Our good friend Denise over at Mousesteps.com has a new photo update from Walt Disney World featuring pictures of the newly remodeled Wolfgang Puck Express at Downtown Disney, Animal Kingdom Lodge construction, and much more. To see the full update, go HERE.
According to MiceAge‘s Monday in the Parks article for this week, the pathway connecting California Screamin’ & the Sun Wheel in DCA, that has been roped off for a few months now due to Toy Story Mania construction, is scheduled to re-open to guest flow on Friday, March 14th.
Coming to McDonald’s Happy Meals this Friday, March 15, are toys themed to Disney’s Pirate and Princess Party at the Magic Kingdom. There are going to be 16 toys to collect in all, with 8 Pirates inspired toys and 8 belonging to Disney Princess brand. Each toy will also come with one of eight collectible cards and a chance to win a trip to the Walt Disney World Resort during the Year of a Million Dreams. To check out all the toys being released, go HERE. Click on the Pirate or Princess side of the image to see the corresponding kids meal inserts.
If you’re going to be in Disney’s California Adventure tomorrow, note that there may be a soft opening or 2 or even 3 for the new Playhouse Disney: Live on Stage show. Also at 11am, there will be a media preview for the PIXAR Play Parade as well!
DCA’s old parade, Block Party Bash, debuted today at Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Walt Disney World. If any of the parade’s fans would like to see what has become of it, I advise you check this post on our sister site, WDW News Today. Also be sure to check out these pictures from EpcotServo, covering pretty much everything in the parade at DHS!
For complete coverage of the first public showing of the new Block Party Bash parade/show at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, head on over to Epcot Servo’s coverage HERE. The parade runs the opposite route of the now defunct Stars and Motorcars Parade, as it starts on Hollywood Blvd. and makes its way to the Star Tours area, making two lengthy stops along the way. We will have our review and explanation of the parade in the news and rumors section of episode 34 of the WDW News Today podcast.
While we have no pictures yet, we can confirm that the Goat in Big Thunder Mountain Railroad has returned to the tracks!
Welcome Back Mr. Goat!
We’ve got a few interesting videos & pictures from MintCrocodile of MouseInfo. This first video shows testing of the new Mark VII monorails in the esplanade. The second is of the new pyro being used in the finale of Fantasmic. We also have some pictures of an after hours rehearsal for the PIXAR Play Parade. Do note that they put up a lattice wall, so the floats aren’t very clear.
Disney is planning on launching a new mobile phone service that will bring the fun of any of the Walt Disney World water parks to you before, during, and after your trip to either Blizzard Beach or Typhoon Lagoon. Here is the official news from DisneyWorld.com:
Dive Into A Thrilling Splash On…Your Cell Phone? Introducing the awesome new Disney WAP Site
You and your kids can access Disney Water Park fun before, during and after you actually visit them-with one of today’s hottest Disney stars appearing along the way.
“At the heart of the Disney Water Parks mobile program is a website optimized for the mobile phone,” explained Tom Aronson of Disney Parks Global New Media and Technologies. “It’s filled with exclusive wallpapers, insider tips and an interactive personality quiz.”
Get your head in the phone
The feature Tom told us about that will really have your kids squealing with joy is the one that features “High School Musical” and “Jump In” star Corbin Bleu. He had such a blast when he recently visited both Disney Water Parks, he was happy to help us send messages to express this enthusiasm to his legions of fans.
It starts with a special video message from Corbin to Disney Resort hotel Guests on their in-room televisions. “He will ask our Guests to text H2O to 775274, which spells SPLASH,” said Tom. “Within seconds the phone rings with a message from Corbin.”
Features galore at the touch of a few buttons
“We created a number of interactive features Guests can access by texting H2O to 775274 (SPLASH),” said Tom. “One of the features offers lots of great tips about how to ‘surf’ at Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon Water Park and ‘ski’ at Disney’s Blizzard Beach Water Park. It’ll let Guests know the best way to enjoy all the attractions for maximum thrills.
“Another section is all about the dos and don’ts of using ‘Surfology’ and ‘Skiology’ lingo. And we even asked artist Jesse LeDoux to create four exclusive wallpapers that can be easily downloaded onto your phone. We’re planning all kinds of other ideas like these all the time.”
The Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride refurbishment in April, that was originally planned to go from April 14th to the 18th, has now been pushed back to April 21st through the 24th.
As always, you can keep up with the latest refurbishments on our Attractions Refurbishments page!
