Disney Vacation Club Slips On Disney’s California Coast Hotel
An interesting document has leaked onto the internet confirming Disney Vacation Club will be building another resort at Walt Disney World in the next few years. Earlier this year, rumors of a California-themed resort to be located between Disney’s Hollywood Studios and Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort began circulating. Well, it seems those rumors are true:
DISNEY VACATION CLUB CALIFORNIA COAST HOTEL – ORLANDO, FLORIDA
Disney Vacation Club decided to extend its hotel experience with their new California Coast Resort at H1, Lake Buena Vista, Orlando, Florida. George Coon was invited by the DVC Design Team to work under the direct supervision of GSB Architects, and Mr. Wing Chao, providing design direction for this next and possibly best of the DVC properties in Orlando. California’s remarkable coast offers an experience of recognizable icons which were chosen to be represented in separate hotel experiences including; Venice Beach, Casa del Mar, Montage, the Balboa Pavilion, Laguna Hills, Newport Beach, and Santa Barbara. The project is presently in the Schematic Design Phase.
COMPLETION DATE: Estimated 2012
SIZE: Estimated 1,208 units
PROJECT COST: To Be Determined
No more details are available at this time, but stay tuned to WDW News Today as more information becomes available on this breaking story.
Pixar Play Parade to be on Hiatus Due to Construction
Some more sad news from DCA this week. Due to construction, it was announced on the Disney Parks Blog yesterday that the 2011 and 2012 Food and Wine Festival will not be held, but that is not all that DCA is losing from the expansion.
From the LA Times Website:
The ongoing expansion, derisively dubbed by some as “Disney’s Construction Adventure,” has proven a continuing nightmare for DCA planners, who have been forced to ship the Main Street Electrical Parade to the Magic Kingdom when construction shrank the parade route and holding queues had to be created to accommodate the thousands of visitors waiting to view the popular “World of Color” water show. And the ramped-up construction will force the Pixar Play Parade into hiatus beginning Jan. 3, with the parade characters continuing to appear in pop-up “dance parties” throughout the park.
It is rumored that the Ratatouille float (if not more) may be shipped to Walt Disney World for the new “Pixar Parade” at Disney’s Hollywood Studios debuting early next year.
Walt Disney: One Man’s Dream Re-Opens with New Exhibits
While it was delayed for a few hours, Walt Disney: One Man’s Dream re-opened from it’s refurbishment that began in August with a few new exhibits and a general refreshing. Here’s what’s new:
-1964-65 World’s Fair display featuring Mr. Lincoln animatronic and the “it’s a small world” facade
-The exhibits featuring work from after Walt’s life are called “The Legacy Continues”, the walls are now lined with pictures from all different arms of the Walt Disney Company in a running timeline
-A new display featuring EPCOT Center animatronics such as the Horizons butler robot, Figment, and some of the characters from Kitchen Kabaret
-Movie props from “Honey, I Blew Up the Kid”, “TRON”, “The Rocketeer” and more are now on display
-The Re-Imagined Paradise Pier model that once appeared at the Blue Sky Cellar in Disney California Adventure is now on display
-Small models of some of the fountain statues from Hong Kong Disneyland are on display
-More “Legacy Continues” exhibits are listed as coming Fall 2010, it is possible that a lot of what you see may still change at that time
In the meantime, here is what the exhibit looked like today when it re-opened and WDWNT Reporter Banks Lee was on the scene to capture it on video:
Hey Taxi 9″ Up Close and Personal
Now for the photos of the real 9″ Hey, Taxi NYC Disney Store exclusive! (The previous pics were from the statue inside the store) It’s slightly different from the statue but somethings are much more clear. Here’s the back…

I think the 9″ head clearly shows the World Trade Center towers better then the statue’s head. I wonder what Jim Valeri’s reasoning was for placing them in the skyline. Whatever the reason you have to agree that it screams New York City.
A closer shot of the image on the back. Mickey pointing at Lady Liberty and the license plate reading Mickey. (It’s pretty crazy that Mickey ended up in a taxi with his name on the back! That’s like getting a ride in the Cash Cab! What are the chances!)
And the front…
I love the details of the lights on the taxi sign. In fact they painted them from all four perspectives.
Tell us what you think!
Graffiti Back! and Front

More updates from our NYC reporter Lori.
Another exclusive here at Destination Vinylmation. The back of the the Graffiti Limited edition NYC Disney Store exclusive.
Check it out! On the top is the night sky with a skyline of NYC. Then the rest of the body is a red brick wall with graffiti (hense the name) The word Mickey is spray painted across the wall in black and there are blue and yellow paint splatters.
The most interesting part is the void (thank you CSI) in the big yellow splatter pattern in the shape of Mickey Mouse. Is it possible the cute mouse has been committing a crime? Maybe this is Duffy’s house and Mickey wants to remind him who’s the big cheese?
This vinylmation was designed by artist Gerald Mendez. It is a limited edition of 1540, and each one is numbered! (1540 is the address of the new Disney Store in Times Sqaure)
And for the fans, the front of the Graffiti 9″ vinylmation also!

The New York Skyline, at night with a big moon shining on the front. As with the Hey, Taxi vinylmation, the skylines differ from front to back.
Let us know what you think about these new vinylmations!
First Look at the NYC Hey, Taxi Vinylmation
Destination Vinylmation Exclusive
A first look at what appears to be the BACK of a large display model of the 9″ Hey, Taxi NYC Disney Store exclusive. (confirmed!) While the front was an empty window reflecting skyscrapers, the back has Mickey pointing to the Statue of Liberty which is reflected in the glass! Also there are taillights and the license plate says, “Mickey”. So with that we know of the front, the body of the vinylmation if the actual taxi with the head having the Taxi sign with lights, along with the blue sky and the skyline of New York City. The front has head lights and a grill, and the back has tail lights and a handle to open the trunk. Also of note: the skyline on the front with the Empire State Building is different from the skyline on the back (more on that after the photo)!
This Vinylmation was designed by artist Jim Valeri, who up til now had never done a Vinylmation but has two coming out at the store today. This one, Hey, Taxi, and the New York, New York black 9″. Before working for the Disney Store Jim Valeri worked for Disney Consumer Products as well as Cartoon Network.
Also, is it just us, or are those the World Trade Center Twin Towers in the skyline on the back? We’ve put some thought into it, and they look like the right kind of shadows, and geographically, if you were headed to the Empire State Building from the Statue of Liberty, you would go near them. What are your thoughts? Tell us what you think in the Comments!
For anyone who wanted to see the front half. Also notice the Blue boxed New York vinylmations below the statue. Those are the 9″ New York, New York vinylmations. That means the statue is huge!!
Waiting in line…
Destination Vinylmation NYC reporter Lori will be reporting from NYC Disney Store for us. Check back here all day for updates on all the Vinylmation related material in the store along with the first look at the 4 NYC exclusives. Also check out Destination Disney’s facebook page for updates on other non-vinylmation discoveries at the store.
2011 and 2012 Food and Wine Festival Canceled
Sad news today from the Disney Parks Blog:
As many of you know, we are in the midst of a multi-year expansion of Disney California Adventure park. Our first key milestone occurred this past June with the premiere of “World of Color,” and next year, we’ll open The Little Mermaid ~ Ariel’s Undersea Adventure. As we shared with you last Friday, Cars Land is well on its way to opening in 2012, and we’ll continue to share news and take you behind the scenes throughout the expansion here on the Disney Parks Blog.
While we are extremely excited with all of the progress to date, we have had to make some changes to accommodate our growth, and today we want to let you know we will not be hosting the 2011 and 2012 Disney’s California Food & Wine Festivals in Disney California Adventure park. This was not an easy decision, but expansion work over the next two years in some areas of the park present significant logistical challenges around scheduling the hundreds of festival offerings. This work includes transforming the park’s entry plaza as well as the hub area where the event main stage has been located. When the work is completed, it will be reminiscent of the Los Angeles that Walt found when he arrived in the 1920s, complete with Red Car Trolleys. Below is a rendering that we’ve not yet released on the Blog that shows what the area will look like when completed.
We realize the festival has been a guest favorite but feel it’s most important to ensure our park experience is the best it can be during this exciting time. After the expansion is completed and we open Cars Land in 2012, we will continue to look at opportunities for special events and festivals. Please stay tuned to the Blog for the most up-to-date information.
Sam the Eagle!
Just today I was thinking of taking some photos of The Muppets Set and wanted to add the America Sings Bird from Park 3 to represent Sam the Eagle.
Then Disney posted a photo from the next set of Muppets and I decided to wait.
What other Muppets didn’t make it into set 1 that you think should make it into set 2?
I’m just waiting for the rest of the band.









