Disney News

Nearly a year after announcing that they would add a Starbucks® location to each of their domestic parks, Disney Parks has released plans for their next location on Main Street, U.S.A.® inside Disneyland® Park.

This fall, Starbucks® will debut inside the Market House. Closing in April for a refurbishment, the Market House will be expanded into the neighboring space currently occupied by Disneyana. The new location will still carry the theme of a turn-of-the-century general store, but will serve Starbucks® products and a selection of pastries.  While the Market House will no longer serve their current Disney branded coffee or offer free refills like they do now, there’s no need to say “farewell!” Guests will still be able to purchase it in select retail locations to make at home.

The current offerings of Disneyana will be combined with the Disney Gallery inside the Bank of Main Street building. At this time, no exact dates have been announced for the closing or reopening. The new Market House location will be the second Starbucks® inside the parks of the Disneyland® Resort – the first opened as the Fiddler, Fifer and Practical Café last June inside Disney California Adventure® Park.

runDisney has announced that the 2014 Walt Disney World® Marathon Weekend will be bigger and better than ever!

The weekend will expand to five days – Jan. 8-12, 2014. A new 10K race will join the existing Family Fun Run 5K, the Disney Half Marathon, and the Disney Marathon. In past years,  runners could participate in the Goofy’s Race and a Half Challenge by completing the Walt Disney World® Half Marathon on Saturday and the Walt Disney World® Marathon on Sunday. Now, runners can add on the 5K race on Thursday and the new 10K race on Friday to accept The Dopey Challenge – a total of 48.6 miles run in four timed events in successive days! Those successfully completing the challenge will receive 6 medals!

Other events throughout the weekend include runDisney Kids Races, the Mickey Mile, and Disney’s Health and Fitness Expo at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex. Special ticketed events will include Character Breakfasts, Pasta in the Park parties at Epcot®, and a Cool Down Party at Downtown Disney®.

Registration for all Walt Disney World® Marathon Weekend events opens at noon on April 9th. Contact your Magic Maker® today to discuss accommodation options for the weekend!

To celebrate Easter, Disney Parks has planned some special “Limited Time Magic” events that everybunny is going to find really egg-citing!

Walt Disney World® Resort

• Spring Fling – From Mar. 25-31, take part in an array of seasonal experiences around the Walt Disney World® Resort. Mr. and Mrs. Easter Bunny will be greeting guests and posing for photos inside Town Square at Magic Kingdom® Park. And just before the daily performances of the Celebrate a Dream Come True Parade, Mr. and Mrs. Easter Bunny will be the stars of a special springtime processional with some fellow Disney rabbits along the parade route. Over at Epcot®, Mr. and Mrs. Bunny will be hosting some fun activities in the United Kingdom pavilion like relay races and Easter egg hunts. A second Easter Egg hunt will be held in Future World East. Valid theme park admission is required.
• Spring Trolley Show on Main Street, U.S.A.® – It has been a long winter for us all, and the citizens of Main Street, U.S.A.® inside Magic Kingdom® Park are beyond excited that spring is in the air. Join them daily through May 12, 2013 as they celebrate with a Spring Trolley Show. Arriving on a horse-drawn trolley decorated for the season, their performance of a few new songs will be as bright as their colorful pastel outfits! Please refer to your Times Guide for show information.

Disneyland® Resort

• Spring Fling – From Mar. 25-31, the Easter Bunny will be greeting guests in Town Square at Disneyland® Park. Main Street U.S.A.® will be hoppin’ when the Easter Bunny, the Dapper Dans, and some Disney Friends perform the Bunny Hop! At Disney California Adventure® Park, Russel and Dug have hidden oversized Easter eggs throughout the Redwood Creek Challenge Trail. Complete the Wilderness Explorer Egg Hunt and receive a Spring Egg-tivity Badge! Valid theme park admission is required.
  
• Oz The Great and Powerful Sneak Peek – Catch a special sneak peek of Walt Disney Studios newest movie, Oz The Great and Powerful, which opened in theaters Mar. 8. The extended preview will be shown in 3D with a few special 4D effects thrown in the mix! The preview will be held daily thru Mar. 31 in the Muppet*Vision 3D Theater at Disney California Adventure® Park.

And the Year of the Ear continues with miniature MousekeEars! These adorable, mini versions of popular ear designs are only available while supplies last! Also, you can purchase an Oswald The Lucky Rabbit ear hat, available at MouseGear in Epcot® and Oswald’s Service Station in Disney California Adventure® Park while supplies last!

Keep checking back as Off to Neverland Travel® will continue to bring you details on future ”Limited Time Magic” events as they become available!

By: Kyle Froman, Off to Neverland Travel®

Sitting in the corner of our sectional couch is one small pillow that reads ‘Never Grow Up’.

This small pillow’s journey started at Walt Disney World® Resort, in Magic Kingdom® Park to be exact. On our most recent visit to Walt Disney World® Resort we passed this small pillow countless times in just as many souvenir stores scattered around the parks and resorts. Every time we saw it we would smile, then go on our way. Finally, on one of our last evenings at Magic Kingdom® Park we succumbed to this small pillow’s beck and call and brought him home with us (after paying of course)!

The lure of the phrase embroidered on this small pillow is found in the feeling that overcomes you as you walk through Magic Kingdom® Park, or really any area of Walt Disney World® Resort’s property.

To me, it is a journey back to a time and place when I was a child and this world of fantasy was fully reality. The smell of the popcorn, bakery and ice cream parlor on Main Street U.S.A.® Area put me in the shoes of an young boy who was experiencing it all for the first time. The sights and the sounds send the memories flooding through my mind, as fresh as the day they happened. Watching my boys’ take it all in is like looking at it all through the eyes of my young self. It is truly magical.

It is as if I never grew up.

What makes it all truly magical is that you don’t have to have childhood memories of Walt Disney World® Resort to embrace this feeling. I have watched adults experiencing Magic Kingdom® Park for the first time become overwhelmed as they, too, are transported back to their childhood. Experiencing the attractions and reveling in the ambiance  it is as if their youth is restored… if only for a few days while they are there.

It is as if they never grew up.

Let’s face it, we all experience ‘life’ on a daily basis. We have bills to pay and bosses to please. We have families to chauffeur and yards/homes to upkeep. We have to be adults, it is part of life. But every time my eyes catch our small pillow in our living room I am immediately transported to the middle of Main Street U.S.A.® Area and I can almost smell the bakery and taste the popcorn.

Sometimes you just feel ‘old’. After all, growing old is required…but growing up is optional. To me, that’s the beauty of a trip to Walt Disney World® Resort, I never have to grow up. It doesn’t matter if you’ve been there 100 times, or if you are hoping to go for the first time, you will feel like a kid again. It certainly isn’t a fountain of youth, but it is a journey back to being a child…when fantasy was reality and the world is at your fingertips.

I invite you, too, to experience your childhood again by contacting your Magic Maker® today to plan your next trip to Walt Disney World® Resort. It will be as if you never grew up.

There’s no doubt that life is hectic! Balancing work, your responsibilities at home, and your family’s schedule loaded with activities is no easy feat. To take a look at how our hectic lives take a toll on quality family time, Disney Parks recently commissioned Kelton – a research firm – to conduct a blind survey.

More than 1,000 parents of children age 5-17 were asked their thoughts on quality time when at home verses when on vacation. Here is a look at some of the results:

• We’re Busy – Time is precious, scare, and fleeting! Out of 52 weeks in a year, the survey showed parents typically only have about 15 “free” weekends a year with no plans. 13% polled said they have no free weekends. But this is a problem parents are fully aware of – 96% said they would give up at least one thing to spend just one extra hour with their children every week.
• Go On Vacation – Vacation is a key way for your family to bond. The survey showed that when families vacation together, the time spent with each other is more likely to be “quality time” and that the whole family is more excited, relaxed, and even more affectionate. And family time together over meals nearly doubles when on vacation – going from an average of 10 meals per week at home to 19 meals on vacation!
• The Future of Family Travel – It appears that those who have already taken family vacations now realize the importance of this family time. Of those past vacationers, 82% said they will take the same amount of, if not more, vacations over the next five years. 94% of parents surveyed acknowledged the importance of family vacations taken on a regular schedule. Responses showed popular types of family vacations were theme parks, beaches, cruises and camping. The top destinations were Florida, California, and Hawaii.

As travel professionals, our Magic Makers® have experienced first-hand the value vacation time can bring to a family. Don’t let any more time slip away – contact us now to start creating memories to last a lifetime!

A new art exhibit representing over 400 years of African-American achievement and contribution has opened inside the American Adventure pavilion at Epcot®.

The exhibit, titled “Re-Discovering America: Family Treasures from the Kinsey Collection,” displays over 40 pieces of rare art, documents, books and artifacts of African-American history. The pieces come from the private collection of philanthropists Bernard and Shirley Kinsey whose collection has been on display all over the U.S., including the Smithsonian National Museum of American History. Paying homage to African-Americans who helped build and transform a nation, the entire exhibit carriers a theme of hope, belief, courage, imagination, and heritage.

We always wanted to extend the reach of the Collection to a larger, more international and diverse audience. So we are delighted to be collaborating with Disney to share the stories of our remarkable ancestors.” – Bernard Kinsey

“Re-Discovering America: Family Treasures from the Kinsey Collection” is included in Epcot® admission. Enjoy this special preview of the exhibit.

Big changes are on the way for the Downtown Disney® Area of the Walt Disney World® Resort. Planned as a multi-year transformation, the changes will not only expand and give a new look to the popular entertainment district, but it will be renamed as Disney Springs.

Inspired by some of Florida’s beautiful waterfront towns, Disney Springs will receive a new entrance leading guests to four different outdoor neighborhoods. With their own charm, each neighborhood will host a variety of shopping, dining, and entertainment experiences.

Inside the Town Center, you will find a mix of shopping and dining locations. Open-air promenades will provide the perfect space for guests to sit back and relax. The colorful and thriving commercial district called The Landing will host world-class dining experiences with beautiful, waterfront views of the lake. The Marketplace will continue to be a family-friendly destination for guests of all ages to enjoy their time. Along with some new, yet-to-be announced experiences, many of the favorite shopping locations will continue to operate including the World of Disney® Store which will receive an expansion. And the West Side will continue to provide an exuberant atmosphere with lively entertainment and some new elevated spaces to provide shade and an overlook to the activity below.

Once completed, this multi-year project will double the number of shops, restaurants, and other venues currently found in the Downtown Disney® Area. Construction is scheduled to start next month. While new areas of Disney Springs will open in stages, an anticipated completion date for the entire project is in 2016.

All images of Disney Springs are Disney concept art – actual construction my vary.

By Magic Maker® Laura Thatcher

This year is the 20th anniversary of Epcot’s® International Flower and Garden Festival . In addition to the banners of blooms that guests have come to expect, the festival has expanded to offer limited time menus at kiosks around World Showcase.

There are 12 different booths offering special food and beverage selections. Guests will find everything from the exotic (FRUSHI – fruit sushi wrapped in coconut ‘rice’) to the All American (Smoked Beef Brisket with Collard Greens). A sampling of this year’s food includes:

Tarte a la ratatouille et fromage de chevre – A new take on an old-favorite, ratatouille and cheese is served on top of pastry dough.

Pulled Pig  Slider with Cole Slaw –  This all-American sandwich is served on a large roll and topped with crisp cole slaw and can be customized with either sweet or spicy BBQ sauce.

Tostada de Jaiba – Crab Tostada served with Chipotle Mayo and Valentina Sauce. A crispy tostada topped with chilled crab salad.

Shrimp and Stone Ground Grits with Andouille Sausage, Zellwood Corn, Tomatoes and Cilantro – Three large, fresh Florida shrimp are served atop warm grits and bite sized pieces of sausage.

Dole Whip with Siesta Key Spiced Rum – A twist on the classic Disney snack, a Dole Whip served with a generous pour of rum for a tropical treat for the grownups.

There are numerous other choices for both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages in each country. The festival also features a Fruits by the Glass stand with choices like Blueberry Wine, Watermelon Passion Fruit Cocktails and non-alcoholic Wild Berry Slush.