Category: park news

Skipper Canteen opens in Adventureland

December 16, 2015 marks the official grand opening of Skipper Canteen in Adventureland! This is a new Jungle Cruise-themed restaurant that offers table service. Photos and information will be added throughout the coming days.

Skipper Canteen sign

Cast photo on Skipper Canteen's opening day
Cast photo on Skipper Canteen’s opening day

Skipper Canteen is only taking walk-up seating. There is a small waiting veranda with big chairs, fans, and “chests” to sit on and await your turn. The check-in booth is in the center of the veranda. There is also a decorative sphinx.

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Skipper Canteen is run by Alberta Falls, granddaughter of one Dr. Albert Falls, who ran the Canteen in the past. These portraits adorn the indoor waiting area, along with the Skipper Canteen’s “biggest fan”.

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Skipper’s Mess Hall

Immediately following the indoor waiting area is the Skipper’s Mess Hall. This room contains the bulk of the restaurant’s seating. Jungle artifacts line the walls.

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An interactive panoramic of the Mess Hall in Skipper Canteen on opening day, December 16, 2015.

S.E.A. (Society of Explorers and Adventurers) Room

Hidden behind a secret bookcase off the mess, the S.E.A. Room is adorned with the relics and insignia of a secret society of skippers known as the Society of Explorers and Adventurers. Little is known about this exclusive cadre of skippers, but their dining room is very tastefully composed around the hearth. A scene of a skipper intimidating a dangerous snake sits above the mantle.

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An interactive panoramic of the S.E.A. Room in Skipper Canteen on opening day, December 16, 2015.

Falls Family Dining Room

Also called the jungle room, this dining room contains many of the Falls family’s most precious heirlooms and specimens. It is said that Alberta opened this room to the public as a means to cope with her grandfather’s death.

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Familiar forms in the chandeliers…

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New information on Star Wars offerings at DHS

Disney’s Hollywood Studios will debut new, permanent Star Wars experiences beginning December 1, 2015, and continuing through 2017 until construction on Star Wars Land is complete.

The Disney Parks Blog has released information on 3 new experiences.

On December 1, the Star Wars Launch Bay, which occupies the former Magic of Disney Animation building, will open and provide sneak peeks and behind-the-scenes looks at the forthcoming Star Wars: The Force Awakens (scheduled for theatrical release December 18, 2015).

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The new Star Tours program.

Star Tours will get a simulator ride based on The Force Awakens. Disney says that during the “opening months”, this will be the only program that runs on the Star Tours simulator. After the initial period, the program will be entered into regular rotation.

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A session of the now-defunct Jedi Training Academy in action.

In early December, the currently walled off Jedi Training Academy, immediately adjacent to Star Tours, will re-open as Jedi Training: Trials of the Temple. The new attraction will serve the same purpose as the classic JTA, but the program and set will be refreshed to include the Seventh Sister from Disney XD’s Star Wars: Rebels.

2015 will be the last year for the Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights

The Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights, an annual feature at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, will have its final showing this year. Hollywood Studios’ massive renovation project will consume the Streets of America, the section of the park that hosts this display.

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Major new lands coming to Hollywood Studios

Last week’s D23 conference revealed two major new developments at Disney’s Hollywood Studios: Star Wars Land and Toy Story Land. Both have long been rumored and anticipated, but are now official. Star Wars Land will also be added to Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California. Early concept art was revealed for both lands.

Toy Story Land at DisneyÕs Hollywood Studios in Florida -- The reimagining of Disney's Hollywood Studios will take guests to infinity and beyond, allowing them to step into the worlds of their favorite films, starting with Toy Story Land. This new 11-acre land will transport guests into the adventurous outdoors of Andy's backyard. Guests will think they've been shrunk to the size of Woody and Buzz as they are surrounded by oversized toys that Andy has assembled using his vivid imagination. Using toys like building blocks, plastic buckets and shovels, and game board pieces, Andy has designed the perfect setting for this land, which will include two new attractions for any Disney park and one expanded favorite. (Disney Parks)
Toy Story Land, based on “Andy’s backyard”

Star Wars-Themed Lands Coming to Disney Parks Ð Walt Disney Company Chairman and CEO Bob Iger announced at D23 EXPO 2015 that Star Wars-themed lands will be coming to Disneyland park in Anaheim, Calif., and DisneyÕs Hollywood Studios in Orlando, Fla., creating DisneyÕs largest single-themed land expansions ever at 14-acres each, transporting guests to a never-before-seen planet, a remote trading port and one of the last stops before wild space where Star Wars characters and their stories come to life. These authentic lands will have two signature attractions, including the ability to take the controls of one of the most recognizable ships in the galaxy, the Millennium Falcon, on a customized secret mission, and an epic Star Wars adventure that puts guests in the middle of a climactic battle. (Disney Parks)
Star Wars Land

Further detail on either development is scarce (speculation can be made from images of the concept art at reasonable resolution, like those shown here). More information was given about Star Wars Land than Toy Story Land, suggesting that it is further along in development. Star Wars Land will feature “two signature attractions”: one based on flying the Millennium Falcon and one in which guests are put “in the middle of a climactic battle”. There will be a walkthrough attraction called “Star Wars Launch Bay”. This is all the real information we have on either development so far.

In addition to the land overview, 3 other concepts around Star Wars Land were released:

Star Wars-Themed Lands Coming to Disney Parks – Walt Disney Company Chairman and CEO Bob Iger announced at D23 EXPO 2015 that Star Wars-themed lands will be coming to Disneyland park in Anaheim, Calif., and Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Orlando, Fla., creating Disney’s largest single-themed land expansions ever at 14-acres each, transporting guests to a never-before-seen planet, a remote trading port and one of the last stops before wild space where Star Wars characters and their stories come to life. These authentic lands will have two signature attractions, including the ability to take the controls of one of the most recognizable ships in the galaxy, the Millennium Falcon, on a customized secret mission, and an epic Star Wars adventure that puts guests in the middle of a climactic battle. (Disney Parks
Millennium Falcon

Star Wars-Themed Lands Coming to Disney Parks Ð Walt Disney Company Chairman and CEO Bob Iger announced at D23 EXPO 2015 that Star Wars-themed lands will be coming to Disneyland park in Anaheim, Calif., and DisneyÕs Hollywood Studios in Orlando, Fla., creating DisneyÕs largest single-themed land expansions ever at 14-acres each, transporting guests to a never-before-seen planet, a remote trading port and one of the last stops before wild space where Star Wars characters and their stories come to life. These authentic lands will have two signature attractions, including the ability to take the controls of one of the most recognizable ships in the galaxy, the Millennium Falcon, on a customized secret mission, and an epic Star Wars adventure that puts guests in the middle of a climactic battle. (Disney Parks)
Concept likely depicting the “climactic battle”

Star Wars Launch Bay Coming to Disneyland Resort and Walt Disney World Resort -- This interactive experience will take guests into the upcoming film, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, with special exhibits and peeks behind the scenes, including opportunities to visit with new and favorite Star Wars characters, special merchandise and food offerings. Star Wars Launch Bay will be located in the Animation Courtyard at DisneyÕs Hollywood Studios and in Tomorrowland at Disneyland park. (Disney Parks)
Star Wars Launch Bay

DisneyQuest, Magic of Disney Animation, and others to close in near future

Disney has announced that DisneyQuest will close in 2016 and be replaced by “The NBA Experience”, a restaurant and store featuring “high-tech experiences”. A definite closure date has not yet been announced. Universal’s CityWalk is home to NBA City, which is closing at the end of August 2015.

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The Magic of Disney Animation at Hollywood Studios will close in July 2015.

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Richard Petty Driving Experience will close on August 9, 2015 and the Walt Disney World Speedway will be razed to make room for expanded parking at the Magic Kingdom.

First Details on “Frozen Ever After”, Maelstrom’s replacement

The first details on Frozen Ever After, the Frozen ride expected to replace Maelstrom, have been released on the Disney Parks Blog today.

Frozen Ever After concept art. Courtesy Disney.
Frozen Ever After concept rendering. The guests are seen riding in Viking-style longships that appear very similar to the ones used on Maelstrom.
Image © Disney, All Rights Reserved

The ride is expected to start guests out in Arendelle on a hot summer day when Elsa decides to grant a one-day wintry respite for her subjects. Elsa’s Ice Palace and other prominent locations from the 2013 film are also expected to appear.

The Norway Pavilion will be expanded to facilitate the additional crowds. Details on the expanded facility were revealed through a municipal filing (zip of docs) in January, which was falsely reported as a complete conversion of the pavilion from Norway to Arendelle. Vacant land bordering Mexico and Norway, previously speculated to be the home of a new pavilion, is being used to accommodate the work.

The expanded Norway will have “many unique Norwegian architectural features and afford guests the opportunity to meet Anna and Elsa at Epcot, which has been unavailable since the sisters moved to Princess Fairytale Hall in the Magic Kingdom in April 2014.

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A castle, reminiscent of the one shown in Frozen, can be seen rising over the Norway pavilion from the World Showcase. This photo shows construction as of May 17, 2015.

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Construction walls are decorated with Frozen-themed art.

The renovation of Norway’s pavilion to accommodate the demand for a Frozen attraction has been a source of controversy within the Disney Parks community since the shutdown of Maelstrom in October 2014. Prior thereto, the World Showcase had been fairly immune to vertical integration, retaining a high-class educational atmosphere. Concerns that Disney will lose respect for the mature ambiance of the World Showcase and seek to replace neutral cultural experiences with the next hot promotional opportunity stalk many fans.

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Maelstrom’s signage before its closure.

Disney executive Tom Staggs told the Wall Street Journal that the integration is justified because of the larger crowds it will bring to the pavilion, saying “[i]f the goal is to give people a taste of something like Scandinavia with the Norway pavilion, then ‘Frozen’ would only increase the extent to which people would be drawn to it”.

Frozen Ever After is expected to open in 2016.