IllumiNations one night- Wishes the other
- lunch at Kona Cafe with friends
- breakfast at Main Street Bakery
- Toy Story Mania
- American Idol Experience
- Friday night wind down a la hot tub
- general romance via relaxation
Long-awaited two day trip for Valentine’s Day coming up … so far this is the must-do list that Sara and I have put together. Very doable in my opinion, indeed!
Any other recommendations?
So I got this flier with my latest Disney shareholder annual report that came in the mail the other day and come to find out, there’s already quite a bit of rumor floating around the old internet about just what, pray tell, 23 might actually be. Some of the more interesting suggestions to be announced on March 10th that I’ve read so far include:
- 23 Disney movies to be released on Blu-Ray (or 23 animated classics from The Disney Vault to be released as a huge boxed set)
- 23 new excursions to be announced from Adventures by Disney in 2009
- Pinocchio DVD / Blu-Ray release for its 70th anniversary (not sure how it relates to 23)
- the 23rd Walt Disney World Resort Hotel to be built
- Walt Disney World’s long-anticipated 5th park (by some, anyways…)
- something in celebration of Pixar’s 23rd birthday
Then again, what should really be interesting is just how long this kind of viral marketing campaign will be allowed to fissle before the actual gimmick is finally leaked out to the public. Coincidentally, this year’s shareholders meeting is scheduled for March 10th so it’s probably safe to assume that Disney is going to try to make a big announcement then, but will it actually make it another month and a half? I’m reading a lot of ponderings about exclusive this and collector’s edition that, so we shall see.
Your rumorous ramblings?
So it’s been decided that my wife and I are going to try to sneak over to Disney for Valentine’s Day in a couple of weeks. We haven’t gotten to go nearly as much lately due to time constraints, and actually this will be our first visit since we went over for Christmas … wow, two months is a long stretch, let me tell you!
That said, the conundrum that I’m facing today is this – dining has become a big part of our trips as of recent because we’ve started partaking in some of the more expensive dining options around the Resort. The trouble is, as of January 1, 2009, yours truly officially went on yet another diet of sorts and as such, we’ve come to the conclusion that we’re going to have to take it easy when it comes to eating out for a while. Now mind you, this doesn’t necessarily mean that we’ll be packing sandwiches and steering clear of Goofy’s Candy Co. altogether next weekend, but it does mean that we’re going to attempt to cut back while we’re there and with regards to table service dining, that means one meal during our two-day visit…
And that, my friends, is my current dilema – which table service restaurant should we make reservations at for our Valentine’s Day trip??? I should probably note that it most certainly does not have to be a romantic-type restaurant for the occasion – really, we’re just looking for something new and different to try. At the moment, here are some ideas that I’ve been entertaining:
- T-Rex @ Downtown Disney
- Kona Cafe @ Disney’s Polynesian Resort
- Teppan Edo (Japan Pavilion, World Showcase) @ Epcot
- The Wave @ Disney’s Contemporary Resort
I would say that right now I’m leaning towards either T-Rex or Kona just because I’ve wanted to try both for a while, but at this point it’s any restaurants’ game! We’ll see what the ADR availability comes back for…
Here’s an interesting interview that Fortune magazine ran the other day about Bob Iger’s sense of business direction for the Walt Disney Company, what he’s done since taking the company’s top position in 2005, and his visions for the future of the Mouse as a global brand. Personally, I don’t agree with everything that’s said here – there’s some negativity about Eisner’s performance, who I actually enjoyed at the helm of Disney and wass arguably responsible for most of the growth around Walt Disney World, and the talks about Disney’s brands bridging mediums rings of some of the overbearing advertisements that some areas of the parks seem to be inundated with today. Nonetheless, it’s always good to keep up on what the chief is thinking, even if you don’t entirely see eye to eye with him.
Link: Bob Iger rocks Disney
photo courtesy My Disney Mania (ZapperZ)
I know that photos of arguably the top Year of a Million Dreams prize have been circulating pretty much since the first guests spent the night some two years ago now, but seeing as the promotion has finally come to a close and it’s unclear at this point just how Disney will be using the souped up hotel room so far, I thought it might be fun to take one last look at the most coveted room on Disney property…
…of course, it didn’t hurt either that I found this awesome post over at My Disney Mania that featured tons of photos that “a friend of a friend” took when they won a night’s stay in the suite themselves. One step worse than even the author of that blog, I never won anything during our many, many visits during the Year of a Million Dreams – not a dream fastpass, not even a pair of mouse ears – but despite being maybe just a little bit bitter about that, it’s hard to deny that these photos are very cool. They cover not only the intricate details of the room, from the Cinderella relics on display to the multitude of mosaics seemingly everywhere, but even some of the more hardcore fan stuff like what their room keys looked like and even the stationary found in the nightstand! After having missed out on the ill-planned passholder tour last fall, admittedly these pictures are probably a better walkthrough of the famed suite, anyways!
Of course, the ultimate question is just what the Mouse plans to do with this whimsical prize now that the promotion is well and done – will they offer it up as a high luxury prize for celebrities, keep it reserved for making a select few guests’ trips all the more special, or just board the joint up completely and move along to the next big thing? We’ll leave that discussion for another day…
From AllEars.Net…
A little video of the first guest of the new year to cash in on the What Will You Celebrate? promotion that offers guests free admission to a Disney theme park on his or her birthday – it makes me wonder if every birthday guest will get one of those comical, oversized birthday cards with their admission, but judging from the emptiness of the park, me-thinks that it’s probably just more for the promotional photos and videos…
Either way, free admission is still free admission! Happy New Year, indeed.
What better way to get feeling all warm and fuzzy on this Christmas Eve than with some memories from the celebrities who have hosted Epcot’s Candlelight Processional over the years?
By selecting the payment option, Guests will pay for the cost of a 1-Day, 1-Park ticket upon purchase and will pay the remaining amount over the next 12 months, with no finance charges applied. For example, a Guest purchasing a Southern California Select Annual Passport for $134 would pay $69 at the time of purchase – with the remaining balance of $65 spread out over the next 12 months.
I think this a fantastic idea that’s way overdue and I sincerely hope that it provides the necessary results to warrant a trial here in the east with Walt Disney World as well. Frankly, I’d honestly be really surprised if it didn’t show success, considering that the Busch and Universal parks in our area all already offer payment plans of one kind or another. Running similar assumptions for WDW, one might expect to pay about $75 for that first visit, then split another $175 or so over 12 months for the rest of the pass, thus creating a Florida Resident Seasonal Passholder rate of merely $14.58 / month – four parks for less than fifteen bucks a month!
And even looking to existing passholders as an incentive to buy up to a more expensive level, a full-blown Florida Resident Annual Pass without restrictions would cost $25.41 / month after that first day, which would then not only include parking but also admission on Christmas if one so desired! While it may be tough to come up with the extra $150 to upgrade upon renewal of a seasonal, the monthly rate would sure be a whole lot easier to stomach…
So buy up, So. Cal. residents – give the Mouse a reason to try annual pass payments over in Florida, too!
Disney’s been putting some really cool behind-the-scenes-type videos online lately about some of their amazing decorations that go up around the parks and resorts during Christmastime – we just saw the things and yet these have me in the holiday spirit all over again! Enjoy…
Despite how great our little Christmas vacation was earlier this week, I must admit that I did leave the Happiest Place on Earth with one little bee in my bonnet that I feel the need to air my grievances about here. My beef is in regards to all of the extra parties held at the Magic Kingdom for an added admission fee (i.e. Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party, Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party, etc…) and their impact on the rest of the “day guests” that didn’t even dawn on me up until now…
It dawned upon me as I was looking through the park schedule that SpectroMagic and Wishes weren’t on the agenda for that evening, which while somewhat normal for SpectroMagic as of recent, seemed odd for Wishes because it was my understanding that the park always did a fireworks show to wrap up the day. It was shortly thereafter that I realized the reason behind this adapted schedule – Thursday was one of the days for Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party, which resulted in the park closing at 7:00pm for “day guests.”
And to be honest with you, the more I milled about this, the angrier I got. I mean, I’m a huge fan of both of these shows – there are times when aside from dinner and maybe a quick ride on Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin, enjoying these two shows were our evening highlights at the Magic Kingdom, so to learn that some guests are being “shorted” with regards to these shows if they pick a day that also features a party is just very uncool in my book.
I mean, it’s clear that Disney makes a pretty penny on these parties, hence the introduction of the Pirate & Princess Parties last year for an extra boost during non-holiday seasons, but is the extra $50 / head worth the dissatisfied customers who get shooed out the door at 7:00pm without having enjoyed fireworks over Cinderella Castle? Sure, these Christmas and Halloween parties are great fun for those families willing and able to pony up another big chunk of change outside of their normal park tickets to be able to meet Santa Goofy or go trick or treating down Main Street USA, but what about the rest of the guests who are still paying $75 to get into the park, only be turned away come nightfall?
I’ve got to tell you that this realization really put a damper on my previous thoughts of these events – what seemed like a neat bonus event before now just seems crude to the average guest who won’t be paying extra to stick around for the parade and fireworks. And yes, I know that technically one could just as easily schedule their day at the Magic Kingdom on a day sans party to ensure that they’ll get the full experience, however just as I’m none too thrilled about Fantasmic! being scaled back at the Studios next month, I just think that these shows are an essential part of the Disney magic when visiting Walt Disney World and should be offered every day of the week.