WDWNT Reporter Banks Lee visited three Walt Disney World theme parks on Wednesday (take a WILD guess which one he did not go to) and took plenty of photos to share with us in a lengthy photo report:
The gingerbread house is up and open at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa
The page on DisneyWorld.com for the upcoming Art of Animation Resort has been created and features a new piece of concept art and some more concrete details on Walt Disney World’s newest resort hotel:
Coming soon: a new Walt Disney World Resort! Disney’s Art of Animation Resort hotel, a Disney Value Resort hotel, will draw its inspiration from 4 classic Disney animated films: The Lion King, The Little Mermaid and Disney·Pixar’s Finding Nemo and Cars.Booking dates for this family-friendly resort, scheduled to open Summer of 2012, have not been announced yet. Please continue to check back for more information and details.
Step into some of your favorite stories! Each one of the Disney’s Art of Animation Resort buildings are being designed to make you feel like you are part of one of 4 beloved animated films. Trace the movie’s theme, from the playful courtyards to the festive room interiors.
The 864 rooms planned within The Little Mermaid buildings will be sea-inspired with an eye towards value.
The Lion King, Cars and Finding Nemo buildings are planned to exclusively feature family suites which accommodate up to six guests. The concepts show a total of 1,120 family suites—all arranged for added space and comfort.
The concept for these family suites include:
- 2 separate bathrooms
- A master bedroom
- 3 separate sleeping areas within the living space, which includes an “Inovabed”—an impressive piece of furniture that transforms from a generously sized dining or work table to a comfortable bed in seconds.
Kids and kids at heart will be able to romp through one of the 4 courtyards—one courtyard for each film—where there will be icons and sculptures to interact with and play around. Make a splash in the main pool—complete with a pool bar—or relax in one of the 2 quiet pool areas. Planned amenities at Disney’s Art of Animation Resort include an animation-themed food court, arcade, retail location and interior airline check-in stations.
Location and General Information
Disney’s Art of Animation Resort is scheduled to be located near Disney’s Animal Kingdom theme park and ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex. It will be a smoke-free Resort; smoking will be permitted only in designated outdoor smoking locations.
From the Disney Parks Blog:
Disney/Pixar fans, we’ve got some great news to share today. The entertainment team at Walt Disney World Resort is in the midst of developing a new parade for Disney’s Hollywood Studios featuring some favorite Pixar pals. While details are still being worked out, we do know that four Pixar characters not currently seen at Disney’s Hollywood Studios – Remy and Emile from “Ratatouille” and Carl and Russell from Disney/Pixar’s “Up” – will be added to the lineup.
For those who want to be sure to celebrate the last dance with their favorites from Block Party Bash, make sure to mark January 1 for the final performance. The new show is scheduled to open January 16. Keep your eye on the blog for more future parade updates.
While this announcement says “new parade”, I wouldn’t necessarily buy it. It sounds like it may be a few new floats mixed in with the existing Block Party Bash floats in a more traditional performance without show-stops. A new soundtrack and name are sure to be a part of it. Stay tuned to WDW News Today as more information on this breaking story becomes available.
We are proud to welcome the newest addition to the WDWNT staff, Josh Siegel, with his first photo report from the Walt Disney World Resort:
Work continues on Pollo Campero at Downtown Disney
WDWNT Reporter Matt Paul visited Disney’s Hollywood Studios on Monday and has a number of photos to share with us:
MuppetVision 3-D Re-opens May 15th from refurbishment
Read More about Matt Paul’s 5/10/10 Hollywood Studios Photo Report
WDWNT Reporter Banks Lee spent a few days at the Walt Disney World theme parks recently and has a number of newsworthy photos to share with us:
Over at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, the Fantasmic! window display at Villains in Vogue has been replaced after ten years with “Disney’s Alice in Wonderland”
A few days ago, we reported on an interesting refurbishment that was announced for both the Studio Backlot Tour and the Studio Catering Co. at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, scheduled to take place between February 15, 2010 and March 28, 2010. A few days later, it was announced that the Honey, I Shrunk the Kids Movie Set Adventure would be closed for refurbishment during that same period. Rumors are now circulating that these closures are for more than routine maintenance, they may indeed be permanent closures. These rumors go back to a few previous reports we had made about possible changes to the Hollywood Studios backlot area (Which can be read HERE and HERE), including rumors of a Monsters Inc. themed roller-coaster going into the vacant Soundstage 1, a smaller version of Radiator Springs Racers replacing the Backlot Studio Tour, the Backlot Catering Co. becoming a Monsters Inc. or Ratatouille themed eatery, and the Honey, I Shrunk the Kids Movie Set Adventure would being re-themed to “A Bug’s Life”.
Again, this is simply a rumor at this time, but if true, these locations will permanently close on February 15th and will not return on March 29th as Disney is stating. Since this is all rumor at this point, we don’t know when any phases of the changes would be completed or if Disney will simply let the locations sit and wait for work to near completion on the huge Fantasyland expansion at the Magic Kingdom. It is very hard to believe that Disney would conduct huge expansions of both the Studio Backlot at Hollywood Studios and Fantasyland at the Magic Kingdom simultaneously, but it is also very strange to see three major pieces of the backlot area go down for refurbishment at the same time. As you can see in this report, our information is limited, but we will report more on this breaking story as more becomes available. Stay tuned….
Continuing our D23 Expo coverage, we have two more fantastic videos for you to enjoy. The first video is of the “Making of the U.S. Presidents” panel, featuring the creation of the new Hall of Presidents at Walt Disney World and the progress on the upcoming Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln show for Disneyland. The second video is from the “Making of Toy Story Mania” panel and features the development and execution of the Disney’s California Adventure and Disney’s Hollywood Studios attractions. We hope you enjoy these videos by Matt Paul, embedded via the WDWNTube:
Our newest WDWNT Reporter Banks Lee has provided us with his second update, taking us to both Disney’s Animal Kingdom and Disney’s Hollywood Studios to see what’s new:
Starting at Animal Kingdom, Flights of Wonder is closed through October 23rd for refurbishment
As promised yesterday, here is the video of the short daytime show that the Luxo Jr. character is performing on Pixar Place at Disney’s Hollywood Studios:
