Disney Releases New Information on Upcoming Art of Animation Resort

WDWNT on October 11, 2011

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla., Oct. 10, 2011 – The first wing of the new Disney’s Art of Animation Resort will open to Guests on May 31, 2012, as construction on the 25th resort hotel at Walt Disney World continues on schedule.

In size and scope, the construction of Disney’s Art of Animation Resort is a major project at Walt Disney World Resort and has created up to 800 construction jobs. Once open in 2012, Disney’s Art of Animation Resort will also create 750 ongoing resort hotel jobs.

At a media gathering today, Walt Disney Imagineering and Walt Disney World Resort Operations released images of new icons arriving at the resort this fall and shared some of the details Guests will see when Disney’s Art of Animation opens next year. For example, Guests exploring The Lion King courtyard will see characters from the film, such as the hyenas and the evil Scar, through the eyes of Simba and in the same size and scale as the young cub would experience them.

“Here at Disney, we are in the Guest experience business,” said Kevin Myers, vice president of resort operations for Walt Disney World Resort. “When we develop a new resort hotel, we draw on Guest feedback about our parks, entertainment, special events and every aspect of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts to provide a resort hotel experience that only Disney can deliver.”

Examples of enhancements based on Guest feedback will be evident at Disney’s Art of Animation Resort in the food-and-beverage and recreation offerings. The dining area will feature items such as fresh smoothies, hand-scooped gelato and Mongolian barbecue. The resort also will feature the largest swimming pool outside of Disney’s water parks, as well as an extensive children’s water play area at the larger-than-life icons for the Finding Nemo wings of the resort.

Located adjacent to Disney’s Pop Century Resort, the new resort will include 1,120 family suites in The Lion King, Cars and Finding Nemo wings, and 864 themed rooms in The Little Mermaid wings. Suites will feature both a living room and bedroom, offering added space for families.

The family suites and rooms at Disney’s Art of Animation Resort will fit into the “value” category of lodging, with nightly rates similar to Disney’s All-Star Resort and Disney’s Pop Century Resort.

The phased opening of the resort will begin when the Finding Nemo wing opens May 31, 2012. Next, the Cars wing of the resort will open near the end of July. The Lion King suites will open a short time later in September, and The Little Mermaid value rooms will open by the end of next year.

Some fun facts about Disney’s Art of Animation Resort –

• With an area of 11,859 square feet, the feature pool at the Finding Nemo wing of the resort will be the largest swimming pool at Walt Disney World Resort outside of the water parks.

• The new resort hotel will feature 9,400 doors, which if stacked flat would be taller than the Empire State Building.

• The 227,000 lineal feet of carpet being used on the project would be enough carpet to stretch from Orlando to the Kennedy Space Center in Titusville.

Dumbos Will Duel! More Details on Storybook Circus Coming Early 2012

WDWNT on October 10, 2011

Disney has released more details on Storybook Circus, part of the Fantasyland Expansion at the Magic Kingdom. The following will all take place sometime between January & May of 2012:

Look! Dumbo is going the wrong way!

Actually, Dumbo is just reversing decades of flying in counter-clockwise circles. Call it “unwinding,” if you will. And in a new location within Magic Kingdom.

Guests will board Dumbo the Flying Elephant from the lovable critter’s left side — like mounting a horse … and unlike the way guests hop aboard for a whirl at Disney parks on three continents. It is scheduled to begin happening in early 2012 when select experiences in the Storybook Circus neighborhood of New Fantasyland debut just northeast of Mad Tea Party.

Also early 2012, the existing Dumbo attraction near Prince Charming Regal Carrousel will close, be refurbished and be moved to a location in Storybook Circus next to the new Dumbo attraction. The result when completed later in 2012: double Dumbos, one going this-a-way, one going that-a-way … a real circus act, if you will.

There also will be a “big top” that serves as a queue area for the popular attraction. It will feature a variety of interactive experiences currently being developed.

Two other Storybook Circus elements planned for opening early in the year are The Barnstormer and Fantasyland Station. Guests who enjoyed The Barnstormer at Goofy’s Wiseacre Farm will be happy to know the junior coaster thrills of that attraction are back with a thematic change: Goofy has sold the farm and is now a circus stunt pilot and magician, The Great Goofini. The completely re-imagined train station will serve as the gateway to Storybook Circus and all Fantasyland points beyond.

So, what’s new? We now have confirmation that the dueling Dumbos will indeed be dueling by going in opposite directions of each-other once work is completed on remodeling and moving the current attraction later in the year. Also, Disney has finally confirmed that The Barnstormer will keep its name, it will just be changing in theme. Finally, the train station will be Fantasyland Station, not Storybook Circus Station as previously reported.

For those wondering, there will be no Dumbo the Flying Elephant attraction at the Magic Kingdom from January 9th through February 17th, 2012. It is expected that the new Dumbo carousel will open on February 18th as work continues on remodeling the moved, older Dumbo attraction.

The Habit Heroes Are Coming to Innoventions

WDWNT on October 10, 2011

In the space formerly occupied by “Don’t Waste It!” in Innoventions at Epcot, the Habit Heroes are coming…

The signs simply say that guests will be battling those bad habits in eating, TV watching, and more sometime soon… stay tuned for more as it becomes available.

The Epcot Tip-board Has Been Replaced!

WDWNT on October 9, 2011

For years, regular visitors to Epcot have complained about the state of the tip board attached to Pin Central. The board was always somewhat broken, seemingly only months after it was installed during the Millennium Celebration. Well, Epcot recently replaced the tip board… FINALLY!:

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The board is now a cluster of four flat screen monitors

On an interesting side note, the board would occaisionally display tweets about the Food & Wine Festival from anyone using the special hash-tag for the event. The feature has since been removed thanks to some wise-cracks from guests trying to get themselves on the board and further their comedic careers…

Walt Disney World Plans Major Refurbishments for 2012

WDWNT on October 6, 2011

With 2012 approaching, Walt Disney World’s plans for the year are becoming more and more clear. Today, the Walt Disney World website listed several new refurbishments which lead us to some interesting conclusions:

  • Dumbo the Flying Elephant is listed as closed from January 9th thru February 17th, 2012. During this time, it is expected the older carousel of flying pachyderms will make the move to the Storybook Circus. Disney has already stated that the new carousel will open first, so we can expect that new Dumbo centrifuge will be in operation on February 18th as final modifications are made to the older ride once it is placed next door. That’s right, Dumbo will be the first attraction in New Fantasyland to open next year, probably followed closely by the Storybook Circus Train Station, The Barnstormer starring the Great Goofini, and the Casey Jr. Roundhouse in the same time frame.
  • The rumored Big Thunder Mountain refurbishment is no longer a rumor as Disney has it listed to begin on January 9th, 2012. The current end date is set for March 31st, but that is only because the Walt Disney World website calendar doesn’t cross that date as of yet. During this refurbishment, an interactive queue is expected to be added. As well, the missing railroad tracks hiding the steel roller-coaster track will be returned and the falling rock scene will either be fixed or replaced. Other upgrades and changes are rumored but an not be confirmed at this time. Stay tuned as more becomes available on this story.
  • Still not listed is the rumored refurbishment of Test Track at Epcot. The reason we have heard for this is that the attraction is not closing in the Spring as rumored, but rather in the Summer after Cars Land at California Adventure opens. The reason for this is that Imagineering wants to see how the upgrades to the technology and the new show scene effects work before moving them over to Florida. Once Test Track does close, it will be closed for several months. Right now, the only rumored changes we are hearing about are new scenes where the tires are changed or the paint scheme of the car is changed, just like in Radiator Springs Racers.

For a comprehensive list of upcoming refurbishments and changes (including a changed return date for the Swiss Family Treehouse), be sure to check out our attraction updates page!

Food and Wine Fest 2011 Vinylmation

WDWNT on September 30, 2011

Update: 9/30/11 The Food and Wine figure was released today, on the first day of the festival, instead of being held until 10/14.


Update: 9/26/11 October 14 release date announced. The Food and Wine Festival begins two weeks earlier.

Finally! I’ve been waiting for this one for years…

Copyright Disney
It’s the 2011 EPCOT Food and Wine Fest 3″ Vinylmation. Not sure if I care for the look of this one… but I hope it at least comes in a tin. Your thoughts?
Disney just released some more pictures of this Vinylmation:
Copyright Disney

And we thought tins were making a comeback.

40th Anniversary Activities Officially Confirmed!

WDWNT on September 23, 2011

From the Cast Member Eyes and Ears publication:

While all of this official information is now public, there are a few more surprises expected on October 1. Stay tuned to WDW News Today as more information becomes available.