Skip to main content

Ears the News with Richard

A new healthy snack kiosk will be opening soon in the Magic Kingdom's New Fantasyland. Offering snacks such as hummus, fruits, vegetables, juices and teas, 'Prince Eric's Village Market' will add another option for a quick bite in the New Fantasyland. The kiosk will be located just outside 'Under the Sea - Journey of the Little Mermaid.

The next generation vacation planning system MyMagic+ is expanding to more Walt Disney World resort hotels for the next round of testing.


Photo Courtesy of Disney Parks Blog
MyMagic+ MagicBand RFID braceletMyMagic+ MagicBand RFID braceletDisney's Animal Kingdom Lodge Jambo House Villas, Disney's Art of Animation Resort, Disney's Beach Club Resort and Villas, Disney's Polynesian Resort and Disney’s Port Orleans Riverside will be joining the existing test resorts which are Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge Jambo House, Disney's Contemporary Resort, Disney's Pop Century Resort and Disney's Yacht Club Resort.

To take part in the test, guests will need to be arriving at their resort between 9/3/2013 and 10/31/2013. As with the previous tests, the full range of MyMagic+ features will be available, including 'touch to pay,' 'touch to enter,' FastPass+ and MagicBands.

Disney expects the full roll-out of MyMagic+ to be complete and available to all guests by the end of 2013.
Love Disney Villains? Friday September 13th at Disney's Hollywood Studios is the place to be as Limited Time Magic is bringing 'Unleash the Villains' in what is expected to be one of the highlights of the Limited Time Magic year at Walt Disney World. Fans can expect a special fireworks show, dance party and villains meet and greets from 8:00 PM to 1:00 AM.

To celebrate the momentous evening, notorious Disney villains like Maleficent, Capt. Hook, Hades will host a wicked dance party, plus lots more spooky fun.

The hub of the villains’ festivities will be staged “dead” center of Disney’s Hollywood Studios at Hades’ Hangout – the hottest club north of the Underworld.

The “Lord of the dead,” Hades, will host spine-tingling fun while his henchmen, dancers, interactive DJ and hot house band keep the nighttime activities on fire. Hades’ 13 devilish Disney brutes will be waiting in Villain Encounters surrounding Hades’ Hangout for greetings and autographs with guests.

To celebrate the imminent arrival of the midnight witching hour “Villainy in the Sky” will set the sky ablaze with spectacular fireworks, and keep the party going until the 13th hour.

The official Disney Parks Blog has today confirmed that 'Celebrate the Magic' is set to debut a villains segment this weekend at the Magic Kingdom. Opening Sunday 9/1/2013, the villains edition of 'Celebrate the Magic' will feature favorite Disney villains taking over Cinderella Castle. You can see this edition of the show nightly before Wishes until 11/1/2013.

Like its predecessor, 'The Magic, The Memories, and You!,' 'Celebrate the Magic' was designed to feature seasonal components, which have so far included a romance and summer segment. 

Disney's Polynesian Resort 'Never Land Club' children's activity center is scheduled to be closed for refurbishment from 1/1/2014 through to 3/31/2014.

Storybook Circus in the New Fantasyland is now home to some new electronic guest conveniences.
Two FastPass+ kiosks are now available, allowing guests to make FastPass+ changes if they prefer not to use their own smartphone. USB chargers, along with regular electrical outlets are also now available, allowing guests to charge a whole array of electronics. 

USB charging in Fantasyland's Rapunzel restroom areaUSB charging in Fantasyland's Rapunzel restroom areaStorybook Circus now becomes the third Magic Kingdom location to offer chargers. The others are in the new Rapunzel restroom area and the gift shop arcade area at the exit of Space Mountain.

For the first time, a direct bus service will run from one of the theme parks to Downtown Disney as part of a limited test.

Direct bus service will be available from Disney's Animal Kingdom to Downtown Disney. Look for the route to be in service for all of September and October 2013, available daily from 3:00 PM to 1:00 AM.


The bus will drop-off at the West Side bus stop, and a return service to Disney's Animal Kingdom will also be available from that same location. Until now, the only way to get from a park to Downtown Disney has been to take transport to a resort hotel, and then transfer from there.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Villas at the Disneyland Hotel Review

I love staying at the Disneyland Hotel so when I got the opportunity to stay at the new Villas at the Disneyland Hotel during opening weekend, I couldn’t pass it up. Because it was opening weekend, we were greeted in the entrance way of the lobby with balloons and many photo opportunities. When we arrived, there was a mural of the Haunted Mansion. I love how the seats in the main lobby were designed like the teacups in the parks. You can check in using the Disneyland app, drop your bags with bell services and head into the parks or use the amenities why you wait until your room is ready. When your room is ready, the resort will send you a text and you can use the Disneyland app on your mobile device to unlock the room. We dropped off our bags and went straight to the parks. We received a text around 1PM that our room was ready. In the new Discovery Tower (the Villas), you'll find that the lobby is very spacious with many places to sit while you read or wait for your family. Th
Post a Comment
Read more

Universal's Volcano Bay Private Cabana Review

On a recent training in Universal Orlando Resort, agents Maci, Ashley, Aubrey and Yaritza and I rented a private cabana for the day at Universal's Volcano Bay. There are multiple locations around the park along with the option to have an upper or lower level, all of which reflect in various pricing. Agent Ashley received an email the day before informing her of where to check-in the next morning. While we were personally escorted to the cabana shortly after check in, the line at the check in location is the same as those getting towels, meaning it was not short. As expressed by an additional guest checking into a different cabana, we would have greatly appreciated a separate line, since this caused our group about a half hour wait. We're all adults and made great use of our time getting some fun pictures before the park was filled with guests, but this is important to be aware of if you are traveling with children.  We had an upper level Cabana which came with a splendid view!
Post a Comment
Read more

Our Favorite Mocktails at Walt Disney World

Your resident foodie and vacation lush here to chime in on our favorite zero-proof drinks at the parks which I feel like Disney has done a much better job of recently.  Zero-proof alcohol is really having a moment so you can get a lot more mocktails that aren't just sugary sweet, and I am here for it!  Whether you are trying out "Dry January" for your visit, currently pregnant, underage, or just choose not to drink for whatever reason, I hope this list helps you find something to look forward to trying on your next trip! Let's start with a popular one from the last year, the EARidescent Sip-a-bration drink.  This delight can be found at most lounges throughout the 50th celebration at Walt Disney World. It features Minute Maid® Premium Lemonade and Fruity Strawberry Punch, and is served in a souvenir 50th Celebration Cup with a surprise character. This is definitely a kid-friendly drink but it is so fun to drop in the character and watch the drink change color and sta
Post a Comment
Read more