Introduced in December, Disney today has announced that the theme park entry lines exclusive to Walt Disney World annual passholders at all 4 theme parks will be staying a little while longer.
Disney has stated that they will now remain through the Spring at least, with no exact end date given.
Since the announcement of the MagicBand 2 back in November 2016, guests who dislike wearing a MagicBand have been clamoring for more information and to get their hands on the MagicKeepers to hold their MagicBand 2 icons. Well, I finally found the “MagicKeepers” accessories out in the wild while at Disney’s Animal Kingdom on Tuesday.
MagicKeeper accessories for the MagicBand 2
The MagicKeepers come in two styles for now, one with a bow to represent Minnie Mouse and another without to represent Mickey Mouse.
MagicKeeper accessories for the MagicBand 2
They retail at $12.99 each before tax or any discounts. A screwdriver is included in the package to aid in removing the “icon” from the MagicBand 2 and placing it into this device. The tiny screws are in their as well.
Needless to say, I had to buy one to try it out. My experience did not go well, but I did eventually get the icon into this contraption. You can watch me struggle with the item below (this may be helpful if you plan on picking one up):
Now, while recording the video, I do inadvertently switch the backplates go the MagicBand 2 and the MagicKeeper and then have some problems installing it, but I assure you this was not the issue. The two pieces are identical, and during the cuts in the video, I switched back and forth several times and could not get either of the backplates to go on. The hooks in the back of the plates do bend easily during the process, so be careful. As you can see if you watch the video, I clearly bent both backplates in the process.
Switching these around all of the time will not be easy, if that was your plan. If you are only going to do this once, well, then you might experience zero issues (as you could see I got it to work quite easily early on).
The MagicKeeper with my MagicBand 2 icon properly installed.
There is at least one other MagicKeepers accessory to come still, as seen in the publicity photo below.
The full initial line of MagicKeepers accessories for the MagicBand 2
What do you think? Will you be switching to the MagicKeeper? Buying it as a backup? Or are you waiting for different accessories?
The latest Eyes and Ears Cast Member publication has an interesting article about changes coming to and already in place for the various transportation systems at the Walt Disney World Resort. Below you will find the text from that story, as well as some, photos, videos, and added insight we can offer:
New experiences, improved services, and the latest technology abound in Walt Disney World Transportation and Parking Operations. “Our buses, monorails, boats and trams aren’t just modes of transportation for our Guests and Cast Members,”says JasonKirk vice president of Walt Disney World Transportation Operations, “They are apart of the fun and a part of the immersive Disney experience.”
THEMED BUS MARQUEES – Special greetings themed to a bus’s destination now appear on the marquees. ‘Charmed To See You” is one of the greetings for buses headed to Magic Kingdom Park.
WE’RE ON THE WAY – New digital screens at all of our resort bus stops let Guests know in real-time when their bus is scheduled to arrive.
SORCERER CLASS – An all-new interior themed to the “Sorcerer’s Apprentice” mesmerized Guests during a limited play test in 2016. Nicknamed “the fun bus.‘ it featured a custom light show, advanced GPS technology and comfy seats. (Video below)
TEAM OUTFIT – Whether piloting the General Joe Potter or sailing as part of the Sassagoula River cruise, watercraft Cast Members across property now sport new costumes.
TRIVIA CRUISE – Cast Members adapted the spontaneous monorail trivia game for our Guests traveling by boat. “Can you name all three of the Magic Kingdom ferryboats?”
FRESH LOOK – The new monorail Cast Member costumes sport a colorful embroidered patch made up of 12 colors representing each of the monorails
TECHNOLOGY UPGRADE – Technology has been updated to a more automated system as part of several recent enhancements, for a safer and more efficient ride.
TRIVIA TRAIN – Monorail Cast Members are hosting spontaneous trivia contests for Guests aboard the monorail and Guests can win prizes. “How many monorail cars make up a monorail train?”
TRANSPORTED IN STYLE – Our parking trams will receive an all-new paint job inspired by the monorail colors. New, custom-made tram tractors will also ensure a quieter transit.
We spotted one of the trams out a few months back, but it seems they will now be getting color stripes like the monorails.
PREFERRED PARKING – Guests at all four Walt Disney World theme parks are loving to park preferred!
ARE WE THERE YET? – “We’ll be there in 223 elephant steps.” says the educational, new signage in the parking lots at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park. That’s about a four- minute walk in human steps.
I know Disney said there were no plans “at the time” for the highly acclaimed Paint the Night Parade to move to Florida, but a lot has changed since the Fall of 2016.
Drooping attendance at Walt Disney World since last summer has had many an executive at Walt Disney Parks and Resorts examining the idea of moving the Diamond Celebration blockbuster out east to help bolster what they hope to be an explosive Summer 2017 in Orlando.
While Disney’s Animal Kingdom will debut Pandora: The World of AVATAR (and possibly, hopefully, Rivers of Light), the other 3 parks just don’t have a whole lot going on as far as new offerings for this year. Just in case AVATAR isn’t enough to convince someone to go to Orlando in 2017, Disney may want to bring Paint the Night to Walt Disney World. Rumors also persist that a new nighttime show for the Magic Kingdom is in development for a debut later this year.
Now, management at the Disneyland Resort is putting up quite the fight, but the decision will be made above them one way or the other in the next few weeks. I would assume that attendance for the returning Main Street Electrical Parade at Disneyland Park will play a role, but the possibility of the “limited” run for that event until June being extended indefinitely (or glowing away for a Star Wars fireworks show in California) and sending Paint the Night away to the Magic Kingdom seems to be fairly likely.
Ever since the Four Seasons resort opened at Walt Disney World, Disney has been looking at ways to keep up with the luxury resort, especially since many Disney Deluxe Resorts are priced higher.
One of the larger problems in recent years has been in the upkeep of a guest’s resort room, with a notable downward trend in the quality and care of housekeeping Cast Members. It is very common these days to find beds unmade, trash on floors, and sometimes even worse inside of your Disney hotel room.
Disney is reformatting the way their Housekeeping works across Walt Disney World to attack this problem over the coming weeks and months. The first major change is a large increase in the number of housekeeping Cast Members across the property, including the hiring of dozens of new managers across all of the hotels. This is all in anticipation of the introduction of the new dispatch system, similar to the one recently rolled-out in Tomorrowland for custodial Cast. This system is said to better dispatch housekeepers to get rooms cleaned more efficiently for the day’s arrivals.
The last piece of all this is that a rumored third party company, based in the hospitality industry, will be coming in and retraining the housekeeping teams on current industry standards and trends. All of this piled together should create drastic changes in the upkeep and cleanliness of Disney’s hotel rooms.
While visiting Disney’s Animal Kingdom yesterday, I was surprised to see that the viewing area for Rivers of Light was open for guests to explore, perhaps offering a seating area for some nearby eateries.
Ae we explored, we noticed that techs for the show were out and turning things on.
After playing with the two boats for a while, things went quiet, so we left.
As evening fell, it was clear that the animal lantern barges had been rolled out, but they were not illuminated yet.
However, once 7:30PM hit and the park closed, the boat and two of the animal lanterns illuminated.
Now, this doesn’t necessarily mean that the show will debut soon, but it is a pretty decent sign at least.
We also have a video of the test to share with you:
So, what do you think?
The Florida Resident Discover Disney 3-Day and 4-Day tickets will be returning to Walt Disney World and are on sale now, but the most interesting thing about them is a series of blackout dates only for the Animal Kingdom park.
The tickets themselves are good for 3 or 4-days of visits to Walt Disney World theme parks between January 4th until June 9th, 2017. The 3-day ticket is $139.00 for ages 3 and up and the 4-day ticket is $159.00 for ages 3 and up. Guests can also add then Water Parks Fun and More Option at a discounted price.
Pandora: The World of AVATAR is scheduled to open Summer 2017 at Disney’sAnimal Kingdom. Does that mean May 27th, 2017?
The most interesting facet of this is the blockout dates exclusive to Disney’s Animal Kingdom theme park that begin on May 27th, 2017 and run through the end of the tickets on June 9th. Based on when these dates are, it seems likely that this is currently penciled in as the official opening of Pandora: The World of AVATAR at the park. As we learned from Rivers of Light, these things are always subject to change, but it seems likely that Pandora will kick off the Summer season with a grand opening during Memorial Day weekend 2017.
Disney has stated that Pandora: The World of AVATAR will open Summer 2017. Memorial Day weekend is often considered the beginning of the U.S. summer season.
The Florida Resident Discover Disney 3-Day and 4-Day tickets will be returning to Walt Disney World and are on sale now, but the most interesting thing about them is a series of blackout dates only for the Animal Kingdom park.
The tickets themselves are good for 3 or 4-days of visits to Walt Disney World theme parks between January 4th until June 9th, 2017. The 3-day ticket is $139.00 for ages 3 and up and the 4-day ticket is $159.00 for ages 3 and up. Guests can also add then Water Parks Fun and More Option at a discounted price.
Pandora: The World of AVATAR is scheduled to open Summer 2017 at Disney’sAnimal Kingdom. Does that mean May 27th, 2017?
The most interesting facet of this is the blockout dates exclusive to Disney’s Animal Kingdom theme park that begin on May 27th, 2017 and run through the end of the tickets on June 9th. Based on when these dates are, it seems likely that this is currently penciled in as the official opening of Pandora: The World of AVATAR at the park. As we learned from Rivers of Light, these things are always subject to change, but it seems likely that Pandora will kick off the Summer season with a grand opening during Memorial Day weekend 2017.
Disney has stated that Pandora: The World of AVATAR will open Summer 2017. Memorial Day weekend is often considered the beginning of the U.S. summer season.
I enjoy peanut brittle whenever I visit the Disneyland Resort as it is my absolute favorite snack that they offer. In fact, my tradition isn’t to eat a Dole Whip in the Tiki Room, it’s to bring in some peanut brittle and enjoy it while the birds sing words and the flowers croon. Now, I don’t typically buy peanut brittle at Walt Disney World, but on my last trip to the Magic Kingdom, I discovered this…
It’s Popcorn Brittle. What is Popcorn Brittle? Well, just remove the nuts and add popcorn, and there you have it.
It comes in a pretty nice tin, which does help to soften the blow of the $14.99 price tag on 9 ounces of this stuff.
It should also last you about 6 months, which is nice if you want to bring it home and eat it later to bring back fond memories of “The Most Magical Place on Earth”.
So how was it? Check out my video review where I eat the Popcorn Brittle:
After the exciting inside look at Pandora: The World of AVATAR that we got to see on the Disney Parks Magical Christmas Celebration special, we decided it might be a good time to take to the skies and take a look at Animal Kingdom’s newest land from above and see how it is coming along.
The below video is the longest of the sort that we have filmed to date, as we fly around the entire perimeter of the land, giving you a 360 degree view of Pandora just months ahead of its Summer 2017 opening.
The video, as well as the photos below, show a project rapidly approaching completion (finally). Hopefully the land will be open to guests by Memorial Day 2017, or at the very least by the 4th of July.
It appears that the full fleet of boats for the Navi River Journey are being loaded in this week. This indicates that the ride is likely finished and now they will begin cycling a full fleet of boats inside of the attraction.
Very little scaffolding remains on the mountain range, meanwhile, Pongu Pongu Refreshments, Windtraders, and Satuli Canteen appear to be just about finished from the exterior
Pongu Pongu Refreshments is the small building on the right side of the above photo, just north of the hangar-looking building, which is home to Satuli Canteen. We believe that Windtraders is the small building to the right of the Canteen, but we have been unable to confirm that as of yet.
Even from this angle, never intended to be seen by a guest, the mountains appear to be floating.
Pavement has been laid finally, no longer leaving dirt trails between the sights of Pandora.
The large cranes were moved off-site in the last two weeks, leaving the skyline of the park closer to its finished product.
So, what do you think of Pandora: The World of AVATAR? Are you excited yet?
