NOINDEX – Page 191 – WDWNT Archive

PHOTO REPORT: Hollywood Studios 11/9/16 (Star Wars, Muppets, Doctor Strange, Rock ‘N’ Roller Coaster, ETC.)

WDWNT on November 18, 2016

We head back to Disney’s Hollywood Studios for our latest photo report, checking in on Star Wars land, the continuing progress in the Muppets Courtyard, and much more around the Hollywood that never was, but always will be in our minds. At least what is left of it…

Rock ‘N’ Roller Closed-ster

Rock ‘N’ Roller Coaster is closed for refurbishment.

The gates were closed and the courtyard off limits to guests while the work is being done.

Doctor Strange Arrives

The area was still being set up when we arrived at park opening. Kind of “strange” that Toy Story Mania exits into Bleecker Street…

The Doctor Strange show marks the first regular offering to guests with a MARVEL character at Walt Disney World. The Guardians of the Galaxy briefly appeared at the Unleash the Villains event a few years back.

The show performs 5 days a week at the park.

Children are chosen from the crowd and then trained in the mystic arts by Dr. Strange.

This and That

A Moana billboard has gone up behind the Great Movie Ride.

A new enclosed space is being built inside One Man’s Dream. Whether this is for some meet and greet or the AVATAR model remains to be seen.

An enclosed space would allow for the AVATAR model to change between daytime and nighttime view, which it did at the D23 Expo.

Some Rogue One art for sale at Star Wars Launch Bay.

A giant Darth Vader action figure statue also for sale.

The removal of the AOTAS Hall of Fame continues.

The Muppets Planter

As we reported, the MuppetVision Fountain has been temporarily turned into a planter while nearby construction on Star Wars land takes place.

Seating is already in place at PizzeRizzo, set to open on the 18th.

A really large crane has appeared at the Star Wars land construction site.

Mousecellaneous

Streetmosphere out in front of Rock ‘N’ Roller Coaster while it is closed.

Reel Vogue now has a large selection of The Nightmare Before Christmas merchandise. Note that the frames on the display art is reminiscent of the stretching room portraits from the Haunted Mansion.

Guests can find prepackaged candy apples should they not want to wait in the line at Sweet Spells.

An Admiral Joe Fowler sweatshirt was released in the Twenty Eight and Main collection.

Some new vintage style Mickey Mouse shirts for sale, some featuring the original Magic Kingdom map artwork.

Polynesian Village Resort Now Offering Paid “Pool Cabana” Rentals

WDWNT on November 18, 2016

Guests staying at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort can now reserve the Oasis Pool patio shade structures (kind of like a cabana) for a half or full day starting November 13th.

Oasis Pool shade structures at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort

They will be able to be reserved for $25 for a half day or $40 for a full day. Reservations can be made by calling the reservations center, DVC member services, or through a la carte at the resort concierge.

The rental simply includes the rental of the space with no additional amenities included. The shade structures were previously open for all guest use on a first come, first serve basis.

TONIGHT on WDW News Tonight (11/9/16) – The Changing Value in Walt Disney World, Price is Right, Thank You Notes

WDWNT on November 18, 2016

Tonight on WDW News Tonight, we tackle the ever-changing value in visiting Walt Disney World, we play some new pricing games in WDWNT: The Price is Right, and Tom writes out some thank you notes…

If you are in the Orlando area, you can tune in to AM 1520 WBZW at showtime. For those outside the Orlando area, the show can be heard (and now watched via video stream) at Listen.WDWNT.com on your computer or mobile device. The show also utilizes new interactive avenues for our audience, including a live chat, the ability to call-in to the show, and live polling. WDW News Tonight is hosted by Tom Corless and Nick LoCicero, but also features appearances by a number of other WDWNT correspondents.

Coming up on this week’s show:

A recap of the week’s news (with a WDWNT comedic twist)
Tom writes out his thank you notes
The Wonderful World of Psychotic Comments – Election Edition
“WDWNT: The Price is Right”, presented by Theme Park Connection
Who’s Hates Tom Now?
A large-scale discussion on the value in Walt Disney World, from the cost to the upkeep (or lack of) in the value of vacationing at WDW
And more!

We hope that you will tune in tonight at 9PM ET for another episode of WDW News Tonight!

If you missed our last show, be sure to watch it:

VIDEO: Walt Disney World Rolls Out Holiday 2016 Ad Featuring New Offerings

WDWNT on November 18, 2016

Walt Disney World has launched a new television ad for the holiday season, including our first look at Jingle Bell, Jingle BAM! in action:

Crepes Return to AristoCrepes at Disney Springs with New Menu

WDWNT on November 18, 2016

Just days after switching to seasonal operation and menu, the AristoCrepes at Disney Springs has brought back crepes and it’s names.

The savory crepes are gone and what remains are three of the sweet crepes. You can find the old menu in our original review of the AristoCrepes. The new snack items that were introduced after the crepes were removed are still available as well.

The sweet crepes temporarily moved to Amorette’s Patisserie in the interim, but are now back at AristoCrepes. Amorette’s now has a separate crepe menu:

BREAKING: Toy Story Land Announced for Shanghai Disneyland

WDWNT on November 18, 2016

Toy Story Land is coming to Shanghai Disneyland! Bob Iger, chairman and chief executive officer of The Walt Disney Company, along with Bob Chapek, chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, and Fan Xiping, chairman of Shanghai Shendi Group, recently celebrated breaking ground on this new expansion, which will open in 2018.

The expansion started even before opening Shanghai Disneyland in anticipation of the park’s needs. The characters from Toy Story have been well liked in China ever since the release of the first film in the franchise back in 1995, and Shanghai Disney Resort already has the only resort hotel in the world dedicated to the characters and stories from Toy Story.

As you can tell from the logo, Toy Story Land at Shanghai Disneyland will be both authentically Disney and distinctly Chinese, making it a one-of-a-kind experience for guests. Everyone’s favorite toys from one of the most popular franchises ever will come to life and play in a fully immersive land with three attractions and a themed character greeting area. It is unclear what the 3 attractions will e and if they will be unique to this version, or simply copied from the existing lands or the upcoming Hollywood Studios project.

RUMOR: Hong Kong Disneyland to Tear Down Sleeping Beauty Castle

WDWNT on November 18, 2016

I have heard some crazy rumors in my lifetime, but never in a million years could I fathom that a Disney theme park would remove its castle. Surprisingly, it seems that Hong Kong Disneyland park will be…

Sleeping Beauty Castle at Hong Kong Disneyland

Rumor has it that Hong Kong Disneyland is unhappy with the carbon copy of Sleeping Beauty Castle that they received from Disneyland back in 2005 when the park opened. While the small castle looks rather beautiful with the real mountains behind it, the castle itself is rather unimpressive.

2005 was a very different time at Walt Disney Imagineering and in the Walt Disney Company. Some might even call it the dark ages. The company was still under the direction of Michael Eisner, who was frightened by the failures of Disneyland Resort Paris, a project in which they spent time and money to build a gorgeous park that just never grew the audience they expected. He also was on his way out of the company as many shareholders were becoming restless with many of the company’s decisions.

In designing and executing Hong Kong Disneyland, the company wasn’t looking to break the bank. In fact, at one point in development, the Castle wasn’t even going to have a backside, it would be hollow like a movie set. Like I said folks, the dark ages.

Still, it was cheaper to just copy what had been built in California, a small Castle with little interior. It seems that Hong Kong is a little jealous of little brother Shanghai Disneyland’s giant Storybook Castle and wants a bigger and more impressive park icon of their own.

Storybook Castle at Shanghai Disneyland

If the plan comes to pass, a larger castle (smaller than Shanghai, but completely unique in design) will be built on the site of the current Sleeping Beauty Castle in Hong Kong. This would mark the very first time that a castle was torn down in a Disney theme park.

This project is part of a rumored second expansion phase of the park that would include new attractions as well. The last expansion phase added Mystic Manor, Grizzly Gulch, and Toy Story Land to the park.

An announcement from Disney is expected soon.

What do you think? Does this seem like a good idea or should the current castle be left alone?

Cancelled Beauty and the Beast Disney Infinity Figures Revealed

WDWNT on November 18, 2016

Once again, thanks to Infiniteer Adventures, we have new concept art for some more unreleased characters for the cancelled Disney Infinity 3.0.

This time we have Belle and Beast, who’s designs are inspired by the upcoming live-action remake of Beauty and the Beast. As you can see in the video and pictures below, Belle’s figure holds a striking resemblance to Emma Watson, who will be portraying Belle in the new film.

https://https://youtu.be/HK0HlLi_6Z4

As with most Disney Infinity figures, these probably would have released around the same time the movie hit theaters, so March 2017 in this case.

Just like the many other unreleased figures we’ve seen over the months, it is a shame that we won’t ever get our hands on these. The designs look fantastic.

VIDEO: International Trailer For “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” Has Lots Of New Footage

WDWNT on November 18, 2016

An International trailer for “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” has been released and it contains some nice new footage. We get a better look at Darth Vader in costume, and it also looks like Jyn Erso may be wearing a Kyber crystal, the crystal used to power a Jedi’s lightsaber, around her neck. Check it out!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zN07YwLMRoA

Source: We Got This Covered

PHOTO REPORT: Disneyland Resort 11/11/16 (Festival of the Holidays Menus, Christmas Decorations, Giant Crane, ETC.)

WDWNT on November 18, 2016

Reporter Tim Alcoser returns with another fantastic photo report from the Disneyland Resort as the holiday season descends on Anaheim. Who’s ready for food, decorations, and an inexplicable giant crane? WELL THEN, LET’S GO!!!

The Festival of the Holidays Begins

The Festival of the Holidays has kicked off at Disney California Adventure.

The entire park is already in its holiday finest as well.

An archway near the Carthay Circle Theater welcomes guests to the Festival of Holidays.

Banner sup around the main thoroughfare.

Booths had lines before they even opened for the day.

The drummer group is particularly enjoyable, catch them if you can!

Some extra carts tacked with holiday merchandise have been rolled out for the season.

It’s beginning to look a lot like Cars Land

The ever-popular Cars Land goes overboard with decorations celebrating the California car culture.

Even Stanley gets a Santa cap!

This and That

Work continues on the conversion of Tower of Terror into Guardians of the Galaxy – Mission Breakout.

While MagicBands are never coming, so many of these touch point readers have been installed around the resort. One has to be curious if they will find some way to utilize them in a new system.

While the show is being retooled, FROZEN: Live at the Hyperion is down to just two shows a day.

The Doctor Strange preview is currently running at the Sunset Showcase Theater, former home to MuppetVision 3-D.

An actual costume from the film is on display inside.

“Come with Me to Disneyland”

The holiday season is in full swing at Disneyland Park as well.

The Jingle Cruise has returned to Adventureland.

There is a massive crane parked outside of Pirates of the Caribbean…

It is boxed in a small fenced area, but it is really, really, really hard to miss.

Work continues on the Rivers of America and a whole new Fantasmic show.

The Columbia is getting ready for the Pirates of the Caribbean sequence.

Star Wars land off in the distance.

The borders off the land that will separate it from the rest of the park are already taking shape, but the same can not be said for anything else in the project.