 | Advent Calendar - 6th December |
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| DisneyDan
Friday, December 6, 2013 1:21:20 PM |
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Today is the 6th December, which means it is time to open the next door of our very special Character Central advent calendar!
Click to find out who it is today!
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This week's restaurant review is for Auberge de Cendrillon, in Disneyland Paris' Fantasyland.
Auberge de Cendrillon (or simply Auberge as we'll call it, for easiness sake) is an expensive character dining location, that offers lunch and dinner in the company of Suzy, Perla and the Disney Princesses.
Auberge is designed after the Tremaine's stately French home, and the theme throughout tells the story of Cinderella.
There are murals, glass engravings, stained glass windows, and pumpkin chandeliers that all add to the ambience and mood of the restaurant.
The restaurant is beautifully designed, and comes complete with Cinderella's pumpkin coach in the courtyard.
The setting is quite formal, and the experience is a table service one.
You have to chose from a set menu, of which there are fairly limited options for such an expensive experience, I think.
The menu is, for the want of a better phrase, "very French". We have dined here several times, and I have to say it's not my most favourite place in the world! The food has improved over the years, but it's definitely an acquired taste.
For example, to most people, roasted vegetables would be served hot. Not in Auberge. They are cold, on purpose. If you're not expecting it, it's quite a shock!
France is notorious too for under-cooking meat. If you are a "well done" person, you need to ask for the food to be cremated, and even then it'll be more like medium-well.
For starters, I actually think the soup is pretty good, but I haven't seen it on the menu recently. I'm not sure if it has been removed completely, or if you can still ask for it.
Dessert is a set trio of items all served together, and again, is pretty good.
I think the biggest problem really, is if you order a starter that is particularly French, and then the mains are not anything to write home about anyway, you could have a pretty dire experience. But, on the other hand, if you order the right starter (I'd definitely say the soup is the safest option, if available), and you order the goose option, or potentially a dark meat but ensuring it is cremated, then along with dessert, you could end up with thinking Auberge is not bad.
You get one drink included, called the Prince's Cocktail. It's a non-alcoholic mixed fruit drink, and it's quite nice.
Of course, one of the primary reasons for wanting to dine here is that it is the Resort's only dedicated Princess dining venue.
At every meal you are pretty much guaranteed Suzy, Perla and Cinderella. Quite often Prince Charming is in attendance too, and on rare occasions the Fairy Godmother.
Other Princesses and Princes join Cinderella, but these can vary day to day. You might find here any random combination of Princess Aurora and Prince Phillip, Snow White and the Prince, Belle and Prince Adam, Ariel and Prince Eric, Rapunzel, or Princess Tiana.
Disneyland Paris is the only place in the world you can meet Princess Aurora in her blue dress, and where you can meet the Beast in his human form of Prince Adam! Though it should be noted that Princess Aurora's dress colour may change - sadly - once she receives her new dress design from the US Parks. It is unknown at present if they have designed a new blue one for her, or if it'll become the new standard pink one.
As with any character meal, the characters will walk around the dining room, greeting each family at their table as they dine.
Overall, I would say that if you are a big character fan, then meeting Princess Aurora in her blue dress and meeting Beast in human form could make the expense worthwhile - but of course they aren't guaranteed at any given meal, as the characters rotate depending on which member of royalty is available that day.
If you're a fan of trying new food styles, or not much phases you, again, you might not care so much, but I would definitely err on the side of caution for most non-French guests.
Before we look at the prices, let's take a look at some more interior photos we have taken over the years, detailing some of the exquisite details and superb theming that this restaurant has to offer.
Lunch and dinner both offer the same menu, and prices start from €65 (about US$88!) per person for adults, and €29 for children aged 3 through 11 inclusive.
Annual Passholders receive a maximum of 10% discount no matter what pass they hold, and Shareholder Club members receive 15% on presentation of a valid Shareholder's Club card and ID.
Reservations are recommended, and can be made at any guest service location at the two theme parks, any Disney Hotel concierge, or by calling the Disney Dining line up to 30 days in advance on +33 1 60 30 40 50.
You can leave your comments by clicking here, where you will be magically transported to our forum.
Dan.
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Hello everyone,
Last night was quite obviously Halloween night, and what a night it was!
It was the last Halloween party of the season at Disneyland, the penultimate one at WDW (the final one being tonight), the Halloween Soirée at DLP, and the final day of Halloween season at the Asian parks.
This Halloween has seen some great additions and improvements across all the parks and resorts.
Tokyo altered their Halloween parade slightly, and had the ghosts and goons greeting for the first time ever! Oh how we would have loved to have met one of Maleficent's goons!
At WDW, Jack and Sally greeted guests on a regular basis for the first time.
They also held the Unleash the Villains event which saw the never-seen before Oogie Boogie (excluding one private special event years ago), come out for guests! Amazing!
In Disneyland, Roger Rabbit was out at the start of every party in Toontown, greeting guests properly for the first time in years! (I don't count the bunny hop at Easter, as you couldn't officially meet him)
Disneyland Paris launched their brand new Halloween cavalcade, which starred Huey, Dewey and Louie, as well as a character never seen before in DLP, Clarabelle Cow!
Now let's come to yesterday.
WDW continued a fairly new tradition which we are glad to see them improving upon as each holiday comes around - having special characters out at the hotel resorts for greetings.
For example at the All Stars Sports, I know American football Goofy was out, and at the Coronado Springs the Three Caballeros!
When we were at WDW at Easter they did something similar at the deluxe resorts, so let's hope they keep it up!
Moving to Paris now, and last night was DLP's grand finale, the Halloween Soirée.
Lots of favourites from last year returned, such as the Stitch dance party hosted by Stitch, Angel, Goofy and Buzz, and Dr Facilier's show on the Molly Brown, which this year included Louis (as well as the returning Tiana and Naveen).
The new daily cavalcade also ran during the party.
The biggest news of all all though, was the appearance of some ultra rare characters throughout the evening - some making their first public appearance ever, not just in Paris, but worldwide!
So far I can confirm that all of the following were out (rare or otherwise):
- Duffy and ShellieMay
- Aladdin, Jasmine, Abu and the Sultan
- Yzma, Kronk and Kuzco (in human form)
- Mike Wazowski
- Mad Hatter, Cheshire Cat and March Hare
- Russell, Dug and Carl
- Goofy and Max
- Scrooge McDuck
- Darkwing Duck
- Launchpad McQuack
- Panchito, Jose and Gauchito
- The Hyenas
- The Witch/Hag
- Cruella de Vil
- Maleficent
- Bowler Hat Guy
- Queen of Hearts
- Governor Ratcliffe
- Darth Vader, Stormtroopers and R2-D2
There were probably more, but I just haven't had any confirmed sightings reported as of yet.
Unfortunately we weren't at the Soirée, as much as we really wanted to be. Money and other circumstances of course got in the way, as they always do.
On the flip side, fortunately we had met all of those rare characters before at the Disney Dreamers Everywhere event in May this year (hence why I said first 'public' appearance, as some had appeared at an event).
So, that concludes another Halloween season across the world, which can only mean one thing.
Christmas!
Dan. |
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Hello everyone,
This week's restaurant review is about one of Jon and I's absolute favourites at any Disney Park or Resort - Inventions at the Disneyland Hotel in Disneyland Paris.
Inventions is situated on the second floor (European, or third floor to Americans), in the main "hub" area (known as Main Street Lounge), of the deluxe Disneyland Hotel.
The Disneyland Hotel is hard to miss, as it serves not only as the resort's flagship hotel, but also as the entrance to Disneyland Park.
Inventions is one of two restaurants at the Disneyland Hotel, the other being California Grill right next door. There is also a bar across the way, called Cafe Fantasia.
Inventions is always a buffet restaurant, regardless of the meal, but don't let that fool you, as I know some people don't really go for buffets.
The theme of the restaurant is a beautiful infusion of Victorian architecture, with that typical Disney twist, but a decidedly French flair.
The dining rooms are filled with details and artefacts from the Victorian era of discovery and travel. Bicycles, cogs, dirigibles, cameras and instruments line the walls and even the ceiling!
Virtually all tables (though not all) are situated next to windows which look directly onto Main Street below! You can see Main Street Station, the tops of the buildings beyond, and even the majestic Sleeping Beauty Castle.
Inventions has class, theme, detail, an unbeatable view, and as you'll discover below, incredible food at every meal!
Let's start at the beginning of every day, and that's with breakfast.
Breakfast at Inventions is served free for Disneyland Hotel guests, on presentation of valid Hotel ID, and is available usually from 7am until about 11am (it's best to check on the day of your arrival).
If you are staying at one of the other on site Disney Hotels, you may also eat here, but you may be charged an extra €12 per person, depending on how busy the restaurant is.
The main reason for other hotel guests to dine here is that Inventions actually serves really good, hot food, such as sausages, eggs and beans.
The other Disney Hotels offer decent food, but it's all croissants, rolls, cold meats etc. The Disneyland Hotel is a premium buffet, and that's why it's usually extra for non Disneyland Hotel guests.
Moving on, and we come to lunch and dinner. Lunch is usually presented from 12.30pm until 3pm. Dinner is from 6pm until 10.30pm.
Lunch may or may not be attended by Disney Characters - you'll know when you arrive as they usually have a sign - but dinner is always in the presence of our beloved Disney pals.
Lunch and dinner offerings are varied, and really good. I could go on and on about the food, but I'll let the photos speak for themselves!
There are several stations, each offering different a course for your meal, from seafood, cheeses, salad and starters, to mains, and finally desserts.
Characters in attendance at dinner can be fairly standard, but they can also be pretty random at times - you just have to get lucky!
Here's a few of the Disney Characters we've seen during dinner here over the years.
Finally we come to the best thing about Inventions, and the best character dining experience at the resort. The Sunday Brunches.
The Inventions Sunday Brunch happens every Sunday, from around midday (times can vary) until 3pm.
The brunch theme changes every week, meaning that every week the Disney Characters who appear are from a particular theme, movie or region of the world! Some of the brunch themes include:
and at seasonal times of the year can include:
The food at the brunches is usually a mixture of their standard lunchtime fare, and some additional items especially for the theme (for example London cuisines, or exotic dishes).
They usually try to decorate the buffet area too, and you may find the Cast Members in special clothing, as well as excellent themed ice sculptures, or other carvings!
Here's some of the fun characters we've met during the small number of themed brunches we have attended (we really want to attend them all, but that would mean being there all year round!)
Prices for Inventions can vary depending on when you visit, but are upwards of €35 for lunch and €54 for dinner. Brunch starts at €59, but at seasonal times can be a lot more. The drinks available for purchase are varied, and include wines, 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).
Reservations are highly recommended at Inventions, as the themed brunches 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.
Annual Passholders get a maximum of 10% discount (as it's classed as table service), and Shareholder Club members get 15% with a valid Club Card and ID.
Yes, it is expensive, but to us, it's always worth it for the beautiful theming, the excellent food and the wonderful characters. If you are coming for the first time, it's a once in a life time trip, or you visit infrequently enough that you can save some money and you want something special, then Inventions is definitely worth the extra cost.
You can leave your comments by clicking here, where you will be magically transported to our forum.
Dan. |
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Hello everyone,
As the Halloween Season draws to a close this week, I can't help but think about Christmas!
This year Jon and I will be at Disneyland Paris just after Christmas itself, for the Christmas Season and New Year's celebrations at the Resort.
We are both really excited to be going back to Disneyland Paris this year for Christmas, as there will be many new things, which only Disneyland Paris offer.
I have been to Disneyland Paris for Christmas Season at least five other years of the past ten, so let's take a look back at some of what has been offered over the year, before we come back to the new offerings this year.
This is a very photo heavy post, so be warned that it may take a while to load all the images below.
For the longest time Disneyland Park had a Christmas addition to its regular day parade, usually just tacked on at the end. This happened during the old Wonderful World of Disney Parade, and the Once Upon a Dream Parade. There was never a Christmas parade, per se. There was a Santa's Sleigh, Toy Soldiers, and more recently Duffy.
Other long running entertainment included the enchanting Mickey's Winter Wonderland show at the Chaparral Theater in Frontierland, and the Tree Lighting Ceremony in Town Square.
Mickey's Winter Wonderland remained unchanged for many, many years, but was a firm fan favourite every holiday season.
The Tree Lighting Ceremony was also incredibly popular, and always starred Mickey and Friends lighting the big Christmas Tree in Town Square. Some aspects of the show changed slightly over the years, but it basically remained the same.
Disneyland Paris also pioneered the beautiful Christmas lights that now adorn the other Disney Castles of the world. Disneyland Park would present a special Castle Lighting show. As with the Tree Lighting, the way in which this was done changed slightly from year to year, but overall the concept remained the same.
Character greetings have included Santa Claus, Elves, and of course Mickey and Friends in seasonal costumes at both parks. Other characters in Christmas costumes have included the Winnie the Pooh friends, and Duffy the Disney Bear. Some years back, Belle also used to meet in a pretty red jacket.
For 21 years, the Christmas Tree in Town Square was the same. Last year they added some 20th Anniversary ornaments to it, but it remained identical otherwise.
Some years ago, the park used to also feature the stunning Lights of Winter (which EPCOT also used to have) along Main Street USA, but these were sadly retired nearly 10 years ago now.
After the lights of winter the Princess Crowns graced the street for a couple of years, but were quite unpopular by all accounts.
Like the other parks, snowfall on Main Street is a regular occurrence, although in Paris, as we have personally experienced, it isn't always just the magical Disney snow that can fall across the park!
In Fantasyland guests used to be able to discover a Christmas market, straight from the world of Beauty and the Beast, 'Belle's Christmas Village'.
Finally, a staple of the holiday season for some years has been the "it's a small world" overlay, becoming "it's a small world" Celebration during Christmas Season.
Now we fast forward from our trip through the past, to 2012. Last year Disneyland Paris took a giant leap away from previous Christmas offerings.
Mickey's Winter Wonderland did not return, the Princess Crowns were ditched, brand new garlands graced Main Street, there was a new live entertainment offering starring Mickey, and a fantastic new Christmas Cavalcade was launched.
Unfortunately we were unable to attend last year (although we were in California for their Christmas Season, so that was a great substitute!).
That means that this year will be our first year seeing the new offerings, and what's more, there is set to be even more this year than last year!
Of course, some old favourites will still be there too.
This year the park has got a brand new Christmas Tree, which is really exciting for me, as I love Christmas Trees! As well as the new Tree, last years there were brand new garlands all along Main Street and giant character snowmen in Central Plaza. This is as well as all the beautiful decorations that find their way throughout the resort, with nearly every restaurant, store being decorated inside and out. The Disneyland Hotel also has a yearly traditional giant gingerbread house.
The Cavalcade is said to be receiving some extra characters, making it better than last year, and the Tree Lighting Ceremony has been changed again, this time being narrated by Jiminy Cricket and Pinocchio.
Santa and his Elves will still be at the Ranch, snow will still fall on Main Street USA, and "it's a small world" Celebration has been reinstalled.
The Jingle Bell Boys are set to return too. That's a live band that also stars Mickey Mouse showing off his dance moves at the Videopolis in Discoveryland.
I have also heard that Jack Skellington is sticking around after Halloween Season ends, but will be putting on his Sandy Claws outfit! Now that would be really awesome!
One of the biggest things that the park is doing this year is a brand new version of Dreams especially for Christmas!
Disney Dreams! is the most spectacular nighttime show ever created by Disney Imagineering, and for the holidays it'll switch to featuring scenes from the new Disney movie Frozen, a Toy Story Nutcracker tale, and much more!
If all that wasn't enough, there are a few more things that are continuing some Disneyland Paris traditions.
For many years, the Disney Hotels have offered special meals during the holidays, some of which are character ones.
On the 29th December we are planning to attend the Christmas Brunch with the Disney Characters at Inventions, in the Disneyland Hotel, and on New Year's Eve there is a special character dinner at the Hotel New York, which we are also attending.
Usually on Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve, the Disneyland Hotel puts on special entertainment too. We really hope that this returns this year also, as we've really enjoyed this in the past. And speaking of New Year, both parks and Lake Disney all will continue their annual New Year's Fireworks. Two years ago we saw them in Disneyland Park, this year we plan to see them on Lake Disney due to our meal at the Hotel New York. |
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Hello everyone,
Apologies for the long gap between blog posts again, but if you follow us on Facebook, Tumblr, Instagram or Twitter, you'll know that we were in Disneyland Paris last week for their Halloween Season.
You can check out my album of pictures I uploaded yesterday to Facebook, here. You can also go through our wall photos to see what we uploaded live while we were away!
The big news yesterday was that Mickey Mouse has now taken the bold step of talking live to guests who visit him at Town Square Theater in the Magic Kingdom! Up until now, Mickey has only ever spoken live during shows and parades, and has made rare appearances at his meet 'n' greet location, which have always been unannounced. But, now, you can meet him daily at the the Magic Kingdom in his dapper new magicians outfit, and talk directly to the Big cheese himself!
Our friends at the Unofficial Disney Character Hunting Guide have already met him, and uploaded this video (click link to view on their Facebook page).
Staying with Walt Disney World, and today Anna and Elsa, characters from Disney's brand new movie 'Frozen' began greeting guests at Hollywood Studios!
This is the very first time they have met guests publicly. You can check out a photo of them on the Where Magic Lives Facebook page.
Jumping across the county to California, and rather suddenly, the popular show Minnie's Fly Girls, at Disney California Adventure ended last week. As far as fans are aware, there was no real reason given, it just happened! It was a fun show, and certainly brought some energy to the Condor Flats area of the park.
I have been really busy lately, and haven't updated the website as much as I would have liked to, but I have ten days off from this Friday, so next week I hope to make a lot of updates, refresh a bunch of pages, and if all goes to plan, officially launch the third in our excellent Trip Planner series - this time for California! When it's launched I'll make an announcement on Facebook and Twitter, so watch out for that!
Ok, I think that's everything for this evening. Have a good week everyone.
Dan.
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| Hello everyone,
Once again I have to apologise for the long gap between updates here on the blog. Unfortunately we have just been incredibly busy with real life.
Anyway, there are some important new news pieces from around the world that I want to discuss this evening. We'll start with Disneyland Paris.
Disneyland Paris has been announcing a lot of new things recently for the upcoming Halloween and Christmas Seasons, which has been well received by the fans.
This Halloween Season there will be a brand new cavalcade (which we already knew), and it has now been officially confirmed that Clarabelle Cow will be part of that. This is the first time Clarabelle has ever been to Disneyland Paris in its 21 years! Huey, Dewey and Louie along with Scrooge McDuck were previously confirmed, and are still expected to appear in the cavalcade. Also making a welcome return to the park, albeit just for the cavalcade, are the Pumpkin Men! DLP fans will know that the Pumpkin Men (and women too) were a long-time staple of Halloween Season at DLP, often running around Main Street and Frontierland scaring guests half to death! They were a lot of fun! Minnie Mouse will be greeting at her new dedicated Halloween location at Casey's Corner on Main Street. Various fan sites have already posted pictures of that. Her outfit is yet to be seen, although artwork suggests it will be brand new. Bon Bon Goofy will return to Town Square, following his debut last year (it was a new outfit and new backdrop for him), as will the Villains in Fantasyland. It was suggested that one of the many Halloween themed bands that usually play throughout the park during the season will accompany the Villains this year, which would be a neat touch, to have Villainous music playing while meeting them! Duffy the Disney Bear is also to appear on Main Street in a Halloween outfit, for the first time in Paris. It is not yet confirmed what outfit he will greet guests in, but is expected to be similar to the US pumpkin version. Jack and Sally return to Thunder Mesa (outside Phantom Manor). Their location setup will be much the same, but with some new decorations that detail The Nightmare before Christmas more. The Halloween Soiree (Halloween Party on the 31st October) is also set to see some more new entertainment offerings. I did hear that Maleficent and Hook would be given their own shows. Maleficent is said to be at the Castle Stage, and Hook on his ship in Adventureland. All other details, including set up etc is not yet confirmed. If and when I can find out more, I will definitely post it here. Last years Soiree saw some awesome new entertainment, which injected some much needed life into the event, after a couple years of wavering. Whether any of last years shows will return is yet to be confirmed. It was also confirmed - in a round-about way - by a DLP official that ShellieMay would appear at the Soiree! I think his exact words were to the effect of "a good friend of Duffy is also going to make an appearance". Unless he was talking about Mickey Mouse, I think we can safely assume he meant ShellieMay! This will be the first time ever that ShellieMay has greeted regular park guests outside of Tokyo Disney Resort! Outside of the parks, at Disney Village, Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show will see the return of the Halloween version. Dates and times are yet to be confirmed, I believe.
For Christmas Disneyland Paris have confirmed that the popular Christmas Cavalcade from last year will return, and will be expanded upon, including the addition of the Gingerbread Men, from the US parks! Certainly a much welcomed addition! Other new offerings include an updated Tree Lighting Ceremony in Town Square, narrated by Jiminy Cricket, and a special winter enchantment at Sleeping Beauty Castle using Disney's new movie, Frozen, and the Disney Dreams technology. Jack and Sally will return to Frontierland, and for the first time in Paris, and an all but one rare appearance some years ago at Disneyland in California, Jack will be in his Sandy Claws outfit! How awesome! I am really excited to see how he looks in that. I was also pleased to hear that the Jingle Bell Boys will return to the Videopolis in Discoveryland, where they will rock out some Christmas tunes accompanied by Mickey Mouse, who last year dazzled guests with his Big Band Beat style dance moves! (Tokyo fans will know what I mean by Big Band Beat.) The other big news for the season is that the Parade will debut characters from Disney's Frozen on the former Romance 1 float! Featuring in the daily parade, they will glide through Parc Disneyland on a magical Frozen themed float! I don't think it has yet been confirmed whether they will remain after Christmas Season, but seeing as this is an addition to the main parade, I would imagine they will, which would be great!
Finally for DLP, today Joe Schott (DLP Chief Operating Officer) said that the Tarzan Encounter would return to the park at some point, although they do not know when yet. Although I know many fans will think this is "cheap" move, since the show is rather old now, it is undeniably popular, and will be a welcome re-addition to a park that has seen a bit of a lack in entertainment of late. It's definitely better than nothing!
There have been many websites and fan pages posting about the new Christmas and Halloween offerings, so I haven't linked to any one in particular as I normally would do. If you want to find out more, just do a search online or check out some dedicated DLP Facebook pages.
Over in the US, and Halloween Season is well under way. Neither Resort seems to have changed much again this year, with the one exception that both have replaced one of their Halloween Party dance parties with a Monsters Inc themed one. Magic Kingdom's MNSSHP now also have Jack and Sally greeting in Town Square. Other than that, I don't think much else has altered. If you know any different, the please let me know!
At Disneyland you can meet Jack Sparrow on Tom Sawyer Island, and at the Magic Kingdom Hook, Jake and Pirate Goofy have been out and about.
Over at Disney's Hollywood Studios, rather suddenly, Minnie Mouse was given a brand new greeting location inside the Animation building. While we usually like these things (and indeed the location looks neat), she now wears her regular polkadot outfit (with some "sparkle", I was told). This is actually a step back, since she had been greeting around the Big Hat in her special pink DHS outfit.
Finally, yesterday the Disney Parks Blog revealed two more concept art images for the brand new Festival of Fantasy Parade coming to the Magic Kingdom in spring 2014. Ariel and Merida's float look pretty cool, and are a world apart from the now ancient Celebrate a Dream Come True Parade, which I know fans will be glad to see the back of!
Ok, I think that is everything for today. Have a great weekend everyone,
Dan. |
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Hello everyone,
There is breaking news today from the Disney Parks Blog. They just announced that Marvel's Captain America will appear starting in October aboard the re-imagined Disney Magic cruise ship!
He will feature at Marvel’s Avengers Academy in Disney’s Oceaneer Club, aboard the ship.
The really annoying thing about this is that the Oceaneer Club is just for kids. Regular guests are not normally allowed to go down there unless it's an open house (at which time things like the Marvel Academy would not normally be running).
The biggest thing we can take out of this is that, besides the expected appearances at D23 this week, this is the first official confirmation from Disney that any Marvel character will appear to regular guests on a Disney owned property.
I wonder how long it is now until we can expect them in the parks? Time will tell.
In other news, yesterday the Disney Parks Blog also announced that Holiday Time at the Disneyland Resort is returning once again from 12th November through 6th January.
This will be a relief for anyone who has been hearing the strong rumours across the internet that Christmas this year would be very different, and would even perhaps have ticketed events for the bulk of the seasonal offerings, like at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom.
I was busy last week, and didn't get chance to post about the latest Long Lost Friends Week for Limited Time Magic.
Disneyland had a vote on the Disney Parks Blog (now closed), which featured pretty much the same characters as before, with a few more thrown into the mix.
From what I recall characters included the Robin Hood gang, Hunchback friends (still no Quasimodo though), the Three Good Fairies, Merlin (he was a new one), Flik and Atta (Atta was also a new option), and Chicken Little (Abby wasn't listed, oddly enough, even though she was for WDW).
There is no official date for this event yet, but it is expected by most to be in the next two weeks.
Disneyland Paris fans have been hearing rumours across the internet for a few weeks now that Jack Sparrow would be setting sail from the parks after a long running stint there, in October this year. Pirate fans need not despair though as rumour has it that Jake from the Neverland Pirates will start appearing, as well as Sofia the First, over at Walt Disney Studios around the same time Jack goes away.
It'll be nice to get some new characters at the park. The last new characters from any new movie or TV show that DLP got were Rapunzel and Flynn.
Staying with DLP, and Timon has decided to sport his new look in DLP as of yesterday. This now brings him in line with the other parks.
Finally, although we (sadly) aren't attending, D23 takes place this week and is expected to star some brand new characters. We'll of course keep you all posted.
Ok, I think that's all for now,
Dan. |
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| Hello everyone,
Today the Disney Parks Blog announced that for Halloween Season this year aboard all ships sailing between late September and the end of October would feature Halloween costume parties with the Disney characters, as well as other small entertainment and food offerings. On the Disney Dream though, they seem to be going a bit further, and for the first time there will be a special programme of entertainment specifically for that ship, which includes a full deck party/show titled 'Mickey's Calling All the Monsters Mouse-Querade Deck Party', greetings with Jack and Sally, and Halloween storytelling with a "mysterious Sea Captain" (I wonder if Captain Hook will show up?...). The whole event will be called Halloween on the High Seas.
The Blog promised that an announcement about Christmas on the ships would come tomorrow - we look forward to hearing what new things they'll be offering!
Staying with Halloween, and French forum ameworld posted what appears to be an official statement from Disney regarding Halloween this year, though Disney themselves haven't released anything yet. The news is that the Castle Stage show Mickey's Halloween Treat in the Street will not return for a third year, but instead we will see a brand new Halloween cavalcade that will feature Mickey and friends, including Huey, Dewey, Louie, Scrooge McDuck and for what is believed to be the first time ever at DLP, Clarabelle Cow! All other regular Halloween elements are expected to return, such as meeting the Disney characters in special costumes including a brand new location for Minnie, and the return of Bon Bon Goofy in Town Square, greetings with the ever popular Disney Villains, Jack and Sally in Frontierland, and all the cool decorations that usually feature throughout the park. Disney's Halloween Party will also feature on 31st October, as it always does. Jon and I will be at DLP for Halloween Season again this year and cannot wait to see the new cavalcade!
Finally, today is Disneyland in California's 58th Birthday, and so if you're going to be there, or thinking about going, you should know that there will be "something special" happening Town Square at 2.30pm Pacific Standard Time this afternoon! In the past these celebrations have usually involved a rededication of sorts, and a vast number of random Disney characters appearing for a brief time (flashmob style).
Ok, I think that's everything for now. I'll try to make an update tomorrow when we hear from Disney about the winter Cruise offerings.
Dan. |
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 | Happy 21st Birthday Disneyland Paris! | |
| DisneyDan
Friday, April 12, 2013 4:55:25 AM |
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Hello everyone,
Today is the 21st anniversary of the grand opening of Disneyland Paris' main theme park!
Often described as the most beautiful of all the Magic Kingdom style parks, I can't say I disagree! From the gorgeous Sleeping Beauty Castle, to the incredible detail in every land, attraction, boutique and restaurant, Parc Disneyland at Disneyland Paris is stunning.
I could talk all day about all it's magical experiences and wonders, but I think by now many of you have read my blogs, and seen enough online - or even been there - to know what a truly breathtaking place it is, so, in my usual tribute style, I'm going to post some of Character Central' pictures below, for your enjoyment!
Happy 21st Birthday Disneyland Paris!
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