Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique has moved to a new location near Once Upon a Toy in the Disney Springs™ Marketplace. This new location allowed for a expansion of the popular salon – now five times larger than its former location inside World of Disney®!
Inspired by Walt Disney’s Cinderella, we think our clients are going to fall in love with the new location! With new interactive elements and décor, there’s so much to explore!
Because of the popularity of the new Frozen – Live at the Hyperion show at Disney’s California Adventure® Park, three new VIP experiences have been added to help guests have a little extra Frozen fun before the curtain rises!
Each of the three packages will provide access to a Frozen-themed celebration prior to the live show. This celebration takes place in Stage 17 and features:
Package Includes:
Cost: $49 per person, plus tax
Package Includes:
Cost: $99 per adult and $79 per child (ages 3 to 9), plus tax and gratuity
Package Includes:
Cost: $299 per person, plus tax and gratuity
Separate theme park admission required and is not included in the package price. Space is limited and advance registration is required. Full payment is due at time of booking and cancellation policies apply. No discounts. Subject to restrictions and change or cancellation without notice.
Saturday, May 28, 2016 is a very special day for Disney Parks! 50 years ago that day, the it’s a small world® attraction opened to the public at Disneyland® Park after its debut at the 1964 World’s Fair.
Throughout its time, it’s a small world® has touched and inspired hundreds of millions of people. We’ve collected a few videos below that explain the optimism and hope this timeless attraction was designed to share.
It all started in 1963 when Walt was asked by Pepsi-Cola to create an exhibit for the upcoming World’s Fair that would salute UNICEF and children around the world. The result was it’s a small world®, a boat ride attraction that entertained more than 10 million visitors with a trip through different regions and countries of the world during it’s 2-year run in New York City.
This video shares a brief overview of the attractions past – both at the World’s Fair and once relocated (and enlarged 33%) at its permanent home in Disneyland® Park in 1966.
Disney Legend and former Imagineer Rolly Crump was part of the it’s a small world® project from the very beginning and has some very fond memories of his peers and the creation of the attraction.
The original concept for it’s a small world® featured dolls that would sing the national anthems of the various countries throughout the voyage. When that idea turned out to be a cacophony, Walt Disney turned to Academy Award®-winning composers The Sherman Brothers (Richard M. and Robert B.) to create a simple, yet catchy song for his new attraction that could be translated and sung in many different languages. The finished product – “It’s A Small World (After All)” – became one of the most famous and perhaps the happiest of Disney tunes.
Over 50 years later, that song continues to be an “earworm” to people around the globe as it is the most translated, most performed song in the World!
In 1964 Walt Disney introduced “the happiest cruise that ever sailed” and ever since Imagineers have worked hard to maintain this quintessential Disney Parks experience. In addition to the original attraction that is now inside Disneyland® Park, guests can also experience it’s a small world® at the Magic Kingdom® Park (Walt Disney World® Resort, Florida), Tokyo Disneyland®, Disneyland® Paris, and Hong Kong Disneyland®. And since 1992, the attractions cheerful anthem has been heard somewhere on the planet every hour of every day!
Extreme care has been taken by Imagineers to maintain the ride’s unique theming and message through the updates over the years.
Every day, our Magic Makers® are hard at work planning once-in-a-lifetime vacations for their clients. With some tips and tricks in your back pocket and an itinerary planned to fit your family’s needs, you’re on your way to a vacation full of magical memories. But when our clients want exclusivity and the highest level of service inside the parks of the Walt Disney World® Resort, nothing tops a Private Tour from Disney VIP Tour Services.
While Disney VIP Tour Services will make every effort to accommodate a selection of the most popular experiences, actual attractions visited are subject to change before and during the tour depending upon group size, schedules, transportation, refurbishments, closures, availability, weather and other conditions. Up to 10 Guests per VIP Tour Guide. Additional Guides available at the current rate.
This fall, Epcot® will celebrate 62 delicious days of sipping and savoring when they host their International Food & Wine Festival from Sep. 14-Nov. 14, 2016! Loyal festival fans and first-timers will enjoy more than 30 outdoor marketplaces, nightly concerts, signature dinners and feature tasting events.
While Cast Members are still hard at work planning all of the details, we have a preview of what’s in store:
It looks like the 21st Annual Epcot® International Food & Wine Festival is going to be great!
Many events and activities are included with regular Epcot® admission including Back to Basics series, special book signings, Eat to the Beat concerts, cultural adventures, Marketplace Passport and all attractions and park entertainment. The Party for the Senses grand tasting events, signature dinners and other special wine and culinary programs require reservations and separate event admission. Reservation bookings for premium events will be available later this summer.
By Allie Willits, Off to Neverland Travel® Magic Maker®
We recently experienced a perfect parents’ night out while at the Walt Disney World® Resort and my daughter LOVED every minute of it! Disney’s Children’s Activity Centers make it easy to leave your kiddo(s) in their capable hands.
Located at Disney’s Beach Club Resort (Sandcastle Club) and Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort (Lilo’s Playhouse) serving children from ages 3-12 the Children’s Activity Center’s are a great value for a flat rate of $55 per child from 4:30pm-midnight (you can drop off and pick up children anytime within those hours). At the Walt Disney World Dolphin Hotel (Club Dolphin for kids age 4-12) and at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge (Simba’s Cubhouse) the rate is $15 per hour per child. At all Children’s Activity Centers dinner and a snack are served. My daughter (age 5) begs to go back every trip.
While our daughter enjoyed dancing with Chip and Dale at a luau party, baking cookies, playing pirate games, doing science experiments, putting on a play and making new friends, my husband and I enjoyed a night to ourselves. Disney’s BoardWalk Entertainment District was a perfect place for our date night. We started with relaxing drinks and live music at Martha’s Vineyard in Disney’s Beach Club Resort, then walked over to the Walt Disney World Swan Hotel for dinner at Trattoria Il Mulino and ended the evening at Jellyrolls enjoying the dueling piano show. When we went to pick up our daughter she didn’t want to leave she was having so much fun!
The Walt Disney World® Resort has great lounges, restaurants and nightlife to spend your adult evenings – or head to one of the theme parks for some after dark fun! Disney Springs™ is always an exciting location for a parent’s night out! Dinner at one of the many amazing restaurants followed by the spectacular La Nouba by Cirque du Soleil is a favorite of mine.
Some other awesome date night/children activity center combos are:
Simba’s Cubhouse – dinner at Jiko followed by drinks at Victoria Falls or head over to Disney’s Animal Kingdom® Theme Park to check out the new nighttime activities and shows
Lilo’s Playhouse – have an evening of appetizers, drinks and desserts on a monorail crawl! At Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort enjoy some tropical eats and drinks at Trader Sam’s Grog Grotto then head to Tambu Tambu to check out their tasty selection. Next jump on the monorail and head Wave Lounge in Disney’s Contemporary Resort for appetizers then up to the Outer Rim to watch the sunset over Bay Lake while enjoying unique beverages. Lastly – ride the monorail to Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort for some live jazz music, libations and dessert (best desserts on the monorail crawl) before heading back to Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort to pick up the little ones!
Sandcastle Club – walk over to Epcot®’s International Gateway and experience eating and drinking around the world while enjoying live music in the World Showcase – maybe even booking an IllumiNations Sparkling Dessert Party, then, if you choose a night with Epcot® Extra Magic Hours Benefits, head to Future World for some attraction action!
Your Magic Maker® can help you plan the perfect parents’ night out for your vacation and sign your kiddo(s) up for a night of fun at one of the Children’s Activity Centers – just ask them for more information!
Disney Cruise Line has announced some exciting Frozen-inspired experiences during select sailings on all four of their ships! These activities, which vary by ship and itinerary, are slated to begin this Summer.
Exclusively on the Disney Magic, “Disney Dreams… An Enchanted Classic” inside the Walt Disney Theatre will continue to feature friends of Frozen and their renditions of three popular songs: “Let it Go,” “For the First Time in Forever” and “In Summer.”
Also exclusively on the Disney Magic, Port Adventures on select Norway sailings bring the fairytale setting of Arendelle and Frozen to life.
All entertainment offerings subject to change without notice.
In Summer of 2017, Disney Cruise Line will set sail on new itineraries and make calls to new ports, including first-time visits to new destinations in Alaska and Europe. They’ll also return to Norway, the British Isles, the Mediterranean, and their popular itineraries in the Caribbean and Bahamas.
Here’s a look at what’s new:
For the first time, Disney Cruise Line will take you to Alaska’s Icy Strait Point and Hubbard Glacier – in addition to favorite ports of call like Ketchikan, Juneau, Skagway and Tracy Arm Fjord. This is part of a new nine-night itinerary on the Disney Wonder on July 24, 2017.
During the visit to Icy Strait Point, you’ll experience a variety of Alaska nature adventures, including a zip line attraction that is one of the longest and highest zip lines in the world. Nearby, Glacier Bay National Park is a spectacular highlight of Alaska’s Inside Passage and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Another highlight of this cruise is seeing Hubbard Glacier, the largest and most active tidewater glacier in North America.
A new seven-night Alaska sailing departing July 17, 2017, includes a call on Icy Strait Point, in addition to Tracy Arm, Skagway, Juneau and Ketchikan. And on Aug. 2, 2017, the Disney Wonder will sail its first five-night Alaska cruise to Tracy Arm and Ketchikan.
On May 13, 2017, the Disney Magic embarks on a 15-night transatlantic crossing from Port Canaveral, Florida, to Copenhagen, with a stop in Amsterdam, Netherlands and Portland, England – both first-time ports for Disney Cruise Line. Amsterdam is known for its elaborate canal system, tulip fields, windmills and world-class museums housing works by Rembrandt, Vermeer and Van Gogh. Just a short distance from Portland is Stonehenge, the prehistoric ring of standing stones monument that is one of the Seven Wonders of the Medieval World.
Amsterdam will also be part of a 10-night northern Europe itinerary that departs June 18, 2017, from Copenhagen, Denmark, to Dover, England. Other ports on this sailing include Warnemunde (Berlin), Germany; Stockholm, Sweden; Helsinki, Finland; St. Petersburg, Russia; and Tallinn, Estonia.
The grand tour of Europe continues throughout the summer with limited engagements in the Baltic, Norwegian fjords, Iceland, British Isles and the Mediterranean.
For the first time, the Disney Fantasy will set sail from Port Canaveral on longer itineraries during new 10- and 11-night cruises to the southern Caribbean. On June 17, 2017, a new 11-night itinerary will visit Aruba, Barbados, Martinique, St. Kitts, Tortola and Disney’s private island, Castaway Cay. On June 28, 2017, a new 10-night itinerary will call on Aruba, Curacao, St. Kitts, Tortola and Castaway Cay.
Castaway Cay, Disney’s private island in the Bahamas, is consistently rated a top port-of-call by all of our guests sailing on Disney Cruise Line. We’re alway excited when these special itineraries pop up offering two stops at Castaway Cay.
Special five-night sailings, departing June 2, 11, 16, 25, 30 and July 9, 2017, will call on Castaway Cay twice and include a stop in Nassau, Bahamas. Special four-night sailings, departing June 7, 21 and July 5, 2017, will visit Castaway Cay twice, also with a stop in Nassau.
In addition to the new itineraries mentioned above, many more options are available in Alaska, Europe, the Caribbean and Bahamas aboard all 4 Disney Cruise Line ships!
Update Apr. 5, 2016: The Walt Disney World® Resort has announced that the new experiences at Disney’s Animal Kingdom® Theme Park will not open on Apr. 22, 2016 as planned. Unfortunately, more time is needed to bring these innovative experiences to life to exceed guests’ expectations. An announcement on the updated debut date is expected in May.
As part of the expansion currently underway, the Walt Disney World® Resort has announced the new nighttime spectacular at Disney’s Animal Kingdom® Theme Park will debut on Apr. 22, 2016 soon.
Titled Rivers of Light, the show utilizes live music and water screens to bring the Discovery River to life. Using the latest in technology and innovations, this show is unlike anything ever seen in Disney Parks.
While you’re waiting for the new show to launch, watch these Walt Disney Imagineering videos below to get a “first look” at Rivers of Light and the nighttime transformation of the Tree of Life!
By Kyle Froman, Off to Neverland Travel®’s Director of Marketing
It is almost that time of year again.
Before we all know it, children will be trading in book bags and school clothes for suitcases and flip-flops. Summer vacation season is looming just out of our windshields!
When it comes to summer travel, we know that the opportunities are truly limitless. Last summer alone my family traveled to New York City, Washington, D.C., Santa Rosa Beach, New Hampshire, and Texas over the course of three months. Our nation is full of amazing destinations with fantastic experiences all waiting for us to enjoy them.
Yet, even with so many amazing places to see and things to do we are continually drawn back to one place annually, Walt Disney World® Resort in central Florida. I could share with you dozens of reasons why, but in the end it can all be paired down to one thing, the Disney difference.
While it is possible to explain the Disney difference, it is really something that has to be experienced to fully realize what makes it so special.
I remember one trip in particular a few summers back when things weren’t necessarily going just as we had hoped or planned. Our youngest son had become sick near the end of our stay (those of you with young children know just how ‘un-magical’ this can be).
Following a field trip to the local urgent care facility, we made the decision to attempt to salvage what we could with one last day in the parks before heading home. We were not in Disney’s Hollywood Studios® Park very long before we found ourselves in the now-familiar nurses station near the front of the park.
Our son had not improved, and we needed a quiet, calm place to administer his medicine. The nurses allowed us use of one of the rooms. Most of our attempts at getting our toddler to take his medicine were futile, but after a decent amount of time trying alas it seemed we were finally making progress.
Unfortunately, the medicine did not stay in him long, as he decided to ‘erupt’ the meds along with everything else in his stomach all over himself, my wife and the room.
Last. Day. Ruined.
That is, until one of Disney’s Nurses entered the room and witnessed what had transpired.
As quickly as she entered, she disappeared (just as I would have). Only a few moments later she returned with a slip of paper in her hand as we were attempting to clean up. The paper was a voucher, for new outfits not only for my son but for my wife as well.
They could have easily witnessed the semi-grotesque scene, offered their own apologies and let us go on our way back to the resort.
They were not content with that. They saw an opportunity to make magic happen in the middle of a miserable experience, and they seized the moment and acted on it.
The Disney difference.
It is going the extra mile when it isn’t necessary. It is creating magic in not-so-magical moments. It is pixie dust being sprinkled onto unexpected parts of your trip.
As a family, we have been to a lot of places and experienced a lot of things, and consistently no one does it like Disney Destinations does it.
So. As we head into another busy summer travel season, I implore you to consider experiencing the Disney difference for yourself. See just what it is that keeps the Froman family, and countless other families around the globe, returning to Walt Disney World® Resort year in, and year out.
The magic starts now, as our Magic Makers® are ready to help you experience just what the Disney difference is all about.
