Announced today, guests will have 53 days of fun this fall as Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party and Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party return in all their glory.
For Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party, 32 spook-tacular dates include:
Returning to the Magic Kingdom fright-fest are the Hocus Pocus Villain Spelltacular stage show in front of Cinderella Castle featuring the mischievous Sanderson sisters from the hit Disney film “Hocus Pocus,” Mickey’s “Boo-to-You” Halloween Parade and “Happy HalloWishes”.
For Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas, 21 holiday-tastic dates include:
Returning favorites for the holidays include Mickey’s Once Upon a Christmastime Parade, “Holiday Wishes,” “A Frozen Holiday Wish” and Mickey’s Most Merriest Celebration.
More information on both events, such as ticket prices, on-sale dates, entertainment and events are to come. Tickets are scheduled to go on sale in early May.
It is once again time to take to the skies above Disney’s Hollywood Studios for a bird’s eye view of the construction of the park’s largest expansion, including Toy Story Land and the highly anticipated Star Wars themed land. We begin our journey with an aerial flyover video of the site:
Due to popular demand, I took the time to label a photo to better show where things are:
As always, you can click the photos to enlarge them.
In Toy Story Land, we can see a wall being constructed in front of the parking garage to block it from the view of guests while they are in the land.
The new backstage facility behind Star Wars has taken shape since we last checked in. It will likely be the first piece of the expansion to be completed.
If you look closely at the load station for the Slinky Dog Dash, you can see one small section red coaster track installed where guests will eventually board the toy vehicle.
From what we are being told, nightly Extra Magic Hours for Disney resort guests at Disney’s Animal Kingdom might be a thing once Pandora: The World of AVATAR opens.
According to sources, Disney’s Animal Kingdom will offer nightly Extra Magic Hours from May 27th through July 4th, 2017. Extra Magic Hours are exclusive to Walt Disney World resort hotel guests and allow them private time to experience attractions, dining, and more. In the evening, these events are usually two hours long, occurring right after park opening. There is no word as of yet how long these nightly offerings at Animal Kingdom will be though, as Disney has never offered them on so many consecutive nights at one park before.
With the incredible demand Disney is expecting for Pandora: The World of AVATAR this Summer, it seems they are trying to make sure that their resort guests get a chance to see everything the new land has to offer.
This is still just rumored at this time. Disney has yet to officially announce these Extra Magic Hours changes.
Disney has released some new b-roll footage of Pandora: The World of AVATAR in Disney’s Animal Kingdom. The clips include some different views of the Valley of Moara and the Navi River Journey attraction, including a good look at the 8 passenger boats for the ride:
Pandora: The World of AVATAR opens May 27th, 2017 at Disney’s Animal Kingdom.
Have you heard this week’s WDW News Today Podcast? If you haven’t, here’s what you can expect:
Join Tom Corless and a cast of others for a variety show dedicated to the Walt Disney World Resort and Disneyland Resort. Plenty of Walt Disney World and Disneyland information and fun awaits you on this edition of the WDW News Today Podcast!
On this week’s show, we pillage and plunder through all 50 years of Pirates of the Caribbean in Back to the Future. Get ready for nearly 4 hours dedicated the greatest theme park adventure of all time!
Today, Disney is sharing the incredible backstories and more information on many aspects of Pandora: The World of AVATAR ahead of its opening on May 27th, 2017:
The Story of ACE
Just like some Cast Members work for the Kilimanjaro Safaris tour company in Africa, or the Kali River Expeditions and Himalayan Escapes in Asia, the Cast Members in Pandora will work for a tour company as well. Alpha Centauri Expeditions, or ACE, is the eco-tour company that brings us to Pandora through a partnership with the Na’vi. Their mission statement: “Our dream is that all those who crave exciting adventures in nature can find that with ACE. We look forward to helping you discover the wondrous beauty that the world of Pandora has to offer.”
Founded by Marshall Lamm, ACE hosts travelers and also provides lodging, food, merchandise establishments, pathways, bridges, safety railings, lights, fans, informational and safety signs, river transportation, as well as park guides who know all about the land, flora, and fauna within the Valley of Mo’ara on Pandora.
The Na’vi
When you visit Pandora – The World of Avatar, you are visiting a specific regional area of Pandora, the Valley of Mo’ara. The native inhabitants, the Na’vi, live in distinct clans throughout the moon of Pandora. Mo’ara is home to the Omaticaya clan.
Here are some key phrases in the Na’vi language you might want to know before visiting:
Kaltxi [kahl-T’IH] means “Hello”
Irayo [ee-RAH-yo] means “Thanks”
Rutxe [roo-T’EH] means “Please”
Oeru syaw [WEH-roo syow] means “My name is “
Alpha Centauri Expeditions (ACE)
Dining
Pongu Pongu was originally built by a former RDA employee who fell in love with the natural splendors of Pandora. Eventually, he built a place where his fellow Expats could gather and socialize. He even placed a retired RDA-era AMP suit outside the building as a sort of landmark. The Na’vi named the place, “Pongu Pongu”, which means, “Party Party,” because of all the wild and memorable times both humans and Na’vi have had together there. The owner eventually collaborated with the ACE tour company to transform this eccentric building into a place for tourists to visit and wet their whistles. Filled with Pandoran treasures and RDA relics, it has quickly become a favorite destination for locals and tourists alike.
The Satu’li Canteen was once the main mess hall of a large RDA base located in the Valley of Mo’ara but now the canteen is owned and operated by the ACE tour company. A restaurateur hired by ACE has redesigned the once utilitarian Quonset hut structure into a beautiful museum-like dining room. Featuring Na’vi art and cultural items, the Satu’li Canteen now reflects a new friendship and cultural understanding that exists between the humans on Pandora and the indigenous Na’vi.
The interior has been transformed, with the colorful Na’vi items filling the walls and hanging from the ceiling. Most of the items were gifted to humans by the Omaticaya clan living in Mo’ara. Hand woven tapestries, natural Pandroan elements, and even cooking tools can all be found inside the restaurant along with sketches and photographs on the walls that help explain their significance. With this unique display of cultural items, the Satu’li Canteen visually represents the positive influence the Na’vi have had on the humans living and working on Pandora.
Shopping
Located at the exit of the Flight of Passage attraction, Windtraders is an old building that used to be part of the base during the conflict between the Na’vi and humans. When ACE took over the old facility, they stripped the interior to just a shell and redesigned it to celebrate the natural world of Pandora. The feeling in the shop is a combination of a national park’s visitor center, a cultural center, and a science museum. The store offers a range of items including science kits, explorers gear, items that feature natural bioluminescence, realistic and plush versions of Pandoran creatures, clothing, and various cultural items from the Na’vi. Many of these Na’vi items come from Na’vi traders that travel all over Pandora and visit with various clans.
Colors of Mo’ara is run by local expats, as wild and eclectic as the creatures they paint. This facepainting kiosk features authentic Pandoran markings – perfect for those arriving to Pandora or ending their visit wanting a memory of their time spent there.
Attractions
Flight of Passage
The Pandora Conservation Initiative (PCI) is a group of scientists who study the world of Pandora. A specialized subset of PCI has inherited and refined the Avatar program which is now offered for tourists. Thanks to PCI scientists and technicians, Guests can connect to their own avatar and fly over Pandora on the back of a mountain banshee. A Na’vi guide helps guests experience their own Na’vi rite of passage.
Na’vi River Journey
With the help of ACE, guests board a woven reed boat and journey down a river into a sacred bioluminescent rainforest. Along their journey they discover the Shaman of Songs; a Na’vi with a deep connection to Eywa (the Na’vi diety). Drawing on the natural energy of Pandora the shaman creates a magical, unified harmony that echoes throughout the entire rainforest and beyond.
Pandora: The World of AVATAR opens May 27th, 2017 at Disney’s Animal Kingdom theme park.
Disney will finally be rolling out mobile advance ordering for counter service restaurants, and they will be doing it May 27th at their very newest.
Satuli Canteen inside Pandora: The World of AVATAR will be the very first restaurant at Walt Disney World to open with the feature.
Mobile ordering allows you to pay for meals on-the-go with the My Disney Experience app, bypassing the queue to order in the restaurant. Using the app, you can select any of the menu items, customize them as you wish, and pre-pay for the meal. Arriving at the restaurant, guests will simply tap “I’m Here”, which will notify cast members to prepare the meal. When it’s ready, you will be alerted in the app to pick up the food at a designated service window. Only credit card payments will be accepted for this service, with Dining Plan guests still having to use the normal queue, at least as of right now.
Look for familiar dishes with a twist in the fast-casual restaurant, with bowls that allow diners to customize their lunch or dinner. Diners start with a base of quinoa and vegetable salad; red and sweet potato hash; mixed whole-grain and rice or romaine and kale salad. Next is either with wood-grilled chicken, slow-roasted beef, sustainable fish or chili-spiced fried tofu. And the bowl is finished with charred onion chimichurri, black bean vinaigrette or creamy herb dressing.
The menu also offers steamed “pods” – bao buns with either cheeseburger or vegetable curry and served with root vegetable chips and crunchy vegetable slaw.
For little ones, there’s an option of grilled chicken or beef, fish or tofu with greens or rice; a hot dog wrapped in Parker House dough; cheese quesadilla, or a steamed “pod” (cheeseburger bao bun).
To read more about the food at the Satuli Canteen, click here.
Pandora: The World of AVATAR opens May 27th, 2017 at Disney’s Animal Kingdom.
The parking lot of the Walt Disney World Casting building on Buena Vista Drive will close April 1st, 2017 to accommodate the construction of a new Disney Springs parking garage and pedestrian bridge, as we reported several months ago.
Located next door to the Casting building at Disney Springs, the new structure will contain 3000 additional parking spaces, not just for Disney Springs guests, but also for the Casting building and the nearby Partners (formerly Suntrust) building. In the meantime, those visiting the Casting or Partners building may utilize the 2 and 4 hour parking spaces in the Partners parking lot. Those who work there will be parking in the Cast Services lot by the Team Disney building.
Work on the garage and bridge is slated to be completed in 2019.
It seems as though Disney may be trying to create a better guest flow at the entrance of the Magic Kingdom by moving the security perimeter of the park further out.
If all goes according to rumored plans, guests parking at the Transportation and Ticket Center will go through security bag check and metal detectors after they exit the parking lot trams, but before the board any monorails or a ferryboat to the park. These guests will then be able to walk directly to the Magic Kingdom turnstiles (or touch points as the kids call them these days) once disembarking at the park’s monorail station or ferryboat dock.
Supposedly, this would lead to security screening areas being added at the various monorail platforms at Disney’s Contemporary Resort, Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort, and Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa. Guests taking a bus or resort launch to the Magic Kingdom would still be screened just outside of the park at new checkpoints. Guests walking over from Disney’s Contemporary Resort on the small walkway between the hotel and the Magic Kingdom will also have their own checkpoint (which is already being done at select times of the day).
Disney has not yet made any comment about the changes, so they are simply in the realm of rumor for now. However, recent construction work being conducted at the Transportation and Ticket Center and at the Magic Kingdom park entrance are pointing towards the change. It is unknown when the changes would take place, if they ever do materialize.
What do you think? Would this be a positive change in your opinion?
The third installment of the popular “Cars” film franchise is set to arrive in theatres on June 16th in 3D, but fans can get an early glimpse of the story, which stars longtime favorite Lightning McQueen alongside new characters Cruz Ramirez and Jackson Storm, when the “Road to the Races” nationwide tour kicks off March 23-26, 2017 at Disney Springs Marketplace.
Expect fun activities for the whole family, plus an extended “sneak peek” of the film when the tour rolls into town. Photo opportunities with three life-size character cars will also be a part of the event.
Alamo Rent A Car will sponsor a giant color mural; Coppertone will encourage guests to take part in a racer pit crew tire-changing activity and a fun photo opportunity; Crest and Oral-B will pass out prizes from the Piston Cup prize wheel and will offer fans the chance to create a digital postcard with Lightning McQueen; at the Dole Refueling Station, you can sample high-octane smoothies; Mattel plans to present an interactive play area; and last, but not least, NASCAR will be on hand to share the history and science behind their iconic brand.
During your visit, keep an eye out for “Cars” merchandise and special menu items at select food and beverage locations, plus a DJ dance party with tracks that will make you want to rev up your engine.
The tour, located at Disney Springs in the former Marketplace Bus Loop near Disney’s Days of Christmas store, opens to the public on Thursday, March 23 at 12:00 p.m. and will run until 7:00 p.m. that evening. On Friday, March 24, and Saturday, March 25, join the fun from 11 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. And on the final day, Sunday, March 26, guests can enjoy the experience from 11:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m.
