Animal Kingdom to Open New Table Service Restaurant Soon

Another article that I found on my favorite site for WDW news, WDWMagic, says that a new table service (sit down) restaurant is coming to the Discovery Island area, opening in 2015. The article can be found here.



This is great news, as Animal Kingdom really only has a handful of sit down restaurants to choose from (Rainforest Café, Yak and Yeti, and Tusker House) to choose from, compared to the numerous options at the other three parks. I just hope that Pizzafari doesn't lose too much of its sitting area, since I love eating there and enjoy all of its various rooms for dining. They are all so wonderfully decorated.

I wonder what kind of restaurant it will be. Hopefully whenever my next trip is after this year it will be open for me to try it!

In other news, apparently Anna and Elsa from Frozen are going to be among the topiaries at Epcot's Flower this upcoming spring. Because we really need more seasonal Frozen stuff in the parks.

Next thing you know they'll rename Blizzard Beach...

Should Magic Kingdom's Be Our Guest Restaurant Offer Breakfast?

An interesting rumor/possibility was metioned on WDWinfo.com, a site which has discussion forums called the DisBoards that I visit semi-frequently, not too long ago about Be Our Guest Restaurant in the Magic Kingdom might start offering breakfast as soon as next year.




There would be pros and cons for this, but overall I would love to see it happen. I would actually like to see lunch become a sit down meal (right now lunch is counter service and dinner is table service) as well putting three times as many ADR's (advanced dining reservations for my non-Disney obsessed readers) up for grabs. Anyone who has tried to get ADRs for this place knows they are hard to get; we were able to get them for my trip this past May but were unable to get one for this upcoming trip in December even several months out.

The cons would be that those that wish to enjoy the counter service lunch would likely no longer be able to do so. It would be impossible to keep lunch counter service if both breakfast and dinner become table service due to timing issues. Well too bad. There are more than enough counter service meals available at the Magic Kingdom, but more table service meals would be welcomed.

All and all, I'd love to see breakfast added to Be Our Guest!

Walt Disney World: My Top Five Rides and Attractions for the Whole Family

Toy Story Mania Entrance at Disney's Hollywood Studios

Disney World is a great place to take the family for an awesome vacation. Many of the rides there, however, are aimed or only "ride-able" by certain people, especially when it comes to height considerations. Other rides and attractions that everyone can experience sometimes are sort of corny (i.e. Country Bear Jamboree) or are really aimed at very young demographics (i.e. Disney Junior: Live on Stage).

In all of the trips that I've taken, I've figured out where all of the attractions fall on the demographics spectrum. Here are my top five rides and attractions that can be enjoyed by just about any demographic. To fall into this list, these attractions must not have a height requirement.

5) Spaceship Earth- interactive finale and I felt compelled to include at least one from each park

4) Mickey's Philharmagic-best of the 3d shows on property, musical and always fun to watch

3) Kilimanjaro Safaris- who doesn't love seeing the animals?

2) Toy Story Mania!- overrated attraction overall in my personal opinion, but probably the best family ride on property

1) Pirates of the Caribbean-best "dark ride" that is aimed at everyone...pirates are just cool!

Scene from Pirates of the Caribbean

Feel free to comment if you disagree or have other attractions I might have missed!

A Disney Birthday and Flame Tree BBQ Refurb

Everyone who knows anything about Disney knows of the famous quote "It was all started by a mouse". Well today, that certain mouse celebrates his 86th birthday today. Actually, his female companion does as well.

Of course I'm referring to Mickey Mouse and his "girlfriend" Minnie Mouse. The duo made their debut in the 1928 cartoon Steamboat Willie, and we've all loved them ever since.

In other Disney World related news, Animal Kingdom's Flame Tree Barbeque restaurant will be closed for the first part of next year for multiple improvements. Stinks for anyone taking a trip then. The food there is really good for anyone that hasn't been; I can't wait to have some next month!

Epcot's Holidays Around the World: Entertainment Changes

Photo courtesy of WDWMagic.com 

Looks like the entertainment changes that occurred at Epcot earlier this year aren't all. Some holiday changes are here as well. Allears.net has a great blog article written about it here

Basically Mexico's Los Tres Reyes, Morocco's Taarji, and China's Monkey King are being replaced by musical acts (Mexico and China) and a new story teller (Morocco)

I have to say that it's interesting that they are mixing up the storytelling lineup too. My mom is always the one that is more into catching all of them, so hopefully she will be happy to see something new. I'm kind of bummed that the Los Tres Reyes from Mexico are apparently not there this year, but oh well.

Some have been skeptical that a lot of the recent entertainment changes were cost-cutting moves, but I have to say that these seasonal "replacement" acts, at least in China and Mexico, likely cost Disney more than what they replace.

I look forward to seeing the new acts in four weeks! :)

Magic Kingdom Hours Change for Much of December

So we have some more extended hours news that impacts my upcoming trip...the Magic Kingdom will start opening at 8am every morning starting December 13th until after the new year (regular 9am opening commences, at this time, on Saturday January 3rd, though this could change). New December hours can be found here:

This is both good and bad news to some people.

 It's great for early risers, as they can hit the park an hour early and beat the "we don't wake up early on vacations" crowd. On several days (12/18 and every day starting 12/21 through 1/1) this means On-Site resort guests can enter the Magic Kingdom at 7am. It's also an extra hour of Fastpass availability for the Seven Dwarves Mine Train and the Anna & Elsa meet and greet, both of which are hard to get.

It's also bad news to some. People that scheduled 8am reservations at MK's restaurants in hopes of getting to walk down an empty Main Street will no longer have that opportunity. It could be an indicator of higher crowds, especially starting this change as early as 12/13 (I'm not surprised at all that Christmas week changed).

One other possible negative side effect of this change that most people wouldn't think about is that this will add additional wear and tear on the aging Monorail system that Disney really needs to fully refurbish but are putting off as long as they can.

When the Magic Kingdom opened in 1971, the park was open from 10am-6pm daily. Now on a couple of days (12/21 and 12/26), the Magic Kingdom is essentially open from 7am-3am thanks to Extra Magic Hours. While the monorail often operates on a standard schedule to allow for maintenance, and usually no longer runs during evening EMH, Disney keeps the monorail open the full time during the busy Christmas season. We are now looking at basically a 6 or 7am to 4am operating schedule.

Simply put, the 43 year old Monorail system really was not designed for running 21-22 hours a day. No wonder the monorail always has a lot of downtime in January.

For those such as me that will be visiting WDW between 12/13 and 1/2/15, hopefully the positives of the hours change will outweigh the negatives.

My Thoughts on Adding Capcity to Existing Attractions

According to numerous sources, both Soarin' at Epcot and Toy Story Mania at Hollywood Studios are adding a third theater and track, respectively, in the near future. These are two very popular attractions that tend to have LONG lines. Multiplying capacity by 1.5 should help with the lines of both of these attractions, right? Plus it would be easier to just make a portion of the attraction Fastpass only, right?

Well sure. The thing is, I view this as a poor solution to a bigger problem. These two parks (Epcot and Hollywood Studios) lack "headliner" attractions. Epcot really only has Test Track and Soarin', while Hollywood Studios has TSM, Rock n' Roller Coaster, and The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, the latter two of which are not suitable for younger children.

If lines are long at some of your headliners that are not exactly that new anymore, maybe it's time to build some new attractions instead. And no, sticking two singing princesses and a talking snowman in the Norway ride does not count.

 I hope that the Pixar Place expansion in Hollywood Studios fixes this problem in that park, and once Avatarland/Pandora is done in Animal Kingdom then Epcot's Future World is due for a major overhaul. Ellen's Energy Adventure needs to be refreshed soon...Alex Trebek won't even be hosting Jeopardy anymore in a couple of years...

Have a great day everyone!

My Top Ten Underutilized/Dormant Places in WDW

There are a lot of places within the Walt Disney World Parks that are either underutilized or just sit dormant most of the time. Many people, for example, were not happy when Disney announced a Frozen ride would take over the Maelstrom not too long ago. Why let fictional characters take over a World Showcase pavilion when there are so many other sites that attraction could have gone?

Anyway, here are my top ten places in Disney World that need something fresh (or in some cases, just something)

10. Universe of Energy Pavilion in Epcot.

This attraction, while I still enjoy it, is badly outdated and according to reports on the WDW Magic discussion forums some of the animatronics are being taken out because they don't work anymore) http://forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/snake-like-creature-gone-from-universe-of-energy.889571/

9. "Monster's Inc. Laugh Floor" in Magic Kingdom

This attraction should have gone into Pixar Place at Hollywood Studios, it would have been much more popular and taken pressure off of Toy Story Mania. Instead they stuck it into Tomorrowland, where it doesn't belong. Better attractions could go here.

8. "Chester and Hester's Dino-rama" in Animal Kingdom

A Carnival area in Dinoland U.S.A. What a "great" idea. Not Disney's best decision, it's just soooo tacky. Would like to see something a little bit more "themed" take over this spot in the future.

7. Imagination Pavilion in Epcot

The ride is kind of cute, but everyone agrees it's not as good as the original ride that was here from 1983-1998. And while I like Captain EO's music, not a whole lot of people like this show, and its literally right out of 1986. It doesn't help that there were originally rumors that the pavilion was supposed to close earlier this year. http://thedisneyblog.com/2013/07/24/rumor-mill-imagination-pavilion-closing-entirely-in-2014/

6. "Stitch's Great Escape" in Magic Kingdom

Let's replace a scary attraction no one likes (Alien Encounter) with a stupid attraction everyone hates. At least unlike the Laugh Floor this attraction has a space theme. Not sure it's an improvement, though.

5. Odyssey Restaurant in Epcot

What a prime location for a restaurant. Still don't understand why Disney doesn't utilize it for a character meal.

4. "ABC Sound Studio" in Hollywood Studios

Surely something could go in here. Not the biggest space in the world, but in a great location next to Star Tours.

3. Old "Millennium Village" Area in Epcot

Do I smell a twelfth country in the future for World Showcase? It's certainly large enough and this pavilion hasn't been utilized in full since 2001.

2. Backlot/Streets of America Areas in Hollywood Studios

HUGE space to work with here, and it's suspected that Pixar Place will take over most of this area. I will be disappointed if we don't get at least three new attractions here.

1. Wonders of Life/Festival Pavilion in Epcot

I remember riding Body Wars and seeing Cranium Command for the last time during Wonders of Life's seasonal operation in December 2005 (the second to last time the pavilion was open as Wonders of Life). Such a prime location and large area to work with. Even if WOL is never coming back, Disney should do something here. Build a third "headliner" attraction to take pressure off of Test Track and Soarin'.

Feel free to comment if there is another underutilized spot you want to throw out there. Until next time, TTFN, ta ta for now!

WDW Thanksgiving Hours Update

Looks like Disney is expanding some park hours over Thanksgiving Week:

http://www.wdwmagic.com/attractions/magic-kingdom/news/13nov2014-magic-kingdom-opening-early-during-thanksgiving-week.htm

http://www.wdwmagic.com/attractions/animal-kingdom/news/13nov2014-disney's-animal-kingdom-joins-the-magic-kingdom-in-early-opening-during-thanksgiving-week.htm

Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom will both open at 8:00am instead of 9:00am, and any early openings for Disney Resort Guests that week at either of those two parks will begin at 7:00am instead of 8:00.

I can't say I'm too surprised. Thanksgiving is easily in the top five busiest weeks in terms of visitors, with the week(s) of Christmas and New Years easily being #1. Even when my family went to Disney World in 2001, a little over two months after 9/11, the place was packed.

For anyone going to WDW over Thanksgiving, enjoy the extra hours! (If you are morning people)

The Magic is Real: My History with the Most Magical Place on Earth (11/12/14)

To introduce myself, my name is Adam Blackhall. As a college student at the University of North Texas in Denton, you might wonder why I would start a blog about Disney World, a place many assume is just for children. Why do I have such a major passion for this place?

The answer is simply that the place is like a second home to me. I've gone to visit the mouse 17 times since I was born, and trip #18 is just around the corner in about a month. I've grown up riding (and in some cases sleeping through) all of the numerous attractions, including some that are long gone. I can navigate the place like the back of my hand easily; I rarely grab park maps anymore other than for souvenirs.

Here is a brief listing of the wonderful trips I have taken, for anyone curious. Yes, it's a long list.

Summer 1996: Stayed at Dixie Landings (since renamed Port Orleans: Riverside)
Spring 1997: Contemporary Resort
December 1998: Boardwalk Resort
December 2000: Fort Wilderness Resort (Cabins)
Summer 2001: Split Stay at Coronado Springs and Off-site
November 2001: Fort Wilderness Resort (Cabins)
Summer 2003: Fort Wilderness Resort (Cabins)
January 2005: All Star Sports Resort
December 2005: Fort Wilderness Resort (Cabins)
May 2007: Fort Wilderness Resort (Cabins)
December 2008: Fort Wilderness Resort (Campsites)
March 2009: Fort Wilderness Resort (Cabins)
December 2009/January 2010: Fort Wilderness Resort (Campsites)
December 2011: Split Stay at Port Orleans: French Quarter Resort & Fort Wilderness Resort (Cabins)
March 2013: Port Orleans: French Quarter Resort
December 2013: Fort Wilderness Resort (Cabins)
May 2014: All Star Sports Resort
December 2014 (Upcoming!): Fort Wilderness Resort (Cabins)

So my hope is that I can use this blog not only to share my experiences, but also to share news and tips to make any of your future trips much more magical.