Please check out our attraction closures page to see dates for some new upcoming attraction closures and new attraction openings at the Walt Disney World Resort. You can go directly to the page by clicking HERE.
The following temporary dining changes are being reported by Laughingplace.com:
Some Spring Magic Kingdom dining changes:
- Cosmic Ray’s will serve breakfast from 8:30a to 10:00a daily, March 16 through 29.
- Tomorrowland Terrace Noodle Station will be open for lunch and dinner March 16 – 29, 11:00a – 10:00p
- The Diamond Horseshoe will be serving quick service lunch March 16 through 29 from 11:00a to 4:00p. In addition, a full service traditional turkey dinner will be offered from March 17 through 27. Dinner will be served between 5:00p and 9:00p on those dates.
- El Pirata y el Perico Restaurante will open daily for lunch March 16 through 29 from 11:30a to 4:00p
- Sleepy Hollow will open for waffles daily at 8:00a, offering another great breakfast option for Guests!
- Plaza Ice Cream Parlor will open at 7:00a daily for “Coffee Express,” offering coffee, hot cocoa and pastries.
In addition, some temporary carts will be set up around the park:
- Tomorrowland: Kiosk will serve burgers, turkey sandwiches and a salad.
- Tomorrowland: Another cart will serve hot wings and nachos.
- Fantasyland: a cart will serve wraps, sandwiches and fruit.
- Main Street: The Center Street Hog Dog cart will return to on March 16.
- Adventureland: Turkey legs
Here is a video previewing the upcoming Toy Story Mania attraction at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, scheduled to open “summer” 2008:
The video features the ride vehicles in motion and gives you a pretty good idea of how the spring action cannons operate. Rumors suggest soft-openings for the attraction should begin by April 2008, with an expected opening sometime near Memorial Day weekend.
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.
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.
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.
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.”
For those of you who are interested, complete coverage of the March 4 re-dedication of Spaceship Earth presented by Siemens at Epcot is available over WFTV. Their coverage of the event includes a full article and video of the small, unannounced ceremony from Tuesday.
Scott Powers | Orlando Sentinel Staff Writer
Walt Disney World is tinkering with a roller coaster at Animal Kingdom to improve overall safety after the accidental death of an employee there last fall. Changes are being made in the entry and exit areas of Primeval Whirl — including the installation of sensor mats in a restricted-access area where a Disney worker was reportedly struck by a roller-coaster car Nov. 24. Karen Price, 63, fell and hit her head, and died of her injuries a few days later. The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration is still investigating the death. The accident, said Disney World spokeswoman Kim Prunty, led the company “to consider additional safety enhancements.” “We are always looking at ways to enhance safety,” she said.
On the off-limits area of the ride platform beyond the passenger loading and unloading zones, Disney is installing sensor mats that will shut down the ride if someone sets foot there, Prunty said. Also, bold striping is being added to delineate the loading and unloading zones. The work, which is being done after hours, should take a few weeks and should not disrupt ride operations, Prunty said.
Primeval Whirl is an old ride design known in the trade as a “wild mouse,” featuring cars that travel independently through a series of close, tight curves. There are dozens of such rides all over the world, some dating back more than 50 years. It is considered a relatively mild roller-coaster design, with a good safety record for riders. Since Primeval Whirl opened in April 2002, there has never been a reported case of a rider hurt seriously enough to require inpatient hospital treatment, though Disney currently faces a lawsuit from a man who alleges he seriously injured his knee while getting off the ride in 2005.
Primeval Whirl, in Animal Kingdom’s Dinoland U.S.A. carnival area, is actually two coasters woven together. According to the independent Web site rollercoasterdatabase.com, each of the two tracks is 1,377 feet long and rises 42 feet in the air, and the cars reach a maximum speed of 29 mph.
