WDWNT – Page 893 – WDWNT Archive

Ticket Price Changes Official

WDWNT on August 2, 2008

Disney announced increased ticket prices Friday afternoon that push the cost up 5.6 percent to $75 for the basic one-park, one-day ticket for adults and children age 10 or older. The old price, $71, is still in effect today. The price of a basic ticket for children ages 3-9 will rise Sunday to $63, up 5 percent from $60.

Disney also raised the price of its “Magic Your Way” multiday-ticket packages, by 3 percent to 8 percent. The top deal, a 10-day adult Magic Your Way ticket, now costs $237, or $23.70 a day, up 5.3 percent. The Park Hopper add-on, which allows ticket holders to move among any of Disney’s parks, will cost $50 for up to 10 days, a $5 increase. The Water Park Fun & More add-on option remains $50.

Florida residents may buy advance tickets from participating agencies, by phone or over the Internet, starting at $67.50 for one day. That also reflects a 5.6 percent increase from the current base price.

For those of you who are fans of the Three Fairies Crystal Shop in Sleeping Beauty Castle, that closed this past Saturday for conversion into the disabled room for the Sleeping Beauty Castle Walk-through, don’t dread. For the store will be moving in some form or another to the shuttered Gepetto Holiday Shop next to the Village Haus.

While this isn’t confirmed yet, I see no reason for it not to happen. Stay tuned to Disneyland News Today to find out the “final verdict”.

Court of Christmas Angels

WDWNT on August 1, 2008

We’ve heard from various sources that the Court of Angels in New Orleans Square (which is located near the exit of Pirates of the Caribbean) will soon be home to New Orleans Square’s Christmas Shop. The current Christmas store is located right next door to the Court of Angels, & this would be an expansion of that store. A canopy will be put up, with Christmas merchandise hanging everywhere, & of course cash registers will be added.

There’s no word one if this will be seasonal or year round just yet, & if this even will be happening, but be sure to stay tuned to Disneyland News Today for the latest updates!

See Within Your Mind… Lots of Refurbs!

WDWNT on August 1, 2008

As August has arrived, that means November is now available on Disneyland.com’s Calender, so it’s once again time for some changes to the attractions refurbishments list.

First up, the It’s a Small World refurbishment has long been rumored to end on November 28th, & we finally have official confirmation from Disneyland.com’s Calender that It’s a Small World will indeed re-open on November 29th.

Fantasmic! will have a 2 month long refurbishment beginning on September 2nd, & ending November 6th, due to the yearly maintenance for the Sailing Ship Columbia (which will be closed from September 2nd to October 25th), as well as more upgrades to the show itself.

The planned refurbishment for Gadget’s Go-Coaster that was to of started on October 20th seems to of been completely removed from the list.

Finally, the Pirates of the Caribbean refurbishment that starts on October 13th will last all the way through November 14th, re-opened just in time for Christmas.

Stay tuned to Disneyland News Today for updates on all attraction refurbishments. And for up-to-the-minute information on the various refurbishments, be sure to check our Attraction Refurbishments page!

Disney Trip Planning Live! This Sunday

WDWNT on August 1, 2008

Next Program on August 3, 2008 from 8-10pm EDT

Ever wished that you could have your Disney trip planning questions answered instantly? Now here’s your chance when WDW News Today, Disneyland News Today, and Magical Travel present the first edition of Disney Trip Planning Live on August 3, 2008. The show will be hosted on Talkshoe, which will allow listeners to interact instantly with our expert panel and get the information they need easily.

Title: Episode #1 – Disney Trip Planning Live! by WDWNT
Time: 08/03/2008 at 08:00 PM EDT
Phone Number: 1.724.444.7444
Call ID: 22960
Link: Show Information

Don’t worry if you can’t make it to the show, we will be accepting questions by email up until the date of the show at wdwnewstoday@gmail.com. You can then listen to the show on Talkshoe.com or on iTunes to hear the answer to your question after the show is over. Hope to see you there!!!

Midway Mania Olympics

WDWNT on August 1, 2008

Days before heading to Bejing for the Olympic Games, members of the USA volleyball team tested their competitive skills at Toy Story Mania! — a new attraction at Disney’s California Adventure, in Anaheim.

Teammates Ryan Millar, a BYU graduate from Palmdale, CA., and Scott Touzinsky, from Long Beach State and St. Louis, Mo., rode the attraction on July 29, racking up points with their spring action shooters. They each surpassed 135,000 points, but Touzinsky outscored Millar in a close contest.

Team USA, which trains at the American Sports Centers in Anaheim, CA., aims to score many more points as they shoot for a medal at the 2008 Summer Olympic Games, which begin Aug. 8. The U.S. men won their first FIVB World League title this summer, defeating Serbia in the gold-medal match in Rio de Janeiro.

Prices Follow The Crowds

WDWNT on July 31, 2008

We are hearing that Walt Disney World ticket prices may once again rise on Sunday, August 3. While we’re not hearing that the increase will be more than a few dollars, this change should be met with the usual resentment from guests.

In other pricing updates, 2009 Walt Disney World vacation packages should be available soon and rumors already indicate that this year will show one of the smallest single-year increases in Disney history. Again, it appears that Disney is expecting lower crowd levels throughout the year in 2009.

We can also expect changes once again in the Disney Dining Plan, with the addition of a quick-service dining plan and more changes in the infrastructure of the pre-existing plans.

Stay tuned to WDW News Today for more information on these headlines as it becomes available.

Christmas in July

WDWNT on July 30, 2008

As the central Florida temperature approaches 90 degrees outside, Cecil Gordon of Walt Disney World Holiday Services touches up the face of a six-foot-tall angel tree-topper July 30, 2008 inside one of the resort’s holiday warehouses in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. The angel will be placed on the top of the giant Christmas tree at the Epcot theme park during the holiday season later this year. Gordon and his colleagues are currently on round-the-clock schedules behind-the-scenes at Walt Disney World Resort, decorating more than 1,500 Christmas trees, unpacking more than 15 miles of garland, testing dozens of snow machines and repainting hundreds of animated and static holiday scenes that will be seen by guests all across the 40-square-mile resort. Gordon, from St. Mary, Jamaica, has worked for Walt Disney World for 19 years. (Garth Vaughan, photographer)

“Make Port at the Caribbean Beach Resort!!”

WDWNT on July 30, 2008

Reported by the Orlando Sentinel:

Walt Disney World has unveiled a rendering and a few details of some retheming and renovations in the works for Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort — theming it after the hugely-popular Pirates of the Caribbeanride/movies/games franchise.

Clients who book through Walt Disney Travel Co. also will receive a new benefit — 30 minute play-cards for Disney’s resort hotel video arcades.

Walt Disney World also is announcing some changes in its Magic Your Way plan, to include Quick Service Dining beginning Jan. 11. Vacationers can get two quick-service meals and two snacks for each night of their stay in a Disney resort hotel, plus a refillable drink mug for unlimited refills of non-alcoholic beverages at Disney resort hotels.

Beds that look like ships. Dressers that look like old crates. Curtains that look like tattered sails. The attached artist’s rendering shows a few of the details.

Disney is planning the look for 384 rooms in the Trinidad South Village Area, set to be ready sometime next year. The resort has a total of 2,112 rooms.

These Pirate rooms are an addition to the hotel that has been in progress for a few years now, as are the Finding Nemo themed rooms now beginning to debut at the resort. It’s also interesting to note the inclusion of those Arcade Gaming Cards in the vacation booking, something Disney has never done before. As if all that wasn’t enough to swallow, this article even goes on to confirm the addition of the new Quick Service Dining Plan. Stay tuned to WDW News Today as more information becomes available on these major headlines.

Mega DLR Update

WDWNT on July 30, 2008

David “Darkbeer” Michael visited the Disneyland Resort today, & saw some of the effects of the earthquake, as well as attending a lot of different events & exhibits in Downtown Disney (of which I don’t have a clue what any of them are, but I have my duty to report them!). Let’s dive on in this mega update: