June 11, 2011
'Star Tours' rides 3D wave
Disney's Soundsational Summer campaign kicks off with the opening of two new theme park rides -- a revamped "Star Tours" at both Orlando's Walt Disney World and Anaheim's Disneyland, and the addition of a new "The Little Mermaid" ride at California Advent... Read More »
June 10, 2011
Disney raising ticket prices for second time in less than a year
Walt Disney World announced Friday that it is raising ticket prices — by more than 10 percent in at least one case — in the resort's second round of price increases in less than a year.
Effective Sunday, the base price of a one-day ticket will rise fro... Read More »
June 03, 2011
3-D 'Star Wars' Theme Park Attraction
mong “Star Wars” fans, the most vivid depiction of the icy planet of Hoth, the lush jungles of Kashyyyk and the underwater Gungan world on Naboo exist on celluloid.
These fictional fixtures of the “Star Wars” galaxy just became more real with Star Tour... Read More »
May 13, 2011
Star Wars fans, here's sneak peek at Disney's new Star Tours
Inside Disney's Star Tours, workers are prepping walls, high-definition screens and assorted droids for the attraction's grand reopening next Friday at Hollywood Studios.
Outside Star Tours, anticipation is building among Star Wars and Disney enthusias... Read More »
April 06, 2011
Dangling Above the Crocodiles, Disney's New Theme Park Adventure
There we were, creeping gingerly on a dilapidated rope bridge a few yards above hippos and crocodiles. “Stop shaking the bridge,” the person in front of me yelled as the bridge swung and shook. On the far side of the croc pool we could see elephants and a... Read More »
March 25, 2011
New line for old ride is window to Disney's future
The future of Walt Disney World can be glimpsed in one of the resort's oldest rides.
By the end of the month, Disney plans to debut a redesigned queue for the Haunted Mansion, the classic dark ride that is one of the Magic Kingdom's original attraction... Read More »
March 17, 2011
Disney donates $2.5 million for Japan earthquake relief
The Walt Disney Co. is donating at least $2.5 million to relief efforts after last week's earthquake and tsunami in Japan, where its theme parks remain closed, the company announced Tuesday.
The company also promised to match employees' donations to tw... Read More »
March 16, 2011
Walt Disney World tests faster theme park entry barcode scanners in place of ...
We’ve all been stuck waiting in line to enter a theme park behind that guy who just can’t seem to figure out how a turnstile works. We think, “Why did I get in this line?” while all the others seem to move so much faster. Today Disney is showing off a new... Read More »
March 13, 2011
Disney: Pricing Levels yet to recover
Ever since the Walt Disney Co. began aggressively discounting to keep its theme parks full during the global recession, analysts have been wondering how long it will take Disney to return to full pricing.
Although Walt Disney Parks and Resorts recently... Read More »
March 10, 2011
Disney World to End Grad Nite After this Year
Walt Disney World is ending its annual Grad Nite festivities for high school seniors from around the country after this year because of concerns about scheduling and handling extra spring attendance at the Florida theme park.
Officials at the park anno... Read More »
March 10, 2011
Disney World turns 40, churns souvenirs
Walt Disney World turns 40 later this year. What are you going to get?
Oh, but not as a gift to Disney. I mean, what do you get the theme park that has everything? The question is what 40th-anniversary souvenir would you want to purchase?
The goods... Read More »
March 09, 2011
Disney World pulls plug on Grad Nite
This spring will see the last Grad Nite celebrations at Magic Kingdom, Walt Disney World announced Wednesday.
Disney World says the increase in theme park attendance in the spring has made scheduling the after-hours, separate-ticket event for high scho... Read More »
February 22, 2011
Disney NextGen could be the ticket
And its capital spending this year is on pace to well exceed the $1.5 billion it spent in 2010. Included in this year's costs are the final payment on new mega-cruise ship the Disney Dream along with the construction of Aulani, a hotel and timeshare set t... Read More »
February 17, 2011
Disney says guests will be able to reserve ride times from home
Future visitors to Walt Disney World will be able to reserve ride times from their home computers and bypass hotel check-in desks once they arrive at the resort, the head of the Walt Disney Co.'s global theme-park division said during an investors confere... Read More »
February 09, 2011
Theme-park rebound propels Disney profits
A rebound in its theme parks during the final three months of 2010 helped propel the Walt Disney Co. to 54 percent quarterly profit growth, the company announced Tuesday.
Disney said it made $1.3 billion for the three months that ended Jan. 1, the firs... Read More »
February 09, 2011
Disney workers to protest contract talks
Some members of Walt Disney World's Service Trades Council, a coalition of unions representing more than 20,000 full-time workers at the giant resort, will stage a demonstration this afternoon to protest stalled contract negotiations with the company.
... Read More »
January 27, 2011
Disney up to new tricks with castle show
Naysayers underestimated Disney World this time. Granted, when the company announced plans in September to project photographs of theme-park guests onto Cinderella Castle at Magic Kingdom, details were sparse.
But who, beyond Imagineers, could have dre... Read More »
January 23, 2011
Star Tours ride to reopen May 20
Almost overlooked amid the hoopla surrounding the debut of the Disney Dream cruise ship and new details of its Fantasyland expansion, Walt Disney World confirmed last week that Star Tours, the popular Disney's Hollywood Studios simulator ride, will reopen... Read More »
January 20, 2011
Stars of this trek: Animals, experiences
Dangling above a hippopotamus was not on my bucket list. But then, several unlikely things happened during my preview of WildAfrica Trek, a tour that debuted this week at Disney's Animal Kingdom.
The new experience takes theme-park guests off the beate... Read More »
January 20, 2011
Disney Fantasyland to Feature 'Snow White' Indoor Roller Coaster
Walt Disney World said this week it is going to build a new indoor roller coaster in the Magic Kingdom to expand on the park’s Fantasyland area.
At the Orlando, Florida theme park, “The Seven Dwarfs Mine Train” will be the new attraction and will featu... Read More »
January 19, 2011
Disney unveils new Fantasyland expansion details
Walt Disney World said Tuesday it will build a new indoor roller coaster in the Magic Kingdom as part of its expansion of the theme park's Fantasyland section.
Dubbed ``The Seven Dwarfs Mine Train,'' the moderately intense attraction will feature a fir... Read More »
January 19, 2011
Disney Unveils Plans to Nearly Double the Size of its FantasyLand
Disney has announced plans to expand its FantasyLand section of its theme park, as unveiled on Tuesday at an exclusive media event inside the Magic Kingdom that one of TheCelebrityCafe.com’s writers attended.
Walt Disney World will bring plans to build... Read More »
January 03, 2011
Smile! Your image is fair game at Orlando-area theme parks
Every day, Orlando theme-park guests snap thousands of photographs, capturing friends and family in front of countless landmarks, such as Epcot's Spaceship Earth or Hogwarts Castle at Universal's Islands of Adventure.
In the digital age, those images z... Read More »
January 02, 2011
Disney gets big boost from attraction aimed at little ones
Later this month, Disney theme parks in Florida and California will shut down "Playhouse Disney — Live on Stage," a 22-minute minute puppet show that has been performing for nine years. Workers will remove some characters, add new ones, repaint marquees a... Read More »
February 26, 2008
Walt Disney Co. to sell time shares in 15-story tower next to Contemporary Resort
The Walt Disney Co. has won approval to begin selling time shares in a 15-story tower the company is erecting next to its famed Contemporary Resort, a $110 million addition that Disney has named "The Kingdom Tower." Disney has for months refused to divulg... Read More »
February 22, 2008
Disney World wins dismissal of lawsuit challenging Segway rule
A federal judge in Orlando has thrown out a lawsuit against Walt Disney World aimed at forcing the company to allow disabled visitors to ride two-wheeled Segways in its theme parks.... Read More »
February 19, 2008
Walt Disney World to rebuild Treehouse Villas
Hidden among the trees in an obscure part of Walt Disney World, one of Disney's more unusual and largely forgotten housing options is getting new life. The giant resort intends to tear down and replace Disney's Treehouse Villas, a community of 60 two-stor... Read More »
February 06, 2008
Mickey Mouse Invites Families to Celebrate the 'Year of the Mouse' at Disneyland Resort
It's a celebration that has Mickey Mouse's name written all over it ... well, half of his name, anyway. The most famous Mouse of all is inviting families to celebrate the Lunar New Year and Year of the Mouse at Disneyland Resort, the place "Where Dreams C... Read More »
January 23, 2008
Nintendo DS Used as Wireless Tool in Disney World
Looking for new ways to have guests interact with their theme parks, Disney's Imagineers have cooked up a new park information system. You might be wondering what news like this is doing on Nintendo World Report. The answer is simple, the Imagineers are u... Read More »
December 17, 2007
Walt Disney World named leading theme park resort in world
Walt Disney World, the Orlando/Orange County Convention & Visitors Bureau, Carnival Corp. and Royal Caribbean International were among scores of winners of World Travel Awards announced recently.... Read More »
December 09, 2007
Guest Found With Gun At Disney Theme Park
A woman is facing charges after deputies said she tried to get inside a Walt Disney World theme park with a loaded handgun. Disney security spotted the semi-automatic weapon on Mary Ann Richardson, 63, Sunday during a mandatory bag check at the Magic King... Read More »
October 08, 2007
Disney segues into Segway trips
Walt Disney World now is offering "Segway" hiking through its Fort Wilderness camping area. Disney, which has been testing Segway trips along its Fort Wilderness trails for about a year, announced the formal start of its "Wilderness Back Trail Adventures.... Read More »
September 20, 2007
Disney Park Attendance Expected To Break Records
More people visited Disney's U.S. theme parks in the last 12 months than any previous year in history, according to officials. The company said attendance numbers this year will likely surpass its record-breaking 2006 totals that were given a boost as the... Read More »
September 19, 2007
New attractions pay off for parks, Disney's Iger says
Walt Disney Co., the world's biggest theme-park operator, may post record attendance at its U.S. resorts this fiscal year as new attractions have lured more visitors, Chief Executive Officer Robert Iger said Tuesday. Attendance in fiscal 2007, which ends... Read More »
September 05, 2007
Parking costs more at Disney
Walt Disney World raised parking rates to $11 a car at its four theme parks this past weekend. The increase brings parking-lot rates for the Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Disney's Animal Kingdom and Disney-MGM Studios in line with those at Universal Orlando. Cars... Read More »
August 24, 2007
Cops seek witnesses of attack
Orange County sheriff's investigators said Thursday that they hope to find more witnesses to an attack at the teacup ride at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom earlier this year. Victoria Walker, 51, faces felony battery charges based on accusations she at... Read More »
August 08, 2007
Disney announces another year of a million dreams
As Walt Disney World moved from the millennial "2000 Celebration" to Walt Disney's birthday "100 Years of Magic" celebration to Disneyland's 50th anniversary "Happiest Celebration on Earth" to this year's "Year of a Million Dreams," it seems the celebrati... Read More »
August 03, 2007
Walt Disney World raising ticket price to $71
The price of magic goes up this weekend at Walt Disney World, where the basic adult ticket is climbing 6 percent to a record $71. Disney on Friday announced a whole range of new ticket prices that take effect Sunday. The price changes also affect the disc... Read More »
July 19, 2007
2 moms duke it out at Disney in real tempest at the teacups
One mother faces a felony trial and another the threat of lifelong head and neck injuries after a run-in at Walt Disney World's Mad Tea Party ride. The fight as children and adults were boarding the ride was all about whether someone skipped places in lin... Read More »
June 26, 2007
Parents left girl in hot stroller, rode 'Pirates'
Two Orange County parents were arrested on child-abuse charges after telling authorities they accidentally left their 3-year-old daughter in a stroller while they rode Pirates of the Caribbean at Walt Disney World. A Magic Kingdom patron alerted park mana... Read More »
June 09, 2007
Disney's Haunted Mansion making room for new ghosts
Horror of horrors! Tourists hoping to experience The Haunted Mansion at Disney's Magic Kingdom are being greeted by a "Closed for renovations" sign tacked to a locked gate. Disney plans its first major overhaul of the popular Humor-driven attraction this... Read More »
May 07, 2007
Pirate-princess parties return to Disney
Back by popular demand, "Pirate and Princess Parties" return to Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom late this summer. After running the dual-themed, after-hours events for 13 nights this past winter, Disney is bringing them back for eight nights starting Au... Read More »
May 02, 2007
Disney-owned hotels ban smoking
No more smoking or nonsmoking room options at Walt Disney World hotels. No more foul, secondhand smoke lingering in a room or wafting down a hallway. And no more last, quiet cigarette of the night out on the balcony, under a rising Florida moon.... Read More »
February 09, 2007
Disney considers specializing - Florida TodayThe Walt Disney Co. could extend its reach to more potential visitors with its idea of putting boutique hotels, dining and retail, as well as smaller theme parks, in major cities around the country, tourism experts said Thursday.
At an investors' conference Disney is holding this week, Jay Rasulo, chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, told analysts that the future for Disney could include making deeply immersion-oriented Disney experiences more available to a broader range of people, pending high return on investment.
February 07, 2007
Disney.com packs in funWalt Disney Co. launched its redesigned Web site Tuesday, arranging its vast array of content to make it easier to navigate while taking advantage of faster broadband connections.
The overhaul, Disney.com's first major redesign in more than five years, organizes the entertainment company's video, film and theme park content in a variety of ways.
"We created a site that allows you to navigate the Walt Disney Co. in whatever way is most comfortable for you," said Steve Parkis, vice president of premium content for Disney Online. "The top of the page is designed for adults, but there is a character world for kids at the bottom."
December 28, 2006
Humor put on holdA comedy club show based on the popular Monsters, Inc. movie apparently isn't quite ready for the big time.
Walt Disney World has confirmed that the opening of its next big attraction -- The Monsters, Inc. The Laugh Floor Comedy Club show -- will be delayed a few months so that Walt Disney Imagineering can make adjustments now that test audiences got to try it out earlier this month.
The Magic Kingdom attraction draws on characters from the 2001 Pixar Animation movie, Monsters, Inc., and uses new technology to give audiences an interactive, sometimes improvisational, robotic comedy show. The attraction was built into the old Timekeeper location in Tomorrowland.
The Laugh Floor Comedy Club was slated to have passholder previews, then a grand opening, in January. But now those won't happen until sometime in the spring, said Disney spokesman Jacob DiPietre.
December 18, 2006
Disney's rumored project now is on paperBulldozers might soon push around dirt in an area called Walt Disney World's "Western Beltway Development," but they would not be preparing the land for any immediate construction.
November 20, 2006
Monsters, Inc. comedy act gives material a testVisitors to Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom might find themselves walking in on a new Monsters, Inc. comedy act being rehearsed in Tomorrowland by Walt Disney Imagineering.
October 05, 2006
Ohio family wins grand prize -- an empty Magic KingdomThe highly choreographed scene offered the kind of moment for which Disney is famous.
The only visitors in the entire Magic Kingdom, the Spangler family of Randolph, Ohio, entered on red carpet under a flawless blue Florida sky as trumpets blared fanfare. Then Mickey Mouse and more than 1,000 other Walt Disney World characters and employees swarmed around them.
Raymond and Tammy Spangler, both 38, and their children Derick, 13, and Ashley, 11 -- all big Disney fans -- felt like the luckiest people on Earth. They won Disney's "Keys to the Magic Kingdom" grand prize in a drawing and got the Magic Kingdom to themselves for 90 minutes, an unprecedented experience that highlighted their free, four-day, VIP Disney vacation.
September 22, 2006
Disney puts "Jungle Cruise" in high gearFollowing the record-breaking success of "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest," Walt Disney Pictures is giving high-priority status to another potential adventure franchise based on a Disneyland ride.
It is developing "Jungle Cruise," inspired by the ride in which parkgoers travel the jungle river guided by a riverboat skipper, encountering such wild creatures as piranhas and gorillas during their tour. The ride was one of the 22 original attractions when the park opened in 1955.
September 22, 2006
Nemo finds more to doLittle Nemo is making a big splash at Walt Disney World -- and at Disneyland.
Three years after the release of Pixar's animated blockbuster film Finding Nemo, the little cartoon fish and his friends are getting new rides at Epcot and Disneyland, a whole Epcot pavilion renamed for them, plus a new show at Disney's Animal Kingdom.
September 19, 2006
Disney prizes: Worth $17.4 millionCruises, world tours of all Disney theme parks, Mickey Mouse ears, shopping sprees, nights in Cinderella Castle, time-share condominium leases, commemorative pins: These are a few of the things that Disney's million dreams are made of.
Walt Disney Parks and Resorts has announced 1,250,000 prizes with a combined value of more than $17.4 million that will be given away through Walt Disney World and Disneyland starting Oct. 1, when the company's 14-month "Year of a Million Dreams" campaign begins.
September 01, 2006
Disney's Finger Scan Upgrade Raises Privacy ConcernsAn upgrade on Disney's finger scanning technology implemented to prevent ticket fraud or resale is raising concerns from privacy advocates, according to Local 6 News.
For years, Walt Disney World has been reading the shape of visitors' fingers on its property. Now, the upgraded controversial finger scanning machines scan fingerprint information.
August 10, 2006
Disney posts $1.1 billion profitA 7 percent jump in attendance at Walt Disney World, strong performances by the movie Cars and several cable TV shows, and consumer product sales gave the Walt Disney Co. a big boost during the third quarter of its 2006 fiscal year.
August 07, 2006
Disney ticket gets pricierStarting Sunday, the cost of a one-day ticket to any of Walt Disney World's four parks is going up to $67 -- a 6.3 percent increase, the largest since 1991.
The hike is the second time in eight months the resort has bumped the cost of admission and represents an increase of almost 12 percent since December and 22 percent since early 2004.
August 03, 2006
Disney retools daily parade in Magic KingdomThe daily parade at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom is losing its snow globes and getting a touch of Japan. The "Disney Dreams Come True" parade starts rolling Aug. 10 with new music borrowed from the Tokyo Disneyland parade, new characters and revised floats that get rid of the giant globes that were signature features in the old "Share a Dream Come True" parade.
June 20, 2006
Disney's Pirates Ride: Just Like in the MoviesPurist fans of Disneyland's Pirates of the Caribbean ride are wishing they could force company officials to walk the plank for doing the unthinkable.
The classic attraction, which turns 40 next year, is getting an overhaul timed to coincide with the movie premiere of "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest," the second in a trilogy of films starring Johnny Depp. When the popular ride reopens June 26, it will look a lot more like the movie series that it inspired, complete with swashbuckler Jack Sparrow and his nemesis Capt. Barbossa.
June 08, 2006
Disney's next theme park ads to center on "dreams" - ReutersThe Walt Disney Company hopes to keep the party going at its theme parks when it launches a new global advertising campaign this fall with the catch phrase "Where Dreams Come True."
The coming ad blitz -- which replaces the company's successful 50th birthday of Disneyland campaign -- aims to capture "moments of transformation" that happen to people at the iconic parks, such as when a little girl meets a princess, Jay Rasulo, chairman of Disney's parks and resorts unit, said at a media event to announce the new campaign.
At its two U.S. parks, Disney will launch the "Year of a Million Dreams" celebration in October, where visitors will be randomly awarded "dreams" such as a night in the Mickey Mouse Penthouse at Disneyland or private meetings with Disney characters.
To kick off the U.S. promotion, one family will be chosen for a VIP visit in October to the Magic Kingdom park in Orlando, Florida where they will have the resort all to themselves.
May 31, 2006
Hilton to build hotels near Disney WorldHilton Hotels Corp. said Wednesday it plans to build two new hotels on property adjacent to the Walt Disney World theme park.
Construction of a new 1,000 room Hilton Hotel and a 500-room Waldorf Astoria is expected to break ground at the end of this year, with the hotels scheduled to open in the summer of 2009 in the Bonnet Creek resort development.
May 10, 2006
Disney Earnings Rise 19 PercentStrong television ratings and increased theme park attendance helped profit at The Walt Disney Co. rise 19 percent in the second quarter, although the media conglomerate did report a drop in earnings at its film studio...Attendance at Disneyland in California grew 15 percent in the quarter as the theme park's 50th anniversary celebration winds down. Attendance at Walt Disney World in Florida rose a more modest 3 percent, Disney said.
April 07, 2006
Iger lauds film, park tie-ins - Florida TodayRobert Iger, president and chief executive officer of The Walt Disney Co., said the Orlando area will be the beneficiary, as Walt Disney World Resort continues to grow through its synergy with animated and live-action films.
January 27, 2006
Walt Disney World raises ticket pricesWalt Disney World joins SeaWorld in raising ticket prices for the new year, leaving Universal as the only Orlando park operator not to increase entrance fees.
|