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Yesterday various Disney travel agency websites started reporting that from today (Wednesday 26th March) Disney would be accepting bookings for Star Wars themed character dining opportunities at Disney's Hollywood Studios at Walt Disney World. This morning guests have started calling the reservation line, and indeed Disney are now accepting reservations for these meals! Some people are reporting having to wait for an hour on hold, so if you want to stand a chance of experiencing them, then it's best to call as soon as possible!
Of course, in order to help you make your decision though, I have details of both meals, right here!
Both meals are being offered from 4th May through to 15th June inclusive, including weekdays, according to those who have already booked this morning. The meals are of course to coincide with the immensely popular Star Wars Weekends at the park, held Friday to Sunday from 16th May through 15th June inclusive this year.
Star Wars Galactic Dine-In Breakfast at the Sci-Fi Dine-In.
Held from 8am to 12 noon inclusive, you will get the opportunity to have breakfast with Stormtroopers, a Jawa, Greedo, Boba Fett and Darth Vader! Darth Vader will reportedly be at a set location when you enter. Included in the price is a digital download photo of your party meeting Darth Vader.
The restaurant's big screen will be playing Star Wars clips and trailers, and Star Wars music will fill the air.
Prices are $47.99 for adults, and $29.99 for children aged 3-9. Prices are not inclusive of taxes or tips.
Jedi Mickey's Star Wars Dine at Hollywood & Vine
Jedi Mickey, Princess Leia Minnie, Ewoks Chip and Dale, Stormtrooper Donald and Darth Goofy will be serving up dinner from 4.15pm until park closing (times vary depending on the day) every night at a special meal at the Hollywood & Dine Restaurant!
Chip and Dale will be at a photo-location at the start of the meal, and the photo will be available as a digital download for free (included in the price of the meal).
There is a Fantasmic! Package, which includes Fantasmic! priority seating: Prices are $59.99 for adults, and $36.99 for children aged 3-9. Prices are not inclusive of taxes or tips.
Regular package (no priority seating): Prices are $55.99 for adults, and $33.99 for children aged 3-9. Prices are not inclusive of taxes or tips.
As far as we are aware, the regular Play & Dine meals with the Disney Junior characters will still feature during breakfast and lunch at this restaurant.
Although these meals are a little expensive, they do have their benefits. The best thing about them is that you get to bypass the ridiculously long lines in the hot, Florida sun. The lines to meet Jedi Mickey, Ewok Chip and Dale, and Darth Vader can easily reach several hours (we've been there and done it!). Having them come to you, at your table, at an indoor, air conditioned location is definitely the best thing about these meals. $60 to meet 5 or 6 characters, have all your food and PhotoPass picture included without waiting for 3 hours in the sun is a huge selling point, and I can see that many people will want to do this.
Please be aware that all prices, availability and what is on offer at each meal can be changed or cancelled by Disney without prior notice, and is outside of our control.
Dan.
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| Hello everyone,
Today various French Disney fan sites are reporting rather conclusively that the long rumoured Spider-Man will finally start greeting fans at the Walt Disney Studios Park (at DLP) from Saturday 19th April! He will be located next to the Blockbuster Cafe in the Backlot.
Quite by chance, Jon and I will be there that day, and are really excited at the prospect of being among the first to meet him! We have no doubt that we will be at the park gates bright and early, and will go directly to his greeting location at park open!
Of course, we have previously met Spider-Man at Universal's Islands of Adventure in Orlando, FL, even since the Disney purchase of Marvel. We could argue that in that respect, we have met him, as he was technically Disney when we met him... But of course it's exciting nonetheless to be finally be able to meet him at a Disney Park!
This is, as always, subject to change, and who knows, perhaps he'll show up even before the 19th. Whichever way it works, we'll be there at the earliest opportunity to meet him!
Have a great weekend everyone,
Dan.
Below are some pictures of when we met Spider-Man at Universal's Islands of Adventure.
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 | Happy International Day of Happiness! | |
| DisneyDan
Thursday, March 20, 2014 1:07:01 PM |
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Today is International Day of Happiness, and so I thought I would share some photos of Disney's happiest parade, Happiness is Here from Tokyo Disneyland!
Happy International Day of Happiness everyone!
Dan. |
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 | Welcome to Spring! | |
| DisneyDan
Thursday, March 20, 2014 12:38:09 PM |
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Today, 20th March, is the first day of spring in the northern hemisphere. Also known as the Spring Equinox, it's the day when the hours of daylight and nighttime are equal, with the days getting longer from here on.
Here to celebrate are some of our furry pals that just love the spring!
Welcome to spring everyone!
Dan. |
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Today, 12th March 2014, is the 12th anniversary of the grand opening of Walt Disney Studios Park at Disneyland Paris.
A lot has changed over the last 12 years, and the park has continued to grow into its own identity; a park filled with great shows, thrilling attractions and of course our favourite Disney character friends.
The park is not without its flaws though, and while many often claim that is lacks the attraction count of the other parks it does have 14 permanent attractions, 2 long running "permanent" shows, a parade, character greetings, and of course shops and restaurants. Of those 14 attractions and 2 shows, 5 are completely unique to Walt Disney Studios, and many of the others have a definite Parisian twist or alterations to them to make them "distinctly Disneyland Paris".
Later this year the park will be opening a brand new attraction, again that will be completely unique, which will utilise new technologies. "Ratatouille: L'Aventure Totalement Toquée de Rémy" will whisk guests into the world of Remy and Emile from Disney-PIXAR's Ratatouille, shrinking them down to size in a magnificent Parisian adventure! As well as the attraction, the park will gain a brand new restaurant and a new store, too.
We very much look forward to the next 12 years as the Walt Disney Studios continues to grow. It'll bring more depth and more storytelling to its lands, binding together the magical worlds of Disney and the wonders of movie world.
For this photo tribute, I have deliberately left out many character photos, as we nearly always post characters shots to the blog anyway. I thought the park deserved some attention for its 12th birthday, and so nearly everything you see below are non-character photos, but of course, I have thrown a few character ones in for good measure!
Happy 12th Anniversary Walt Disney Studios Park!
Here's to the future!
Dan.
If you're considering a trip to Disneyland Paris, you can check prices and availability on the official Disneyland Paris website. They have some great offers right now, including up to 30% off hotel and and park tickets, and half board meal plan!
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Hello everyone,
Today we finally have official confirmation from Tokyo Disney Resort that Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, who had been rumoured to start appearing for some time, will appear from the 2nd April at Tokyo DisneySea's Cape Cod area! This will be the first time ever that Walt Disney's original cartoon star will appear at a Disney Park, and hopefully paves the way for him to make future appearances around the world!
It is not known if he will remain after their spring festivities end, as at the moment he is only listed under the spring pages of the Japanese language website. We can only hope he will remain!
Other offerings this spring at Tokyo Disney Resort include a brand new Easter parade at Tokyo Disneyland, Mickey and Duffy's Spring Voyage at DisneySea which features three separate shows around the park's ports, and greetings with Duffy who will be wearing a special outfit.
Over in WDW, the Disney Parks Blog today announced that Anna and Elsa would be leaving Norway at EPCOT and moving to the Princess Fairytale Hall at the Magic Kingdom from 20th April. FastPass+ is expected to be available. Cinderella and Rapunzel should still be available in one room, but Anna and Elsa will be replacing Aurora and Snow White in the other. The Parks Blog have said that Anna and Elsa would only be greeting during the day, and in the evening other princesses shall visit, meaning that hopefully Snow White and Aurora will still be greeting at some point during any given day.
Finally, Disneyland Paris last week celebrated their annual Welsh St. David's Day festival, and this coming Monday (17th) will be celebrating the Irish St. Patrick's Day. The schedule of events will include character greetings with Mickey and Minnie in special Irish costumes, lucky (and rather mischievous!) Leprechauns roaming around Frontierland, a small dance show featuring Chip 'n' Dale in their Irish finest, and a pre-parade featuring the Disney characters in their special Irish clothes. The day will be topped off with special St. Patrick's Day fireworks over Disneyland Park.
Have a great weekend everyone,
Dan. |
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 | Time to Spring Forward! | |
| DisneyDan
Saturday, March 8, 2014 4:36:14 PM |
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To all our friends and fans in many parts of the world, tonight it's time to Spring Forward! Countries affected this evening include the USA, Canada, Mexico, The Bahamas, Turks and Caicos, Haiti, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Bermuda, Greenland and Cuba!
Here to remind you are the perpetually late White Rabbit and the master of timekeeping, Cogsworth!
Dan. |
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 | Cafe Mickey at Disneyland Paris, A Review | |
| DisneyDan
Sunday, March 2, 2014 7:27:39 AM |
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This week's dining review is of Disneyland Paris' character dining venue, Cafe Mickey.
Cafe Mickey is situated at the Lake Disney end of Disney Village, and is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
We used to dine fairly regularly at Cafe Mickey when we were in Disneyland Paris, but since we discovered the wonders of the Inventions Sunday Brunch (click for my detailed review), we stopped going to Cafe Mickey. However, this past trip (February 2014), we decided that we should visit once again and see if anything had changed, improved or even gone down hill. With that, we made reservations for dinner at 9pm, once the park had closed one evening.
We did not have to wait long, and requested to sit upstairs, which they had no problem accommodating.
Having recently decided that we were going to be vegetarian, Jon and I found it a little difficult to chose from their menu, as there was unclear guidance on which dishes were suitable. We used our common sense though when choosing, and asked our server for confirmation of ingredients/vegetarian suitability before we ordered, and we ended up being ok with what we got. Our friends ordered meat dishes, and were equally satisfied with the regular menu for non-vegetarians, and soon we had ordered our staters and mains.
For our starters we were tempted to get one item each, but decided that we would share the garlic bread. When it came up we were very glad we did decide to share, as it was virtually a full sized pizza base with garlic butter on! The other members of our party ordered various different items, of which they had no complaints. I should also mention that you get fresh bread rolls on the table, and a decanter of water. Every item we tried or saw tasted and looked good. We had no complaints.
After our huge starters the main meals came up, and once again, I was pleasantly surprised. The meals were hot and fresh, and of a good size. Again, no member of our party had any problem. I ordered the four cheese pizza, and Jon had a tofu and pasta dish. Admittedly I enjoyed the pizza more, as I am not a tofu person, but it was good nonetheless.
Finally it was time for dessert, which by this point seemed like a real challenge! We each ordered something different, and I have to say they all were completely amazing. I had the tiramisu, and Jon had the Mickey cupcake. Our friends ordered different items, and all of us were happy with our choices.
Of course this would not be a character dining venue without the Disney Characters! During our meal we were greeted at our table by Mickey, Pluto, Goofy, Eeyore and Tigger. I understand that Minnie also makes appearances too, but she did not make around on this evening. I also know from our friends who have dined here more regularly, that the line-up on this evening is now standard, and rarely waivers from the ones we saw (plus Minnie).
I have to say that although the character variety has severely dropped since we used to come often (back in the day we would regularly see the likes of Frollo, Smee, Hook, Robin Hood and more), the character interactions were fantastic, and they did not at all seem tired from already having greeted guests all day in the park! Mickey and his friends sure had some stamina this evening! They all made it around more than once, and they were super friendly and gave lots of hugs. The interactions and experience we had more than made up for the drop in variety, and I am more than happy to have paid what we did to have those kinds of experiences.
We came away from Cafe Mickey positively buzzing, having had excellent food and great character interactions. We now have no problem in dining here again if the Brunch theme is not one we wish to do, or if we find ourselves wanting an extra character meal per trip. I think what helped was going later, after park closing, because a lot of people with younger children would have dined earlier. Going in at 9pm probably allowed us to have more quality time with the characters and food that was prepared with more care. By the time 10pm came around we were virtually the only ones still there, and we had the characters more or less to ourselves! I of course cannot guarantee that fact for everyone's visits, but I imagine that had we been downstairs in the main part right at 6pm when everyone wanted to dine, service would have been longer and the characters would have been more pressed for time. If you're a party of adults like we were, and you don't mind dining a bit later, I would highly recommend doing it the way we did.
Cafe Mickey does also offer lunch, and is the same menu as dinner. Breakfast is also served in two sittings, but is only available to Disney Hotel guests and Disneyland Paris partner hotel guests. Breakfast is advertised as being "American style" and consists of the standard DLP Hotel offerings such as croissants, plus hot food such as eggs, sausages, bacon and potatoes. It should also be noted that during breakfast you are likely to also get Chip and Dale greeting you. For some reason they only show up at breakfast at Cafe Mickey these days, and not at dinner.
Prices for lunch dinner can vary depending on what you order, but are upwards of around €20 per person for lunch and dinner main dishes. The drinks available for purchase are varied, and include wine, fruit juices and soft drinks. Birthday cakes can be arranged, and come at a significant extra cost (at least €25 for a cake that serves up to 8 people).
Breakfast is one set price for on site Disney Hotels guests, which I believe is around €14. The Davy Crockett Ranch and partner hotel guests pay a little more that that. You would have to check with Disney for confirmation.
Reservations are highly recommended at Cafe Mickey as it can be very popular. You can make reservations with any Disney Hotel concierge, any guest relations location at the theme parks, directly at the restaurant itself, or 60 days in advance over the telephone by calling +33 1 60 30 40 50. There is a stand and wait line, and in the past we haven't had a problem getting a table without a reservation by waiting, but just be aware you might have to wait a long time.
Annual Passholders get a maximum of 10% discount (as it's table service), and Shareholder Club members get 15% with a valid Club Card and ID.
You can leave your comments by clicking here, where you will be magically transported to our forum.
Dan. |
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Hello everyone,
Hot on the heels of the Marvel/Spider-Man news the last few days from Disneyland Paris, which I talked about yesterday, today the Disney Parks Blog announced that the Disneyland Resort would be hosting an Avengers half marathon from 14th - 16th November this year! The promotional video clearly states that Avengers characters and entertainment would be at the event, with the picture showing a cartoon of Iron Man, Thor and Captain America, who have all previously featured as characters, but also now the Hulk! If the image is accurate then as far as we know right now, this will be the first time the Hulk will be featured as a character at the Disney Parks! There is of course the chance he may appear before then anyway, or he may not show up at all, but I am guessing they are going to be fairly accurate with their concept portrayal and who actually shows up. Very exciting news indeed!
EDIT: I just checked the official runDisney site, and it states "Join the Avengers team of Captain America, Thor, Hulk, Black Widow, Hawkeye, and Tony Stark for the Inaugural Avengers Super Heroes Half Marathon Weekend." Could this mean that Black Widow and Hawkeye will come to Disneyland, too? It would be amazing if true!
Also, the blog site Disney and More posted yesterday that the new Hong Kong Disneyland nighttime parade, Paint the Night, that I had previously mentioned could be on its way to Disneyland for their 60th anniversary next year also! This would mean that, sadly, it would only be a Hong Kong exclusive for a few months before Disneyland get their own version. Although it is awesome that Disneyland could get a new night parade again, it is sad that they have to degrade the uniqueness of Hong Kong's efforts by copying it. Nonetheless, I'm sure it will be a welcomed addition to both resorts.
There has been a ton of news the last few days, so why not check out my previous blog posts for all the latest information. Links below.
Read here the news about Spider-Man at Disneyland Paris, Festival of Fantasy at WDW and Oswald the Lucky Rabbit.
Read here the news about Star Wars Weekends at WDW, Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, Spring season at Disneyland Paris and parade changes at Hong Kong Disneyland.
That's all for now!
Dan. |
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Hello everyone,
This morning the Disney Parks Blog announced the official start date of their much anticipated brand new day parade, Festival of Fantasy. Sunday 9th March will be the first day of the new parade at the Magic Kingdom, which has replaced the former Celebrate a Dream Come True Parade, which ran for many years in various forms. It is a huge relief to finally have a new parade and we look forward to seeing the full performance, and what surprises Disney haven't yet revealed once it steps out for the first time!
Over at Disneyland Paris the rumour mill was working overtime again today, and it has been posted across many French fan communities that Spider-Man is set to become the first Marvel character to appear at the resort, by the end of March! Spider-Man's location will apparently be at the former annual passport office next to the Blockbuster Cafe (which itself recently got a new Iron Man theme). It would be a really exciting addition to the park, and a great opportunity to break the Marvel universe into Disneyland Paris. I did some asking around, and was told that it is true, but of course anything can change, so I really hope it is, and that we see Spider-Man there by the end of March. If he is a success, then it could pave the way for more Marvel heroes to show up there.
Lots more rumours have been going around today about the appearance of Oswald the Lucky Rabbit at Disneyland Paris and Tokyo Disney Resort, which I talked about in my news post yesterday. As with Spider-Man, I hope this isn't just a rumour that has gone wild, but instead based on some truth, and that Disneyland Paris and Tokyo get Oswald - we've been waiting a long time to finally welcome him to the Disney Character family!
Ok, that's everything for now. Have a great Monday everyone.
Dan. |
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