From the people who brought you bus stop pizza, there is now a mobile cart in the Epcot parking lot selling drinks and snack.
The parking lot snack cart has assorted drinks, chips, and whole fruit. It is located at the very top of the parking lot, just before the tram lane in front of the park.
Walt Disney World has just announced a new dinner experience that will involve monorail hotel hopping and much more around the “Monorail Resorts” near the Magic Kingdom:
Join us for a progressive dinner unlike any other—with sumptuous offerings at 3 Disney Resort hotels.
Your Dine Around adventure begins at Disney’s Contemporary Resort, where you’ll check in at The Wave… of American Flavors restaurant. Relax and mingle with your fellow diners, enjoying a welcoming appetizer and specialty cocktail before setting off on your epicurean odyssey. Bon voyage and bon appétit!
First stop: Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort—where you’ll feel as if you’ve arrived in a far-flung tropical paradise. Celebrate the spirit of the South Pacific and luxuriate in the charm of this exotic retreat, with an enticing variety of island-inspired libations and appetizers.
Then it’s time for a change of scene and cuisine—as the monorail transports you a world away: to the opulent Victorian-style Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa. Step inside and step back into a bygone era of elegance and gracious hospitality. You’ll be escorted to the award-winning Cítricos restaurant where we invite you to settle in amid the refined ambience as you’re treated to a special Chef’s main course selection. Afterward, gather in the splendidly appointed lobby to sip champagne and savor a selection of artisanal cheeses.
Board the monorail once more to return to Disney’s Contemporary Resort for the culmination of your evening. Here, you and your Dine Around companions will retire to a private patio to enjoy an indulgent assortment of desserts, cordials and coffee. From this exclusive location, watch in wonder as the Wishes nighttime spectacular fireworks light up the night over Cinderella Castle—a musical, magical grand finale to your one-of-a-kind dining adventure.
-Price: $150 per person plus tax; gratuity included.
-The Highway in the Sky Dine Around is offered select Tuesday, Friday and Saturday evenings.
-Reservations must be canceled at least 24 hours in advance to avoid forfeiting the full price of the experience.
-Check-in takes place at The Wave… of American Flavors at Disney’s Contemporary Resort at the time of your reservation. Please arrive 15 minutes ahead of check-in time.
-Guests must be 21 years of age or older to consume alcoholic beverages. A valid form of government identification will be required to verify your age.
-Please alert the host at check-in regarding food allergies. Wherever possible, alternative dining selections will be offered.
-Disney dining plan entitlements may not be redeemed for this event.
-Discounts and promotions are not valid for this event.Dining experience is subject to change; fireworks experience is subject to change or cancellation without notice.
The event is bering offered starting December 2nd, 2016 and is being offered on Fridays, Saturdays, and Tuesdays starting at 6:45pm through March. It can be booked online here. The event will close the 4th floor patio at the Contemporary to other guests on those evenings.
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. – Celebrating 24 years when it kicks off March 1, 2017, the Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival will jump-start spring with gardens of earthly delights plus new character topiaries, entertainers and food and drink offerings.
The festival, which expanded to 90 days in 2016, will open with an irresistible array of fresh surprises and new treats:
A Figment topiary of a smaller size graced the exterior of the pavilion many years ago.
One of the popular Outdoor Kitchen gardens, Urban Farm Eats, will return with savory bites, sweet treats and ideas for planting produce that can inspire growing numbers of guests who want to learn to grow their own edibles.
“A lot of people, including young children, are serious foodies now, and they have lots of questions about gardening,” says Eric Darden, festival horticulture manager. “We’re getting more and more people in their 20s and 30s asking, ‘How can I grow this?’ I think we’ll be creating more gardeners because people can see what’s possible.”
The 2017 festival forecast will be sunny with colorful floral bursts by day and a nighttime landscape aglow with twinkling lights:
The festival, including all gardening programs and exhibits, is included in regular Epcot admission.
We continue our series of reviews of the booths added for the Holidays Around the World event at Epcot this year by visiting the Feast of the Three Kings today. This marketplace can be found next door to the Refreshment Port, just behind the Imagination pavilion on the way to World Showcase.
Feast of the Three Kings at Holidays Around the World, Epcot
The space reuses what was the Puerto Rico booth in past years, and Island of the Caribbean at the Food and Wine Festival this year.
Feast of the Three Kings at Holidays Around the World, Epcot
Feast of the Three Kings at Holidays Around the World, Epcot
There displays at many of the marketplaces for Holidays Around the World feature facts about the celebrations in that region. A nice touch.
Feast of the Three Kings at Holidays Around the World, Epcot
Feast of the Three Kings at Holidays Around the World, Epcot
Feast of the Three Kings Menu at Holidays Around the World, Epcot
Above is the menu. Keep in mind that these are full size dishes, not the portions you would expect from the annual Epcot festivals.
Feast of the Three Kings at Holidays Around the World, Epcot
In classic fashion, we ordered the entire menu pretty much, so let’s dive into the review, shall we?
Roasted Pork – Feast of the Three Kings at Holidays Around the World, Epcot
This roasted pork dish has to be one of my favorite counter service items at Disney World right now. The pork was cooked perfectly, presented in a heaping portion that is tender and juicy. The yucca underneath is cooked perfectly with a nice, buttery flavor. I have eaten a lot of yucca in the last year or so, this was the best portion of the side dish I have ever had. I could do without the pickled green bananas, but they were fine on their own.
Roasted Pork – Feast of the Three Kings at Holidays Around the World, Epcot
Coquito – Feast of the Three Kings at Holidays Around the World, Epcot
I enjoy a sweet alcoholic beverage so this was right up my alley. Coconut and cinnamon flavoring mixed with rum is pretty delicious, but the portion size is pretty small as you would expect. It’s really delicious, but just not enough of it is in this serving for $9. A non-alcoholic version is also offered.
Shredded-Beef Tamale – Feast of the Three Kings at Holidays Around the World, Epcot
The shredded beef tamale was also good, but the ratio of breading to beef was poor. The Avacado Crema sauce had a really nice flavor paired with both the rice and the tamale. If there was more beef in this, I would highly recommend it, but it’s hard to compete with the pork dish.
Shredded-Beef Tamale – Feast of the Three Kings at Holidays Around the World, Epcot
Traditional dessert with a rich, white, sugary icing on top over a flaky, soft bread. This was really wonderful in its simplicity and was similar to many Italian baked good I have enjoyed over the holiday seasons in New York, so I may be a little biased in my nostalgic feelings for this dish. I still think you will enjoy it though.
This booth is a real winner and is definitely worth your time if you are going to do Counter Service dining at Epcot before December 31st. Even if you just stop by for some Coquito and Three Kings Bread, you should be in for a pleasant snack stop.
If you enjoyed this review, please check out our full marketplace review of the American Holiday Table, another offering during the Epcot Holidays Around the World event.
The special add-on event, Tiana’s Riverboat Party at the Magic Kingdom, started operation today and we were on-hand to check it out. The event promises guests a selection of various ice cream and snacks, meet and greet opportunities with both Princess Tiana and Prince Naveen, a ride on the Liberty Belle Riverboat, and special viewing of the Disney Festival of Fantasy Parade at 3PM for $49.00 per adult, $29.00 per child.
The event greatly reduces the operating hours of the Liberty Belle riverboat in liberty Square at the Magic Kingdom. Every afternoon guests will see that the riverboat will be down for three hours total to accommodate this event.
Event check-in is set to begin at 2:15, but can begin anytime in the 15 minutes before that if the set-up for the event is done.
Rather than utilizing wristbands, this event uses stickers that guests wear to gain admittance to the event upon checking in.
The event begins on the boat landing for the first half hour or so. Here guests can find a selection of ice cream, a dessert trio, and ice cream toppings station, and a drink station, as well as their first chance to meet Tiana and Naveen.
The dessert selection is OK, but just ice cream and a dessert trio on the dock. Similar-style events have much bigger spreads, including the Jingle Bell, Jingle Bam Holiday Party and the Star Wars: A Galactic Spectacular Dessert Party, which are only slightly more expensive than this event.
The dessert trio is for some reason also listed at the adjacent ice cream station, even though it has a space of its own.
The lilly-pad displays and tables are a really nice touch, I’m happy to see some thought go into this event.
A selection of canned soft drinks, bottled water, and lemonade is available on the dock.
The dessert trio is pretty adorable and shows a fair amount of effort on Disney’s part to make this special and highly-themed to the Princess and the Frog characters.
I personally loved the chocolate cookie sandwich.
The yellow sponge cupcake was nothing special, but it was delicious.
I even really enjoyed the creme filled tart. Honestly, the dessert trip goes three for three in my book, it’s pretty perfect.
It is hard to mess up ice cream and Disney doesn’t at this event. The toppings bar is fun and kids of all ages will enjoy the freedom to eat endless ice cream with as much of any topping as they might want.
Rather than signing autographs, the now customary autograph cards are handed out for Tiana and Naveen at this event, even though guests likely paid to have a normal meet and greet with these characters. That being said, the line was never unreasonable to meet the characters due to the restricted attendance at this event, so I don’t see why they couldn’t sign.
You can first meet Tiana and Naveen on the dock while enjoying some snacks. They do leave once the boat is finally boarded. The cast members did a nice job of going around and making sure everyone got to chance to meet them before heading onboard.
The dock itself had very few tables available and was a bit cramped, but guests made it work. Onboard the Riverboat has the opposite problem, so I’m not really sure what the answer is. I wouldn’t say the event was overcrowded as the meet and greet, nor the food and drink stations ever really had a line.
While there are no tables on board, it is really neat to see snacks and drinks still served, especially out of the actual bar onboard the Liberty Belle Riverboat. Who knows the last time this was actually used? I think it was converted to a life jacket storage space sometime in more recent history.
The selection onboard is pretty solid and you are free to get as much as you like, even if you just want to fill your bag with snacks for later. Just remember there is no restroom on-board the boat and you can’t get off until the Parade and the full trip around is over…
The themed elements continue on board, which is neat.
The candy popcorn is fun, and it tastes good too!
There is also regular popcorn available, which is the stuff you will find around the parks at the various carts.
The cotton candy was flavorless, and yes, I forgot to take a pic of it until we got to the car…
Alright, here is where the event falls apart: the actual viewing of the Festival of Fantasy Parade. Once everyone is onboard, the boat pulls out of the station and forward just enough for parade viewing.
I joked a lot leading up to this that if you squint really hard, you can see the parade. While that was meant to be a comedic exaggeration, this is not the place you want to see Festival of Fantasy from. As much as you may not want to eat at Tony’s Town Square Cafe, their Festival of Fantasy dining package will offer much better parade views (albeit with a menu that it is hard to squeak out a solid meal on). The parade music is also not played onboard the Riverboat.
If you have a really nice DSLR camera, this will offer some high angle pictures you may enjoy, but it’s not gonna be easy. I didn’t focus on pics as I wasn’t sure that video had ever been recorded of the parade from on top of the Liberty Belle Riverboat, at least not in a stationary position. I can now see why. The view was really bad. How bad? Check out our video below:
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ym-FEAgt7qI]
We stood on the top level for the parade, but I can’t imagine that the lower levels would be any better. How could they be?
After parade viewing, the boat backs up so Naveen and Tiana can get onboard, fresh from their appearance in the parade.
We discovered yet another snack station on the bottom floor.
Once they get on-board, Tiana and Naveen lead a parade around the bottom level of the boat. The parade lasts one loop and seemed rather uncoordinated for today’s first run. Other than the little girl who got to hold Tiana’s hand (and was photographed by PhotoPass, I’m not sure this benefitted anyone else.
After that, they host another meet and greet on the front of the boat, which can be really cool if you time it right (Tom Sawyer Island has some nice backgrounds, such as the windmill).
We now switch the Creeper-Cam® on the second level.
It is kind of nice to have a mostly empty Riverboat, affording you to opportunity to freely roam and get some great shots.
While Tiana and Naveen are on the boat, the remainder of the ship is like a ghost town.
As you can see, I timed my greeting poorly and got the “Devil’s Elbow” sign in the background… at a side view… Regardless, meeting these two on a riverboat is really, really cool.
I also have a video overview of the food, meet and greets and more that you may enjoy:
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kQyvt6w6DnM]
Overall, this event is a neat idea, but poorly executed. The Festival of Fantasy Parade viewing is a joke and there is no way this can be valued at $49.00 per adult, $29.00 for kids. The treats are good, the themed elements are fun, and the character interactions are great, but I just don’t know how you sell this as parade viewing.
The little girl next to me started to cry when the parade was over, upset because she felt like she had still not seen the parade. Her parents promised here they would go see it later in their trip. Also, the bevy of Magic Kingdom managers on-baord clearly had not seen what the view would be like, and I even overheard them talking about how to deal with it. Sorry guys, maybe don’t sell this until you can guarantee guests an experience worth their time and money. Also, I’m not sure ripping trees down in Liberty Square is the answer…
This event can be fixed, I would suggest they just make a viewing area in Liberty Square for these guests and then just walk them onto the Riverboat after the parade is over. Problem solved. I understand the concept of watching the parade from the Riverboat is cool, but it just doesn’t actually work.
Otherwise the event is fun, and if “The Princess and the Frog” is the favorite movie of you or someone in your family, I think you will enjoy this with expectations based on what you read in this review. Tiana’s Riverboat Party needs some work, but it has a good foundations, it’s just a shame people have to pay $49.00 for this in its current incarnation.
In our latest photo report, the Magic Kingdom’s mountain range is getting spruced up and more and more holiday decorations are covering the park. Let’s jump right in, shall we?
Scaffolding is up around Space Mountain as cosmetic changes continue in Tomorrowland.
Decorating at the Magic Kingdom wasn’t quite finished in our last photo report, but every last wreath and tree is up now:
The Magic Kingdom times guide is now separated by land.
The Christmas tree on Main Street U.S.A. was installed.
The wreaths on the Main Street facades are up as well.
Belle’s village has been decorated for the season as well.
Some new Beauty and the Beast art for sale in Bonjour Village Gifts, in both giclee and print form.
It can be unmercifully hot aboard the Liberty Square Riverboat during the summer months, but I often find myself aboard once the weather cools down at this time of year. Also, it offers a great view of the ongoing work on Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is set to reopen on November 18th.
The questions continue as to if we will be getting the explosive finale scene already featured at Disneyland.
New nighttime lighting has been installed on the mountain as part of the ongoing refurbishment:
Facade work on the Haunted Mansion continues as well.
Guests still can’t seem to understand signage…
The Enchanted Tiki Room issue #1 is finally available in Adventureland. It is not a park exclusive cover, but it is a variant cover from the normal issues available elsewhere.
Decorations are now up on the back of Cinderella Castle.
I don’t often take artsy pictures, but Storybook Circus is so photogenic at night.
As always, the Magic Kingdom is beautiful in the evening, but it takes on a special glow during the holiday season.
The newly remodeled Uptown Jewelers is decorated for Christmas quite nicely.
The Christmas cups are now available at most counter service eateries.
Mickey Mouse Major League Soccer pins are now for sale at the parks, including Orlando’s own Orlando City team.
New limited release MagicBands for sale include Christmas and Twilight Zone Tower of Terror designs.
A seat cushion is now being sold at the parks, perfect for parade and nighttime show viewing according to the tags.
A new Little Green Men castle photo holder for sale.
Of course, Star wars couldn’t get left out…
Back in July, we told you that the NBA presence at Disney Springs was likely cancelled. Well, as of today, Disney is telling cast members that DisneyQuest will remain open into 2017.
DisneyQuest at Disney Springs will continue to operate into 2017
Despite being removed from annual passes, DisneyQuest has no closing in sight as Disney continues to have problems finding a tenant for the building who doesn’t want to just knock it down. Cast members were originally told that DisneyQuest would close sometime in 2016.
OK folks, this is a weird one, and I promise I’m not click baiting you…
Auntie Gravity’s Galactic Goodies in Tomorrowland at the Magic Kingdom offers a number of ice cream based treats, but I have never ordered any of their coffee-based ice cream floats before. For only a few cents more than the regular ice cream, you can make it a French Vanilla Coffee Float, so we did.
French Vanilla Iced Coffee Float ($4.79)
It’s fairly simple in nature: it’s just vanilla ice cream over French Vanilla Iced Coffee (if you couldn’t tell by the name). They gave us a choice of ice cream flavors, but when we asked what they recommended, the cast member thought that vanilla worked the best. They were right.
French Vanilla Iced Coffee Float ($4.79)
It was strange, but the flavor of the coffee mixing with the ice cream reminded me a lot of the Butterbeer Ice Cream at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Diagon Alley at Universal Orlando. It isn’t a perfect match, but it comes pretty darn close. In fact, if you blindfolded me and told me you were giving me Butterbeer Ice Cream but then gave me this, I probably wouldn’t even notice.
Side by side I think it would be easier to tell the difference between the two, but if you are looking for a similar flavor without the trip down I-4, I think you will be pleasantly surprised with how good this simple concoction is.
According to the Orlando Sentinel:
Walt Disney World is experimenting with using iPhones to track some of its custodial workers and direct them to do specific tasks.
Unite Here Local 362, which represents the resort’s janitors, is fighting the move. It has raised issues about the custodians’ loss of seniority in choosing their assignments, potential discipline for employees who lose or damage the phones, and privacy.
“What is the purpose?” said Eric Clinton, the local Unite Here chapter’s president. “Are they trying to determine that a specific worker spends too much time in a certain area? Are they trying to determine that some workers walk faster than others? They haven’t told us. These things are very concerning.”
Disney did not make executives available for an interview. The company said in a statement that “this new approach will enable us to deploy Cast Members in real time, to areas that need service, ultimately making the Cast and Guest experiences even better.”
The new system, called “Custodial of Tomorrow,” begins Sunday as a test of 40 employees in the Magic Kingdom’s Tomorrowland. It is supposed to run through Jan. 14.
Workers who clock in will receive iPhones, which they return at the end of their shifts.
A system of electronic sensors will determine when a restroom needs cleaning or a garbage can needs emptying. A certain number of people entering a bathroom will trigger a search for the nearest available custodian. Sensors will also be tripped when trash cans get to be about three-quarters filled.
“You get an alert — it will say go clean trash can X,” Clinton said. “You’ll be able to zoom in on a map of where that trash can is.”
Such technology has become more common, said Chris Muller, a professor of the practice at Boston University’s School of Hospitality Administration.
“Tracking them on the iPhone is kind of a little bit Big Brotherish, but … that’s how they track 18-wheelers now or anybody who’s driving a big truck. They’re GPS located,” he said. “That’s how they know whether they’re pulling off to take their eight-hour breaks.”
Disney already has radio-frequency MagicBands that many guests wear, which function as tickets and FastPasses but can also provide information about visitors’ habits.
“Putting these kinds of sensors on garbage cans and restrooms and the employees is just a natural next step … not only in better utilizing people but enhancing the customer experience so that the place is always clean, which is one of the hallmarks of that park,” said Keenan Yoho, an associate professor at the Rollins College Crummer Graduate School of Business.
But some say that in recent years, the cleaning quality has declined. Pete Werner, a travel-agency owner who runs a Disney-focused online message board and podcast, has often complained of messy resort restrooms.
“It has boggled my mind the number of times I have seen trash cans so full that you can’t open them or trash being left on trash cans because people couldn’t throw them out,” he said.
Other theme parks might also start using similar technology. A service called Tork EasyCube recently advertised in a theme-park trade publication that it “collects real-time data from connected devices” and “directs cleaning teams to exactly where they are needed.” Representatives from that company could not be reached for comment. Disney is not using that service.
Other companies that have used geolocation include Orlando-based Productivity Apex. The company launched FleetZoo, a computerized system that can assign orders to delivery-truck drivers based on their whereabouts. Sam Fayez, a director with Productivity Apex, said the company will soon finalize a contract with the city of Orlando that would design routes for building inspectors, sometimes using their locations when adjusting schedules.
Fayez described Disney’s experiment as “a smart application of an existing technology.”
Clinton said Disney’s new system was never negotiated with the union, and many issues need to be resolved.
“Most of the employees are very concerned,” Disney custodial worker Juan Alfonseca said. His colleagues feel Disney hasn’t told them enough about issues including repercussions for a worker if phone is damaged or lost, or if there’s a problem figuring out the technology.
One of Unite Here’s complaints is that senior janitors would no longer be able to choose whether they work in restrooms or in Disney’s public areas. To protest, on Halloween about a dozen employees delivered a pumpkin that said “Rest in peace, seniority” to Magic Kingdom vice president Dan Cockerell.
Some custodians prefer street work because they don’t want to clean toilets. Others prefer restrooms because the atmosphere is quieter and they don’t have to lift such heavy garbage cans.
Last night, the final of the trifecta of new stage shows for Cinderella Castle at the Magic Kingdom finally debuted, Mickey’s Most Merriest Celebration. Following in the footsteps of the popular Hocus Pocus show that performs during the annual Halloween Party, this new show combines lighting, projection mapping effects, and more to present a more modern performance in comparison to the over 20 year old Celebrate the Season that preceded it. See for yourself:
While the number about texting and such seems a little forced, the rest of the show is a pretty solid replacement for the classic it replaced. What do you think?
