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Figment!
05-26-2013, 04:05 PM
Tidbits
June 2013




Refreshed from the Oven


6/18/13 The grand re-opening of the Main Street Bakery in the Magic Kingdom has revleaed some more details about the new offerings. Contrary to the 6/15 announcement, the Morning Menu currently features non-Starbucks grab-n-go items and non-Starbucks baked goods; in addition to the Starbucks brand items. Guest and Cast reports have indicated that all of the Starbucks brand drink-items may be redeemed for one Snack Credit on the Disney Dining Plan. It has been additionally reported that one Disney Dining Plan Counter Service Credit may be redeemed for the Guest's choice of one Starbucks drink item and one Starbucks breakfast sandwich or choice of Starbucks drink item, piece of whole fruit, and pastry. The renovated location now features two service lines, but no indoor seating. Guests looking for seating and more complete breakfast options are being directed to the Tommorowland Terrace.

6/15/13 A number of changes have been internally announced for the Main Street Bakery when it re-opens on June 18th. The Magic Kingdom location has been announced to feature a Morning Menu and an All-Day Menu. The Morning Menu will be offered from park open till 11:00 am and only feature Starbucks brand beverages and breakfast sandwiches. The All-Day menu will be offered from 11:00 am till park close and feature a selection of non-Starbucks baked goods and confections in addition to Starbucks brand items. Contrary to original announcements, the Guest favorite Cinnamon Rolls now have been announced to stay at Gaston’s Tavern in Fantasyland rather than returning to the Main Street Bakery upon its re-opening.

Re-Making the Marketplace

6/15/13 The extensive renovations to the Rainforest Cafe in Downtown Disney Marketplace are now complete. The Lava Lounge has opened and the new 2 minute Volcano Eruption show is running daily. The pyrotechnic show begins at dusk and continues at the top of every hour and half hour till closing.

6/9/13 Although running many months past its announced finishing date, the extensive renovation project at the Rainforest Cafe in the Downtown Disney Marketplace appears to be nearing completion. In addition to the new volcano facade, the location has added new fire and smoke effects. The location has recently tested these effects revealing a new eruption sequence that uses fire geysers along the sides of the mountain and the mouth of the crag.

1/25/12 Rainforest Cafe has started a major renovation of the restaurant's exterior. In addition to the exterior cosmetic changes, the restaurant will open a new lounge in Fall 2012.

Fair-Weather Fairies

6/15/13 Character Cast have reported that Tinker Bell’s Magical Nook has changed its daily offerings for the second time this year. As of June 14th, Rosetta has been replaced by Vidia.

2/18/13 Character Cast have reported that Tinker Bell’s Magical Nook will be changing its offerings later this week. The Meet & Greet location in the Adventureland section of the Magic Kingdom will reportedly replace Periwinkle with Rosetta in the daily offerings beginning February 22, 2013. Tinker Bell will reportedly remain part of the daily offerings.

See Spot Re-Open

6/9/13 The re-opened Epcot Character Spot has revealed only minor changes to the interior. The backdrop murals have been re-painted, but they remain in the previous style and the same general scene with primarily the Goof-like characters removed. Guests may meet Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, and Pluto inside the refreshed location; while Goofy is currently meeting Guests near the location’s main entrance.

5/26/13 Epcot’s Character Spot Meet & Greet location has a new re-opening date set after being delayed several times earlier this year. The Future World location is now scheduled to re-open June 3, 2013. Character Cast have not yet reported any details on the newly refurbished location nor why the originally scheduled 3 month closure was extended to nearly 8 months.

Once Upon a Wii

6/9/13 Nintendo has opened an exhibit in Downtown Disney Marketplace featuring Wii U. The exhibit, located near One Upon a Toy, features game rooms where Guests can try new Wii U games including Lego City Undercover, Need for Speed Most Wanted U, New Super Mario Bros. U, and Nintendo Land. Guests can also pose for pictures with props from popular Nintendo games. The exhibit is open daily through June 23, 2012.

A Tale of Two Games

6/9/13 Disney’s Animal Kingdom and The Magic Kingdom recently unveiled two new interactive games.

On May 31st, the Magic Kingdom officially launched Pirates Adventure – Treasure of the Seven Seas interactive game. The game currently includes 5 adventures that take Guests around the park’s Adventureland section. As they complete the game, Guests interact with props scattered about the area. Each adventure is expected to last approximately 20 minutes. See Christine's June 2nd Tweets on the Official INTERCOT Twitter feed (http://www.twitter.com/intercot) for pictures and more details.

On June 1st, Wilderness Explorers interactive game opened at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. The game gives Guests a Wilderness Explorers handbook that leads Guests around the park performing tasks to earn 31 badges. Initial Guest reports have indicated that the game is educational and incorporates many details of the park. Unlike previous offerings, the interactivity for this game comes from mostly interacting with Cast Members and searching out details of the park. As Guests earn their badges (stickers), they place them in their Wilderness Explorers handbook as a souvenir to take with them. The entire game appears to take 3 -5 hours to complete depending on crowd levels and the number of breaks taken.

Figment!
05-26-2013, 04:05 PM
Tidbits


May 2013




Touchdown Closedown

5/26/13 The End Zone Food Court at Disney’s All-Star Sports resort will be closed for a lengthy refurbishment later this Summer. The counter service dining location is scheduled to be closed from August 5 through December 20, 2013. During the closure, the resort will offer two supplemental options to Guests staying there. The resort will offer a special bus service to the All-Star Music and All-Star Movies resorts during standard mealtimes; so that, Guests may use one of the food courts at the nearby hotels. Additionally, grab-and-go items such as sandwiches, salads, snacks, pastries, and cereal will be available at the Game Point Arcade.

Celebrate the Summer

5/26/13 The Magic Kingdom recently debuted a Summer edition of its nightly projection show, Celebrate the Magic. The revised show features a new summer themed segment with Phineas & Ferb, Lilo & Stich, Cinderella Sandcastle, and Little Mermaid sequences.

In The Loop

5/26/13 Transportation Cast have reported that the roll-out of the new bus fleet has begun. In addition to the new color scheme, Cast have reported that the new buses have a low-entry floor and the center aisle is wider than the previous model’s.

2/3/2012 Transportation Cast have reported that this expansion is part of several changes coming to the Walt Disney World bus fleet. The fleet will soon don a new red and silver color scheme and feature new reflective features for enhanced visibility at night; the first of which has already been spotted in use. Cast have also confirmed that the previously tested articulated buses are being permanently added to the fleet. A firm time table for these upgrades has not been reported, but some Cast expect the enhancements to be rolled out through Summer 2013.

Mice to Meet You

5/26/13 The new Adventurers Outpost Meet & Greet location opened on May 15th in the Discovery Island section of Disney’s Animal Kingdom. The new meet & greet area features Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse in their safari outfits. Guest and Cast reports have indicated that the new meet & greet location contains many thematic details. The queue contains pictures of the duo on various adventures and the meet & greet area contains details such as souvenirs, luggage, and field notes.

ibelieveindisneymagic
05-26-2013, 04:31 PM
Thanks for sharing!

I just realized that we've never been to the Epcot Character Spot - we might just have to check the new one out.

BuddyL4
05-26-2013, 05:20 PM
Wow! That sounds like quite the referb at AS Sports food court to go from August to December. What are they planning to do to End Zone?

Melanie
05-26-2013, 05:50 PM
Wonder what did go wrong with the Epcot Character Spot that required 5 months to remedy? The area isn't that big. :shrug:

And are only Mickey and Minnie meeting at the new Outpost spot? That's a shame if all the others were cut.

AgentC
05-26-2013, 06:20 PM
Wonder what did go wrong with the Epcot Character Spot that required 5 months to remedy? The area isn't that big. :shrug:

And are only Mickey and Minnie meeting at the new Outpost spot? That's a shame if all the others were cut.

I've heard that Donald and Daisy are moving to the Discovery Island Landing spot. Tigger and Pooh are moving to Camp Minnie Mickey when that happens. They have filled Minnie and Mickey's spots with others for now.

Melanie
05-26-2013, 06:21 PM
I've heard that Donald and Daisy are moving to the Discovery Island Landing spot. Tigger and Pooh are moving to Camp Minnie Mickey when that happens. They have filled Minnie and Mickey's spots with others for now.

I thought Camp Minnie Mickey had closed, or is closing? Boy, I'm confused. :blush:

AgentC
05-26-2013, 06:23 PM
I thought Camp Minnie Mickey had closed, or is closing? Boy, I'm confused. :blush:

It don't think they have decided when it is closing or if they have announced the date I already forgot it. :D

They were open as normal when we were there in April.

DizneyFreak2002
05-26-2013, 06:28 PM
I thought Camp Minnie Mickey had closed, or is closing? Boy, I'm confused. :blush:

If certain people can be believed, CMM won't be closing until after the holiday rush... end of this year/beginning of next year... So they have time yet...

I guess it really depends on how fast they can build the new FotLK theater... Once that theater is ready for the show, I would expect CMM to close shortly there after..

As for the buses, saw more pictures... Why do I like them? Why? Oh why oh why LOL...

PirateLover
05-31-2013, 01:10 AM
That All Star Sports food court closing sounds quite inconvenient... I would NOT be happy if I was staying at ANY of those resorts. I would not want to take a bus to another resort for more food options, nor would I enjoy an even more crowded food court at my home resort due to others being bussed in. And not only that, but I read somewhere else that since the arcade is hosting the "grab-n-go" foods, the games will be inaccessible for that resort as well. Values come with few amenities as it is...I think I'd be running away from the All Stars if I had a ressie there for that time period.

All Star Sports is one of the few resorts I've never even visited. I would assume that it's set up similar to the others, with multiple stations and seating areas. They really can't find a way to do it piecemeal?

Sylvia
05-31-2013, 07:55 PM
That All Star Sports food court closing sounds quite inconvenient... I would NOT be happy if I was staying at ANY of those resorts. I would not want to take a bus to another resort for more food options, nor would I enjoy an even more crowded food court at my home resort due to others being bussed in. And not only that, but I read somewhere else that since the arcade is hosting the "grab-n-go" foods, the games will be inaccessible for that resort as well. Values come with few amenities as it is...I think I'd be running away from the All Stars if I had a ressie there for that time period.

We're staying at ASMusic this August, and since hearing about the Sport food court, I've been trying to be optimistic about the increased meal time crowds at Music. I've been trying to ignore the negativity, and then I read this post. But, I've decided that nothing is worth becoming anxious or making decisions without carefully thinking, especially since I've dealt successfully with serious health issues during this past year. Crowds at typical meal times may be larger than normal, but we'll adjust and still have a great time. We have too many reasons to celebrate.

The guests at Sport are the ones who will be the most affected by the closing. If we were staying at Sport, we'd definitely have a different opinion.

PirateLover
05-31-2013, 10:04 PM
The guests at Sport are the ones who will be the most affected by the closing. If we were staying at Sport, we'd definitely have a different opinion.

Sorry to be negative! This was the first I'd read about it. I don't know how long ago it was actually announced but it seemed a little late in the game to me. I do agree Sports will be getting the worst of it, and I would not hesitate to change my reservation if I was staying there. It probably won't be too bad at the other All Stars as long as you avoid eating around peak times. Good luck!

Sylvia
05-31-2013, 11:59 PM
Sorry to be negative! This was the first I'd read about it. I don't know how long ago it was actually announced but it seemed a little late in the game to me. I do agree Sports will be getting the worst of it, and I would not hesitate to change my reservation if I was staying there. It probably won't be too bad at the other All Stars as long as you avoid eating around peak times. Good luck!

Thanks!

It's been a hectic time at work so I probably over-reacted a bit more than I should have. Now that the logical part of my brain is back in charge, I'm thinking more clearly, and continuing with making plans.

Whenever we've eaten at the resort (no matter which one it is), we've usually planned meals at "off" times. On the upcoming trip, if it's too hectic, we'll most likely have breakfast at the theme park of the day.

Figment!
06-01-2013, 11:06 AM
What are they planning to do to End Zone? Details have yet to be announced, but past refurbishments of similar magnitude involved major upgrades/renovations to the kitchen area.


I thought Camp Minnie Mickey had closed, or is closing?Based on the permits and current construction to relocate the Festival of the Lion King theater; the assumption has been Camp Minnie-Mickey will close; however no direct announcement has been made yet.

Although the Adventurers Outpost is likely related to the expected closure of Camp Minnie-Mickey; it appears to be most directly related to the current initiative to add thematically detailed Meet & Greet locations for the most popular characters.

pdrlkr
06-05-2013, 09:36 AM
Thanks Jason! :thumbsup: :mickey:

Figment!
06-09-2013, 11:56 AM
**Update**

vizsla
06-11-2013, 05:15 AM
Thanks for the updates.

Figment!
06-15-2013, 03:30 PM
**Update**

Figment!
06-18-2013, 08:21 PM
**Update**

vizsla
06-20-2013, 05:02 AM
Thanks for the updates.

PopPhan
06-20-2013, 10:23 AM
Thanks for the updates!

Does that mean the Tomorrowland Terrace is going to be open regularly now, rather than 'seasonal'? My trips have been predominantly in the Value Seasons and, unless there is a 'hard ticket' event, TT has always been closed.