Summer has flown by, and somehow it’s already September! I myself was in Norway for 8 days at the end of August (real Norway, not Epcot Norway!). It was a very cool experience, and I can say that there are a lot of things that Epcot gets right. There are some exciting upcoming events for Disney on both coasts with the holiday season approaching, as well as Epcot’s Food and Wine Festival.
Disney News
- Are you attending Epcot’s Food and Wine Festival this year? It started on July 27th and runs until November 18th, and Disney has the full menus up on their website now.
- And if you’re a fan of the merch, you can a look at the Food and Wine Festival stuff here.
- Over in California, there are also new details about the food coming to San Fransokyo Square in California Adventure!
- On Disney Cruise Line, they’ve announced that they will be debuting a new deck party on the Dream called Mickey’s Spin Color Dance Party.
- We also have some details about the newest Disney cruise ship, the Treasure, coming soon. Captain Hook and Peter Pan will both be featured on the stern of the ship.
- Trail’s End and Crockett’s Tavern at Fort Wilderness have finally re-opened with a completely new menu.
- The owner of one of the biggest and longest running Disney websites/podcasts/travel agencies has now resigned as a result of both sexual assault allegations and a financial lawsuit. Pete Werner, founder of WDWInfo and Dreams Unlimited Travel, will be leaving his company and ownership is “currently being divested.”
- Mears Connect and Sunshine Flyer, two shuttle companies that run between Orlando airport and Disney, have announced that they are merging. The new service will be called Mears Connect Driven by Sunshine.
- Epcot will be getting a few new experiences for Disney’s 100 celebration, including a mural in World Celebration, a new projection show on Spaceship Earth, character meets with Mickey and Minnie in new outfits, new photopass magic shots, and more.
- Disneyland’s Fantasmic show will be reopening in spring of 2024, and it will return without the firebreathing (and problematic) Maleficent dragon.
- A new interactive experience will be coming to Storybook Circus – it will be a scratch and sniff adventure called “Smellephants on Parade” (yes, really).
- Starting on September 15th, we’ll see some Encanto characters in Magic Kingdom! Mirabel will start meet and greets, and Bruno will be appearing in one of the character cavalcades.
- Disneyland will get a new Haunted Mansion shop and expanded grounds in 2024.
- On September 7th of THIS year, Disneyland will be opening the Tiana’s Palace quick service restaurant!
- The Plaza Restaurant in Magic Kingdom is getting a lot of new menu changes.
- Stormalong Bay, the popular pool area of the Yacht and Beach Club resorts, will be undergoing a refurb from January-May 2025. While it’s still aways away, it’s important to keep in mind because that amazing pool is often a big reason why people book these resorts (maybe they’ll be cheaper during this time?)
Disney rumors
Animal Kingdom // With Disney finishing up its updates to Epcot by the end of this year, it seems like Animal Kingdom may be next in line for some changes. While both a Moana and a Zootopia land have been mentioned, rumors seem to suggest that Moana is more likely to happen first, if at all.
Hollywood Studios // Voyage of the Little Mermaid has still not reopened since its closure in 2020, so it seems likely that Disney may choose to do something else with this space. One popular suggestion is that it will be turned into a character meet and greet, or changed into some sort of show or attraction to do with the new live action Little Mermaid.
Other Disney blogs
One of my personal favorite blogs, Fairest Run of All, just celebrated her 10 year anniversary! Head on over to wish Jenn congratulations (side note: Disney in your Day is also 10 years old this year, but life got in the way for me to celebrate much. Let’s make the 11th anniversary a big deal, maybe?)
Another huge congratulations to Tom Bricker and Sarah at Disney Tourist Blog – they are expecting a little one soon and just announced that it will be a baby girl!
If you’re going on Disney Cruise Line and you have someone who loves the princesses, Melanie at Polka Dots and Pixie Dust has the info on the Royal Princess Gatherings on board.
Over at WDW Prep School, Allyson shares some fun ideas for the 29 most unique Disney World souvenirs.
Leave a Reply