All photos copyright Disney

Construction is nearing completion on Disneyland Park’s new Fantasy Faire, the princess meet & greet complex that is replacing the classic Carnation Plaza Gardens. The new area, which controversially extends Fantasyland’s theming into the central hub for the first time, officially opens to the public on March 12.

If you are an annual Passholder, you can get a sneak peek of this expansion on March 7, 8, 9. The preview events will be held between noon and 6pm on those three days, with Passholders limited to designated two-hour entry windows.

Passholders wishing to attend must register in person on the day of the event, beginning at 10:30am in Fronteirland. For more details, see Disney’s official instructions here.

Annual Passholder Previews for Disneyland’s Fantasy Faire This Week is a post from the TouringPlans.com Blog. Signup for a premium subscription today! Or get news via Email, Twitter, & Facebook.

All photos copyright Disney (unless otherwise noted)

The world's attention turned to London this week, but that didn't stop heavy crowds from continuing to head to Disneyland Resort.

Crowd Calendar

Quietest Day: Friday 7/27 was a 9 out of 10 at the resort, with DCA crowds at 8.6 and Disneyland Park at 9.2.

Busiest Day: Tuesday 7/24 and Thursday 7/26 were both a 10 out of 10 at the resort, with DCA crowds at 9.8 and Disneyland Park at 9.7.

Subscribe to the TouringPlans.com Disneyland Crowd Calendar for details on predicted crowds for the next 30 days.

Special Events

• Protests against the Anaheim City Police Department were held outside Disneyland Resort in the wake of recent officer-related fatal shootings.
• “The section of Route 66 in Cars Land is approximately 525 feet long and 23 feet wide.” This and other trivia was released in a Disney Parks Blog post entitled Things you might not know about Cars Land.
• Readers of the Disney Parks Blog quickly snapped up all free tickets to attend a showing of World of Color and recieve free “Glow with the Show” mouse ears on Monday, June 30.
• Images were released of new series of Disney-themed old-fashioned wooden toys, which will be available in stores at the Disneyland Resort.

• The free Disneyland Explorer iPad app was recently updated with new information and interactive games featuring Cars Land and Buena Vista Street.

• To celebrate the anniversary of the Davey Crocket Explorer Canoes, Disney released a video highlighting a day in the life of a canoe river guide.
• On July 24, the July 13th passing of Ginny Tyler, head mouseketter in the 1960s and voice of the Disneyland storyteller records, was announced.

Openings, Closings, and Refurbishments

• A video was released celebrating the restoration of the Welte Orcheteron inside Main Street USA's Penny Arcade.
• As our researcher Guy Selga Jr., reported, the Jungle Cruise closed unexpectedly on Thursday 7/26 to install new saftey bumpers around the boats. The ride is expected to reopen by 8/2.

Photo by Guy Selga Jr.

• Construction continues on the Princess Fantasy Faire in Disneyland. Disney acknowledged that the princess meet & greets will temporarily relocate in August to the “it's a small world” area, as a new theatrical show is readied for their former home.
• Work also continued on the Earl of Sandwich restaurant in Downtown Disney. The newsstand in front of the restaurant is also being removed to “improve guest flow.”
• All other park attractions were scheduled to be in operation as normal.

Last Week at Disneyland Resort (7/22/2012 – 7/28/2012) is a post from the TouringPlans.com Blog. Signup for a premium subscription today! Or get news via Email, Twitter, & Facebook.

All photos copyright Disney

A fan-favorite unheralded Disneyland attraction marked a quarter-century, while heavy rains visited the Anaheim resort last week. It didn’t keep the crowds away, but it did play havoc with Disney California Adventure’s hottest new ride.

Crowd Calendar

Quietest Day: Friday, July 13, was only a 5.1 out of 10 at Disneyland, and a 10.0 at DCA. Thursday, July 12, was the slowest day at DCA, at 8.2 out of 10.

Busiest Day: Tuesday, July 10, was a 7.5 out of 10 at Disneyland, and a 9.9 at DCA.

Subscribe to the TouringPlans.com Disneyland Crowd Calendar for details on predicted crowds for the next 30 days.

Special Events

• The Disney Gallery, which was originally located in the current “Dream Suite” above Pirates of the Caribbean, celebrated 25 years at Disneyland Park on July 11.
• Guests to the Big Thunder Ranch on July 13-14 were asked to vote on a name for the ranch’s newest resident, a newborn lamb.
• Images were released of new snack-scented air fresheners, which will go on sale in the parks this August.
• The Disney Parks Blog conducted a brief and largely uniformative Q&A with three Cars Land Imagineers, and released a video highlighting the Red Car Trolleys on Buena Vista Street.

Openings, Closings, and Refurbishments

• All attractions were scheduled to operate last week.
• Progress continues on the new Princess Fantasy Faire in Disneyland, and the Earl of Sandwich in Downtown Disney.
• As reported by MiceAge and the TouringPlans Twitter feed, Radiator Springs Racers was inoperable all day Thursday and Friday, and much of the day Saturday, due to technical complications caused by rainstorms.

Last Week at Disneyland Resort (7/7/2012- 7/14/2012) is a post from the TouringPlans.com Blog. Signup for a premium subscription today! Or get news via Email, Twitter, & Facebook.

Disney's flying dragon testing in SoCal airspace (photo by Tammy Zaninovich)

It was another busy attendance week, but a relatively slow news week, at Disney's Anaheim resort.

Crowd Calendar

Quietest Day: Crowds were smaller than anticipated on the 4th of July, with a 7.3 in Disneyland and a 5.2 at DCA.

Busiest Day: Friday 7/6 was a 7.3 in Disneyland at 10 at DCA.

Subscribe to the TouringPlans.com Disneyland Crowd Calendar for details on predicted crowds for the next 30 days.

Special Events

• The Bakersfield Californian newspaper reported that a dragon was spotted flying over Shafter's Minter Field airport in Southern California. Though officially unconfirmed, it was reported to be an Imagineering test for the Avatar project at Orlando's Animal Kingdom.
• Patriotic entertainment, including special fireworks at Disneyland, was performed around the resort in honor of Independence Day.
• California Avocado Week was celebrated at Downtown Disney with contests and cooking demonstrations.
• The Disney blog released the recipe for the kabobs served at Paradise Garden Grill in DCA (yum!)
• Disney released video demonstrating how the new Glow with the Show ear hats interact with Mad T Party and Cars Land at DCA.
• Another video released by Disney documents the ascent of mountaineers on Disneyland's Matterhorn from the climbers' perspective.
• Verizon mobile subscribers can enter a sweepstakes for a trip to Disneyland. Entry is open through September 2.
• Disneyland donated the Lighting McQueen Power Wheels toy cars seen in a recent promotional video to 10 local children's non-profits.

Photo copyright Disney

Openings, Closings, and Refurbishments

• All attractions in both parks were scheduled to operate as normal.
• Plaza Gardens in Disneyland is being rebuilt as Princess Fantasy Faire, reopening in 2013.

• The former Compass Books in Downtown Disney is very slowly being turned into Earl of Sandwich, with a vague opening date of Late Summer

  

Last Week at Disneyland Resort (7/1/2012 – 7/7/2012) is a post from the TouringPlans.com Blog. Signup for a premium subscription today! Or get news via Email, Twitter, & Facebook.

The Australian Today Show broadcasted from Disneyland last week.

Disneyland Resort began settling into summer operations last week, with slightly smaller (but still substantial) crowds following mid-June’s well-publicized festivities.

Crowd Calendar

Quietest Day: Friday 6/29 was a 7 out of 10 at the resort overall, with Disneyland Park at only 3.3 and DCA at 9.0.

Busiest Day: Saturday 6/30 was a 9 out of 10 at the resort overall, with Disneyland Park at 6.8 and DCA at 9.3.

Subscribe to the TouringPlans.com Disneyland Crowd Calendar for details on predicted crowds for the next 30 days.

More pins coming to the parks this summer.

Special Events

• Dates and prices were announced for the 2012 Mickey’s Halloween Party hard-ticket events. Tickets go on sale July 9 for Annual Passholders, and July 16 for the general public.
• Disney posted to YouTube the making-of videos featuring Cars Land and Buena Vista Street that formerly screened in DCA’s Blue Sky Cellar.
• The Australian “Today Show” spent the week broadcasting from Disneyland, blocking views of the castle from the hub with its stage.
• Images were released of new collectible pins, one featuring Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, that will be released at the parks in waves over the summer.

New merchandise for sale in the Disney Gallery

Openings, Closings, and Refurbishments

• All attractions in both parks were operating.
• The Disney Gallery on Main Street USA debuted Crowning Achievements: Creating Castles for Magical Kingdoms, an exhibit of castle artwork (and associated merchandise) from Disney parks worldwide.
• Plaza Gardens in Disneyland is being rebuilt as Princess Fantasy Faire, reopening in 2013.
• The former Compass Books in Downtown Disney is very slowly being turned into Earl of Sandwich, with a vague opening date of Late Summer.

All photos copyright Disney.

Last Week at Disneyland Resort (6/24/2012 – 6/30/2012) is a post from the TouringPlans.com Blog. Signup for a premium subscription today! Or get news via Email, Twitter, & Facebook.

Soft openings and special events are now in full swing, as Disneyland Resort speeds towards the June 15th relaunch of Disney California Adventure.

Crowd Calendar

Quietest Day: With a 4.7 out of 10 at Disneyland Park, Sunday 6/3 was one of the quietest days the resort should see until after this summer.

Busiest Day: Thursday 6/7 was a 6.3 out of 10 at Disney California Adventure.

Subscribe to the TouringPlans.com Disneyland Crowd Calendar for details on predicted crowds for the next 30 days.

Special Events

• Grad Nights were held on 6/6-8, and will continue on 6/12-14.
• Celebrities like Larry the Cable Guy and Brent Musburger have appeared at the resort recently to sample the new attractions currently testing in Cars Land.
• Paid sneak preview events began on 6/9 in Cars Land for Annual Passholders, Club 33 members, and D23 members, garnering rave reviews online for most of the new attractions.
• Disney released an online interactive timeline depicting the 5-year expansion now being completed.
• Guests can now purchase 1-day Disneyland Resort tickets through their smartphones.

Openings, Closings, and Refurbishments

Disneyland Park

• Matterhorn Bobsleds reopens on 6/15.
• Carnation Cafe reopens on 6/13.

Disney California Adventure

• Attractions on Cars Land and Buena Vista Street remain off-limits to the general public until 6/15.
• The entire Disney California Adventure park will be closed for media events on 6/14.
• The Mad T Party is currently performing in soft-open, and officially kicks off on 6/15.
• Disney has announced showtimes for new performances beginning 6/15, including DJ’s Dance and Drive, Five and Dime, Red Car News Boys, Pixar Play Parade, Dancing with Disney, and the newly-titled Instant Concert…Just Add Water! daytime fountain with Goofy. LINES users can see these showtimes in their app and use them in personalized plans starting on 6/15.
• The Ghirardelli Soda Fountain officially opened on June 7 in the old Mission Tortilla Factory building.
• Beginning June 8, the Blue Sky Cellar is hosting the Radiator Springs Historical Society Museum of the History of Radiator Springs, featuring “artifacts” from important Cars Land residents. The cellar will screen Time Travel Mater, a new Cars-themed short film that makes its television debut on ABC on 6/16.
• More information was released about the 92 sommeliers who will help Chef Gloria Tae open the new Carthay Circle Restaurant on 6/15.
• Images were released of exclusive merchandise that will be available at DCA on 6/15 to celebrate the park’s grand reopening.

Downtown Disney

• The WonderGround art gallery opened on 6/9.
• Earl of Sandwich is under construction, opening date TBA.
• A multimedia truck promoting the new TRON: Uprising show on Disney XD appeared in Downtown Disney on 6/3-7.
• Upcoming Mayumi and Mayhem merchandise was announced for the Vault 28 and D Street stores.

All images copyright Disney.

Last Week at Disneyland Resort (6/3/2012 — 6/9/2012) is a post from the TouringPlans.com Blog. Signup for a premium subscription today! Or get news via Email, Twitter, & Facebook.

It was a relatively quiet week at the Disneyland Resort. But there is still plenty of news coming out about June’s anticipated expansions, as we wait out these last few days of “calm before the storm.”

Crowd Calendar

The slow spring season is swiftly slipping away as Disneyland gears up for record crowds all summer.

Quietest Day: Thursday, May 30 (Predicted 5 out of 10, actual 5)

Busiest Day: Monday, May 28 (Predicted 8 out of 10, actual 9)

Subscribe to the TouringPlans.com Disneyland Crowd Calendar for details on predicted crowds for the next 30 days.

Special Events

• Grad Nights were held at both parks on 5/30, 5/31, and 6/1, and will continue on 6/6-8.
• 66 lucky readers of the Disney Parks Blog were allowed “behind the wall” in Cars Land on May 29 for a walking tour with Imagineers.
• Disneyland donated the large “CALIFORNIA” letters that formerly stood outside of Disney California Adventure to the California State Fair for permanent display.
• On May 27, Disneyland’s Space Mountain turned 35 years old.

Openings, Closings, and Refurbishments

Disneyland

• The Carnation Cafe will reopen on June 13.
• The Matterhorn Bobsleds will reopen on June 15.
• More details were released about the new Disney Castle exhibit coming to the Disney Gallery on Main Street U.S.A. On June 30.
• The Big Thunder Ranch Jamboree is being held Friday-Sunday in Frontierland, and will expand on June 18 to 7 days, featuring performances by Billy Hill and the Hillbillies through the summer.

Disney California Adventure

• Construction walls came down around the Ghirardelli Soda Fountain & Chocolate Shop, which is now in soft-opening, and officially opens on June 7.
• Menu details were released for food at the Crazy Cone Motel in Cars Land, opening June 15.
• The Pixar Play Parade began soft-opening runs in preparation for its official return to the park on June 15, after a year and a half hiatus.
• The Cove Bar reopened after refurbishment with some new vintage theming and some additional specialty drinks on the menu.

Downtown Disney

• Disney announced that the WonderGround art gallery will open on June 9.
• The La Brea Bakery Cafe reopened on June 1 with expanded seating and a new menu.
• A multimedia-equipped truck will appear June 3-7 to promote the premiere of “TRON: Uprising” on the Disney XD channel.
• The Sunglass Icon store reopened after a brief remodeling.

All photos copyright Disney

Last Week at Disneyland Resort (5/27/2012 – 6/2/2012) is a post from the TouringPlans.com Blog. Signup for a premium subscription today! Or get news via Email, Twitter, & Facebook.

Many of us here at Touring Plans have a soft spot in our hearts for the beloved Trail’s End Buffet…er…Restaurant. See, we have to make sure we say “restaurant” at this point, because the “buffet” part only applies to breakfast and dinner these days!

After years of serving up an all-you-can-eat buffet, this cozy little out-of-the-way restaurant in Disney World’s Fort Wilderness is jumping on the change bandwagon that Disney World restaurants seem to be so fond of these days. (Seriously, if they’re not changing a menu, a chef, or a theme these days, they’re apparently not “in the club.”)

Anyway, from now until we-don’t-know-when, Trail’s End will be serving up an a la carte lunch service, featuring chili, fried chicken and waffles, sautéed catfish, grilled pork chops, spicy grilled shrimp and andouille sausage, Wilderness s’mores and a warm sticky bun sundae. (That last one I could get into…)

No knowledge on how long this “trial period” will last, so either rush over to try it or stay far far away as you see fit.

Trail’s End Updates is a post from the TouringPlans.com Blog. Signup for a premium subscription today! Or get news via Email, Twitter, & Facebook.

Howdy all! We just finished taping a WDW Today episode about the 2010 Epcot Food and Wine Festival, but I thought it’d be fun to highlight the new additions for this year and remind you of a few key dates to help in your planning.

Specs:

When: October 1-November 14, 2010
Where: All around Epcot
How Much?: Variable. You can drop a month’s pay at the festival or you can have fun for free.

International Marketplace Booth

• Free: Many events held in the Festival Center are free, including Authentic Taste Seminars and Authors Without Borders. You’ll also find several seminars set up throughout the World Showcase that are free. Find out more here.
• Low-Cost: Several culinary and beverage demonstrations are in the $8-$13 range. Tastes from the International Marketplace booths will run from $2-$8.
• Expensive: Dozens of special events from celebrity chef-studded signature dinners to chocolate seminars with renowned chocolatiers to the uber-popular Party for the Senses are again available this year. Costs range from $40-$450 and up.

Booking Details: Booking for the special (expensive) events opens on July 20th at 7am. Just call 407-WDW-FEST for details or to book. If you’d like tickets to the lower-cost seminars and demonstrations, booking opens August 26th for Tables in Wonderland and DVC members and Annual Passholders. Booking opens August 28th for the General Public. Again, 407-WDW-FEST is the number to call.

New Events and Attractions to Anticipate

In addition to some old favorites like the French Regional Lunches and Sweet Sundays, Disney is introducing several new events on the 2010 Food and Wine Festival docket:

Graphic for 2010 Festival

Delicious Discoveries First Bites
This is basically a festival sneak peek. Disney is promising glimpses of celebrity chefs, tastes of new Food and Wine Festival dishes, and other exciting secrets to be revealed before the festival officially opens. The event will be held September 30th from 6:30-9pm and sounds pretty exciting, but the $195 price tag — not including tax — might make folks a little skittish.

Don’t forget, the Food and Wine Festival usually has a “soft opening” the day before the grand opening, so you might get a chance to try some of the World Showcase booth menus prior to the big day anyway.

3D: Disney Dessert Discoveries
This is being touted as a private Illuminations Dessert Party…and then some. Taking place on most Fridays (with one Thursday tucked in there on October 21st), the $45 ticket price will get you plenty of desserts, wines, and cordials along with reserved seating for Illuminations, Reflections of Earth — Epcot’s fireworks show.

Belgium, South Korea, and Charcuterie and Cheese Booths Come to the Festival
Every year Disney introduces a few new booths to its International Marketplace — a set-up of over 25 mini-kiosks offering small portions of food and drinks from different regions and countries around the world. These booths are set up around the World Showcase, and items can be purchased a la carte for around $2-$8.

This year, we get to try waffles from the Belgium booth, barbecue from the South Korea booth, and fondue from the Charcuterie and Cheese booth. Of course, there’s plenty more to sample. Check out all of the menus here.

Passport Stamp Example

Marketplace Discovery Passports
Another fun addition to the International Marketplace this year are the Marketplace Discovery Passports. These are free pamphlets that you (and your kids!) can use to keep track of which marketplace booths you’ve visited and which you’d still like to enjoy. At each booth, just ask a cast member to stamp your passport!

New Eat to the Beat! Concerts
Disney’s Eat to the Beat! Concert series is a free (with Epcot admission) group of concerts that take place three times per night throughout the festival. Every few days the band changes, but you’re bound to find a few of your favorites on stage. This year, new acts include Sugar Ray, Air Supply, Howard Jones, 38 Special, Roger Hodgson, Hanson, and Rick Springfield. To see the full line-up and dates for each band, go to our Eat to the Beat! page.

Low-Cost Wine Tasting Seminar

Taste Shake and Indulge: Grand Marnier Tastings
For those who love this orange-flavored liqueur, you now have the chance to immerse yourself in it. (OK, not literally — there won’t be any bathtubs of Grand Marnier sitting around Epcot.) On Saturdays from 2:30-4pm, $45 will buy you not only a tasting of a full range of liqueurs, but also a short class on shaking and muddling Grand Marnier cocktails as well as some sweet treats from Bistro de Paris where the event is held.

Grape Getaway
For those who just can’t get enough of the Food and Wine Festival, Disney is introducing a full vacation package this year — the Grape Getaway. While we don’t know pricing or booking date, yet, we do know that the package will include 4 days and 3 nights of exclusive Food and Wine Festival fun. The package is limited to 100 people and will run from October 24th-October 27th, 2010.

Those are just a few of the new events and attractions scheduled for this year’s festival, and you can believe me when I say you can have a great time no matter what your budget. As always, check out the Disney World Website for more information, and don’t forget to come see us over at the Disney Food Blog!

What’s New at the 2010 Epcot Food and Wine Festival is a post from the TouringPlans.com Blog. Signup for a premium subscription today! Or get news via Email, Twitter, & Facebook.