Skip to main content

Ears the News: May 4, 2018 Edition


Welcome to the latest edition of Ears the News

Brought to you by our friends at WDWMagic.com.


The Pandora Utility Suit made its official debut at Disney's Animal Kingdom last week on Earth Day.

Developed by the Pandora Conservation Initiative, the 10ft tall Pandora Utility Suit is piloted by a
Photo courtesy of WDWMagic.com
PCI scientist, who uses the suit to travel through the Valley of Mo'ara to study the Pandoran plants and fauna. During the travels, the pilot takes time to talk to guests and educates them on some of the details of Pandora.

During its opening week there were two shows per day at 9:45am and 11:45am, but the latest schedules are varying. So if you want to see the suit in action, try to get to Pandora early and wait near Pongu Pongu in the far corner of Pandora.

The Haramabe Theater at Disney's Animal Kingdom will be closing for a one day refurbishment next week.

As a result, the Festival of the Lion King show will not be performed on Wednesday May 9 2018.

Disney has released the first image shot inside the upcoming Alien Swirling Saucers attraction in Toy Story Land.

At Alien Swirling Saucers, which is an attraction that’s been designed to look like a toy from Pizza Planet and placed in his backyard next to his Buzz Lightyear’s Star Command playset, Aliens fly around in their toy flying saucers while “The Claw” appears overhead. As you whirl around the toy planets and space stations as part of the game, you’ll swirl to the beat of a fun electronic space music soundtrack that includes eight songs that may sound familiar, but will be heard in a quirky way you’ve never experienced before. Guests will also see pizza details throughout the attraction, including pizza columns, a pizza space station and the Planet Pepperonia.

Disney has also released a ride through video of the new Slinky Dog Dash roller coaster.


Video courtesy of the Disney Parks Blog.
Having trouble viewing the video? Click here to watch on YouTube.

A Wheezy Audio-Animatronics figure will be part of Slinky Dog Dash in the upcoming Toy Story Land.

At the end of the attraction, Wheezy sings “You’ve Got a Friend in Me,” assisted by Mike
Photo courtesy of Disney.
(the tape recorder), who’s provided him with a microphone, and Mr. Spell, who “texts” funny commentary. The friends are surrounded by a collection of toys, including a Rubik’s cube, a canister for a game called Pick-Up Snakes, toy wooden blocks spelling out F-U-N, and toy packages for an RC Car and a triangle puzzle game, all framed by a towering book, Mr. Pricklepants Songs for Singing.

Toy Story Land opens June 30, 2018 at Disney's Hollywood Studios.

The Magic Kingdom's ticketed event, 'Disney After Hours' will continue into the summer of 2018.

Like before, the event gives guests extra time in the park to enjoy attractions after regular park closing. There are 11 dates currently planned, June 28, 30; July 7, 9, 14, 21, 28; August 4, 11, 30; September 20, 2018.

Disney After Hours at the Magic Kingdom tickets get you into the park from 7pm, with the event taking place from regular park close for three hours. 'Disney After Hours' includes complimentary ice cream novelties and beverages.

The cost is $119 plus tax for ages 3+ with advance purchase, or $124 for day of. Passholders and DVC can get a discounted rate of $89 plus tax. Theme park admission is not required.

Extra Magic Hours for Disney resort hotel guests are not impacted by this event, with Disney After Hours taking place on non-EMH nights.

You can call 407-827-7185 to book tickets or purchase them directly from the Walt Disney World website.

Photo courtesy of WDWMagic.com.

After a 35 year long run, Disney's hard ticketed Night of Joy event at Walt Disney World will no longer take place.

Night of Joy moved from the Magic Kingdom to ESPN Wide World of Sports 2016.

Although Disney has not offered a reason for discontinuing Night of Joy, most suspect that the decision was based on the number of operational difficulties event created.


Looking to plan your next trip to Walt Disney World? Contact the agents at Kingdom Konsultant Travel to help you plan your dream vacation. Email vacations@kingdomkonsultant.com for a free quote today.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

House of Blues Brunch

Brunch is probably my favorite meal to go out for, and Disney Springs has some hidden gems in the brunch department. House of Blues offers weekend brunch with one of the best deals on property, bottomless mimosas!  If you’re up for it, House of Blues offers a laid back atmosphere with live music for brunch. It is available Saturday and Sunday from 10am to 2pm, with the full menu available after 12pm. We were sat in the back room where we couldn’t see the stage but could hear it and it was a great vibe!  Bottomless mimosas and coffee were the popular choice for beverages, but they also offer a variety of brunch cocktails and other options. Bottomless mimosa! We were a party of 8 and hungry, so we started with an order of nachos from the lunch menu and they were a HUGE portion, so glad we had a lot of people to share them with.  BBQ Nachos - Four cheese sauce, avocado, roasted corn salsa, pickled red onion, tomato, Memphis BBQ sauce, cilantro crema, cotija cheese. Chicken, Brisket or Pul

Giovanni's Table on Liberty of the Seas

Royal Caribbean Cruise Line has wonderful specialty dining options on all of their ships.  They all have some variety of an Italian restaurant and I've tried Jamie's Italian on the Symphony of the Seas and now Giovanni's Table on Liberty of the Seas. The restaurant is located by the Windjammer Buffet, tucked off to one side as you enter the area.  Once inside, the atmosphere is dark and cozy, very different from the buffet hectic world outside the doors.  There is an open kitchen along the one wall and windows along the other.  The restaurant is a set upcharge, and then you can order whatever you want from the food menu that is to your liking throughout the meal.  Giovanni's is actually undergoing some changes on a lot of RCCL ships, but Liberty hadn't had those changes yet so it was still the "old" one, which was fine by us. We had an amazing meal here, and wouldn't hesitate to come back again on a future cruise.  You might see Giovanni's Kitchen

5 Ways To Get Psyched For Your Disney Trip!

Hey-Howdy-Hey, Disney Guys and Gals!      Is anyone familiar with Barney Stinson's "Get Psyched" Mix? Anyone? How I Met your Mother Fans? Ok, great! So you totally get where I'm going with this! If you have no idea what I am talking about, you can watch a clip  HERE!  Basically, the theory is that no matter what's going on in your life, you can get yourself psyched up and ready for something awesome to happen, all by listening to the right piece of music. Playing off of that theory, I feel that one of the very best things about a Disney trip is actually  preparing  for it, or getting psyched! You can have a whole bunch of crappy stuff happening in your life at the time, but if you have a Disney trip on the horizon... even if it's 564 days away, you have something to look forward to and enjoy preparing yourself for. In fact, many Disney fans, (myself included), pretty much get from one day to the next by preparing for upcoming trips. You may even book a ne