Fantasyland soft opening and preview schedule

The Fantasyland Enchanted Forest soft opened for the first time yesterday and there have been a lot of questions about what the plans are for openings going forward.

Soft-opening "dress-rehearsals" are held to fine tune elements of attractions, shows, guest flow and other operational details. Disney has typically initially carried these out in an unannounced way, aimed at starting the process without huge crowds which would defeat the object of a soft opening. Disney has therefore not announced anything relating to the openings, other than the start of the official guest previews, and of course, the grand opening.

Here is a look at all of the key dates that we know of, and remember, these can change at any time, and are not an official list:

Soft openings - began October 12, 2012, running from 10am to 6pm. It is expected, but not guaranteed, that these will continue for the remainder of this week from approx. 10am to 6pm.

Cast Member - previews are being held October 20, 21, 22, 23 24, 25, 26, 28, 29, 30, 31, November 1, 2. During this time, it is expected that only cast members will be able to enter, and it is unlikely that any regular parks guests will be admitted.

Annual Passholder - previews are being held on Nov 3, Nov 10, Nov 11. As with the cast member previews, it is expected that regular park guests will not be admitted during these dates. Just added - November 6, 7, 8, 9, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18

D23 member - previews are being held on November 3 and November 4. It is expected that regular park guests will not be admitted during these dates.

DVC member - previews are being held on November 4 and November 5. It is expected that regular park guests will not be admitted during these dates.

Officially announced previews for all guests begin on November 19, 2012. During this time you can typically expect the land to be open to all guests, but since it is still in previews, it may close at any time.

The grand opening is December 6, 2012, when the land is officially declared open and should operate as normal along with the rest of the park.

As you can see from those dates, there are gaps between some of those phases, and we have no information as to what will happen during that time. Disney may well choose to resume guest soft openings, or the area may be closed for additional work. With any soft openings or previews, there are absolutely no guarantees that it will open.

PIXAR Place Expansion Coming Soon??

I'm going against everything I believe in when it comes to rumors, specifically DISNEY rumors, but I find this one way too juicy (and likely accurate) to pass up. According to a few reputable WDW fan websites, it seems that the Studio Backlot Tour is poised to close down at Disney's Hollywood Studios. We know that since Oaken's Trading Post and Frozen Funland are moving out of the Soundstage 1 area, work should soon begin on the rumored (and much needed) third track for Toy Story Mania. Why close the Backlot Tour? It appears that area is destined to be home to a rather extensive PIXAR Place expansion. According to WDW News Today, we will likely see smaller, flat-rides developed for Toy Story Playland at Disneyland Resort in Paris and Toy Story Land at Hong Kong Disneyland including RC Racer, Slinky Dog Zigzag Spin, and the Toy Soldier Parachute Drop. Attractions in this area don't take us much real estate as these rides would require, so WDW News Today specula

The Art of Topiary Gardening from Walt Disney World Resort

Topiary gardening, the art of fashioning living plan into ornamental shapes, has been practiced for centuries. Found throughout the gardens of the Walt Disney World Resort are hundreds of topiary figures, ranging from traditional hedges and sheared trees to fanciful shapes and a whole menagerie of "chlorophyll" Disney characters. Types of Topiary Four different types of topiary at the Walt Disney World resort have developed out of our desire to put on an award-winning horticultural show. Free-form topiary and standard form topiary require your imagination and some sharp shears - the other two utilize a frame specially suited to their needs. A lightweight frame is used for shrub topiary, while sphagnum topiary require a much stronger frame specially designed to support the weight of the figure. Standard Form Topiary The world standard is used to describe a plant that is grown to a designated height and then encouraged to bush or form a "head" at t

Disney's Animal Kingdom Entertainment Changes

T here have been several entertainment changes taking place at Disney's Animal Kingdom Theme Park in preparation for spring break. Those changes include DiVine meeting Guests in the Oasis area and Viva Gaia returning to the park. - Tam Tam Drummers of Harambe March 25-27: Earlier show-times in the day: 8:45 a.m., 9:15 a.m., 9:45 a.m., 10:15 a.m., 10:45 a.m., 11:15 a.m. and 11:45 a.m. - Burudika March 25-27: Later show-times in the day: 4:20 p.m., 5:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. - Viva Gaia Street Band! March 24 - April 6: Returning to Discovery Island. Set times are: 12:30 p.m., 1:30 p.m., 2:30 p.m. and 4 p.m. - DJ Anaan Beginning March 31: Schedule ending at 7 p.m. - DiVine (DON'T MISS!!) March 11-13 and March 24 - April 6: Meet-and-greet location change to Oasis.

Welcome to MikeandTheMouse

Search This Blog