Bob Sehlinger's Blog, page 1163

November 29, 2014

New Lines App Feature Adds Attractions to Park Touring Plans

Now you can add an attraction to your Disney and Universal touring plans while reading the ride’s description in our Lines mobile app.

We’ve updated the attraction pages to show whether the attraction is already included in a touring plan. A new button on the page allows you to add the attraction to a touring plan:

On the next screen, you’ll choose whether to add the attraction to an existing touring plan or new plan. If the attraction is already a part of a plan, you’ll have the option to add or subtract multiple rides:

Another new feature shows our rating of the attraction, and asks for your rating after you’ve been on:

These new features should make it easier to create touring plans in Lines.

The next set of Lines updates will include these features:

“Evaluate” a plan without changing the order of the steps. This is already part of our desktop touring plan software.
Move steps up or down within a plan. Currently available on the desktop but not mobile, you’ll be able to swap rides around your plan using your phone or tablet.

These features should be available within a couple of weeks.

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Published on November 29, 2014 13:00

Thanksgiving Dinner at the Magic Kingdom

By Steve Bloom

There are many choices for Thanksgiving dinner at Walt Disney World. Most every resort restaurant has some option, and within the parks many of the sit down restaurants offer a Thanksgiving meal. We decided to do something a little bit different. We brought our own Thanksgiving dinner into the Magic Kingdom.

WDW Pilgrims

When my parents invited us down to Orlando for Thanksgiving this year, the first thing I thought about was pulling off this stunt. For ten years Len Testa has been saying that Disney allows people to bring food into the parks. To make his point he’s said that guests could even bring in a full Thanksgiving meal. So we did.

We followed all of Disney’s rules. Guests are allowed to bring food items into the theme parks. We avoided any restricted items. We were staying at an off-site timeshare unit, so we had a full kitchen to store and heat the turkey dinner we purchased at a Publix supermarket. We had two soft sided coolers, one for the hot foods and one for the cold foods. We used hot and cold packs to keep the food at proper temperatures. We also used two backpacks to bring in all the non-food items. We used only plastic containers and tableware. Since Thanksgiving is not complete without canned cranberry jelly, we opened the can at the timeshare and put the tangy goodness in a plastic resealable container. Some afterthought items (not pictured) came in very handy: we brought paper towels, wet wipes, and 2 gallon zip lock bags. Also, some kale, of course, as a garnish for the turkey platter.

We purchased most of the dry-goods prior to driving to Orlando.

Thanksgiving Supplies

We did a last minute run to a store, to get a few final items.

The next decision was where we should eat our Thanksgiving dinner. Disney guests are allowed to eat at any counter-service restaurant or public area around the park. Prior to Thanksgiving we scouted out possible locations (see pictures below). We decided on the Main Street Train Station for multiple reasons. The area is not crowded at 8:30 am, we could have a view of the castle, and it is close to the entrance.

Sleepy Hallow

Tomorrowland Terrace

Main Street Train Station

Liberty Square

Frontierland

Adventureland – next to Island Supply

Adventureland – Sunshine Tree Terrace

Many people asked how we “smuggled” everything in. We did not smuggle anything in. We went through security with all our things. The security guard looked through our bags and asked, “What time is lunch?” We were hoping a cast member would ask why we were doing this. We had the response: “We could not get a Thanksgiving reservation at any Magic Kingdom restaurant.” After we had our Thanksgiving table set-up, we had no problem finding a fellow guest to take our picture. We even let people to sit at our table so they could get their picture taken. At one point a group of excited cast members (who had been told by other cast members that there were “some pilgrims at the train station”) came to see us. They said that we won the best Thanksgiving family. Unfortunately, there was no prize (we asked).

We are so grateful to have been able to share this magical Thanksgiving experience as a family. It’s unlikely it’ll become a Bloom family tradition, but the memory will sure live on.

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Published on November 29, 2014 09:16

SATURDAY SIX: Inaugural Walt Disney World “Turkeys” of the Year

By Derek Burgan

This week’s SATURDAY SIX is a special one as we have the Inaugural Walt Disey World “Turkeys” of the Year. For Thanksgiving this week we took a look back at things both Disney and Universal fans should be thankful for, but today we are going to go the other way. Gather round, as we are starting a new tradition and award six WDW “Turkeys” to the craziest, most outrageous, or just downright weird stories of the year, concluding with the coveted Golden Turkey award. Let’s kick off the ceremony with a relatively recent one….

# 6 – FastPass + Testing at Toy Story Midway Mania

Kim Kardashian may have broke the Internet in November, but WDW itself set the precedent in October when it broke Hollywood Studios doing a controversial test using the park’s most popular attraction, Toy Story Midway Mania. For reasons still unknown, the attraction became FastPass+ ONLY for four days, giving guests no opportunity to wait in a standby line. The normally long standby line for TSMM was essentially switched over to Guest Services, where many guests queued up to voice their opinions on this test. The end result of the test? Scores of unhappy guests. One of the only family friendly rides in the park running at less than 100% capacity. And perhaps further evidence of a large percentage of WDW guests that just plain don’t want to participate in MyDisneyExperience or MyMagic+, something which could present a challenge for WDW in the coming years.

Sorry folks, ride’s closed. Moose out front shoulda told ya. (photo by Seth Kubersky)

Toy Story Midway Mania vehicles cycling at less than 100% capacity. (photo by Seth Kubersky)

# 5 – 4 and 6 oz. beers at Epcot International Food & Wine Festival

Whether a tactic to combat complaints of over-intoxicated adults, or a WDW cash grab, this year’s introduction of beers being only available in 4 or 6 oz. pours was not a welcome sight for many Food & Wine guests. Beers around the World Showcase kiosks were available in single 6 oz .pours, or a flight of four separate 4 oz. pours. You’d be hard pressed to find a single store, arena, ballpark, or restaurant in the world that sells 4 oz. servings of beer for the simple fact of no one would buy it. In previous Food & Wine Festivals, beers were available in much larger sizes, including 20 and 22 ounces.

4 oz. beers at the Epcot Food & Wine festival. (photo by Brandon Glover)

# 4 – The Pop Tart Breakfast Sandwich at Disney’s Pop Century Resort

I will never forget where I was on November 6 at 6:12 AM. That was the time when TouringPlans’ own Laurel Stewart posted a picture containing the Pop Tart Breakfast Sandwich at Disney’s Pop Century Resort. I consider myself a connoisseur of outrageous foods at Walt Disney World, but this one made my jaw drop. Using Pop Tarts as the bread of a bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich? Whaaaaaat?! I was having KFC Double Down flashbacks. Being of sound mind and body, Laurel was smart enough to only take a picture of the menu. However, Disney Twitter icon and selfie expert Mark Diba was more than happy to provide a public service and brave eating the sandwich.

Long story short, the Pop Tart Breakfast Sandwich wasn’t that good. But, like a good horror movie, we’ll leave what it tastes like to your imagination, because that’s always ten times worse than the real thing. It is worth noting that the real sandwich is different from the one on the menu board as the sandwich is cooked with the frosting side inside the sandwich, not out. We may have to go back to Pop Century and request another one with the frosting on the outside to get a second opinion. Oh Mark….

Everything Pop! menu board. (photo by Laurel Stewart)

The Pop Tart Sandwich. (photo by Mark Diba)

Inside the Pop Tart Sandwich. Warning: NSFW (photo by Mark Diba)

# 3 – Guests being walked back to Fantasyland at the Magic Kingdom

Back in April, Frozen‘s Anna and Elsa moved from the Norway pavilion in Epcot to Princess Fairytale Hall in the Magic Kingdom. Everyone knew it would be popular, but almost no one was prepared for exactly how popular. Immediately waits went to 100, 200, and even over 300 minutes. FastPass+ reservations were gone usually in minutes, as most were reserved 60 days in advance by WDW on-site guests. This in turn caused a new dynamic at the Magic Kingdom rope drop, as it soon became the theme park version of Spain’s running of the bulls. The mad dash to Fantasyland in the morning became so bad that Disney was compelled to do something.

And boy, did they ever.

In a sight that had to be seen to be believed, Cast Members formed a human wall, and slowly walked the early morning guests back to Fantasyland.

This picture is even better if you picture them all singing “Let It Go” as they walk hand in hand back to Fantasyland. (photo from the Twitter machine. If this is your photo please let me know and I will immediately credit – derek@touringplans.com)

# 2 – Maelstrom shut down for Frozen overlay

What else needs to be said? A park that desperately needs more attractions shuts down one of the only rides in World Showcase to convert it over, instead of building another ride. An area which is built on learning and discovering the culture of other countries will now have a centerpiece attraction based on a country that does not exist. Maybe the problem is that theme park guests, like your humble author, who grew up with Epcot as a theme park experience radically different from anything we had ever done before, need to accept the fact that sooner or later it’s going to become just another park. I say all this as someone who loves Frozen. I would love to see a Frozen attraction in the Magic Kingdom. I would love to see a Frozen attraction in Hollywood Studios. I would love to see Arendelle set a precedent and become the first fully realized “country” in the World Showcase, paving the way for Big Hero 6‘s San Fransokyo or Wreck It Ralph‘s Sugar Rush environments. What I don’t want to see is Frozen replace Maelstrom in Norway.

The attraction formerly known as Maelstrom. (photo by Brandon Glover)

# 1 – Villains Unleashed at Disney’s Hollywood Studios

There were a lot of good elements contained within the Villains Unleashed hard ticket event this summer, but ultimately it gets our Golden Turkey award because of how many guests walked away outraged and demanded their money back. In a true story, one person read the SATURDAY SIX write up of the event, found out others had received their ticket money back, and also got their ticket refunded days later, no questions asked. Why? Because Disney knows they messed up on this one. From party maps being completely gone by the time the party officially started, to meet-and-greet lines being capped by 8 PM, to extremely long lines for everything (merchandise, food, meet-and-greets, you name it), overall this party was just short of a disaster.

THAT SAID, this is an idea that Disney needs to stay on until they figure it out. If anything, this year’s Villains Unleashed proved that there is a rabid fan base for this type of party. Maybe it needs to be in a different park where logistically you can do the fireworks show before 12:45 AM. Maybe it needs to have a ticketing system like Star Wars Weekends where guests are guaranteed ahead of time of meeting certain characters. It definitely needs to spread out the locations that offer food and merchandise. And maybe, just maybe, they should consider printing more park maps. However, it did have an utterly fantastic opening show. While it was almost impossible to meet more than one or two characters during the event, the meet-and-greets themselves (such as Constantine from Muppets Most Wanted) were wonderful. The Villainy in the Sky nighttime spectacular was fantastic. It was also the first time that Marvel characters were inside a Walt Disney World park (and from Guardians of the Galaxy to boot!). I have full faith that with just a couple tweaks, the Villains Unleashed party could go from winning the Golden Turkey award to being theme park’s most memorable event in 2015.

So there you have it: the Inaugural Walt Disney World “Turkeys” of the Year. While this article dealt exclusively with WDW, Universal had its own share of “Turkeys” this year including: Florean Fortescue’s Ice Cream Parlour having lines out the door with a completely empty room next to it that could be used for queuing. the leaking Carkitt Market roof, and Matt Lauer of The Today Show asking the band One Direction about rumored drug abuse. See you Saturday for the latest edition of the SATURDAY SIX, where we are going to start our big end of year celebration articles. If you had fun, be sure to check out The Magic, The Memories, and Merch! articles, or, for your listening pleasure, check out the Pardon the Pixie Dust podcast. Your humble author can also be seen producing typos at an inhuman rate on Twitter: @derekburgan

If you enjoyed this article, you may also enjoy:

Six Reasons Halloween Horror Nights is Better than Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party

Our Six Favorite Jokes in Universal’s Springfield U.S.A.

100% Totally True Theme Park History: The Original Plans for WWoHP Phase 2

Special thanks to crack staff photographer Brandon Glover, Mark Diba, Laurel Stewart, and Seth Kubersky for their invaluable assistance with this article. Be sure to also check out Brandon on The Park Blogger podcast with co-hosts Aengus Mackenzie and Brian Carey.

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Published on November 29, 2014 04:00

November 28, 2014

In Case You Missed It: Disney News and Rumors – Week of November 28, 2014

By Rikki Niblett

DISNEY CRUISE LINE: Christmas Merchandise Photo Report

By Derek Burgan

Last month we featured photo reports of the merchandise available in the Disney Cruise Line gift shops, along with Disney’s private island, Castaway Cay. Since that time, DCL has shifted over into its Very Merrytime sailings and has a limited selection of Christmas-related items for sale.

DCL Christmas Ornament. $11.95.

Opposite side of DCL Christmas ornament.

Very cute DCL Christmas pillow. $16.95

DCL Christmas pillow. $16.95

DCL Holiday themed Dooney & Bourke bags. $88.00 – $268.00

DCL ornaments. $9.95

DCL ornament. $22.95

DCL long sleeve Merrytime shirt. $29.95

DCL holiday shirt. $24.95

DCL Christmas hat. $19.95

DCL Christmas hat.

DCL Christmas gift bag. $12.95.

Special thanks to Billy Hirsch for his assistance with this photo report.

More Disney Cruise Line related articles for your reading pleasure:

runDisney Castaway Cay 5k Photo Report
SATURDAY SIX: Six Surprises of the Disney Cruise Line
SATURDAY SIX: Six Reasons to go on a Disney Cruise
Surprises #Everywhere on the Disney Dream
Disney Cruise Line: Pirate Night FAQ
Disney Magic Observations from a DCL First Timer

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Published on November 28, 2014 08:00

The Magic, The Memories, and Merch! November 2014 Photo Report of the Disney Outlet Store

By Derek Burgan

MMM positive Black Friday. One of the biggest shopping days in the ‘Murica calendar. There couldn’t be a a more appropriate day of the year for a photo report of the Disney Outlet Stores (other than April Fool’s Day of course.) I will be said to see November go though, because as a theme park fan this was a HUGE month. We said hello to the much needed parking garage at Downtown Disney, and goodbye to my beloved NASCAR Sports Grille at Universal CityWalk. Both Universal and Disney opened new eateries: the unbelievably great Cowfish at CityWalk, and the just plain unbelievable (as in not believable) food truck park at Downtown Disney. The Magic Kingdom unveiled the awesome new queue for Peter Pan’s Flight, and the entire WDW resort area is starting to look like Christmas with the Wilderness Lodge getting its King Kong-sized tree and the Grand Floridian & Contemporary resorts putting up their must-see gingerbread houses. This may go down in the history books as the greatest month of all time, at least until next month.

Enough jibber jabber! Who is ready to hit the Outlets? Remember that clicking on any picture will open a full size version of it (don’t say we didn’t warn you).

We’re going to start off with my of my all-time favorite items I have ever seen at the Outlets: a Luigi’s Flying Tires toy! The huge rumor over in California is that the Luigi’s Flying Tires attraction is going down in January for “refurbishment”… and not coming back. Even mainstream film and pop culture sites have picked up on the story. Seeing this toy at the Outlets would be like stumbling upon a Habit Heroes comic book, or a pin for Stitch’s Supersonic Celebration. Originally $9.95, this bad boy is now just $4.95, but its value to me is priceless.

Staying true to the ride itself, this toy also doesn’t work.

Oh, but my day got even better as I next found out that there were MagicBand accessories reduced for the first time ever. Earlier this year we ran across the super bizarre MagicBand t-shirts (the I’m with the band shirts and its ilk), but this is the first time since they made their debut that anything directly related to the MagicBands have been discounted. Disney has a Catch 22 situation right now with MagicBands. It is offering a lot of new bands that have art printed directly on them, such as the Haunted Mansion one and various limited edition releases for events such as Star Wars Weekends, Frozen Summer Fun, Epcot’s Food & Wine Festival, Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party, and Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party. But, if you by these special ones, you don’t want to cover it up with something else.

My reaction to seeing this was almost indescribable. Probably the only people who can identify are those who saw the Berlin Wall come down in the 1980s.

They say good things come in threes, and what I saw next really made my day. One of the few things I seriously collect related to Disney is the line of action figures that mash-up Disney characters and Star Wars characters. (I also collect their Muppet Star Wars line and odd items such as Mickey as Indiana Jones, Mickey as Tron, Mickey as Jack Sparrow, etc.). This Sarlacc Attack playset was the first of its kind for this collection and made its debut during Star Wars Weekends earlier this year. However, the $30 price point was pretty steep considering almost all of the characters have already been released separately, plus the skiff and sarlacc monster were just pieces of cardboard. I have passed by this toy once a month at Once Upon a Toy in Downtown Disney, almost picking it up each time. but I decided to take the risk and hope that it ended up at the Outlets. This month I was rewarded for that patience. Originally $29.95, reduced to $14.99. And of course I bought two, which means I basically just wasted all that time and should have just bought in the first place.

This was another playset that came out earlier this year, and it literally didn’t have a single new figure in it (the Minnie in the Sarlacc Attack is one I don’t think you can buy separately). For some insane reason this set, at $34.95, originally cost even more than the Sarlacc Attack. Just bananas. I had no interest in picking this up before, but I grabbed one at the reduced price of $12.99.

“You look a little small to be a stormtrooper.” “That’s because I’m a mouse.”

I’m assuming these Star Wars pins were also originally for Star Wars Weekends. They are based off concept art for the original trilogy. Originally $19.95, these are now $8.99 and limited to “2 per person per day.’

That Yoda in the Jedi pin looks more like Yogurt from Spaceballs.

Presented without commentary.

Most people know what “beer goggles” are, but these can be considered the exact opposite. There is no alcohol strong enough to make anyone think you look good wearing these.

On the Universal side of the theme park world, there’s a running joke about how tight a fist J.K. Rowling has on the Harry Potter Universe. In one of the London Waterfront facades there is record store with an album titled “Jo Sez No” that refers to her putting her foot down and overruling ideas. While this can be frustrating and lead to some delays, the other side of the coin is what we see with Star Wars. These Matchbox-like cars were originally $9.95 each, reduced to $4.99.

How long before the Planes: Fire and Rescue versions of X-Wing fighters, Tie-fighters, and Star Destroyers?

Exhibit B for the defense. Originally $7.95, now $3.99.

Squish me, you will.

Another great surprise was seeing these Tinker Bell magnets by artist J. Scott Campbell. I had run across them earlier this year while at the Marketplace C0-Op. I am a HUGE J. Scott Campbell fan, and I picked up a different piece that trip which featured all the princesses. This set of three magnets was originally $14.95, reduced to $6.99.

For a movie that did such huge business at the box office, I haven’t run across too much Maleficent merchandise in the parks, Downtown Disney, or the Outlets. This head piece has been reduced to $4.99.

This was another dream come true. Tower of Terror towels!!! Originally $24.95, reduced to $14.99.

These now reside in my bathroom.

Can you imagine the marketing meeting where they pitched this Gaston’s Tavern hat? Originally $21.95, reduced to $9.99.

“No one wears bad hats like Gaston…” – Deleted line from the song “Gaston” from the Beauty and The Beast soundtrack.

Another piece of Gaston’s Tavern merch in the form of this coffee mug. Originally $12.95, reduced to 5.99.

I’m going to need to check out what they are selling in the gift shop located next to Gaston’s Tavern in New Fantasyland, because this Be Our Guest-inspired cup also came from there (along with the previous two items). Over the past few months a whole bunch of merchandise from that store has hit the Outlets, so it will be interesting to see what replaced it in the store. These cups were originally $14.95 each, reduced to $5.99.

Attention Matt Hochberg, we have pins for you!

Frozen-related iPhone cases were drastically reduced from $34.95 to $4.99.

This Olaf doll showing up at the Outlets may be one of the biggest signs that we may (I repeat, MAY) have already hit the high point of interest in Frozen merchandise and we are on the way down. With so much of overall inventory at the parks dedicated to Frozen stuff, at some point next year one of my Outlet reports may be all Frozen.

On my Disney Cruise last month I was blown away by the merchandise on Castaway Cay, but the only pin I bought was related to the runDisney Castaway Cay 5K I participated in. Was really excited to see this Castaway Cay pin show up.

These Disney Cruise Line postcards were reduced to $0.39 and $0.19.

This Disney Cruise Line photo album was really cool looking. I liked that you could put a picture in the front of the album as well as inside.

So much Animal Kingdom merchandise arrived to the Outlets this month, including this fun postcard. Not sure of its original price, but now $0.99.

The following Animal Kingdom related shirts were all originally $21.95-$29.95 and reduced to $9.99 to $12.99. The large Mickey and Donald ones are pretty good.

I also enjoyed the next two, which focus on the overall park.

Then we start to go next level bonkers with this Expedition Everest shirt.

I had this tagline in my Tinder profile, but was getting too many swipe lefts.

The following was an actual shirt sold in an actual Walt Disney World park.

Is the Yeti in the ride even white?!

Pretty nifty Expedition Everest photo frame. Originally $14.95, reduced to $6.99.

This hat confused me. I haven’t stared at something for so long and not figured it out since the Magic Eye photos back in the 90s. I have absolutely no idea what that word is on the bill of the cap. I have read The DaVinci Code and have seen all of M. Night Shyamalan’s films, so I’m used to figuring out unnecessarily complex codes, but this befuddled me.

This hat I almost bought. I like those claw marks. Originally $19.95, reduced to $6.99.

Tried to include the neat patches on the side of this hat, but as you can see, I clearly failed. Originally $24.95, reduced to $9.99.

Longtime readers of this column know that the Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster featuring Aerosmith is the WDW leader in terrible merchandise that ends up at the Outlets. This hat was originally $24.95, reduced to $9.99.

There’s never enough Muppet merchandise, so it was nice to see this Walter doll arrive. Originally $24.95, reduced to $12.99.

Not as nice to see: Duffy the Disney Bear wearing his Goofy hat. All Duffy bears were reduced to $9.99.

2014 Duffys are waiting for you!

The Good News: I got you a Disney Pillow Pet. The Bad News: You’ll never be able to sleep again.

Not many new plushes this month, but there was this Minnie Mouse doll.

Why is this spelled TINKERBELLE?! It has taken me years to fully accept Disney spells it as Tinker Bell. Or are we in some alternate universe where there is a Tinker Bell and Minnie Mouse AND a generic Peter Pan movie where a Tinkerbelle exists?!

And Merida’s horse.

Fancy schmancy WDW dinnerware for your Thanksgiving dinner next year. Originally $12.95 each, now $6.99.

I actually liked this Mickey Mouse chef’s hat. Originally $16.95, reduced to $7.99.

Didn’t understand these keychains, and they kind of frightened me. Originally $8.95, these were now $3.99.

Odds of someone buying these for a keychain also driving a PT Cruiser? 100%

I’m guessing this Michael Jackson glove “light up Rock Star Glove” was for sale at the American Idol Experience before they closed it down? Not sure of originally price, but it’s been reduced to $3.99.

Speaking of American Idol Experience. You know I had to get this.

Was going to get this Disney Dream Aqua Duck pin for resident TouringPlans curmudgeon David Davies, who recently penned his review of the Disney Dream.

No truth to the rumor that original tag line was “What the duck is going on here?!”

Princess pins.

Is the audience that is into Nightmare Before Christmas also the one who would be into a pin like this?

This pin for the Wilderness Lodge makes me want to know more about the backstory of the resort. Mickey struck oil?!

Speaking of resorts I want to depend more time in, I love, Love, LOVE this Fort Wilderness shirt.

Art of Animation is one of the few resorts on property that has a good amount of hotel-related merchandise.

I can see Disney popcorn. I can see a Mickey Bar. I can even see a case being made for a turkey leg. But a donut magnet? Who thinks of donuts at Walt Disney World?! These were originally $12.95 EACH. Now they are $3.99.

Retro style Space Mountain shirt. Originally $21.95, now $9.99.

I bought this WDW shirt. If you click on the picture you’ll see all the details in the stitching. Originally $26.95, reduced to $14.99.

This Lightning McQueen shirt actually freaked me out the closer I got to it. Is it just me, or does the style of art almost make him look evil too?

When this shirt came out earlier this summer it made some small waves in the fan community as it is clearly targeting international tourists. Looks like many people talked about it, but not as many bought it.

Nightmare Before Christmas related hats. Originally ranged from $19.95 to $24.95, reduced to $7.99 to $9.99.

There’s very few pieces of Vinylmation I enjoy, and just about every single one of them involve Mickey Mouse (as the rest of the characters look so ridiculous being painted on a Mickey Mouse mold). Add this Topiary Vinlymation to the list of good ones. Originally this two-pack cost $24.95. It has been reduced to $6.99.

I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes. A high end pin set dedicated to Disney’s Hollywood Studios. Originally $84.95 (YOU READ THAT RIGHT,) now ONLY $41.99.

Most 2014 branded merchandise is way too generic for my tastes, but I like art on this tote bag as it reminds me of the Mary Blair artwork you’ll see at the “it’s a small world” attraction and at The Contemporary. Originally $29.95, now $12.99. Interesting to see how many items were produced without the Sorcerer’s Hat icon, well before Disney officially announced it would be removed.

Okay, we’re running a bit long so let’s look at some Christmas themed merchandise that you can pick up as early gifts for your loved ones. Actually, this is the Outlet Store, so maybe that can extend to bloggers and other people you may not like all that much, too. First up is this Ugly Sweater t-shirt. This is apparently a “craze” now as the World of Disney store at Downtown Disney is filled with Ugly Sweater shirts.

Next up is the Lightning Mcqueen and Santa mechanic. This makes absolutely zero sense on about 100 different levels.

On the other side of the coin is this figure featuring Mickey Mouse. Could not find original price, but reduced to $10.99.

My theory on what Mickey is writing is his list of all things that drive him crazy with the My Disney Experience app.

Duffy the Disney Bear, this generation’s version of getting coal for Christmas.

Okay, time to go and we’ll close with one of the all time strangest items I have come across to date. Schwings. Has anyone heard of these before? You add these little wings to the top of your sneakers. Do they sell this at runDisney events? Originally $8.95, now $3.99.

If you’ve been keeping track of these reports, you know that I have been spending more and more money each time I go. We still haven’t figured out if the merchandise is getting that much better, or I have personally became a human case study of schadenfreude. Whatever the case, this is the first time I left the Outlet stores with TWO FULL BAGS of merchandise. Save yourselves people, I’m doomed.

There are actually two Disney outlet stores in Orlando. Both are in Orlando Premium Outlet shopping complexes, and they are called Disney’s Character Warehouse, presumably because The Land Of Misfit Toys was already trademarked. There is one Character Warehouse located on International Drive close to Universal Studios (4951 International Dr, Orlando, FL 32819), and the other is on Vineland Avenue, right across I-4 near the exits to Disney World (8200 Vineland Ave, Orlando, FL 32821). For this edition of MMM, we went to the location near Universal.

Previous editions of Magic, Memories and Merch: July 2013, August 2013, September 2013, October 2013, November 2013, December 2013, January 2014, February 2014, March 2014, April 2014, May 2014, June 2014, July 2014, August 2014, and September 2014, and October 2014.

If you liked what you read here, you may enjoy THE SATURDAY SIX articles every week on the TouringPlans.com blog, the Pardon the Pixie Dust podcast, and you can follow your humble author on Twitter (@derekbugan).

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The Magic, The Memories, and Merch! November 2014 Photo Report of the Disney Outlet Store is a post from the TouringPlans.com Blog. Signup for a premium subscription today! Or get news via Email, Twitter, & Facebook.

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Published on November 28, 2014 04:00

November 27, 2014

SATURDAY SIX THANKSGIVING SPECIAL: Six Reasons for Theme Park Fans to Give Thanks in 2014

By Derek Burgan

This week’s SATURDAY SIX takes a look at Six Reasons for Theme Park Fans to Give Thanks. 2014 was a great year to be a theme park fan, and for this Thanksgiving we are going to take a quick break from all the turkey, football games, and Black Friday planning, to count our blessings and thank the parks and resorts we love so much. So, for one day only, I ask that Disney and Universal fans put aside their differences and spend a moment appreciating all the wonderful things that we can share together, starting with….

# 6 – Disney and Universal Merchandise is Better than Ever

It wasn’t long ago, that the only merchandise people were buying at Universal were Thing 1 and Thing 2 shirts. Over at Disney, almost every single store, whether in the parks, hotels, or Downtown Disney, was selling the same generic”Disney Parks”stuff. A seismic shift started to occur in 2010, when the Wizarding World of Harry Potter opened, and blew the doors off everyone’s projections in the area of merchandise and Butterbeer. Guests were now walking out of Universal with house robes, wands and chocolate frogs in hand. This success was then repeated throughout both of their theme parks, with unique and exclusive items found everywhere you looked, from the EVAC action figure at Transformers gift shop, to the faux girl scout cookies in Despicable Me’s Super Silly Store, to my personal favorite – The Film Vault – a whole new store focusing on retro merchandise.

Jungle Cruise merchandise found at the Marketplace Co-op in Downtown Disney. (photo by Brandon Glover)

While it took WDW a little longer to turn their slow moving ship around, this year we have also seen a dramatic rise in the amount of unique merchandise and more original stores, such as the Marketplace Co-op in Downtown Disney. The new Memento Mori gift shop dedicated to the Haunted Mansion is a fantastic addition to the Magic Kingdom and here’s hoping for something similar going to Adventureland and focusing on The Jungle Cruise. The amount of merchandise available onboard the Disney Cruise Line gift shops and at Castaway Cay is truly amazing. Meanwhile, back at Universal, Diagon Alley is continually introducing new items such as a Howler recordable card, a Cycling Dolores Umbridge toy, and a prefect pin, all of which brilliantly tie in to both the Harry Potter books and films. With fantastic new merchandise and terrific retro-themed items, Disney and Universal are finally “getting it.”

Memento Mori at the Magic Kingdom. (photo by Brandon Glover)

A howler, available in Diagon Alley. (photo by Trygve Nelson)

A howler opened up. (photo by Trygve Nelson)

# 5 – The Parking Garage at Downtown Disney

Our long national nightmare is (almost) over. Even in the best of times, parking at Downtown Disney wasn’t that fun, but over the last year it had slowly devolved into one of the worst experiences on property. Many are avoiding the area altogether, while others are taking Disney transportation in (including buses, or taking boats from resorts such as Port Orleans and Saratoga Springs.) A light finally appeared at the end of tunnel with the (partial) opening of the parking garage in Downtown Disney’s West Side. It’s rare for theme park fans to agree on anything, but so far there seems to be unanimous praise for the garage. No more having to park behind Cirque du Soleil and having to walk the equivalent of a runDisney 5K just to bowl at Splitsville!

Parking garage in Downtown Disney’s West Side. (photo by Daisy Lauren)

No more parking at Port Orleans and taking the boat over! (photo by Daisy Lauren)

(For even more parking garage jubilation, you can listen to the song I wrote about its opening on the newest episode of Pardon the Pixie Dust. Eat your heart out Adele Dazeem!)

# 4 – Festival of Fantasy

It has been a long time since Disney gave us a new parade in the Magic Kingdom, but boy did they deliver with the Festival of Fantasy earlier this year. A flat out stunning parade filled with a ton of characters, wonderful music, and some of the best floats WDW has ever seen. The #story of this incredible parade is that the residents of Fantasyland, New Fantasyland, and Storybook Circus put together the entire event, so all the floats evoke the same aesthetic we see throughout these Magic Kingdom lands. Pretty much every attraction in the area is represented, including the characters from Peter Pan, Pinocchio, Dumbo, Brave, Tangled, Beauty and the Beast, Little Mermaid, Frozen, and Sleeping Beauty. The fire breathing dragon Maleficent steals the show, but this is one parade that absolutely nails it from beginning to end. Your humble author is usually of the opinion that parades are a “sucker’s bet” at the theme parks, and generally avoids them at all costs. Festival of Fantasy joins Mickey’s Boo To You and Mickey’s Once Upon a Christmastime as a parade I make sure to see each and every time I’m in the park.

Festival of Fantasy. (photo by Brandon Glover)

Festival of Fantasy. (photo by Brandon Glover)

Festival of Fantasy. (photo by Brandon Glover)

# 3 – Dining at CityWalk 2.0

Hot Dog Hall of Fame. Breadbox. Menchies. Antojitos. Vivo Italian Kitchen. Red Oven Pizza Bakery. All of these dining locations opened up in the last 12 months as part of a complete overhaul of Universal CityWalk. The most recent addition, The Cowfish, may be the best of the bunch with its unique menu and fun atmosphere. Top to bottom, each venue brought something new to the table (no pun intended) or radically improved on what was previously available. The pizzas at Red Oven are among the best value at any of the theme parks, with quality second only to Via Napoli, but at a price point of just $12-$14 per pie. The Nutella Shake at Breadbox or the hand-spun milkshakes at The Cowfish are worth going out of your way to try. My personal favorite new food option? The table side guacamole service at Antojitos. Can’t beat it.

Aside from just the food, I’m also very encouraged by the direction of making CityWalk more family friendly. The restaurants and clubs are already fantastic for teens and adults, but the additions of fun photo-ops at Red Oven and Cowfish make the entire area more inclusive. While not a restaurant, the complete overhaul of the Universal Studios Store (connected to Hot Dog Hall of Fame) was also a much welcomed change, as it is a much more lively and interesting venue to shop in than the drab experience it was before. With CityWalk “Phase Two” now completed, it’s time to get excited for the upcoming “Phase Three” (even if it means losing – don’t laugh – the NASCAR Sports Grille and its fried pretzel breadsticks.)

Fantastic photo-op for The Cowfish in CityWalk. (photo by Brandon Glover)

Soft tacos, beans, and rice at Antojitos.

Carbonara pizza at Vivo Italian Kitchen.

Mustard bar at Hot Dog Hall of Fame. (photo by Brandon Glover)

# 2 - “Value” Resorts Are Now Among the Best Hotels On Both Properties

The two newest value resorts, Disney’s Art of Animation Resort and Universal’s Cabana Bay Beach Resort, can hang with the big boys. The family suites at Art of Animation (along with the regular rooms at the Little Mermaid wing) take hotel room theming to the next level. My favorite touch? A dresser in the Cars suite that looks like a mechanic’s toolbox. Second favorite? The ottoman in the Lion King suite that looks like a tree stump. AoA’s food court is the best on Disney property (with real silverware to boot!), the arcade is tremendous, and the Cars pool area – complete with Cozy Cone Motel facade and actual Cozy Cone cabanas – is almost a hidden surprise as most guests are drawn to the Finding Nemo-themed Big Blue Pool (the biggest pool at WDW.) The amount of space in the family suite is nice, but what really make these rooms special are the two completely separate bathrooms. May seem like a small thing, but when you are traveling with 5 or 6 people, the ability to double up on showers and space to get ready is almost invaluable.

Meanwhile, over at Universal, Cabana Bay became the new gold standard for what a “value” resort can, and should be. A level of immersive theming we usually only find in the most expensive deluxe resorts, and a whole slew of family friendly amenities (including a bowling alley.) The fitness center may be the largest of any hotel at WDW or Universal, there is an actual fire pit (not to mention that you can buy “S’mores kits” at the Bayliner Diner that include everything you need to toast your marshmallows over said fire pit) and on top of everything else, guests are walking distance to the Universal theme parks AND get early admission to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter.

Cabana Bay Beach Resort. (photo by Brandon Glover)

Retro theming at Universal’s Cabana Bay Beach Resort.

A drawing of Lightning McQueen by John Lasseter at Disney’s Art of Animation Resort.

# 1 – Diagon Alley

We’ve written about the new drinks, snacks, and Leaky Cauldron food items. We’ve taken a look at our favorite surprises of the area. We’ve examined some of the Easter eggs hidden in the new land. But, it doesn’t matter how much you read about Diagon Alley ahead of time. It doesn’t matter how many podcasts you have listened to, or how many pictures of the Gringotts dragon breathing fire you’ve seen on Twitter. You will not be prepared.

Diagon Alley is overwhelming. It is everything we have ever wanted in a theme park experience, and then some. Knockturn Alley. Kreacher at 12 Grimmauld Place. The Knight Bus. The Leaky Cauldron. Weasley’s Wizarding Wheezes. Celestina Warbeck and the Banshees. Interactive wands. Animatronic goblins. Butterbeer ice cream. Everyone has their favorite part of Diagon Alley, but what’s most exciting about this area is the simple fact that it’s just the beginning.

We are now in a whole new theme park world and there is no going back. Like color television, the iPod, and the internet, there are advancements in our culture that change the game. Diagon Alley is where we are at now, and both Disney and Universal realize that our expectations for theme park entertainment are higher than ever before. Diagon Alley helped the rumored King Kong attraction coming to Islands of Adventure. It helped the rumored Star Wars and Pixar attractions coming to Disney’s Hollywood Studios. Diagon Alley is the rising tide, and all the boats are going to be lifted up because of it, and for that I am one thankful person.

The Gringotts Bank dragon, an imposing figure within Diagon Alley. (photo by Brandon Glover)

Celestrina Warbeck and the Banchees. (photo by Brandon Glover)

An exuberant guest awaits the Plougmans Platter at The Leaky Cauldron. (photo by Brandon Glover)

A selection of ice cream available at Florean Fortescue’s in Diagon Alley. (photo by Brandon Glover)

And if all of that doesn’t make you feel very thankful to be a theme park fan, just remember one thing…

HONORABLE MENTION: Hey, at least not everything is Frozen related (yet.)

So there you have it: Six Reasons for Theme Park Fans to Give Thanks in 2014. As you can see, there are a lot of great reasons to swell up with theme park pride. See you Saturday for the latest edition of the SATURDAY SIX, where we are going to… well, it’s only two days away so we we better think of something quick! If you had fun, be sure to check out The Magic, The Memories, and Merch! articles, or, for your listening pleasure, check out the Pardon the Pixie Dust podcast.

Chef Steve Jayson serving the grand pooh-bah of TouringPlans, Len Testa at Vivo Italian Kitchen.

If you enjoyed this Thanksgiving special, you may also enjoy:

SATURDAY SIX Salute To All Nations (But Mostly America)

The Disney Hipsters Look at Six of Their Assumptions About the Universal Orlando Resort

Six “Secrets” of the Universal Orlando Resort

Our Six Favorite Jokes in Universal’s Springfield U.S.A.

Special thanks to crack staff photographer Brandon Glover, Daisy Lauren, Matt Cleary, Megan Stump, and Trygve Nelson for their invaluable assistance with this article. Be sure to also check out Brandon on The Park Blogger podcast with co-hosts Aengus Mackenzie and Brian Carey. Also be on the look out for Trygve’s fantastic Around the Universe photo updates at OrlandoUnited (and be sure to add their great podcast Orlando United Radio to your Must Listen list.) And of course you should all be reading Daisy Lauren’s Best Week Ever recaps here on TouringPlans. There has to be something else I can plug, right?

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SATURDAY SIX THANKSGIVING SPECIAL: Six Reasons for Theme Park Fans to Give Thanks in 2014 is a post from the TouringPlans.com Blog. Signup for a premium subscription today! Or get news via Email, Twitter, & Facebook.

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Published on November 27, 2014 06:00

Daisy Lauren’s Best Week Ever: November 27, 2014

By Daisy Lauren

Hi, Everyone! Welcome to the Best Week Ever here at Walt Disney World! This week we’re taking a look at resort decorations at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge and Disney’s Wilderness Lodge, stopping by the Magic Kingdom to check out the new Peter Pan’s Flight queue, and wrapping up with a visit to Downtown Disney and Animal Kingdom. I have so much to share, so let’s get started! :)

And what better way to start than with the stunning lobby of the Animal Kingdom Lodge? After all these years I’m still amazed walking in here. I think it might be my favorite hotel (and not just because Jiko is hiding inside). The tree towering inside looks perfect and coordinates with all the garland strung around the lobby. While there isn’t much else at the resort in the way of Christmas decorations, what more could you ask for? Be sure to click below to see what else is new this week.

While it may not seem very exciting, I’m thrilled to report the parking garage at Downtown Disney is finally open. It made a huge difference this weekend not having to fight for a parking spot. We were so used to getting there an hour early that we had tons of time to kill. The garage is very open with high ceilings. I didn’t grow up in the city so I have trouble navigating parking garages at times, but this one is a breeze!

While the parking garage is done, the walkways aren’t. The photo below left shows the scary walkway that takes you to Downtown Disney. Am I the only one that thinks it looks like something from Halloween Horror Nights? The good news is that it lets you out just in front of Planet Hollywood and super close to the AMC Dine In Movie Theatre. If you haven’t been to the Dine In Theatre you can find my review here. It seems like the garage is even closer than the original parking lot.

Walking around Downtown Disney, it’s still very much in transition. The walls are moving around weekly with different walkways open and closed all the time. However, it really is getting better every week and I’m excited to see it coming together. I included the photo below left because I keep seeing the Disney Springs sign on blogs everywhere, but nobody is showing what’s beside it. I’m excited about the new sign too, but I don’t want to get your hopes up! (Remember you can click on any photo to see it larger.) Below right is showing construction progress.

Enough construction! Let’s talk about what Downtown Disney is really for, shopping! Below left, I’m very happy to report that iPhone 6+ cases are now available at D Tech. The prices remain consistent at $36.95 for standard and $44.95 for customized even though the cases are so much larger. Below right, you’ll see a new patter for Harveys Seatbelt Bags that just came out. This pattern reminds me of a camera strap that Disney used to sell.

Wrapping up what’s new at Downtown Disney this week, you can now find a life size inflatable Baymax at Once Upon a Toy. I mention it because if you have small kids you can likely take photos here and skip the actual meet and greet. The characters look very similar and you can save yourself 45+ minutes in line! Speaking of reduced wait times, Santa is also greeting at Downtown Disney with a new system this year. If the line gets too long you’ll be given a time to return. That sure sounds better than standing in line!

Next we’re popping over to Disney’s Wilderness Lodge to check out the… wait.. is that an empty lobby??! Yep, I stopped by to take photos of Christmas decorations Sunday night and they weren’t up yet. Since I was in the neighborhood I hopped a boat to the Magic Kingdom to get some other updates for you. Stay tuned for coverage of Wilderness Lodge once those decorations go up!

In a way I’m glad things didn’t work out and I ended up at Magic Kingdom. I expected it to be crowded but it was one of those magical nights with perfect weather and very minimal crowds. I wish I could have taken all of you with me! Of course, my first stop was Dumbo for a quick spin.

Lots of Christmas goodies are available around the park. At Storybook Circus we saw several kinds of cupcakes and bright red macaroons. We had to try one, how else could I tell you all about it? Well, surprise, this little guy is actually peppermint flavored! The sign didn’t say so and we weren’t told so it was a happy surprise. I still think the ones at Les Halles Boulangerie & Pâtisserie (France in Epcot) are better but these are still worth trying for the holidays.

A little shopping news from Magic Kingdom, who will you pick from the ears below? Team Anna or Team Elsa? Well, you don’t have to! These are the same ears with different designs are the two sides. They’re already very popular and I’ve seen tons of kids wearing them in the parks. At $19.95 they aren’t as pricey as I’d expect since they’re really wall made.

A little more shopping news, the Made With Magic wands were released this weekend and they come with a surprise! When we first picked them up we weren’t interested in getting one, then we found out they really ARE magic! The wands can change the color of other wands and hats. There’s a little paint brush button and when pressed and aimed at others it will switch their color and pattern. I tried to capture it in the video below. Maybe this is Disney’s answer to Harry Potter? It’s exciting to think about other ways this could be used in the parks.

I’ll also give you a tip we learned, Tomorrowland Transit Authority PeopleMover is a great place to go sniping Made With Magic bows with your new magic wand. We had so much fun with this and it was totally worth the $25 for the wand! In other news, I haven’t talked about FastPass+ lately but that’s been because it’s been working so well. This week we’ve used over ten Fastpass+ reservations without a hiccup, but I have family visiting from out of town soon so that will be the real test.

At roughly 10:30pm I decided it was finally time to suck it up and get in the standby line for Peter Pan. The sign claimed there was a 50 minute wait and with the line being indoors and hidden now I had no way to tell if that was a real number. I decided it was worth it to show you guys the new queue! When you first enter there is a corridor with paintings of various scenes from the movie, then you enter into portraits of The Darling Family.

Next you enter the nursery where there are tons of details. There’s so much to see that I could do an entire post on it! Not only is it lovely, there’s more room in the line and it’s completely air conditioned. While I had hoped for more interactive elements in the queue it’s no longer the worst wait in the park. It’s a huge improvement!

So how long was the wait for Peter Pan? It ends up only about 25 minutes, just goes to show you can’t always trust the sign. Afterwards we decided to hop the boat back to Wilderness Lodge, but something was amiss. What are all those carts in the lobby? Why is there caution tape? It ends up we’d stumbled into the late night decorating session for the hotel! It was amazing to see, there were four semi trucks full of decorations being expertly unloaded out front. I wish we could have stayed all night. If you’re wondering what that all nighter looked like there might be a video if you search on on Youtube.

So we’ll have to stop back by to show the finished product soon at Wilderness Lodge! Somewhere that did have their tree up was Animal Kingdom. I stopped by Tuesday morning to check out their decorations and report on the Thanksgiving crowds. Only there weren’t any crowds to report. At 8:30am the entrance looked like any other Tuesday. Sure, there was rain in the forecast, but when has that ever scared people off?

Inside the park, decorations are minimal and just along the buildings as you enter. They’re pretty generic, but festive. Since the Jingle Jungle parade has been retired there really isn’t much for the season at this park.

As I made my way back to the Kilimanjaro Safaris it was zombie apocalypse empty at the park! Take a look at these empty walkways. It was creepy since I was there by myself. I mean, this is Thanksgiving week? Where are the hoards of people pushing and shoving to get there first? When I got back to the safari it was an absolute walk on and I was able to have a whole row all to myself. I was starting to think I’d picked the perfect day to visit!

But then, the animals were all hiding too. These were the only two animals I really saw during the entire ride. Just as we were almost to the cheetahs I figured out why. It suddenly started raining, then pouring, and then monsooning! I packed my camera gear up in my bag and put on the rain cover. I bundled up in my rain coat, but it didn’t matter because it was raining sideways. I couldn’t believe the rain! I sloshed back out to my car where I heard there was a tornado warning for the area. Maybe I should be a little more afraid the rain!

That’s everything for this week. Now let’s see what you can expect if you’re visiting next week.

Crowd Calendar: While Thanksgiving and the weekend after are some of the busiest days all year, you can expect mild crowds just after.

Weather: There might be a day that dips all the way into the 40′s but for the most part it’s sunny with highs in the 70′s and lows in the 50′s. Perfect weather!

Remember: You can still have crazy rainy days even this time of year. Be sure you come ready with a rain plan.

Here’s my top tip for this week: If you’re driving when you come to town, keep in mind it’s technically illegal in Florida to drive with your hazard lights on (unless you’re experiencing a mechanical problem). If you feel you can’t see in the rain then pull off the road, or even better find a parking lot to wait in. While rain like we had this week isn’t common this time of year it happens almost daily in the summer. It’s best to wait so you don’t have to drive in those conditions.

Do you have any news I missed or any requests for coverage next week? I’d love to hear from you in the comments below, and thanks so much for reading! I’m wishing all of you the Best Week Ever, until next time!

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Published on November 27, 2014 03:00

November 26, 2014

Choosing the Right WDW Discount

By Lisa Gilmore

As a frequent Walt Disney World traveler, and also not a Florida resident, I’m sufficiently addicted to Disney vacation planning books, podcasts, blogs, discussion groups, and other research areas that can help me sustain my pixie dust addiction without breaking the bank or going in debt. During my years of research, I’ve heard lots of claims of which Disney discount is “best”, and while I trust many of the sources I frequently research, I’ve learned that not all discounts pack the same punch. Depending on your party size, your frequency of visiting the parks, and your touring style, some discounts are better than others. In this article, I’ll review the most common (and often reoccurring) discounts available and analyze how those discounts can apply differently to different Disney vacationers.

Annual Pass/Premium Annual Pass

What is it?

The Walt Disney World Annual Pass allows its owner one calendar year (365 days) of unlimited access to four Walt Disney World theme parks. This privilege includes the park hopping option, select discounts on dining and special tours, as well as free parking at the parks.

The Walt Disney World Premium Annual Pass offers the same benefits as the Annual Pass, but also includes unlimited access to both Walt Disney World water parks, Disney’s Oak Trail Golf Course, DisneyQuest, and ESPN Wide World of Sports complex.

Disney also offers its Premier Passport. Disney’s Premier Passport offers all of the benefits of the Walt Disney World Premium Annual Pass, but also includes the two theme parks in California, Disneyland and Disney’s California Adventure.

Be aware there are also select passes that are only offered to Florida residents that have limited access, like the Seasonal Pass and Weekday Select Pass. If you are a Florida resident looking at these options, be sure to look at all of the details and restrictions.

When you can get it?/When is it offered?

All annual passes can be purchased online through Disney’s website (https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/passholder-program/), you can call them at (407) 939-7679, or visit any ticket office at the parks or guest services locations.

If you already have one of Disney’s annual passes, and are looking to renew it, you’ll need to make sure to be aware of the date of activation of your passes. Passes can be renewed up to 60 days before or up to 30 days after your expiration date, and you receive a discount when you renew! But don’t delay, because whether you renew by your expiration date or any time up to 30 days after, your renewal pass will still expire 12 months after your original expiration date. To renew your pass, just visit a Disney World theme park ticket window or call (407) 560-7277.

Upfront Cost

Each annual pass has a different upfront cost and renewal fee, but there are Military and DVC discounts. Prices below are subject to change and do not include sales tax. See the Walt Disney Parks website for most up-to-date prices. Prices are the same for adult or child’s pass.

Annual Pass

$675.21 for a new pass, the renewal fee is $574.04.

Military discounts are $619 for a new pass, no discounted renewal fee.

DVC discount is $516.53 for a new pass, or $435.59 to renew it.

Florida Resident discount is $516.53

Premium Annual Pass

$803.02 for a new pass, the renewal fee is $680.54.

Military discounts are $736 for a new pass, no discounted renewal fee.

DVC discount is $644.33 for a new pass, or $542.09 to renew it.

Florida Resident discount is $644.33

Premier Passport

$1009.84 for a new passport and currently there is no renewal discount.

DVC members also have access to special discounts on the Premium Annual Pass and the Premier Passport. Be sure to talk to a cast member at (407) 939-7679 for all the benefits that your DVC membership can offer.

Rationale for Families

If your family is planning to visit Walt Disney World more than once a year or is planning to spend more than a total of 7 days in the theme parks, then it make sense to look into purchasing one of the Annual Passes. The 7 day Park Hopper ticket costs the same as an Annul Pass, plus with an Annual Pass, you get access to nice variety of additional discounts. In addition to getting 10% discount on selected dining experiences and merchandise purchased on property, the Walt Disney World resort often offers room discounts to Annual Passholders which is often not available to the general public, or is a discounted rate above and beyond the published rate available to other guests.

Rationale for Solo Travelers

The benefits for Solo Travelers are virtually the same as they are for Families. If you plan to visit the Disney World theme parks for more than 7 days and are planning to park hop, then the Annual Pass could be a good alternative. I’d even suggest considering it even you only plan to spend 5 or 6 days in the parks due to the additional perks and discounts you get.

Tables in Wonderland

Tables in Wonderland offers a 20% discount on food and beverages around the Walt Disney Resort.

What is it?

Tables in Wonderland is an exclusive dining discount club for Florida Residents, DVC members, and Annual/Seasonal Passholders. It offers discounts at select dining locations around the Disney World Resort in addition to some other benefits, include free parking and access to special events.

The main benefit is the 20% discount on food and beverage (including alcohol) at a number of table service and signature dining restaurants. This discount can be applied for a party of up to 10 guests including the Tables in Wonderland cardholder. However an 18% gratuity is automatically included in the check. Some blackout dates apply, so be sure to read the fine print. The discount is also offered at food courts in resorts that don’t have table service restaurants (all the value resorts and French Quarter) and at several quick service locations in Animal Kingdom park. Gratuity is not added to quick service meals.

When you can get it/When is it offered

The Tables in Wonderland card can be purchased at any Guest Relations location in Walt Disney World. Florida Residents and Annual Passholders can also purchase the card over the phone (407) 566-5858 to order the card and expect delivery within 3-4 weeks. You can purchase the card at any point, and it is valid for a full year.

Upfront Cost

The Tables in Wonderland card costs $125 for Florida Residents and $100 for Annual/Seasonal Passholders and DVC members. There is no renewal discount, if you wish to purchase a new card after your current one expires, then you will have to pay the full membership fee.

Break-Even for Tables in Wonderland

Unlike the Annual Pass, for which the break-even price can depend on how you use the other discounts associated with it, the Tables in Wonderland break-even is easy. After you have spent $500 (AP/DVC) or $600 (FL residents) on covered food and drink, everything else is savings. Given that one character meal for a family of 4 will run you well over $100, it’s easy to see how you can recoup your cost in one trip. This is nearly a no-brainer for anyone planning more than one trip per 12 month period. But “what about the 18% gratuity?” you ask…. Well you were planning on paying that anyway right?

Room Only Discount

What is it?

Room only discounts are available to the general public for booking only their hotel rooms. Tickets and the Disney Dining Plan are not included with these discounts. Room only discounts are typically tiered, with the deepest discounts (usually 30% off) for Deluxe and Deluxe Villa resorts, moderate resorts usually see 25% off discounts, with Value resorts seeing 15-20% off discounts.

With these types of discounts, you’ll need to be careful (especially if booking over the phone) to specify that you are not booking a “vacation package” but just the room only. Once your reservation becomes a “package” you can forfeit your room-only discount rate. You’ll also want to keep in mind that the discount is applied to the base subtotal for the resort. Don’t forget to factor in the Florida 12.5% resort tax.

When you can get it?/When is it offered?

Room Only Discounts are typically advertised 2-4 months before they are effective. For example, the 10%-30% off Room Only Discount for guests staying January 5- March 28, 2015 was made available for booking on October 6, 2014. In order to take advantage of it, you’d have to have your trip booked by December 29th. Based off of historic trends, we can expect more room only discounts to be made available for guests staying during these times:

10%-30% off during January 5 – March 28 (already released)

5%-30% off during February 23 – June 15

10%-35% off during June 15-August 28

20%-30% off during August 16 – October 2

15%-30% off during October 4-November 24

15%-30% off during November 30 – December 23

On the surface, it appears that there are discounts offered at Disney World nearly all year long, and that assertion is correct, Disney does offer discounts throughout the year with exception of the winter holidays. But some discounts are better than others. You’ll notice the discounts are shallower around the traditional Spring Break season and Summer holiday. In order to get the bigger discounts, you have to book the more expensive rooms, thus spending more money.

Rationale for Families

The room only discount is a flat rate, so if you fill the room up with your standard, two parents and 2.5 children, the discount is the same as if you’re traveling alone. One thing to consider is if you’re traveling with additional guests over the age of 18, then Disney does charge per additional adult after the first two. So if you’re traveling with children who’ve already turned 18, grandparents, aunts, uncles, or other varieties of over-18 relatives, then you’re discount will be chipped away a little by the additional adult charge.

If your travel dates coincide with room rate discounts as well as a free dining promotion, it might be worth your while to do the math to see which discount will benefit your family most (see the analysis of Free Dining below).

Rationale for Solo Travelers

Since the “room only discount” is a flat rate, solo travelers may get the edge here. Even though there’s only one person using the room, the discount rate is the same. Let’s compare.

Solo Traveler is staying at the Caribbean Beach Resort for 6 nights for the rack-rate of $212 per night. The pre-discount total is $1,272. If Solo Traveler is going when he can take advantage of the 20% room-only discount, his price becomes $1,017.60. So his savings is $254.40 for his stay. But don’t forget the resort tax of 12.5%. A non-discounted room would end up costing $1,431, with the 20% discount, the total (including tax) comes to $1,144.80. So, the ultimate savings is $286.20

If you look at this discount as savings accrued per guest, the savings rate gives an advantage for the Solo Traveler in this situation. This discount can be even more if guests have an Annual Pass and there are special Annual Passholder room-only discount available. Remember, to always ask about Passholder discounts, since Cast Members may not think to offer it. Ultimately, both situations save the same amount, but how that’s spread out can impact your per-person vacation pricing plans

Free Dining

What is it?

Probably the most popular discount Disney offers. During a select season, Disney offers a free dining plan for guests booking a vacation package at the Walt Disney World Resort. There are five Disney dining plans, but only two are offered during the Free Dining promotion. For guests staying at a Value resort, they get the Quick Service Dining Plan. Guests staying Moderate, Deluxe and Villas get the Standard Dining plan. For the upgrade cost, guests can choose to upgrade their free package to the next tier and just pay the increase amount.

Disney often boasts that using a Disney Dining Plan can save guests up to 20% off of their dining expenses. But a large part of that 20% assumed savings is that you eat the most expensive meals offered on the plan, that you plan to order dessert at every meal (and don’t plan to order an appetizer), and that you’ll use all of your meal and snack credits. This may be true for many families, but you’ll want to review the plan offerings and your family’s eating habits before swallowing the 20% savings promise.

When you can get it/When is it offered

The Free Dining promotion is usually available in the Fall, this year it was offered for August 21-December 23 with some blackout dates. In order to take advantage of the free dining promotion, you had to book your vacation between May 7-August 8. However, if you had booked your vacation earlier, you can call Disney to have them apply the new promotion to your reservation.

Upfront Cost

With Free Dining, there is no upfront cost! However, keep in mind that this offer cannot be combined with any other promotion, and to get the Free Dining promotion, you have to book a vacation package. So, for guests who already have an Annual Pass, this discount is probably not the best deal for you, since to qualify for a “vacation package” you have to purchase park tickets as part of your package (pretty senseless if you already have an Annual Pass).

The 2014 prices for the Dining Plans are:

The Quick Service Dining Plan costs $41.99 per adult, $16.03 per child (age 3-9) which includes two counter service meals, one snack per night, and one refillable souvenir mug.

The Standard Dining Plan costs $60.64 per night, per adult, and $19.23 per child (age 3-9) which includes: one snack, one counter service meal, one table service meal per night, and a refillable souvenir mug.

One “cost” that you may not immediately consider is if you’re on the Standard Dining Plan or one of the higher premium plans, the amount of table service restaurants you’re required to eat at to justify the price (or the value) of the meal plan will cost you time away from the parks and attractions. Table service or Signature meals that you use on the plan can easily take an hour or more away from your park touring. Is this part of your vacation plan? Do you value relaxing at a sit-down meal? Or are you more of a commando-style guest, tackling every attraction on your Touring Plan? If you’re more of the latter, then the layers of complication and time requirements involved in a dining plan may be more of a hindrance than a benefit to your vacation.

Keep in mind, whether you pay for the dining plan or you get it for free, it does not include gratuity or alcoholic beverages. Fellow Touring Plans Blogger, Erin Foster wrote a great article on gratuity and tipping at Walt Disney World for more details on planning this area of your trip.

Rationale for Families

Let’s look at the Discount Family again for this scenario. Two parents and two kids, but only one child qualifies for the child meal plan. So, staying at Moderate Resort for 6 nights means they will 6 nights of the Standard Dining Plan free for 3 adults (remember anyone older than 9 is considered an “adult” on the dining plan) and 1 child.

So Discount Family is looking at $60.64 per adult (3), per night (6). $60.64 x 3 x 6 = $1,091.52

They also have the Discount Child at $19.23 per child (1), per night (6). $19.23 x 1 x 6 = $115.38

The value of the Free Dining promotion for the Discount family is $1,206.90

If we’re just comparing to the “Room Only Discount” to the “Free Dining Promotion”, the Discount Family should definitely take advantage of free dining. They may not eat enough to justify the cost of $1,200, but for a free promotion, it is definitely a better value for them per person, per night, than the Room Only Discount offers.

Rationale for Solo Travelers

If we look at Solo Traveler’s situation again, we remember that he’s saving roughly $127.20 (because the resort tax really cut into his discount). If he gets the free Standard Dining Plan with his stay at the Caribbean Beach Resort, he’s getting $60.64 per adult (1), per night (6). $60.64 x 1 x 6 = $363.84. $363.84 is a bigger savings than his 20% off Room Only Discount.

For both of these scenarios, it seems that the Free Dining promotion is the better savings, by far. But there are plenty of other factors to consider before choosing this plan for your vacation. Before jumping on the Free Dining Bandwagon, crunch the numbers and make sure it makes sense for you. Are you an Annual Passholder? Check the discounts for Annual Passes and talk to a Cast Member to see if you’d have to buy additional park tickets to take advantage of the Free Dining. If you have to buy at least 1 park ticket for the duration of your stay that’s $334.41, and if you’re a Solo Traveler, that pretty much eats up your whole savings.

Will you or your family eat enough to validate the savings? For Solo Traveler, it’s assuming you’ll eat $60 worth of food a day (and it very specifically regulates where you can eat this $60 worth of food), if you’re more of a burger/sandwich-on-the-go type of vacationer, or a pack-and-fix-your-own-meal type of vacationer, then you likely won’t get the value of this option either.

Disney VISA

What is it?

Disney offers two reward credit cards through Chase, the Disney Reward Card and the Disney Premier Card. Both cards come with Disney-specific perks like 10% discounts on Disney merchandise sold at the Disney parks, 10% off at select Disney dining locations, and up to 15% on select park tours. They also offer the option to redeem reward points toward park tickets and resort stays. Additionally, there are various opportunities for unique character meet and greets for cardholders.

When you can get it/When is it offered

You can apply for either credit card at any time. The perks and rewards are subject to the usual fine print and blackout dates which can change. You’ll want to visit the rewards website to view all possible restrictions.

Disney Reward VISA Card does not have an annual fee. But do the perks and rewards balance our the interest rate?

Disney Premier VISA Card comes with a $49 annual fee and an average 15% interest rate

Upfront Cost

Only the Disney Premier Card has an annual fee of $49, but both cards come with a premium interest rate. The interested noted on the website now is 15.24%, but based on the applicant’s credit score and other factors, this is not a locked-in rate and it may increase.

As with any credit card, you want to be very careful when determining if you want to open a new line of credit. And with any reward card, the perks and rewards are negated if you end up carrying a balance on your card and paying the high interest rate. If you have the self-discipline to pay off your card every month, then the reward points earned toward a Disney resort and the perks could be a useful vacation strategy, just make sure you read all the fine print.

Rationale for Families

If you’re a family of Disney-crazed people (which, you probably are if you’re reading this blog), then this card could have enough benefits and incentives for you to enjoy. With the 10% off Disney Store purchases, coupled with some of the discounts at the parks themselves and even taking advantage of special Disney vacation financing, any family buying Elsa and Anna dresses could benefit from this.

Rationale for Solo Travelers

Even if you’re a Disney-crazed solo traveler, this card for the discounts and rewards alone, may not pack the best punch for you. Considering the interest rate, and narrow way to redeem rewards, solo travelers may be better off getting a higher-valued credit card (with more lucrative rewards or a lower interest rate) and getting an Annual Pass to get the same range of discounts and perks. That’s not to say that a Disney reward card won’t benefit a solo traveler, but if the situation comes down to whether to get a Disney reward card or not, you want to do the research because there are other options that pack a better benefit-punch.

Military Discount

What is it?

Active Military personnel with proper ID (includes active U.S. Coast Guard and activated members of the National Guard or Reservists) are eligible to receive Disney Ticket discounts. Military personnel can also purchase Disney tickets for up to 5 members of their family. Guests in the Military can purchase these tickets at the Shades of Green resort. Your Military discounted passes can be picked up at the Made in the Shade store located at Shades of Green. Some bases may also have discounted tickets available to purchase. Be sure to check with the recreational unit at your post or base, or contact Disney Guest Services directly for current information.

When tickets are purchased with a military ID at Shades of Green, there is no tax charged.

If staying at Shades of Green, the room rates are based on the military rank or civilian grade at the time of check-in.

When you can get it/When is it offered

Military Discounts are available year round for guests staying at Shades of Green resort, which is considered an Armed Forces Recreation Center (AFRC), but room availability is limited. Occasionally, Disney will offer additional discounts for military wishing to stay at other Walt Disney World resorts. Shades of Green can be booked solid, especially during the busy vacation seasons, if they don’t have any available when you want, be sure to ask the Cast Member if they can make a reservation at another Disney resort for you. Depending on the time of year and availability you could get a “SoG overflow” rate.

One of the more popular military promotions offered annually is the Disney Armed Forces Salute. It is a temporary offer (renewed year to year) with discounts of 50% off 4-day tickets which have either the Hopper, the Water Park Fun and More option, or both options, and 30-40% off Disney resorts.

Upfront Cost

There is no charge to have access to the Military Discounts Disney offers, you simply have to have the required military ID. Something else to consider is that only the military personnel and their guests can use their discounted park tickets. To prevent the discounted tickets from being sold second-hand, Disney requires that the “sponsor” of the ticket be present when they are activated at the park.

Rationale for Families

If you have the opportunity to stay at Shades of Green, it’s worth your while. You get most of the perks of staying at a Disney resort (see the Shades of Green website for certain restrictions) plus the locked-in room rate based off of your military rank (which is not subject to the seasonal price changes) and finally, all purchases on Shades property, including room charges, are tax free. This is because Shades is a Department of Defense (DoD) facility and state and local taxes are not applicable on federal property.

Rationale for Solo Travelers

This same logic applies for this discount for families and solo travelers. Families may experience more of a financial benefit due to the “no tax” allocation on Shades property, but that’s simply because “the more you buy, the more you save” aspect applies. The percentage of savings is still the same. If you’re able to take advantage of the Disney Armed Forces Salute, you may want to compare the discount offered at Disney resorts compared to the room rate offered at Shades of Green to see which discount benefits you more.

AAA Discount

What is it?

AAA members can usually count on a 3-5% discount on Disney park tickets, and on average between 10%-25% on resort rooms, depending on the season and resort level. It usually cheaper to buy your park tickets from your AAA office, but, if you choose, you can book a room with the AAA discount directly through Disney or your preferred travel agent. You’ll just need to be prepared to show a valid AAA membership card at check in.

AAA also offers a travel agent service that can help you organize your Disney vacation and discounts.

When you can get it/When is it offered

AAA renews their discount agreement once a year. The discount on park tickets is fairly standard and does not change much throughout the year. The room discounts and negotiated annually. As of the print of this article, the AAA room discounts are only valid through 2014. Any room discounts for 2015 have not been released yet. You may want to speak with your local AAA agent for more current information.

Historically, room discounts are not available during the holiday season.

Upfront Cost

Most people don’t buy a AAA membership just for the discounts on a Disney vacation. It’s a convenient and reliable road-side service that also offers discounts and privileges with other companies and services.

Depending on where you live, membership fees vary, but you can expect to pay around $50-75 for a basic membership, $80-115 for AAA Plus, or $100-150 for the Premier AAA membership.

Rationale for Families/ Solo Travelers

The logic behind this discount is the same for both types of guests. Disney does not allow guests to combine or stack offers or discounts on top of each other, so if you plan to use a AAA discount on your room or tickets, then you won’t be allowed to take advantage of any room or vacation package discounts that Disney is offering. Since the AAA discounts vary from 10%-25% on room discounts, you may want to call a Disney vacation planner to see what the offers or promotions Disney has available during your stay. You may find that Disney offers a better discount.

If you’re buying a AAA membership solely because of the potential Disney discounts, you may find yourself disappointed. However with all of the other services and discounts AAA offers, if you’re a member anyway, it doesn’t hurt to compare the discounts to make sure you’re getting the best bargain

Final Thoughts

I hope this overview of some of the most common Disney discounts and promotions has helped you identify which ones may benefit your family most. Be sure to use the Touring Plans Ticket Price Comparison tool, to help you analyze & research your ticket prices. And if you’re an Annual Passholder, Disney VISA cardholder, or a DVC member, always remember to mention that to Cast Members to take advantage of all of the discounts and perks available. And if you’re staying at a Disney resort, be sure to review all of your check -in materials for the popular “bounce back offer“.

Which are your favorite Disney discounts? Be sure to share your money-saving tips in the comments below!

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Published on November 26, 2014 08:00

Disney and Turner Classic Movies to Pair Up

By Rikki Niblett

We all know that there are major changes on the horizon for Disney’s Hollywood Studios and now another interesting development has come to light – cable channel, Turner Classic Movies (TCM) will be the official sponsor for The Great Movie Ride.

This paring will marry the two in perfect harmony, with TCM receiving credit as the sponsor on all signage and marketing for the attraction. In the queue, guests will enjoy new digital movie posters and will be able to view a new pre-ride video featuring Robert Osborne, the host of many Turner Classic Movies programs, who will provide insights from movies guests will experience in the attraction. In addition, an updated finale will feature a new movie montage of classic movie moments. Finally, when guests exit the attraction, they’ll have the opportunity to take photos with a classic movie theme.

In addition, as part of this deal, Disney will allow TCM to play classic movies and TV programs in special reoccurring programming blocks that will happen approximately four to five times a year. These blocks will be called “Treasures from the Disney Vault.” (And I need to make sure that I have TCM on my satellite now…) This programming will begin at 8:00 p.m. EST December 21 through 5:15 a.m. EST on December 22.

According to the initial report which was released late last night, TCM executives say the agreement began with an administrative assistant, Amanda Tymeson, who returned from a visit to Disney World and suggested “that TCM and Disney would be great partners” in revamping the Great Movie Ride.

These changes for The Great Movie Ride will take place in Spring 2015. The Great Movie Ride was an initial 1989 opening day attraction for Disney’s Hollywood Studios.

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