Crane Appears

WDWNT on September 19, 2007

 A crane has arrived in Fantasyland to install the Christmas lights on to Cinderella Castle. The crane is located in the walkway between Cinderella Castle and Sir Mickey’s. No word yet on when the crane will be used or installation of the lights will begin.

Contemporary Update

WDWNT on September 17, 2007

More changes have come to Disney’s Contemporary Resort. In response the the complete closure of the food and fun center on the ground level, a new temporary quick service location has opened in the Grand Canyon Concourse. The new location is called “Tempo Grab and Go” and will be in place until changes are complete on the ground floor in August 2008. These changes are in response and anticipation of the new north wing of the resort that is being constructed currently. The new wing will link by walkway directly to the Grand Canyon Concourse level of the main building when it is completed in 2009. Until then, rolling changes will be taking place throughout the resort. The new wing is rumored to be a Disney Vacation Club Resort.

Meet Jack Sparrow

WDWNT on September 17, 2007

Jack Sparr…excuse me…CAPTAIN Jack Sparrow is now making meet and greet appearances in the Adventureland Veranda at the Magic Kingdom. The space has been unused for about a decade now, but appears to still be in good shape. This also furthers the rumors of a pirate character dining experience coming to the location. Now bring me that horizon…and autograph book!!!

Block Party Bash

WDWNT on September 17, 2007

The parade housing building at the Disney MGM Studios is being enlarged for the new upcoming Block Party Bash Parade. The parade will begin its run at the studios in Spring 2008, after the park changes it’s name to Disney’s Hollywood Studios.

New Experience Downtown

WDWNT on September 17, 2007

In an update on what we reported here about a month ago, Rawlings has opened a small shop inside of the Team Mickey store at the Downtown Disney Marketplace. The store personalizes bats, balls, gloves, and helmets and is open everyday during Team Mickey’s hours of operation.

Italy Update

WDWNT on September 17, 2007

The entire backside of the Italy pavillion in Epcot’s World Showcase has been walled off in preperation for the new Tutto Italia restaurant that is replacing the fabled Alfredo’s. There is still no set opening date for the restaurant.

ABC Theater

WDWNT on September 17, 2007

It is now all but official that a new show is coming to the Disney MGM Studios. The long closed ABC theater has been walled up and adorned with signs stating that an all new production is on its way. Rumors are making the rounds that it will become an indoor home to the all new High School Musical 2 show starting this fall, but nothing is official just yet. We will just have to wait and see!!!

Chefs De France Review

WDWNT on September 15, 2007

Dining Review by Collin Korb

        On our most recent visit to WDW we decided to take full advantage of the Dining Plan. There were three of us, two adults and one child, age 14.  The point is that we made a decision to try menu items that we normally wouldn’t order, especially since they were already paid for in advance.We were wise to make reservations ahead of time for our party of three. When we arrived we were greeted by multiple hostesses, all were very pleasant.  We only waited about five minutes, I strongly urge making reservations!  We had the pleasure of being seated in the “three-seasons porch” area near the outdoor fountain overlooking the courtyard.  It was a great view as the sun decided to peek out from behind two days of clouds.  It was also nice to be able to people watch during dinner.

        Our server for the evening was Sebastian.  He greeted us warmly and took our drink order.  After a short wait he returned to answer our appetizer questions.  We decided on three separate appetizers, the Tarte a la Flame Alsacienne, Tartare de saumon legerement fume, sauce moutarde, and Assiette de fromages de France- basically this translates to the bread and cheese plate, raw salmon spread, and cheese plate.  None of us had ever had items such as these and I am pleased to report that we each tried a bit and did enjoy the eclectic flavors.  Sebastian returned to refill our drinks after we had enjoyed the appetizers.  He was very polite and accommodating in spite of the fact we were his fifth table of at least three or more patrons.  We were less adventurous with dinner, all of us ordered the Filet de boeuf grille, sauce au poivre noir Gratin Dauphinois et haricots verts it was exceptional! I enjoyed the Caesar salad and the girls enjoyed the “French Onion Soup”. 

        We thoroughly enjoyed our experience and were never rushed to leave.  Sebastian was exceptional with his service and treating us like royalty.  The girls decided to run (literally) over to Japan to shop before it closed, they had placed orders for dessert before leaving.  Creme Brulee, Clafoutis bleuets, sorbet et coulis aux fruits Rouges, and Crepe a la pomme et cannelle, glace vanille, caramel jus de pommes arrived minutes after the girls had rushed back.  They were just in time to enjoy the finale to an outstanding meal.  Sebastian made sure we were paid and out the door before Illuminations! His service and the meal were so exceptional that we demanded to speak to the management.  We complimented the service from door to table and dessert.  We even decided to leave a little extra in spite of our Dining Plan advantage.  Overall it was an outstanding experience and we recommend Chefs de France!!!

Haunted Mansion Report

WDWNT on September 14, 2007

The Haunted Mansion reopened today, unfortunately we were unable to attain any coverage, but here is the great coverage WDWmagic had about the new additions and re-opening of the Haunted Mansion:

SPOILERS BELOW

Highlights of the Haunted Mansion refurbishment

  • The whole of the exterior has been repainted and looks wonderful.
  • A new red colored canopy has been installed over the queue line.
  • The parlour room with the fireplace and changing portrait appears to be laregely the same as before.
  • The stretch room is a MAJOR improvement. It is almost entirely new. The decor has been completely refreshed. The audio sounds terrific, it has deep bass, multi-positional sound. There are also new sound effects, including creaking as the room stretches, and sounds of bats flying around. There is also a piece of new dialog from Phantom Manor – “I didn’t mean to frighten you, so prematurely…”. Besides the great additions, the actual stretch room mechanism is now silent and very smooth, which really helps with the whole illusion.
  • The load area has received a considerable amount of extra theming. The moving eye portraits are now in the load area. The carpeting is new, lots of great cobwebs hanging from the spooky looking light fixtures. There is also a new load console for the cast.
  • A note on the Doombuggy, they now run silently, and no signs of any dropped audio. All the of the dialog is crisp and clear.
  • There is a new window with lightning flashes on the left hand side, which are opposite the portrait gallery. As the lightning flashes, the portraits change. Its a great new scene.
  • The new staircase scene is a very welcome new addition. There is a lot of detail here, and it is the kind of thing you need to see lots of times to take it all in.
  • Exiting the staircase room, there is a corridor of eyes.
  • The séance room has the much talked about floating Leota head. It really is an amazing special effect, and has to be seen to be appreciated. Videos are not going to do this justice.
  • In the ballroom, there are signs of cleanup and enhancements, but nothing significant.
  • The attic has had the most attention. It’s awesome. All the popup heads have gone from this scene, and been replaced with detailed sets, with portraits, and a sinister background sound track. The ghostly bride is excellent, and is genuinely spooky!
  • The graveyard scene now has only 2 or 3 popup ghosts in total. They are used much more effectively, and they no longer scream. The rest of the scene seems unchanged, but has all been cleaned and restored.
  • Little Leota looks new and refreshed.

Overall it’s a terrific update, and really restores the mansion to it’s rightful status as one of the best attractions at Walt Disney World. WDI and the Disney cast did a terrific job of getting this done so quickly, and above all, to such a high quality level.

Just a final word, you really need to see the attraction in person to appreciate it, photos and videos are not going to do this justice.

The preceeding news is provided by WDWmagic and is not property of WDW News Today. In effort to bring you WDW news as quickly as possible, the preceeding has simply been reported from another website. WDW News Today is in no way affiliated with WDWmagic.

Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique Now Open

WDWNT on September 13, 2007

The Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique is now open for buisness inside Cinderella Castle at the Magic Kingdom. The just for children beauty parlor is accepting reservations now at (407) WDW-DINE, and reservations fill up very fast!