It was a grand opening befitting Disney’s new D Street store at Downtown Disney mixing music, art and pyro. Disney describes D Street as where urban-inspired product “intersects” with a Disney creative edge. The store’s main focus is on the collectable Mickey Mouse Vinylmation figures. First up, speed painter Rock Demarco created his version of [...]

The serious collectors were out to get their goods as a special passholder preview was held Saturday morning for D Street, a new store in Downtown Disney West Side. There was a long line as the doors opened at 8:30 a.m. More guest dwindled in as the morning went on. (The store is located in [...]

Fun shifted into overdrive when Ridemakerz, the first-ever car customizing experience for kids and kids at heart, opened yesterday for a limited engagement at Downtown Disney West Side. This opening follows the October 2009 launch of a Ridemakerz shop in Downtown Disney in Anaheim, Calif. Ridemakerz invites guests into a car customizing shop where they [...]

Downtown Disney will welcome several additions in the coming months. Look for two new stores, a quick-service restaurant and 3D technology at the AMC Pleasure Island 24 movie theater. “We’re excited to build upon our existing portfolio of unique offerings and are committed to bringing guests even more interactive experiences,” said Downtown Disney Vice President [...]

Editor’s Note: We print Letters to the Editor in our print version, but that allows us only limited space. So from time to time, when we receive letters that are too long and have too much information to edit down, we’ll be posting them here as guest editorials. These letters are the opinions of the [...]

Planet Hollywood has closed one of their retail stores at Downtown Disney. The Planet Hollywood On Location store in Downtown Disney’s West Side is closed as of today. The store was located next to the recently opened LittleMissmatched store. Even though it was their largest store in Disney World, they’re still selling Planet Hollywood merchandise [...]

Chef Emeril Lagasse met fans and signed copies of his latest cookbook at Universal Orlando CityWalk on Dec. 14, 2009. The book signing took place in front of Emeril’s Orlando (his restaurant) in CityWalk. Emeril’s new cookbook, called “20-40-60: Fresh Food Fast” includes simple techniques and quick tips to create healthy meals for the family on the go. [...]

The 34th annual Festival of the Masters was held this past weekend at Downtown Disney. The West Side featured more than 150 award-winning artists – jewelry artists, painters, photographers, sculptors and more. The Marketplace featured the Central Florida Chalk Artists Association, and family fun could be found all around. Thanks to Bret Roseboom for providing [...]

A LittleMissMatched store is set to open on Monday, Nov. 9, 2009 at Downtown Disney. The mismatched socks clothing store will open at Downtown Disney West Side in the space formerly occupied by Starabilias. LittleMissMatched began with the idea to sell colorful missmatched socks in odd numbers. They quickly discovered that girls want to have [...]

The Orlando Business Journal is reporting that a new comedy club and restaurant is coming to the Pointe Orlando shopping center next year. From orlando.bizjournals.com: The new Improv Comedy Club and Dinner Theater, slated to open in spring 2010 on the second story of the lifestyle center, will feature 400 seats and resurrects a concept [...]

Lisa Ann Schreier is a local expert in the business of buying and selling timeshares. We met Lisa Ann at a recent travel expo and thought her insights would be of interest to our readers. Unfortunately, we didn’t have room for her article in the magazine, so we bring it to you here in its [...]

Element Skateboard Team members (from left) Chad Muska, Chad Tim Tim, Bam Margera, Collin Provost and Mike Vallely signed autographs for fans on Aug. 3, 2009, at Element’s newest store located at CityWalk. They also had a chance to ride on The Incredible Hulk coaster at Islands of Adventure. Photos by Kevin Kolczynski, Universal Orlando [...]

The Starabilias memorabilia store at Downtown Disney West Side recently closed their doors for good. The long-time tenant was rumored to be possibly closing because of the many sales they’ve been having. The Starabilias Web site is still active and still lists its Orlando location. Calls and e-mails to the company have gone unanswered. Starabilias [...]

Actor Alfonso Ribeiro (Most famous for his roles in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and Silver Spoons) shops with his daughter Sienna on April 10, 2009 at the new Tren-D store at Downtown Disney. The store blends both vintage and modern designs with stylized Disney characters. Photo by Gene Duncan

The Characters in Flight tethered hot air balloon ride has been running off and on for guests the past few days. It’s been windy so the balloon has been down more than up since it opened. But when it’s up, you can see it from miles away. I’ve seen it while driving down Apopka-Vineland Road [...]

Tren-D, a stylish boutique with designer flair and eclectic offerings became Downtown Disney’s newest shop with its grand opening on April 9. The urban-inspired specialty store is a one-of-a-kind, hip destination for fashion-conscious shoppers seeking trendy apparel and novel accessories. “This unique environment, filled with textured fabrics, new silhouettes, and whimsical art and design allows [...]

First the book store in Celebration closed, then it was announced that the Virgin Megastore is closing, now the B. Dalton book store in the Pointe Orlando shopping center is closing. The store is set to close in mid-May. The B. Dalton has been a part of the Pointe Orlando center since it opened. The [...]

With the Virgin Megastore at Downtown Disney closing next month, the closeout sale has begun. Starting today, everything is up to 30% off. Music, DVDs and books are 20% off and electronics are 10% off. I expect the discounts will increase as closing day nears. In addition to all merchandise being on sale, the store [...]

I stopped by the Lego Imagination Center at Downtown Disney tonight and noticed this very cool Digital Box display. If you hold certain Lego boxes up to the camera, it’ll show you an animated 3D model of the completed set right on top of the box you’re holding. This augmented reality technology is from a [...]

Volume 2, Issue 3 (April / May 2009) of Orlando Attractions Magazine is now available for preview and pre-Order. FEATURES: • COVER STORY: Idol Opportunity Visitors to Disney’s Hollywood Studios get into the act in the new American Idol Experience. • Unleash Your Inner Celebrity VIP tours offer a unique way to see Orlando’s theme [...]