A Morning at Magic Kingdom and Disney Springs

by John Disney Springs, Featured, Magic Kingdom, Uncategorized

If you follow Elyssa and Me on Twitter, you know that we had quite the issues with travel last night. The short version is that a storm in Baltimore delayed (what would have been) our plane from Raleigh / Durham to Orlando for over 5 hours, and Southwest couldn’t guarantee that if that plane made it to RDU that it would actually fly to Orlando. To try and salvage this quick weekend trip, we decided to switch to a flight to Tampa, change our rental car reservation accordingly, and then drive up to Orlando. It was stressful, the overall travel took way longer than we thought it would, but we made it to our condo late last night so we could still enjoy a weekend away.

As a lot of Magic Kingdom mornings do, we started the day at Kona. Some Tonga Toast and a press pot of coffee always feels like a good way to start the day (even if the waitress kept telling us we looked tired.)

Given we were a little run down from last night, we went pretty easy on our Magic Kingdom touring. Thankfully, being there for park opening (along with some Fastpass+ refreshing) allowed us to get in Haunted Mansion, Pirates, Jungle Cruise, Buzz Lightyear, the People Mover, and visit with Mickey and Minnie in their fancy new outfits.

I have no issues with a fierce redhead.

Not sure what’s cooler: Minnie’s outfit, or Elyssa’s popcorn bucket…

After we left the Magic Kingdom, we headed over to Disney Springs. We debated trying a view different options, but ended up at our favorite stop: Homecomin’. As always, it was delicious. I think the Thigh High chicken biscuits at Homecomin’ compete with the Slider at BoAtHOusE for best meal value on property.

It’s either Sweet Tea or Apple Pie for me.

We did try something new, though: the cookie dough from Aristocrepes. It was quite good as a quick dessert (and surprisingly filling.)

Cooke dough...topped with cookies. — Cooke dough…topped with cookies.

Overall, it was a pretty good morning (and it did a good job of washing away the hassles from last night.) We’re not sure where we’ll end up tonight, but I think we’ll consider this day a success, regardless.

New Entertainment (and a Festival) Starting at Disney World Today

by John Epcot, Magic Kingdom

It’s a big day at Disney World, as the 2019 International Festival of the Arts starts today. Personally, I’m a big fan of this festival. It doesn’t bring the crowds of Food & Wine (nothing does), but still has some interesting beer options and exhibits and shops to look at. I still probably rank Flower & Garden as my “favorite” festival, but Festival of the Arts is pretty great.

In other parks, Disney is launching a bunch of new entertainment offerings today. I’m interested in checking a bunch of these things, especially getting to meet Mickey and Minnie (together!) at Town Square. Having a couple of different dance parties to pump music into the parks is also something I consider a positive (but I know there are those out there that disagree.)

Here’s hoping that Elyssa and I can get down to check out some of these things before too long.

A Price Increase and D23 Expo Japan – A News Nuggets Special Edition

by John Epcot, News Nuggets, Planning, The Studios

This weekend was a big weekend for Disney World news, since Disney decided to drop its latest prices increase on the same day as its parks presentation at D23 in Japan.

Starting first with the price increase, Disney has increased prices by around $4 a day (depending on the type and length of ticket you are buying). This is generally in line with previous price increases, and probably doesn’t change many people’s calculatioons as to whether or not they will actually visit Disney World, but—that said—having to spend an extra $100 in tickets for a 5-day trip for a family of four is not insubstantial. What could really impact people’s travel behavior, though, is if the rumors of seasonal pricing for multii-day tickets come true.

As an added note, Disney also increased the price of parking $2 to $22 per day (and $5 to $45 a day for preferred parking), and increased the price of its Minnie Van Service to $25 per ride.

On a more “positive” note, Disney made a number of Disney World related announcements at its D23 Expo Japan. These include that Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway railway will open next year (2019) and that the Guardians of the Galaxy Roller Coaster will be one of the world’s longest enclosed coasters. Most interesting to me, though, were the announcements about the new Star Wars hotel that will be “seamlessly connected” Galaxy’s Edge at the Studios. Here is Disney’s blurb:

This first-of-its-kind resort will combine luxury with complete immersion into an authentic Star Wars story. Guests’ journey through space will start when everyone departs together for a multiday Stars Wars adventure by boarding a starship alive with characters and stories that unfold all around them during a voyage through the galaxy.

At the resort, guests immediately become active citizens of the galaxy and can dress up in the proper attire. Every resort window will also have a view into space. The opportunity for immersion at this resort will also stand out among all Disney resorts around the globe, as it will be seamlessly connected to Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, allowing guests a total Star Wars experience.

I know I’m biased, but it sounds pretty awesome (even if there aren’t a lot of details in that blurb).

Well, that covers a big weekend of Disney World related news. I hope you enjoyed this extra helping of News Nuggets!