events: Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party and the Epcot International Food & Wine Festival. I’ve learned these past couple of years that having defined things that we want to do lets us feel a little of the time pressure that people who don’t visit as frequently as we do can end up feeling. It makes for an interesting trip. Here are some initial thoughts:
The End of Celebrate the Magic:I’ve already written about how much Celebrate the Magic means to Elyssa and me, but seeing the show for the last time was still overwhelmingly emotional for both of us. I have faith that the new projection show will be good, but I doubt we’ll ever have the emotional connection to that new show that we have to this one. It truly will be missed.
Kona Cafe (Breakfast): I still love starting a day with a press of Kona Coffee and an order of Tonga Toast. Elyssa almost always ends up with a Big Kahuna (which, again, is a great way to start the day.) We normally get an early ADR, and then head to the Magic Kingdom to watch the Welcome Show. I don’t know if I’d recommend Kona if you want to rope drop Mine Train, but it’s pretty perfect for what we use it for.
Homecoming Florida (Dinner or Drinks): Homecoming is fast becoming one of our favorite spots to grab a drink later at night (in addition to being an excellent dining option for either lunch or dinner.) Fried Chicken, biscuits, and hush puppies aren’t the most “adventurous” of dishes, but Homecoming does them very well. If southern comfort food is something you enjoy, I’d definitely give Homecoming a shot.
Animal Kingdom at Night is a (Hidden?) Gem: We now build nights at Animal Kingdom into our trip. An evening Safari, a drink or two at Nomad Lounge, and the Tree of Life Awakenings (which are extremely fun to watch) all make for a really enjoyable night.
Seeing Friends is Always Fun: Elyssa and I were fortunate enough to run into world famous podcaster, “Light ‘Em and Hide”, twice including once with a guest appearance by similarly renowned Disney theme park photographer Brandon Glover. Though we didn’t get to meet up with friends of the site, Dutch, Josh, or Eric, I’m sure we’ll run into them again before too long. Name dropping aside, it’s always nice to spend time with people we know from this little hobby of ours. I hope the trend those meet-ups continues.
Over the next week (or two, or three…), I’ll be working some more in-depth coverage of a few of things we did, but here is a little preview:
Goofy and Pals Breakfast at the Four Season: Elyssa and I decided to switch things up on the character breakfast front and try something a little different. My (almost) twitter length review: Breakfast was good. It has a little different vibe than standard Disney character meals (fancier?). The food also seemed to be a step up from what you might find at a traditional Disney buffet. The character interactions were superb (and if that’s what you want, I’d recommend making a 10:45am or so reservation, since the place was nearly cleared out by 11:00.).
Mickey’s Not so Scary Halloween Party: Halloween is Elyssa’s favorite holiday, so we had been thinking about planning a trip around the halloween party for years. Things finally fell into place this year. We arrived at the party a little before 4 (and used our AP to gain admission.) We ended up meeting Tink, Rapunzel, Tiana, the Seven Dwarfs, and riding Mine Train before the party officially started at 7pm. From then on it was character meet-and-greets, parades, fireworks, and candy. It was a super fun night (Maybe Elyssa and I should do a Mic Drop segment on it??)Is there anything left for me?
Food and Wine: I feel like the stand outs from Food & Wine the past couple of years are either desserts or from the Chew booths (or sometimes, both.) Things like the Liquid Nitro Truffle, or the Peanut Butter and White Chocolate Mousse stand out in my memory more than the duck bun I got from China. At this point, I’d probably be fine attending 1 or 2 mornings mid-week and calling it a Festival.
Overall, it was a pretty great (if not a little jam packed) trip (even with Celebrate coming to and end.)
At last I see the light
We hold hands tightly as the paper lanterns rise on the castle, we smile and laugh as the children around us sing along loudly with Let it Go, and then, when the final segment starts, we shed a tear or two of joy as Pocahontas’s defiant look turns into Carl’s balloon-attached house rising into the air.
Going Up?
For almost three months in 2014, I worried about Elyssa’s health and future. I watched as she struggled to learn to walk (and run) again. On our wedding day, I was so happy that she’d made it that far. It wasn’t until the first night of our honeymoon, though,–when we were standing on Main Street and Celebrate the Magic started–that I finally felt like things were really going to be okay. Even if you didn’t connect with the show itself, just think of some moment in your life that has come to represent something special; that’s what Celebrate the Magic is for us.
I’m glad Elyssa and I were already planning to be down here to say goodbye to one of our favorite shows. Because of our connection with it, it was the list of things we would have had to drive down to see one last time before it ended. Now, we get one more night to celebrate the memories that Celebrate the Magic has given us.
If you’ve been following us on Twitter (including at Elyssa’s new handle!), then you know that the last few weeks have been crazy at Rope Drop [dot] Net HQ. Weddings in foreign lands (well, Maine), J O B job stuff getting in the way of site updates, etc…all have conspired to make this a HUGE helping of News Nuggets. I hope you’re hungry (for news)!
Disney World puts up Bug Spray Kiosks to fight Zika – It’s interesting that Disney is going to give away free bug spray because of the Zika threat, but that it makes you buy sunscreen. (At least it’s interesting to me.)
Aladdin and Jasmine debut new outfits at Disney Parks – I post this only because Elyssa and I were going to stop by and meet Aladdin on our most recent trip, but the line was too long. Looks like we might have missed seeing him in his old garb.
Disney testing Guest Relations Location in Tomorrowland. – This makes sense to me. It allows people who have Guest Relations issues to avoid having to go all the way down Main Street (which can be especially problematic during a parade, Wishes, etc…).
Sanaa now offering Quick Service Breakfast – Interesting. It makes sense to provide a quick service option for guests staying at Kidani. That said, it doesn’t look like something that requires a special trip to experience.
Dr. Strange Meet and Greet is Coming to Walt Disney World? – Speaking of Doctor Strange, this is really interesting (not just for the chance to meet the character, because of what it means for Disney v. Universal with respect to Marvel.)
Here’s a different way to end the post, a video stroll around Castaway Cay from The DIS:
The Disney Parks Blog is doing another live stream tonight at 8:00PM. What’s different about this stream, however, is that it’s not dedicated to just 1 event. Instead, it’s supposed to give looks at things like Mickey’s Not-so-Scary Halloween Party and the Food & Wine festival. I’m interested to see how it works.
Can Disney send me a couple of these to enjoy during the live stream?
As I mentioned in the last post, one of the goals during this trip was to make smaller updates along the way (instead of waiting to talk about the trip at the very end.) Since we’re going to STK tonight–which means you might never hear from me again–, I figured now would be a good time to post an update.
We both really enjoyed the night time Kilimanjaro Safaris. As I mentioned on Twitter, the experience is almost impossible to photograph, but don’t let my crappy photos deter you from giving it a shot. We were lucky enough to see the best lion interactions we’ve ever seen on a safari at Animal Kingdom, and I would still feel like I’m ahead if I rode the ride 10 more times and didn’t see an animal. If you’re at Animal Kingdom at night, I think it’s worth your time to give it a try (and Elyssa would probably even give a stronger recommendation.) That said, if Disney’s only running 1 side of the queue (which I hear is pretty common), you’re going to want to do what you can to get a Fastpass+ reservation. Otherwise, you’re probably going to wait an hour. (We managed to get a Fastpass+ reservation for about 20 minutes in the future after about 3 minutes of refreshing the app around 7:50pm.)
The Tree of Life Awakenings are fantastic. I saw 3 different versions, and I enjoyed them all. I especially like the one that featured more “movie type” excerpts, which gave the whole thing a Celebrate the Magic-like feel.
Nomad Lounge was pretty much dead from 8:45-10:00 while we were there, but it was a nice, relaxing way to end the day. The Kungaloosh Ale (which almost had Newcastle-like flavors with some added spice) and the Tempting Tigress were both quite good. Elyssa also enjoyed the Hightower Rocks (where the sweetness that covers the alcohol could easily get you sneaky drunk without too much effort.)
Princess Birthday Breakfast
The actual breakfast at Akershus is not quite as good as places like Crystal Palace, Tusker House, or Whispering Canyon (it consists of a “hot plate” with eggs, bacon, potato casserole, etc…, and a buffet with pastries and cold cuts.) We had decent princess interactions, seeing Belle, Ariel, Cinderella, and Snow White in the span 50 minutes (though the princesses all came out much later than we thought they would.) We still managed to exit in time to get into Frozen Ever After with only about a 15 minute wait (I’ll probably write about this more later, but you probably want to exit at 8:45-8:50am if you really want to guarantee a low wait. We exited at about 8:55am and ended up merging with the flow of people. I think we got pretty lucky.)
I really enjoyed Frozen Ever After. The movement on animatronics–especially Olaf–has to be seen to be believed. It is just so fluid. Elsa’s ice palace scene is also fantastic. For us and our sensibilities, it’s an upgrade over Maelstrom.
We really liked Frozen Ever After
Even though we weren’t on the far edge of the Soarin’ screen, we could see some bending of the structures. For us, it was only really noticeable for the Eiffel Tower. That said, the Soarin’ experience is still great. I’ll refrain from any “spoilers” about what’s in it, but I like the new video. (It’s probably blogger bias, but when I first thought about what to write for Soarin‘, the minimal bending was what came to mind. That’s why that sentence was first, not the part where I explain my overall impression of the ride.)
I think Ample Hills is my second favorite ice cream on property (it is probably Elyssa’s first.) I think I still prefer a No Way Jose, but knowing I can get Ample Hills if there are no Beaches & Cream ADRs available is a great fall back. (I know the ice cream itself is probably better than plain ice cream from Beaches & Cream, but I just have so much connection to the No Way Jose, that I can’t pick something else ahead of it.)
Squad Goals
After having lunch there on Monday afternoon, I think Via Napoli has moved into a clear 3rd place in the “Disney World restaurant most frequented by the Kivii” rankings. (Whispering Canyon is pretty far out in the lead (since we have stayed at Wilderness Lodge a bunch, and it has breakfast, lunch & dinner options), Beaches & Cream is second place (partially because of stops for No Way Joses), and BOATHOUSE is probably 4th (for now).) The “flexibility” pizza provides is probably one of the reasons we like it so much (we decided to make a last second Ample Hills stop about 45 minutes before Via Napoli, which meant we didn’t eat our entire pizza for lunch. That wasn’t an issue, however, since we were able to take it home and pull it out of the fridge to have for dinner a couple of hours later.)
We finished our day by watching the Main Street Electrical Parade. I’m glad I got to see it again before it goes away in a few weeks, but watching it does reinforce that I’m super bummed it’s leaving. Elyssa and I have so many good memories of watching it.
What are you looking at?
That’s it for this update. Dinner at STK tonight. Wish me luck!
We’re going to try something different on this trip and try to post some more updates during the trip (in addition to coverage once it’s completed.) Here are some thoughts about the first night and day of the trip:
Homecoming turned out to be pretty good (even if I was a little miffed at some of the seating mishaps when we arrived.) The “famous fried” chicken was good, and Elyssa enjoyed her “dinner of sides” (mac & cheese, mashed potatoes, and biscuits.) I can think of a couple of local NC places with better fried chicken, but not to the point where I wouldn’t go back to Homecoming. Getting to enjoy the meal with Eric and Kristi certainly helped things, too.(BOATHOUSE is still our top choice, but Homecoming & Morimoto are pretty close to each other in second.)Homecoming Friend Chicken
Kona Cafe breakfast is still fantastic. We had a 7:30AM ADR to load up on Tonga Toast (Elyssa, as always, was a “big kahuna”) before heading over to watch the Welcome Show at the Magic Kingdom (which we sometimes forget to enjoy because we’re too amped to get to our first attraction.)
Rope drop remains a great way to get a bunch of stuff done as your start your day. (We had a number of our favorite attractions–Buzz, Under the Sea, Jungle Cruise, Pirates–done before 10 am with–essentially–no waiting.
When it comes to viewing Mickey’s Royal Friendship Faire, Josh from easyWDW is not wrong when he recommends standing right near the top of the slope in back of the partner’s statute. I walked to that spot about 30 seconds before the show started and got an (almost) unobstructed view of the whole thing (thanks, random guy with the giant balloon who moved up front for the finale.) It was a great vantage point for a really fun, enjoyable show.Let it flow
Of course, the highlight of our trip so far was getting to meet up with friend of the site, host of Mighty Men of Mouse and all around great guy, Dutch Lombrowski. Dutch took some time out of his night to come join Elyssa and me, ride of Splash, and catch up all various things (that have happened over the 3+ years we’ve known each other.) As an added bonus, always entertaining Gosh Jonzalez joined us for the last hour or so of the night as well. It was great hanging out with both of them.
That’s all for this early trip update. The idea is that we’ll post more soon (but we’ll see how that goes.)
It’s time for everyone’s favorite serving of Disney World, the Rope Drop [dot] Net News Nuggets! There isn’t a lot of particularly juicy news this time, but a few things that I would classify as “transitional” (like the closing of Sum of All Thrills or–essentially–moving all convention space to the Yacht Club.) That said, let’s get to it!
Rumors of The Sum of All Thrills and Stormstruck Closing and an End of Innovations at Epcot – If Sum of All Thrills is closing too (as rumored), it would seem that Innovations might be added to the list of things that will get an overhaul. That said, with the construction currently going on at The Studios and Animal Kingdom, I would think it would be a few years before they even start things at Epcot.
Rumors of Wreck-It Ralph VR Attraction to Replace Stitch’s Great Escape – I heard Jim Hill talking about this, and I thought it sounded like a decent idea (especially with Wreck-It Ralph 2 coming out in a couple of years.) I’d be fine with it. (Good job by WDW NT for crediting the source of the rumor, too.)
Celebrate Disney PhotoPass Day on August 19 – This strikes me as a weird promotion. Disney does seem to run things during this period in August, though (remember that Studios Villains event they did for a couple of years?)
New FitBit-style MagicBand design change possibly in development – Interesting. It might make sense to allow for people to move their RFID between different “bands”. Part of me wonders how that would impact the “special” MagicBand sales (like the Christmas themed ones, etc…), though.
Extending Western Way to Route 545 past Flamingo Crossings – I always like easier traffic patterns, but I don’t want anything that’s going to result in Flamingo Crossing raising its prices (it’s a nice, quaint little place to stay for a night or two at the beginning or end of a trip.)
We’ll close out with a video that Disney recently posted of what it’s like to be the eagle at the tail end of the Main Street Electrical parade. Thanks for reading, and enjoy!
The Disney Parks Blog is live streaming Princess Elena’s Royal Welcome today. The easiest way to watch this event is probably to just visit Disney Parks Blog and see if they have a new post up that has a link to the live stream (Disney has turned off the various ways to easily access its streams via YouTube.)
For those that actually in Disney World during August, this Royal Welcome event is supposed to take place a few times each day over the next couple of weeks.
The next set of rumors / theories (that I first saw mentioned by friend of the site Howie from Maryland) is that Disneyland’s “Paint the Night” parade (which was recently discontinued) would be making its way to the Magic Kingdom. UPDATE: Paint the Night will actually be running on “select dates” through the Holiday Season. That, obviously, makes it harder for it to be starting at the Magic Kingdom soon.
Personally, I’m really torn on all of this. Watching the Main Street Electrical Parade, especially the second showing on a giving night, is always a highlight of Elyssa’s and my trips (even more so if we can win the Reno Challenge while watching.) That said, Paint the Night has gotten spectacular reviews and I would love to see it in person.
Ultimately, though, I’m really glad that Elyssa and I have a trip planned so we can say goodbye to the Main Street Electrical Parade one last time.
It might be the weekend, but here at Rope Drop [dot]Net HQ we are still committed to providing you with your News Nuggets. Before we get started on the “links” part of the Nuggets, a quick update to Tables in Wonderland. Disney has finally decided to add Skipper Canteen & Jock Lindsey’s to the list of places that get discounts (along with the much newer Nomad Lounge and Tiffins at Animal Kingdom.) I wonder if this will have any impact on attendance at Skipper Canteen.
As another special perk, Disney is giving 20% of merchandise purchase at Word of Disney in Disney Springs to Tables in Wonderland members through Labor Day. As always, I would recommend that you point out this discount to the cast members (i.e., I doubt they’ll ask you about it.)
Now, with that out of the way, let’s move on to the rest of the Nuggets!
Sunshine Seasons at Epcot Discontinuing Breakfast Service This Weekend – With more people heading over to Norway for FrozenStrom, it makes sense that fewer people were headed to The Land for breakfast. I wouldn’t be surprised if they offered breakfast service at The Land during the holidays, though.
A change to Epcot Fastpass+ Tier system – One of everyone’s favorite boat rides, Living the Land, is now a Tier 2 attraction. Not really a surprise, with Soarin’ back open and FrozenStrom drawing people to the other side of the park.
Experience Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique at Disney Springs with Limited Time Offer – A whole bunch of discounts for various pass holders, DVC members, people staying on site, etc… If you were thinking about going to Bibbidi Bobbidi at Disney Springs before Septmber 5, it might be worth it to check out these discounts.
That’s it for this edition of the News Nuggets! Of course, if you’re like me, the biggest news of the weekend is probably the announcement that the new Rogue One trailer will drop during NBC’s Olympics coverage on Thursday! (I’m a little excited for that movie.)
2016 Candlelight Processional at Epcot Dining Packages On Sale – It’s tough to book a package when the announcers aren’t known for so many dates. Also, with them offering packages for Captain’s Grill and Trattoria Al Forno, there’s going to be a lot of spots filled up package buyers.
Celebrate Halloween at ‘Club Villain’ at Disney’s Hollywood Studios – They’re bringing back this event on Friday and Saturday nights from September 2-October 29 (and also on October 31). With this timing, it’s an alternative option to Mickey’s Not So Scary (but on different nights.) I know this event has gotten good reviews, but $129 a person seems just so steep for something like this.
Inside look at 2016 DVC Beach Bash – Got to love lines like: “When the ice cream cart was wheeled out, it was like ‘The Hunger Games’ with people grabbing Mickey Bars by the handful!”
PizzeRizzo Opening This Fall at Disney’s Hollywood Studios – This post originally said “September”, but I guess Disney wanted to give themselves some leeway. I’m hoping they have the new flatbreads that from Pizzafari Josh over at easyWDW speaks so highly off.
As you might imagine, there have been a bunch of ride-through / experience videos of the new attractions. I don’t think I’m going to watch any of them, but if you’re interested, here are a few:
This is a big month for people who like Disney live streams, as the Disney Parks Blog is doing one every Monday. Today’s stream, which goes live at 4:00PM Eastern Time, is Mickey’s Royal Friendship Faire.
The other upcoming streams are:
July 18 – Star Wars: A Galactic Spectacular; and
July 25 – Paint the Night Parade
Enjoy getting your Disney fix, even when you can’t be at the parks yourself!
