WDWNT Reporter Banks Lee made a visit to Disney’s Hollywood Studios on Friday and has plenty of newsworthy photos from his trip to share with us:
Hollywood Studios has had this “trendy” line of merchandise for a while now
Read More about Banks Lee’s 7/30/10 Hollywood Studios Photo Report
DLNT Reporter Chris Lastrapes took a trip to Disneyland last night to take on last flight on the original Star Tours and brings us a photo report of his adventure.
The attraction’s last night of operation
From an article about “What’s Next?” at Disneyland Resort on Disney’s D23 website, here’s more on Star Tours II and Under the Sea: Journey of the Little Mermaid:
The Little Mermaid: Ariel’s Undersea Adventure
A couple sen-sea-tional reveals were made about this mega-attraction sprouting up now along the side of Paradise Bay.
- As guests descend into the water, a cool blast of air will give them the sensation of headed under the sea.
- Scuttle the seagull will be the first character guests will meet once they have loaded into their “clam-mobiles.” And there will be several places you will see him along you way as he helps weave Ariel’s story together.
Star Tours: The Adventures Continue
While it may not open until the fall of 2011, a few exciting elements of the reimagined Star Tours were announced.
- The enhanced attraction — featuring multiple destinations — takes place in between the two Star Wars trilogies, which will enable Imagineers to utilize characters from both sets of films.
- While the planet of Tatooine was unveiled as a destination at last year’s D23 Expo, Walt Disney Imagineering Senior Show Producer Kathy Rogers announced that the bustling urban environment of Coruscant will be another.
- There will be several points during each journey where the audience will be able to change where the story is going. “There’s an incredible number of different variations,” explains Al Weiss, president, Worldwide Operations, Walt Disney Parks and Resorts. “You will rarely, if ever, see the same show twice. And it’s all in 3D.
Looks like we may be waiting until Fall 2011 for Star Tours at Disneyland Resort and we imagine it will be a similar wait for the Disney’s Hollywood Studios version. Stay tuned to WDW News Today for more details on these two upcoming attractions as they become available.
At the media festivities last week at Disneyland Resort, we got a closer look and a few more details about both “Under The Sea: Journey of the Little Mermaid” and “Star Tours II” (note that Disney has dropped the II from the name, but we’ll be using it just to differentiate it from the current version of the attraction). While the previews are meant for Disneyland, both attractions will be almost identical at both Walt Disney World and Disneyland Resort.
First looking at the Little Mermaid dark ride, the clam vehicles are actually different from the Seas with Nemo and Friends
Read More about New Star Tours and Little Mermaid Attraction Details
The following press release was issued by the Star Wars Celebration website:
BE THE FIRST TO BE THE LAST,
AS STAR TOURS PREPARES TO LAUNCH ITS…
LAST TOUR TO ENDOR
On August 14, Fan-Favorite Disney Theme Park Attraction
Gets the Ultimate, Out-of-this-World Send-Off
Exclusive Festivities Coincide with the Biggest Party
This Side of the Galaxy – Star Wars Celebration V
SAN FRANCISCO, CA – After more than a decade of interstellar travel, Disney Parks’ StarTours attraction is powering down to make way for its reimagining in 2011 – but Last Tour to Endor offers fans the opportunity to attend an out of-this-world, first-of-its-kind decommissioning party before Star Tours launches its final flights. Taking place on August 14 from 8:00pm – 1:00am at Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Lake Buena Vista, Fla., Last Tour to Endor is a special event on the Saturday night of Star Wars Celebration V – THE official Lucasfilm fan convention and the biggest Star Wars™ party in the galaxy! Fans and families attending Last Tour to Endor at the Walt Disney World Resort can enjoy a one-of-a-kind entertainment experience – including specially-themed intergalactic party zones, Star Wars shows, a Death Star Disco and much more. The evening will culminate with Symphony in the Stars – a Star Wars fireworks spectacular as only Disney Parks can create. Though the party begins at 8:00pm, Last Tour ticket-holders will also be allowed early entrance to Disney’s Hollywood Studios at 4:00pm – where they can be sure to secure a seat one of the StarSpeeder 3000’s final voyages!
Disney Parks will also have a prominent presence on the Celebration V show floor at the Orange County Convention Center – including Jedi Training Academy for younglings and Padawans and a Disney merchandise booth featuring a host of exclusive items as well as Star Wars items only previously available at Disney park stores. CV attendees will also enjoy special room rates at Walt Disney World Resort Hotels, specially-priced tickets with pre-arrival purchase savings for Walt Disney World parks and an exclusive, reserved room block at Disney’s Port Orleans Resort – which will include complimentary round-trip transfers to and from the
convention center.To purchase tickets – and to take advantage of Last Tour to Endor special offers – visit www.starwarscelebration.com/Disney. For more information on Star Wars Celebration V visit www.starwarscelebration.com for the latest updates.
Tickets to this event guarantee only one of the final rides on the original Star Tours, not the last. The ride will still operate beyond August 14th. How much longer after that date is unknown. Rumors indicate the attraction will close on September 8th, but it is yet to be confirmed by Disney. Stay tuned as we get more information on the Star Tours farewell festivities.
WDWNT Podcaster Chris Lastrapes made a short visit to the Walt Disney World Resort last week and has a few photos to share with us:
Christmas tree is up outside of Disney’s Hollywood Studios
Read More about Chris Lastrapes’ 11/18-11/19/09 WDW Photo Report
WDWNT Reporter Matt Paul was able to record video of both the “Imagineering the Future of the Disney Parks” presentation and the follow-up press conference at the D23 Expo, and now has both videos available for your enjoyment. Both videos are embedded below courtesy of the WDWNTube:
Hopefully these videos have answered some lingering questions about the exciting upcoming Walt Disney World projects. We still have many questions to ask as well and will try to get them answered as soon as possible, so stay tuned.
Disney has released a youtube version of the short clip that was shown of Star Tours II (in 3-D) at the D23 Expo. The video is also available in high definition by clicking the appropriate button below:
Since I have received a number of questions by email about this updated attraction, I decided it would be best to list what we know about Star Tours II thus far:
-Star Tours will close October 2010 and Star Tours II will open late summer/early fall 2011
-Star Tours II will be presented in Disney Digital 3-D (A change also being made at Muppetvision 3-D at both DHS and DCA in 2010, this was announced at the Expo as well)
-While we are not sure how it will work, pod racing (as seen in Episode I) will not be the only outcome of the attraction. It was revealed that there will be multiple films/destinations for Star Tours travelers
I know it’s a few days late, but here is the full press release we were given at the D23 Expo concerning these two exciting new projects for Walt Disney World and other on-going “Parks and Resorts” projects:
Walt Disney Parks and Resorts Chairman Jay Rasulo detailed plans for future lands, attractions and adventures that will be delighting Disney guests for years to come, at the first D23 Expo. Most notable among the announcements were the confirmation of an all-new Star Tours attraction and the largest expansion in the history of the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World.
“Storytelling is the DNA of Disney dreams and we’re always exploring new ways to tell new stories in new places,” Rasulo told a crowd at the Anaheim Convention Center in California before taking them on a “behind-the-magic” tour of their favorite Disney destinations.
Rasulo announced that a new 3-D version of the tremendously-popular “Star Tours” attraction will debut at the Disneyland Resort and Disney’s Hollywood Studios in 2011. Based on the iconic Lucasfilm “Star Wars” films, the attraction will include immersive new elements that will take guests to many familiar places in the Star Wars galaxy.
For Walt Disney World in Florida, Rasulo outlined plans for the largest expansion in the history of the Magic Kingdom, vastly increasing the size of Fantasyland by 2013. Guests will soon be able to:
-Visit their favorite Disney Princess in her castle, cottage, or chateau to share a dance with Cinderella; celebrate Sleeping Beauty’s birthday with the Good Fairies; or join Belle in an enchanting story performance in the Beast’s castle library.
-Be Our Guest and dine in one of three enchanted rooms inside the Beast’s castle.
-Fly with Dumbo high above brand new circus grounds, twice the size of the existing attraction with a new interactive, three-ring circus tent.
-Journey under the sea with Ariel, The Little Mermaid, in her very own attraction – also opening at Disney’s California Adventure in Anaheim in 2011.
-Meet Tinker Bell and her friends in the magical world of Pixie Hollow.Rasulo provided updates on the multi-year expansion of Disney’s California Adventure including the new “World of Color” attraction slated to open in the spring of 2010 and the addition of the 12-acre Cars Land scheduled to open in 2012 where guests will literally step into the town of Radiator Springs and its six acres of hand-carved rockwork.
Rasulo noted the progress of several other recently-announced projects including the three new lands coming to Hong Kong Disneyland by 2014; the Disney Dream, the new ship being built by Disney Cruise Line; the many diverse itineraries being offered by Adventures by Disney that take guests on 19 unique, once-in-a-lifetime guided vacation experiences; and Disney’s first family destination resort on the island of Oahu in Hawaii.
Our sources are reporting that the planned repaving of the New Orleans Square Railroad Station, although removed off of the Disneyland.com calender, will still be happening as planned from September 2nd to October 16th. During this time, the train will not stop at the NOS Station, & will continue on to Toontown Station.
We’ve also heard talk that the area outside Star Tours may also be getting repaved. This will mean that the outside portion of the Star Tours queue will not be in use, & guests will enter on the other side of the Star Tours entrance marque. Hopefully the line doesn’t get too big, for there’s not a lot of space on that side, thanks to the Astro Orbitor! The tentative time for this to happen September 2nd through the 21st.
Also don’t forget that the area surrounding the Haunted Mansion will be repaved while the attraction is closed for it’s conversion to Haunted Mansion Holiday from September 2nd to the 25th.
