Yesterday, a special panel at Star Wars Celebration Orlando was presented celebrating “Disney Parks and Star Wars – A Galaxy in the Making”. The presentation includes 40 minutes of talk about the Star Wars Land project for both Disneyland and Walt Disney World, revealing new details we have not heard before. Learn all about building a reputation, helping bounty hunters, joining the First Order or the Resistance, piloting the Millennium Falcon, and more in the video below:
Due to copyright issues, Disney would not allow us to upload the behind the scenes video they stop to play in the panel, but you can watch it in all of its glory here:
The panel also began with the story of Star Tours and an announcement of a new destination from The Last Jedi, which you can watch below:
The new destination in Star Tours will debut in late 2017. The Star Wars themed land at Disney Parks will open in 2019.
Star Wars – Galactic Nights took over Disney’s Hollywood Studios on Friday, April 14th, 2017 during Star Wars Celebration Orlando, turning the park into a fanboy’s dream. While we are still formulating a review (as it is expected the event will return), please enjoy our videos of the various festivities:
Rock ‘N’ Roller Coaster – Star Wars Edition
Rock ‘N’ Roller Coaster drops Aerosmith and adds the magical musical core of John Williams in this attraction overlay. The ride portion is mostly dark except for some projections of stars, a nice upgrade over the last time this overlay was installed in December 2015 for the premiere of The Force Awakens.
Star Wars: A Galaxy Far, Far Away adds Rey
Rey from the new Star Wars trilogy joins the cast of this show for one night only.
Imperial March
Darth Vader and the stormtroopers march through Disney’s Hollywood Studios in this event exclusive offering.
Rogue One added to Star Wars: A Galactic Spectacular
A Rogue One sequence replaces Both in Star Wars: A Galactic Spectacular. You can see the Both version of the show below this one in case you are wondering what’s missing.
Stars in Cars Celebrity Motorcade
A celebrity motorcade welcomes the stars to Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
Galactic Nights Epilogue and Lanyard Reveal Moment
Right before the fireworks show, the event is recapped and the guest lanyards come to life with some Disney magic…
The Seventh Sister Reveals Her Face in Jedi Training
Just for this event, the Seventh Sister is turned into a face character in Jedi Training: Trials of the Temple.
Planetary Projections
The Chinese Theater is turned into a living canvas as tableaus of Star Wars planets come to life.
Celebrate the Saga
Alright, they can’t all be winners. Witness this strange and almost useless stage show/powerpoint presentation on the history of Star Wars.
Photo-Ops
6 unique photo-ops were offered to guests during this event.
Disney today accidentally announced that Fantasmic! at Disneyland will return with new scenes and magic this Summer.
When it returns (expected just before the 4th of July holiday, but may be delayed now), new scenes will include Pirates of the Caribbean, Aladdin, The Lion King, and Tangled characters. Further details on these scenes were not provided as of yet. This was confirmed today in a post by D23.com that has since been taken down for being posted before a formal release was made by Disney Parks.
Today, Disneyland Resort released a TV spot for the Summer of Heroes event coming this summer to the Disneyland Resort, as well as making notice of the grand opening of the new Guardians of the Galaxy: Mission Breakout ride. Marvel’s greatest heroes swing, jump, and roll through Disneyland Resort in the ad, such as Captain America, Black Widow, and even Spider-Man. Take a look at the video right here from the Disneyland Blog:Yeah
Summer of Heroes at Disney California Adventure Park. And the new epic attraction, Guardians of the Galaxy-Mission: BREAKOUT! Begins May 27. pic.twitter.com/yRYhFj3E3A
Beginning May 26th, the Frozen Summer Games hosted at Blizzard Beach will be returning for their second year.
The games are ‘games’ at Blizzard Beach (which are included in admission) where you can join Team Kristoff or Team Olaf to participate in a variety of activities, from Ice Pail Relays and a Snowball Toss to Ski Pole Limbo and Slide Races. Not only that, but there will be crafts, a live DJ, and for the first time in forever, a special Kristoff and Olaf character greeting location.
Frozen Summer Games begins May 26th at Disney’s Blizzard Beach water park. No end date has been announced.
Multiple areas of Animal Kingdom will be under construction in the coming weeks.
Construction to enhance the Serka Zong Bazaar merchandise location at Expedition Everest began on April 17th and will continue through May 12th. During construction, the location will remain open.
In addition to that, the FastPass+ touch points and entrance queue area at Kilimanjaro Safaris will undergo refurbishment from April 17 through May 12. A secondary queue will be used during the entire duration of this construction project.
“it’s tough to be a bug” will be closed April 24th through the 28th to accommodate work on the Tree of Life structure.
Finally, the tiger exhibit in the Maharajah Jungle Trek will undergo habitat enhancements through Friday, May 5. During this time, the tigers will be kept backstage and the viewing areas will be inaccessible to Guests.
Our latest photo report brings us to Disney’s Animal Kingdom for a wild adventure…
NAHTAZU
The bar area between Rainforest Cafe and the entrance of the park was heavily refurbished. Looks like they are expecting to reopen it once crowds arrive for Pandora.
Pandora looms in the distance.
A look at Pandora from the Animal Kingdom bus loop.
I always make sure to visit the Babirusa on my way through the Oasis.
Rivers of Light Merchandise
Nearly every store in the park is carrying Rivers of Light merchandise currently. I wonder if the opening of Pandora will change all of these displays…
The passholder tiger shirt pictured is now sold out. They are not expecting more.
A very shiny Rivers of Light logo pin.
The light-up ear hat ornament is pretty neat.
The totem pole is a Made with Magic item that interacts with the show, but also can interact with other Made with Magic products. You can see the totem wand in action below:
A variety of other glowing products are sold, including a fan and a necklace.
The most popular light-up item seems to be this lotus blossom “glow cube”, sold with beverages at the Thirsty River Bar by Expedition Everest and several other bar locations.
If you would like a drink recommendation, the Khumbu Ice Fall is my personal favorite.
Other New Items
An Easter Mickey Mouse plush is now available.
A limited edition Easter MagicBand 2 was released recently.
There is now a special Radio Disney photo op at Disney Springs. This new limited-engagement photo-op is with the one and only Radio Disney Arch (or “ARDY”) where many famous celebrities, including Fifth Harmony, have stood on the red carpet posing for their photos. “ARDY” is named after the award that is actually given to the artists each year at the Radio Disney Music Awards.
Can’t make it to Disney Springs to see the arch for yourself? You can still participate in the fun by voting for your favorite artists until April 9, 2017 on the official RDMA site, accessible here: www.Disney.com/RDMA. The live RDMA show will take place on April 29th in Los Angeles, CA, with winners announced via social media in real time. The following day, April 30th, “Disney Channel Presents the 2017 Radio Disney Music Awards” will air on the Disney Channel at 7 p.m. so make plans to tune-in. ARDY will be available at Disney Springs until April 30th.
If you do get to pose with the ARDY Arch, guests are encouraged to take a selfie and tag it with #RDMA and #DisneySprings.
As you can see above, the Pot Roast is back as “Our Tavern Keeper’s Favorite”. There is also now a Boston Cream Pie for dessert.
Meanwhile, the all-you-care-to-enjoy meal for lunch and dinner has made a positive change, making the included dessert the much enjoyed Oooey Gooey Toffee Cake.
They have also expanded their alcoholic drink menu to include a Mimosa and Hard Cider.
So, what do you think? Are these changes for the better?
A “virtual queue system” is being tested at Blizzard Beach and Typhoon Lagoon beginning today, March 28, through April 7, 2017. According to Disney, “Virtual queuing systems are designed to enable users to reserve a place in line for an attraction without physically waiting in the queue, providing an enhanced Guest experience and more time for additional experiences.” Sounds a lot like Fastpass…
The virtual queue test will include Downhill Double Dipper, Slush Gusher, and Summit Plummet at Blizzard Beach, and Miss Adventure Falls at Typhoon Lagoon.
We’ll post more information on this test of the new system as we receive it. If you happen to experience this system in the water parks today, let us know in the comments!
